• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.198-202
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• 2013

To produce transgenic cucumber expressing Nit gene coffering abiotic resistance, the cotyledonary-node explants of cucumber (cv. Eunsung) were inoculated with A. tumefaciens transformed with pPZP211 or pCAMBIA2300 carrying Nit gene, that has cis-acting element involved in resistance to various abiotic environmental stresses. After co-cultivation, the procedures of selection, shoot initiation, shoot elongation, and plant regeneration were followed by cotyledonary-node transformation method (CTM, Jang et al. 2011). The putative transgenic plants were selected when shoots were grown to a length greater than 3 cm from the cotyledonary-node explants on selection medium supplemented with 100 mg/L paromomycin as a selectable agent. The confirmation of transgenic cucumber was based on the genomic PCR, Southern blot analysis, RT-PCR, and Northern blot analysis. A 105 shoots (4.12%) selected from the selection mediums were obtained from 2,547 explants inoculated. Of them, putative transgenic plants were only confirmed with 45 plants (1.77%) by genomic PCR analysis. Transgenic plants showed that the Nit genes integrated into each genome of 39 plants (1.53%) by Southern blot analysis, and the expression of gene integrated into cucumber genome was only confirmed at 6 plants (0.24%) by RT-PCR and Northern blot analysis. These results lead us to speculate that the genes were successfully integrated and expressed in each genome of transgenic cucumber.

• BMB Reports
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.538-545
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• 2004

A new CRT binding factor (CBF) gene designated Cbcbf25 was cloned from Capsella bursa-pastoris, a wild grass, by the rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE). The full-length cDNA of Cbcbf25 was 898 bp with a 669 bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding a putative DRE/CRT (LTRE)-binding protein of 223 amino acids. The predicted CbCBF25 protein contained a potential nuclear localization signal (NLS) in its N-terminal region followed by an AP2 DNA-binding motif and a possible acidic activation domain in the C-terminal region. Bioinformatic analysis revealed that Cbcbf25 has a high level of similarity with other CBF genes like cbf1, cbf2, and cbf3 from Arabidopsis thaliana, and Bncbf5, Bncbf7, Bncbf16, and Bncbf17 from Brassica napus. A cold acclimation assay showed that Cbcbf25 was expressed immediately after cold triggering, but this expression was transient, suggesting that it concerns cold acclimation. Our study implies that Cbcbf25 is an analogue of other CBF genes and may participate in cold-response, by for example, controlling the expression of cold-regulated genes or increasing the freezing tolerance of plants.

• BMB Reports
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.334-341
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• 2001

Even though three isotypes of thioredoxins (-f, -m and -h types) have been identified in a variety of plant cells, there are only a few reports on thioredoxin-h that were recently identified. In this study, a cDNA encoding a h-type of thioredoxin was isolated from a cDNA library of Chinese cabbage, and named here CTrx-h. An open reading frame of the gene contained a polypeptide of 133 amino acids with a conserved active center, WCGPC, which appeared in all of the thioredoxin proteins. A deduced amino acid sequence of the CTrx-h showed the highest sequence identity with those of Arabidopsis thioredoxin-h2 (75.2%) and thioredoxin-h5 (46.6%) proteins, but it shared a low sequence homology to other isotypes of plant thioredoxinm and thioredoxin-f. The CTrx-h protein that is expressed in E. coli represented not only an insulin reduction activity, but also electron transferring activity from NADPH to thioredoxin-dependent peroxidase. A genomic Southern blot analysis using the cDNA insert of CTrx-h revealed that the gene consisted of a small multigene family in Chinese cabbage genome. On the contrary to other thioredoxin-h proteins that were widely distributed in most tissues of the plant, the CTrx-h was predominantly expressed in flowers. The expression was very low in other tissues. The data of the Northern blot analysis suggests that the CTrx-h may have other functions in flower development or differentiation, in addition to its defensive role.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.166-173
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• 2010

The purpose of functional genome research is to identify biological function of useful gene and to give an agricultural value in plant biotechnology. Brassica rapa is an economic crop which recorded 1,000 billion won of domestic market and 100 million dollar of exports and it produces 2.5 million ton in 50,000 ha as a major ingredient of representative Korean food, Kimchi. Furthermore, it is very important crop economically and commercially because Korea is major seed exporter. The fact that Multinational Brassica Genome Project (MBGP) was launched and Arabidopsis thaliana, affiliated to same genus with B. rapa, has been fully sequenced activated functional genome research of B. rapa. Besides new technologies related to gene function analysis keep developing, many results are reporting every year by international research including Korea. This review paper introduces development of Chinese cabbage mutants which is a first step in functional genome research, variant phenotypes of mutants, flanking DNA analysis in B. rapa genome, gene identification, gene analysis using microarray, and representative researches.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 1995.06b
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• pp.27-53
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• 1995

In plant pathology there is an increasing necessity for improved cytological techniques as basis for the localization of cellular substances within the dynamic fine structure of the host-(plant)-pathogen-interaction. Low temperature (LT) preparation techniques (shock freezing, freeze substitution, LT embedding) are now successfully applied in plant pathology. They are regarded as important tools to stabilize the dynamic plant-pathogen-interaction as it exists under physiological conditions. - The main advantage of LT techniques versus conventional chemical fixation is seen in the maintenance of the hydration shell of molecules and macromolecular structures. This results in an improved fine structural preservation and in a superior retention of the antigenicity of proteins. - A well defined ultrastructure of small, fungal organisms and large biological samples such as plant material and as well as the plant-pathogen (fungus) infection sites are presented. The mesophyll tissue of Arabidopsis thaliana is characterized by homogeneously structured cytoplasm closely attached to the cell wall. From analyses of the compatible interaction between Erysiphe graminis f. sp. hordei on barley (Hordeum vulgare), various steps in the infection sequence can be identified. Infection sites of powdery mildew on primary leaves of barley are analysed with regard to the fine structural preservation of the haustoria. The presentation s focussed on the ultrastructure of the extrahaustorial matrix and the extrahaustorial membrane. - The integration of improved cellular preservation with a molecular analysis of the infected host cell is achieved by the application of secondary probing techniques, i.e. immunocytochemistry. Recent data on the characterization of freeze substituted powdery mildew and urst infected plant tissue by immunogold methodology are described with special emphasis on the localization of THRGP-like (threonine-hydrxyproline-rich glycoprotein) epitopes. Infection sites of powdery mildew on barley, stem rust as well as leaf rust (Puccinia recondita) on primary leaves of wheat were probed with a polyclonal antiserum to maize THRGP. Cross-reactivity with the anti-THRGP antiserum was observed over the extrahaustorial matrix of the both compatible and incompatible plant-pathogen interactions. The highly localized accumulation of THRGP-like epitopes at the extrahaustorial host-pathogen interface suggests the involvement of structural, interfacial proteins during the infection of monocotyledonous plants by obligate, biotrophic fungi.

• Korean Journal of Weed Science
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• v.31 no.3
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• pp.240-249
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• 2011

The potential of juglone a plant naphthoquinone as a natural herbicide on new target, 7-keto-8-amino pelargonic acid synthetase (KAPAS) in the early step of biotin biosynthesis pathway, was performed in vitro and in vivo. Juglone effectively inhibited KAPAS activities in vitro and the $IC_{50}$ was $9.5{\mu}M$. Foliar application of juglone showed very good herbicidal activity to the eight-tested weed species. Among them, Solanum nigrum was completely controlled at a concentration of $250{\mu}g\;mL^{-1}$ with main symptoms of desiccation or burndown. Digitaria sanguinalis and Aeschynomene indica were also sensitive to juglone treatment. All eight weed species were controlled by 90~100% at a concentration of $500{\mu}g\;mL^{-1}$. However, soil application of juglone to Digitaria sanguinalis did not show any herbicidal symptoms. Cellular leakage from cucumber leaf squares treated with juglone increased depending on the concentrations increased from 6.25 to $100{\mu}M$ after 24 hours incubation with or without light. However, chlorophyll loss in cucumber leaf squares was negligible. Biotin supplements significantly rescued the inhibition of germination rate of Arabidopsis thaliana seeds previously inhibited by the juglone. Our results suggest that the juglone is a possible environmental friendly herbicide candidate with a new target KAPAS inhibiting activity.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.323-328
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• 2003

Soil salinity is one of the most serious abiotic stresses limiting the productivity of agricultural crops. To cope with salt stress, plants respond with physiological, developmental and biochemical changes, including the synthesis of a number of proteins and the induction of gene expression. Salicornia herbacea is a halophytic plant that grows in salt marshes and on muddy seashores. In order to understand the biochemical and molecular mechanisms of salt tolerance in S. herbacea, we isolated several genes that involved in the salt tolerance by mRNA differential display. Here we report the cloning of a cDNA encoding fructose-1, 6-bisphosphate aldolase, named ShADL, which is 1293 bp long and contains an open reading frame consisted of 359 amino acids with calculated molecular mass of 39 kDa. ShADL protein showed 86％ identity with Arabidopsis and 78％ with aldolase of common ice plant. Northern blot analysis revealed that the transcript of ShADL gene was increased dramatically depending on the NaCl concentrations.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.12-24
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• 2010

Plant metabolomics is a research field for identifying all of the metabolites found in a certain plant cell, tissue, organ, or whole plant in a given time and conditions and for studying changes in metabolic profiling as time goes or conditions change. Metabolomics is one of the most recently developed omics for holistic approach to biology and is a kind of systems biology. Metabolomics or metabolite fingerprinting techniques usually involves collecting spectra of crude solvent extracts without purification and separation of pure compounds or not in standardized conditions. Therefore, that requires a high degree of reproducibility, which can be achieved by using a standardized method for sample preparation and data acquisition and analysis. In plant biology, metabolomics is applied for various research fields including rapid discrimination between plant species, cultivar and GM plants, metabolic evaluation of commercial food stocks and medicinal herbs, understanding various physiological, stress responses, and determination of gene functions. Recently, plant metabolomics is applied for characterization of gene function often in combination with transcriptomics by analyzing tagged mutants of the model plants of Arabidopsis and rice. The use of plant metabolomics combined by transcriptomics in functional genomics will be the challenge for the coming year. This review paper attempted to introduce current status and prospects of plant metabolomics research.

• Journal of The Korean Society of Grassland and Forage Science
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.281-286
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• 2005

To develop transgenic birdsfoot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus L.) plants tolerant to environmental stress, Arabidopsis NDPK gene (AtNDPK) was introduced into birdsfoot trefoil plants using Agrobacterium-mediated transformation and expressed powerfully under the control of the SWPA2 promoter. The expression vector, pCAMBIA2300 was used for introduction of AtNDPK gene into birdsfoot trefoil plants. The transformed calli were selected on kanamycin containing medium and then regenerated. The transformed birdsfoot trefoil plants were cultivated fur 4 months on BOi2Y medium. Genomic DNA PCR and Southern blot analysis confirmed the incorporation of AtNDPK into the birdsfoot trefoil genome.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.1-7
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• 2013

Understanding salt tolerance mechanisms is important for the increase of crop yields, and so, several screening approaches were developed to identify plant genes which are involved in salt tolerance of plants. Here, we transformed the Arabidopsis cDNA library into a salt-sensitive calcineurin (CaN)-deficient ($cnb{\Delta}$) yeast mutant and isolated the colonies which can suppress salt-sensitive phenotype of $cnb{\Delta}$ mutant. Through this functional complementation screen, a total of 34 colonies functionally suppressed the salt-sensitive phenotype of $cnb{\Delta}$ yeast cells, and sequencing analysis revealed that these are 9 genes, including CaS, AtSUMO1 and AtHB-12. Among these genes, the ectopic expression of CaS gene increased salt tolerance in yeast, and CaS transcript was up-regulated under high salinity conditions. CaS-antisense transgenic plants showed reduced root elongation under 100 mM NaCl treatment compared to the wild type plant, which survived under 150 mM NaCl treatment, whereas CaS-antisense transgenic plant leaves turned yellow under 150 mM NaCl treatment. These results indicate that the expression of CaS gene is important for stress tolerance in yeast and plants.