• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.20 no.12
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• pp.1887-1894
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• 2007

In this paper, a rapid and reliable gene-targeted species-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique based on a two-step process was established to identify bifidobacteria in dairy products. The first step was the PCR assay for genus Bifidobacterium with genus specific primers followed by the second step, which identified the species level with species-specific primer mixtures. Ten specific primer pairs, designed from nucleotide sequences of the 16-23S rRNA region, were developed for the Bifidobacterium species including B. angulatum, B. animalis, B. bifidum, B. breve, B. catenulatum, B. infantis, B. longum, B. minimum, B. subtile, and B. thermophilum. This technique was applied to the identification of Bifidobacterium species isolated from 6 probiotic products, and four different Bifidobacterium spp. (B. bifidum, B. longum, B. infantis, and B. breve) were identified. The findings indicated that the 16S-23S rDNA gene-targeted species-specific PCR technique is a simple and reliable method for identification of bifidobacteria in probiotic products. PCR combined with Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE) for identification of the bifidobacteria was also evaluated and compared with the gene-targeted species-specific technique. Results indicated that for fermented milk products consistency was found for both species-specific PCR and PCR-DGGE in detecting species. However, in some lyophilized products, the bands corresponding to these species were not visualized in the DGGE profile but the specific PCR gave a positive result.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.6
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• pp.885-892
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• 2020

Chemotherapy regimens for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) have various adverse effects on the human body. For this reason, probiotics have received attention regarding their potential value as a safe and natural complementary strategy for cancer prevention. This study analyzed the anticancer effects of aqueous extracts of probiotic bacteria Bifidobacterium bifidum (BB), Bifidobacterium longum (BL), Bifidobacterium lactis (BLA), Bifidobacterium infantis 1 (BI1), and Bifidobacterium infantis 2 (BI2) on NSCLC cell lines. When the aqueous extracts of probiotic Bifidobacterium species were applied to the NSCLC cell lines A549, H1299, and HCC827, cell death increased considerably; in particular, the aqueous extracts from BB and BLA markedly reduced cell proliferation. p38 phosphorylation induced by BB aqueous extract increased the expression of cleaved caspase 3 and cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP), consequently inducing the apoptosis of A549 and H1299 cells. When the p38 inhibitor SB203580 was applied, phosphorylation of p38 decreased, and the expression of cleaved caspase 3 and cleaved PARP was also inhibited, resulting in a reduction of cell death. In addition, BB aqueous extracts reduced the secretion of MMP-9, leading to inhibition of cancer cell invasion. By contrast, after transfection of short hairpin RNA shMMP-9 (for a knockdown of MMP-9) into cancer cells, BB aqueous extracts treatment failed to suppress the cancer cell invasiveness. According to our results about their anticancer effects on NSCLC, probiotics consisting of Bifidobacterium species may be useful as adjunctive anticancer treatment in the future.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.388-394
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• 2005

In order to investigate the distribution of dominant Bifidobacterium species in intestinal microflora of Korean adults and seniors, SDS-PAGE profiles of whole cell proteins were used for the identification of bifidobacteria. To confirm the reliability of SDS-PAGE, the Bifidobacterium species identified by SDS-PAGE of whole cell proteins were validated by using 16S rDNA sequencing analysis. The results of SDS­PAGE corresponded well with those determined by the analysis of 16S rDNA sequencing. Based on the analysis of SDS-PAGE patterns on unidentified fecal strains which showed positive in fructose-6-phosphate phosphoketolase activity, B. adolescentis, B. longum, and B. bifidum were identified in the feces of adults, and B. adolescentis, B. longum, B. bifidum, B. breve, and B. dentium were identified in those of seniors. In most of the fecal samples tested, the predominant Bifidobacterium species consisted of only a few species, and differences in the distribution and numbers of Bifidobacterium species were observed between adults and seniors. B. adolescentis and B. longum were found to be the most common species in feces of adults, but not in seniors. Accordingly, the distribution and abundance of bifidobacteria in the human intestinal microflora varied depending on the age of hosts.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.176-181
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• 2002

In order to isolate and identify Bifidobacterium spp. that originated in Korea, feces were sampled from healthy Korean adults and children living in three villages, the first having a history of longevity and the other two where the diet did not include fermented milk or any pharmaceutical preparations. Through the use of Gram staining and microscopic examination for cell morphology, 23 bacterial strains presumed to be the Bifidobacterium genus were isolated from the feces of 13 out of a total of 59 Korean people. To identify the Bifidobacterium strains at the genus level, these bacteria were then analyzed by TLC and the fructose-6-phosphate phosphoketolase (F6PPK) test. The result showed that 22 of the isolated strains were confirmed to be members of the genus Bifidobacterium. All of these bifidobacteria were also identified as Bifidobacterium spp. by the fermentation test. Using a RFLP analysis, an attempt was made to identify the Bifidobacterium spp. that had been isolated from both Korean adults and children. In a genomic Southern blot analysis after digestion with two restriction enzymes (EcoRI, HindIII), all of the 14 randomly selected Korean isolates showed patterns identical to those of three different B. longum species. Another restriction enzyme, CfoI (4-bp recognition enzyme), was then used to identify the strain. Interestingly, all the Korean isolates were identified as B. longum ATCC 15708, indicating that a RFLP analysis was effective for identifying Bifidobacterium spp. at both the strain and species levels.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.48 no.1
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• pp.20-26
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• 2004

Twelve strains of Bifidobacterium spp. were isolated from the feces of healthy Korean 20∼30 years. The identification of genera from isolates were performed by the microscopic observation and fructose-6-phosphate phosphoketolase (F6PPK) activity which is the key enzyme to distinguish the Bifidobacterium spp. from other anaerobic bacteria. To determine the antibacterial resistance patterns, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of several antibiotics (including anti-tuberculosis agents) was determined. Five of the isolate!, showed the high degree of resistance to vancomycin. To investigate the genetic diversity between isolates and type strain of Bifidobacterium spp. from KCTC, we peformed the RAPD-fingerprinting. Using a total set of four primers, it is possible to distinguish the isolates and Bifidobacterium spp. from KCTC. Thus, Bifidobacterium strains isolated from our samples may be a new species or strains of Bifidobacteriurn genera, and have the potential as a probiotics.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.924-927
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• 2003

This study was conducted to investigate the application of bifidobacteria on kimchi. Among several Bifidobacterium species, we selected Bifidobacterium lactis (DSM 10140), which is resistant to oxygen, acid and salt. Bifidobacterium lactis was cultured in a supplemented deMan, Rogosa and Sharpe (SMRS) medium under aerobic conditions. Its acid-tolerance and salt-tolerance were pH 3.0 and 3.5% (NaCl), respectively. The viability of Bifidobacterium lactis added to kimchi was confirmed by PCR, using specific primers on Bifidobacterium lactis. In sensory evaluation, kimchi containing Bifidobacterium lactis showed similar scores in overall acceptability with the control kimchi. Consequently, these results showed that it would be possible to prepare functional kimchi using Bifidobacterium.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.858-862
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• 2001

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of nondigestible oligosaccharides (NDO) from red ginseng marc on the growth of Bifidobacterium spp. Red ginseng marc, a fibrous byproduct of ginseng extract from processing, was destarched by ${\alpha}$-amylase and amyloglucosidase treatment, and then treated with a commercial pectinase to produce NDO. The bifidogenic effects of NDO on B. adolescentis, B. animalis, B. breve, and B. longum were investigated in vitro. NDO significantly promoted the growth of Bifidobacterium spp. The growth, decrease of pH, and organic acid formation (acetate, lactate, formate) were markedly different among the species. B. adolescentis showed the best growth and produced the greatest amount of organic acids. When NDO was used as a carbon source in the cocultivation of Bifidobacterium spp. and Clostridium perfringens, the growth of Bifidobacterium spp. was not influenced by the existence of Cl. perfringens. The result strongly suggested that NDO from red ginseng marc could be used as a potential bifidogenic source.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.490-495
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• 2007

Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are beneficial for the gastrointestinal tract and reinforce immunity in human health. Recently, many functional products using the lactic acid bacteria have been developed. Among these LAB, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium longum, and Bifidobacterium bifidum are frequently used for probiotic products. In order to monitor these LAB in commercial probiotic products, a multiplex PCR method was developed. We designed four species-specific primer pairs for multiplex PCR from the 16S rRNA, 16S-23S rRNA intergenic spacer region, and 23S rRNA genes in Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Bifidobacterium longum, and Bifidobacterium bifidum. Using these primer pairs, 4 different LAB were detected with high specificity in functional foods. We suggest that the multiplex PCR method developed in this study would be an efficient tool for simple, rapid, and reliable identification of LAB used as probiotic strains.

• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.107-112
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• 2004

Studies on the resistance of Lactobacillus ssp., Bifidobacterium spp. and Bacillus coagulans to hydrogen peroxide were conducted by determination of the viable cells after the test cells in 2mM hydrogen peroxide solution for a predetermined time; L. acidophilus CU4111 and L. casei CU4114 were most resistant to the hydrogen peroxide among the fifteen test lactobacilli strains, whereas L. brevis Cu4206 was the strain which was the most susceptible to hydrogen peroxide. Bifidobacterium longum Cu4131 was one of the resistant strains. A prominant tendency found out that Bacillus coagulans possessed a strong resistance to hydrogen peroxide. The results of level of hydrogen peroxide determination in the cell extracts showed all the test strains contained hydrogen peroxide in the cytoplasm, the amount varied depending on the strain and species of lactic acid bacteria. Bifidobacterium bifidum CU 4134 and L. casei CU 4114 were potent hydrogen peroxide producer strain.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.580-583
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• 2007

Phytase activity was examined with various bifidobacterial strains cultured statically in MRS broth at $37^{\circ}C$ for 48 hr. Seven Bifidobacterium species showed mostly an intracellular phytase activity, though their specific activities were very low. The highest specific activity was found in Bifidobacterium animalis B33 strain, among 7 bifidobacteria tested. The specific activity was highest during the exponential growth phase. Carbohydrates and the concentration of phosphorus sources had an effect on the phytase activity and bacterial growth. Glucose was the most favorable carbohydrate for the phytase activity. Phytate inhibited the cell growth, and phytase activity decreased with increase of phytate concentration. The phytase activity was even higher in the static microaerophilic growth than that in anaerobic state, despite the stimulated growth in anaerobic growth. The optimal pH ranges were comparatively broad, but the optimal temperatures were $50^{\circ}C$ for all tested strains. The phytase activity was most active at pH 6.5 and $50^{\circ}C$ for B. animalis B33 strain.