• 환경위생공학
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• 제15권4호
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• pp.105-113
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• 2000

We have isolated 65 strains(2.0%) of Y. enterocolitica among 3,219 water samples from 380 spring water sites in Seoul from 1994 to 1999. The biochemical characteristics of isolated strains revealed that TSI was A/A, urea, M.R.($37^{\circ}C$), nitrate, motility($37^{\circ}C$), sorbitol, maltose, manitol, arabinose, mannose, trehalose, xylose were positive(100%) and H$_2$S, arginine, lysine, oxidase, citrate, V.P.($37^{\circ}C$), DNase, motility($37^{\circ}C$), dulcitol, adonitol, lactose and raffinose were negative(100%). In in vitro virulence test, positive rate of AAG and CRMOX were 9.2% and 4.6%, respectively. However in the virulence gene detectable gene detectable test by multiplex-PCR using ail, yst, virF genes, 65 strains were all negative, meaning that Y.enterocolitica strains from domestic spring water were not detected for the virulence. Otherwise, mutiplex-PCR which using ail, yst and subgenus-specific primer pair was the best for identifying the virulence of Y. enterocolitica.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• 제16권4호
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• pp.221-227
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• 2013

In total, 131 Escherichia coli isolates from surface seawater of the Gomso Bay, of Korea, were analyzed for their susceptibility to 22 different antimicrobials and for genes associated with antimicrobial resistance and virulence. According to the disk diffusion susceptibility test, the resistance to tetracycline was most prevalent (33.6%), followed by that to ampicillin (22.1%), ticarcillin (22.1%), and trimethoprim (16.8%). More than 46.6% of the isolates were resistant to at least one antimicrobial, and 22.9% were resistant to three or more classes of antimicrobials; these were consequently defined as multidrug resistant. We further found that 29 ampicillin-resistant isolates possessed genes encoding TEM-type (93.1%) and SHV-type (6.9%) ${\beta}$-lactamases. Among the 44 tetracycline-resistant isolates, tetA and tetC were found in 35 (79.5%) and 19 (43.2%), respectively, whereas tetB was detected in only three isolates (6.8%). With regard to virulence genes, merely 0.8% (n = 1) and 2.3% (n = 3) of the isolates were positive for the enteroaggregative E. coli-associated plasmid (pCVD432) gene and the enteropathogenic E. coli-specific attaching and effacing (eae) gene, respectively. Overall, these results not only provide novel insight into the necessity for seawater sanitation in Gomso Bay, but they help reduce the risk of contamination of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• 제36권1호
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• pp.29-42
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• 2020

Acidovorax citrulli causes bacterial fruit blotch in Cucurbitaceae, including watermelon. Although A. citrulli is a seed-borne pathogen, it can cause diverse symptoms in other plant organs like leaves, stems and fruits. To determine the infection routes of A. citrulli, we examined the virulence of six isolates (Ac0, Ac1, Ac2, Ac4, Ac8, and Ac11) on watermelon using several inoculation methods. Among six isolates, DNA polymorphism reveals that three isolates Ac0, Ac1, and Ac4 belong to Clonal Complex (CC) group II and the others do CC group I. Ac0, Ac4, and Ac8 isolates efficiently infected seeds during germination in soil, and Ac0 and Ac4 also infected the roots of watermelon seedlings wounded prior to inoculation. Infection through leaves was successful only by three isolates belonging to CC group II, and two of these also infected the mature watermelon fruits. Ac2 did not cause the disease in all assays. Interestingly, three putative type III effectors (Aave_2166, Aave_2708, and Aave_3062) with intact forms were only found in CC group II. Overall, our results indicate that A. citrulli can infect watermelons through diverse routes, and the CC grouping of A. citrulli was only correlated with virulence in leaf infection assays.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제44권1호
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• pp.15-20
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• 2006

Free-living amoebae of the genus Acanthamoeba are causative agents of granulomatous amebic encephalitis and amebic keratitis. Because the virulence of Acanthamoeba culbertsoni cultured in the laboratory is restored by consecutive brain passages, we examined the genes induced in mouse brain-passaged A. culbertsoni by differential display reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (DDRT-PCR). Enhanced A. culbertsoni virulence was observed during the second mouse brain passage, i.e., infected mouse mortality increased from $5\%\;to\;70\%.$ Ten cDNAs induced during mouse brain passage were identified by DDRT-PCR and this was confirmed by northern blot analysis. BlastX searches of these cDNAs indicated the upregulations of genes encoding predictive NADH-dehydrogenase, proteasomal ATPase, and GDP-mannose pyrophosphorylase B, which have previously been reported to be associated with A. culbertsoni virulence factors.

• 대한수의학회지
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• 제60권3호
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• pp.163-171
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• 2020

This study examined the prevalence of adherence factors, toxin genes, antimicrobial resistance phenotypes, and resistance genes in Escherichia coli (E. coli) isolated from piglets with diarrhea before and after the ban on antibiotic growth promoters (AGPs) in Korea from 2007 to 2018. In this period, pathogenic 474 E. coli isolates were obtained from diarrheic piglets. The virulence factors and antimicrobial resistance genes were assayed using a polymerase chain reaction, and the susceptibility to antibiotics was tested according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guidelines. After the ban on AGPs, the frequency of F4 (12.5% to 32.7%) increased significantly, and LT (31.9% to 20.3%) and EAST-I (46.5% to 35.2%) decreased significantly. In addition, the resistance to streptomycin (45.8% to 67.9%), cephalothin (34.0% to 59.4%), and cefazlin (10.4% to 28.8%) increased significantly. Colistin resistance plasmid-mediated genes, mcr-1 and mcr-3, were detected after the ban on AGPs. The results of this study can provide useful data for analyzing the impact of the ban on AGPs on the virulence profiles and antimicrobial resistance of E. coli isolated from piglets with diarrhea in Korea.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 한국균학회 2016년도 춘계학술대회 및 임시총회
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• pp.17-17
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• 2016

Calcineurin governs stress survival, sexual differentiation, and virulence of the human fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans. Herein, we identified and characterized calcineurin substrates in C. neoformans by employing phosphoproteomic $TiO_2$ enrichment and quantitative mass spectrometry. The identified targets include the zinc finger transcription factor Crz1 and proteins whose functions are linked to P-bodies/stress granules (PBs/SGs) and mRNA translation and decay, such as Pbp1 and Puf4. We show that Crz1 is a bona fide calcineurin substrate, and localization and transcriptional activity of Crz1 are controlled by calcineurin. Several of the calcineurin targets localized to PBs/SGs, including Puf4 and Pbp1, and are required for survival at high temperature and for virulence. Genetic epistasis analysis revealed that Crz1 and the novel targets Lhp1, Puf4, and Pbp1 function in a branched calcineurin pathway that orchestrates stress survival and virulence. These findings propose that calcineurin controls thermal stress and virulence at the transcriptional level via Crz1 and post-transcriptionally by regulating target factors involved in mRNA metabolism.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제18권7호
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• pp.1227-1234
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• 2008

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic human pathogen that produces and secretes exopolysaccharides (EPS), in which cells are embedded to form a highly organized community structure called biofilm. Here, we characterized the role of cyclic diguanylate (c-di-GMP) and EPS (PEL) overproduction in the wspF mutant phenotypes of P. aeruginosa PA14 (wrinkly appearance, hyperadherence, impaired motilities, and reduced virulence in acute infections). We confirmed that the elevated c-di-GMP level plays a key role in all the wspF mutant phenotypes listed above, as assessed by ectopic expression of a c-di-GMP-degrading phophodiesterase (PvrR) in the wspF mutant. In contrast, PEL EPS, which is overproduced in the wspF mutant, was necessary for wrinkly appearance and hyperadherence, but not for the impaired flagellar motilities and the attenuated virulence of the wspF mutant. These results suggest that c-di-GMP affects flagellar motility and virulence, independently of EPS production and surface adherence of this bacterium.

• 한국어병학회지
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• 제31권1호
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• pp.15-21
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• 2018

Differences in in vivo virulence and in sensitivity to drugs among different isolates of Miamiensis avidus were analyzed. The isolate III showed the highest resistance against the scuticocidal activity of olive flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) serum, and induced the highest mortalities of olive flounder fingerlings. The isolate II showed significantly higher serum resistance than the isolate I, but in vivo virulence of isolate II was not significantly different from that of isolate I. The secreted proteinases activity of isolate III was significantly higher than that of isolate I and II, and the activity was significantly reduced by the addition of E-64, a cysteine proteinases inhibitor. There were no differences among isolates in the sensitivity to doxycycline, however, there were significant differences in sensitivities to mebendazole and bithionol. These results suggest that the different characteristics of different M. avidus isolates should be taken into consideration for the development of control measures against scuticociliatosis.

• 대한의생명과학회지
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• 제27권4호
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• pp.195-207
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• 2021

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a bacterial pathogen capable of causing human diseases, such as soft tissue infection, bacteremia, endocarditis, toxic shock syndrome, pneumonia, and sepsis. Although the incidence rate of diseases caused by MRSA has declined in recent years, these diseases still pose a clinical threat due to their consistently high morbidity and mortality rates. However, the role of virulence factors in staphylococcal infections remains incompletely understood. Methicillin resistance, which confers resistance to all β-lactam antibiotics in cellular islets, is mediated by the mecA gene in the staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec (SCCmec). Differences in SCCmec types and differences in their sizes and structures serve epidemiological purposes and are used to differentiate between hospital-associated (HA)-MRSA and community-associated (CA)-MRSA. Some virulence factors of S. aureus are also providing a distinction between HA-MRSA and CA-MRSA. These factors vary depending on the presence of toxins, adhesion, immune evasion, and other virulence determinants. In this review, we summarized an overview of MRSA such as resistance mechanisms, SCCmec types, HA- and CA-MRSA, and virulence factors that enhance pathogenicity or MRSA epidemiology, transmission, and genetic diversity.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• 제38권4호
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• pp.366-371
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• 2022

The white soybean cyst nematode Heterodera sojae, isolated from the roots of soybean in Korea, is widespread in most provinces of the country and has the potential to be as harmful to soybean as H. glycines. Determining the virulence phenotypes of H. sojae is essential to devising management strategies that use resistant cultivars. Consequently, virulence phenotypes of 15 H. sojae populations from Korea were determined on seven soybean lines and one susceptible check variety. Two different HS types were found to be present in Korea; the more common HS type 2.5.7, comprising 73.3% of the H. sojae populations and the less common HS type 0, constituting only 26.7% of the tested populations. Considering the high frequency of H. sojae adaptation to soybean indicator lines, the PI 88788 group may not be a possible source of resistance while PI 548402, PI 90763, PI 437654, and PI 89772 can be used as resistance sources for soybean breeding programs aimed at developing H. sojae-resistant soybean cultivars in Korea.