• Title/Summary/Keyword: biochemical activity

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Effects of Glufosinate-Ammonium to Earthworms, Soil Microorganisms and Crops (제초제 glufosinate-ammonium의 지렁이 및 토양 미생물과 작물에 미치는 영향)

  • Kim, Yong-Seog;Jeon, Yong-Bae;Choi, Hae-Jin;Kim, Song-Mun;Kim, Sung-Min
    • The Korean Journal of Pesticide Science
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    • v.10 no.2
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    • pp.76-83
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    • 2006
  • In order to investigate the impacts of non-selective herbicide, glufosinate-ammonium (ammonium 4-[hydroxy(methyl)phosphinoyl] -DL-homoalaninate, GLA) to the non-target organisms, earthworm was exposed to GLA in the field soil for a month, and microbial populations in the soil were investigated after application of GLA. Simultaneously, the residues of GLA and its metabolite, 3-MPP were analyzed in the same soil. Meanwhile, to elucidate the influence of GLA to the growth of non-target crops incase of inter-furrow application, the amounts of carotenoid, chlorophyll, amino acid, proteins and sugars in the leaves of potato and chinese cabbage grown in the same field were investigated. In result, the dead earthworm was not observed during the test period, and the increasing rates of bodyweight were $9.410{\sim}11.603%$ in GLA-treated plots and 5.645% in GLA-untreated plots. The populations of fungi, bacteria and actinomycetes in the GLA-treated soils were $6.2{\times}10^4$, $1.5{\times}10^6$ and $5.7{\times}10^4$, respectively. They maintained relatively similar levels to the control which were $3.7{\times}10^4$, $3.7{\times}10^5$ and $3.7{\times}10^4$, respectively. In residue analysis, the limit of detection of GLA was 0.02 mg $kg^{-1}$, that of 3-MPP was the same level, and the half-life of GLA was 15 days in sandy clay loam soil. This result indicates that GLA was degraded very quickly in field soil. On the other hand, the amounts of physiological, biochemical components such as carotenoid, amino acid, chlorophyll, protein and sugar were ranged from 90.0 to 104.3% in potato and from 99.0 to 112.7% in chinese cabbage. Comparing with hand-weeded plots, it is indicated that GLA had not affected to the growth of non-target crops when applied at inter-furrow in crops-growing field.

Effects of Nutrition Education Using a Ubiquitous Healthcare (u-Health) Service on Metabolic Syndrome in Male Workers (u-헬스 케어 (Ubiquitous Healthcare) 서비스를 이용한 영양교육이 직장 남성근로자의 대사증후군에 미치는 영향)

  • Park, Se-Yun;Yang, Yoon-Jung;Kim, Yu-Ri
    • Journal of Nutrition and Health
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    • v.44 no.3
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    • pp.231-242
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    • 2011
  • The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of nutrition education based on ubiquitous healthcare (u-health) service on changes in dietary habits, nutrition intake, and risk factors for metabolic syndrome in male workers. In total, 72 male office workers with at least three risk factors of the National Cholesterol Education Program-Adult Treatment Panel III were recruited as subjects. Anthropometric measurements and biochemical analyses were conducted on all subjects. Dietary habits and nutrient intake were determined by a questionnaire using the 24-hour dietary recall method before and after nutrition education. Subjects measured their body composition, blood pressure, and physical activity more than once per week during the 12 weeks using the u-health care equipment and sent these data to a central database system using a personal computer. Individual nutrition counseling was provided four times on the first, fourth, eight, and twelfth weeks. The results showed significant decreases in abdominal circumference, body fat (%), diastolic blood pressure, serum triglycerides, and serum total cholesterol during the 12 weeks. Subjects with more than 12 measurements showed significant reductions in abdominal circumference, body fat (%), serum triglyceride, and serum total cholesterol. Mean intake of dietary fiber, animal calcium, potassium, vitamin C, and folic acid after nutrition education were higher than those before nutrition education. Participants showed significant increases in the frequencies of consuming protein foods (meat, fish, eggs, beans, tofu, etc.) and vegetables. In conclusion, nutrition education through the u-health service resulted in positive effects on the risk factors for metabolic syndrome, nutrient intake, and dietary habits.

THE COMPARISON OF STREPTOCOCCUS MUTANS ISOLATED FROM OCCLUSAL SURFACES OF CARIES AND NON-CARIES TEETH (우식치아와 정상치아의 교합면에서 분리한 Streptococcus mutans의 비교)

  • Park, Ho-Won;Jung, Tae-Sung;Jung, Jin;Kim, Shin
    • Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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    • v.28 no.1
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    • pp.129-141
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    • 2001
  • When oral microorganisms were sampled from occlusal surfaces of caries and non-caries teeth, $3.43\times10^5$ CFU and $3.47\times10^3$ CFU of bacteria were counted on MSB agar plates, respectively. All the 20 colonies isolated from a caries surface were Streptococcus mutans but, only two of 20 colonies were identified as Streptococcus mutans by API test. S. mutans SM1 from caries tooth and S. mutans SM2 from non-caries tooth showed the same results except for $\alpha-galactosidase$ activity on sugar fermentation tests and biochemical tests. For the bacterial replication, both SM1 and SM2 were actively multiplicated at pH 5.5. And the viability of SM1 was high at 20% of sucrose, while that of SM2 was high at 5% of sucrose in the media. SM1 actively replicated at 16mM of $CaCl_2$, 160mM of KCl, and 6.4mM of $MgCl_2$, and the replication of SM2 was increased at 16mM of $CaCl_2$, 40mM of KCl, 6.4mM of $MgCl_2$. At 1mM of sodium bicarbonate and sodium phosphate, both bacteria were actively multiplicated. SM1 and SM2 were actively replicated at 1mM and 10mM of Tris, respectively. For potassium phosphate buffer, SM1 grew well proportionally to the concentration up to 100mM, while the growth of SM2 were inhibited by the increase of concentration. The 4.6 kb of gtf gene was amplified with a pair of primer, gtfB-F961 and gtfC-R5574 by polymerase chain reaction from the chromosomal DNA of SM1 and SM2. When 4.6kb bands were eluted from gel and were treated with restriction enzyme, EcoR I produced the same RFLP like 0.8kb and 3.8kb of DNA fragments for S. mutans GS-5, SM1 and SM2. By Hind III, the PCR products weren't digested for S. mutans GS-5 and SM1, but 3 fragments such as 2.4kb, 1.8kb and 400bp were examined for SM2. These results indicated the difference between gtf genes of SM1 and SM2. BamH I treatment showed 4 fragments for SM1 and SM2, while the 3 fragments for S. mutans GS-5. The PCR products were not digested by Kpn I, Sma I, Xho I and Pst I.

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Lymphocyte Subpopulations and Proliferation of T cells, Phagocytic Activity of Leukocytes on Alcoholics (알코올중독자의 백혈구탐식능, 림프구아형 및 증식능)

  • 김용호;서병배;이정녀;김영훈
    • Biomedical Science Letters
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    • v.2 no.2
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    • pp.167-174
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    • 1996
  • Alcoholics increased susceptibility to microbial infection that is associated with decreased immunity. but there has been little experimental evidence to support alcoholics-induced increase of microbial infection directly in non-specific immunity. Therefore, we were used the method of phagocytic-plaque including all the stimulating factors for the phagocytosis, subtypes of lymphocytes and T-lymphocyte proliferation. The experimental groups were divided into 3 groups: (1) alcoholics who were hospitalized less than 1 week (newly hospitalized alcoholics), (2) alcoholics who were hospitalized more than 2 weeks (old hospitalized alcoholics), (3) healthy blood donors. We have studied 98 alcoholics and 35 healthy blood donors and control groups. A physician has checked the biological markers and diagnosed the body-condition alcoholics. The immunity and non-specific immunity on the alcoholics were analyzed by using the simultest kit and flow cytometry. Proliferation of the lymphocytes was analyzed by the phytohemmagglutinine mitogen. Phagocytosis and migration properties of leukocytes were identified on the layer formed by Staphylococcus aureus Cowan I strain. Biological markers of alcoholics and control groups, by such as blood glucose, ${\gamma}$-glutamyl transpeptidase and mean corpuscular volumes of red blood cells, were determined by biochemical and hematological methods. Compared with control groups, cluster of differentiation (CD)3+, CD8+ and CD19+ in alcoholic were more decreased except CD4+/CD8+ ratio. Proliferation of the T-lymphocytes, phagocytosis and migration properties of the leukocytes in alcoholics were decreased compared with those of control groups. According to the results observed in our experiment, they can be summerized as follows: 1, Cellular, humoral and non-specific immunities, are markedly decreased in alcoholics than those in control groups. 2. It is inferred that Phagocytic plaque formation is a very useful method to evaluate phagocytosis and migration properties of the alcoholic leukocytes 3. It is thought that the subtypes of lymphocytes, especially CD4+/CD8+ ratio, are essential methods to analyzed the alcoholic immunity. 4. Specific and non-specific immunity on the old hospitalized alcoholics was slightly increased, which depends upon the alcoholic medication.

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Biological Control of Blue Mold of Apples by Bacillus spp. and Serratia marcescens (Bacillus spp. 및 Serratia marcescens에 의한 사과 푸른곰팡이병의 생물적 방제)

  • Kim, Yong-Ki;Lee, Seong-Don;Ryu, Jae-Gee;Ryu, Jae-Dang
    • Research in Plant Disease
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    • v.9 no.4
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    • pp.229-236
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    • 2003
  • The 1080 epiphytic bacteria obtained from 370 samples of pome and stone fruits including apple, pear, peach, grape, apricot and Chinese quince were screened for antagonistic activity against postharvest pathogens, Penicillium expansum, Alternaria alternata and Botrytis cinerea. Among tested antagonistic bacteria, eight bacterial isolates inhibited mycelial growth of the postharvest pathogens and were identified as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (three strains), B. megaterium, B. subtilis var. gladioli, B. licheniformis, B. pumilus and Serratia marcescens based on biochemical characteristics and utility of carbon and nitrogen compounds (Biolog system). Eight carbohydrates were evaluated for their effect on mycelial growth and germination of the postharvest pathogen, P. expansum to select nutrients for enhancing bio-control efficacy. The growth of four selected antagonists, B. amyloliquefaciens P43-2, B. amyloliquefaciens A71-2, B. licheniformis P94-1, and S. marcescens P76-9 were also tested. As a result, 1% glucose (w/v) strongly stimulated growth of the antagonists, suppressed mycelial growth of the postharvest pathogen, and had a little comparatively stimulatory effect on germination of the the postharvest pathogen. It was confirmed that the addition of 1% glucose (w/v) greatly enhanced biocontrol effect of B. amyloliquefaciens P43-2, B. licheniformis P94-1, and S. marcescens P76-9. Application of B. amyloliquefaciens P43-2, B. licheniformis P94-1, and S. marcescens P76-9 with the addition of 1% glucose (w/v) increased the control efficacy up to 48%, 46%, 14% compared with those of the antagonists without glucose, respectively. When the antagonists were applied to control postharvest disease caused by P. expansum in apple wounds, the population of B. amyloliquefaciens P43-2 and B. licheniformis P94-1 increased until 4 days after inoculation (DAI) of the antagonists and then decreased from 10 DAI. Meanwhile the population of S. marcescens P76-9 decreased at early stage (4 DAI), but increased from 7 DAI, and finally maintained constantly until 10 DAI in apple wounds.

A Study on the Filtration of Swine Anaerobic Digestate Using Multi-Layered Compost Beds (다층구조의 퇴비단을 이용한 돈분뇨 슬러리 혐기소화액의 여과효과에 대한 연구)

  • Han, Deug-Woo;Lee, Dong-Hyun;Kim, Jung-Gon;Yang, Seung-Hak;Bae, Jin-Woo;Kwag, Jung-Hoon;Choi, Dong-Yoon;Jeong, Kwang-Hwa
    • Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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    • v.21 no.4
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    • pp.72-81
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    • 2013
  • The objective of this study was to verify whether SCB(Slurry Composting & Bio-filtration) system can be applied for the treatment of anaerobic digestion(AD) wastewater and also, to identify the most effective set among three filtration compost beds tested. Results can be summarized as these; (a) When AD wastewater was sprayed on the top of beds which were mainly composed of sawdust and/or other media and, subsequently, filtrates collected and analyzed, there were large drop in the values of Electric Conductivity(EC), Total Suspended Solid(TSS), Biochemical Oxygen Demand(BOD), and Chemical Oxygen Demand(COD). In contrast, Total Nitrgen(T-N) and Total Phosphorus(T-P) were progressively elevated. We consider these changes as positive if the filtrate are to be utilized as liquid fertilizer. (b) When three sets of filtration beds (T1, T2, T3) were compared for their effectiveness, no significant difference was found among them. These indicate that expensive sawdust can be replaced in part with cheaper media such as woodchip, rice husks, or others. (c) At early stage of operation (within 20 days), BOD in filtrates were maintained at high level probably due to the lack of microbial activity. During the same stage, T-N, T-P was at low level but, were elevated to higher levels thereafter. These data, when combined, indicate that the filtration system needs at least a couple of weeks for the optimized microbial functioning. (d) The temperatures of the experimental beds were progressively dropped as the experiment continued through the fall season, although filtration effectiveness was not noticeably influenced.

Role of Citrate Synthase in Acetate Utilization and Protection from Stress-Induced Apoptosis

  • Lee, Yong-Joo;Kang, Hong-Yong;Maeng, Pil Jae
    • Proceedings of the Microbiological Society of Korea Conference
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    • 2008.05a
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    • pp.39-41
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    • 2008
  • The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has been shown to contain three isoforms of citrate synthase (CS). The mitochondrial CS, Cit1, catalyzes the first reaction of the TCA cycle, i.e., condensation of acetyl-CoA and oxaloacetate to form citrate [1]. The peroxisomal CS, Cit2, participates in the glyoxylate cycle [2]. The third CS is a minor mitochondrial isofunctional enzyme, Cit3, and related to glycerol metabolism. However, the level of its intracellular activity is low and insufficient for metabolic needs of cells [3]. It has been reported that ${\Delta}cit1$ strain is not able to grow with acetate as a sole carbon source on either rich or minimal medium and that it shows a lag in attaining parental growth rates on nonfermentable carbon sources [2, 4, 5]. Cells of ${\Delta}cit2$, on the other hand, have similar growth phenotype as wild-type on various carbon sources. Thus, the biochemical basis of carbon metabolism in the yeast cells with deletion of CIT1 or CIT2 gene has not been clearly addressed yet. In the present study, we focused our efforts on understanding the function of Cit2 in utilizing $C_2$ carbon sources and then found that ${\Delta}cit1$ cells can grow on minimal medium containing $C_2$ carbon sources, such as acetate. We also analyzed that the characteristics of mutant strains defective in each of the genes encoding the enzymes involved in TCA and glyoxylate cycles and membrane carriers for metabolite transport. Our results suggest that citrate produced by peroxisomal CS can be utilized via glyoxylate cycle, and moreover that the glyoxylate cycle by itself functions as a fully competent metabolic pathway for acetate utilization in S. cerevisiae. We also studied the relationship between Cit1 and apoptosis in S. cerevisiae [6]. In multicellular organisms, apoptosis is a highly regulated process of cell death that allows a cell to self-degrade in order for the body to eliminate potentially threatening or undesired cells, and thus is a crucial event for common defense mechanisms and in development [7]. The process of cellular suicide is also present in unicellular organisms such as yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae [8]. When unicellular organisms are exposed to harsh conditions, apoptosis may serve as a defense mechanism for the preservation of cell populations through the sacrifice of some members of a population to promote the survival of others [9]. Apoptosis in S. cerevisiae shows some typical features of mammalian apoptosis such as flipping of phosphatidylserine, membrane blebbing, chromatin condensation and margination, and DNA cleavage [10]. Yeast cells with ${\Delta}cit1$ deletion showed a temperature-sensitive growth phenotype, and displayed a rapid loss in viability associated with typical apoptotic hallmarks, i.e., ROS accumulation, nuclear fragmentation, DNA breakage, and phosphatidylserine translocation, when exposed to heat stress. Upon long-term cultivation, ${\Delta}cit1$ cells showed increased potentials for both aging-induced apoptosis and adaptive regrowth. Activation of the metacaspase Yca1 was detected during heat- or aging-induced apoptosis in ${\Delta}cit1$ cells, and accordingly, deletion of YCA1 suppressed the apoptotic phenotype caused by ${\Delta}cit1$ mutation. Cells with ${\Delta}cit1$ deletion showed higher tendency toward glutathione (GSH) depletion and subsequent ROS accumulation than the wild-type, which was rescued by exogenous GSH, glutamate, or glutathione disulfide (GSSG). Beside Cit1, other enzymes of TCA cycle and glutamate dehydrogenases (GDHs) were found to be involved in stress-induced apoptosis. Deletion of the genes encoding the TCA cycle enzymes and one of the three GDHs, Gdh3, caused increased sensitivity to heat stress. These results lead us to conclude that GSH deficiency in ${\Delta}cit1$ cells is caused by an insufficient supply of glutamate necessary for biosynthesis of GSH rather than the depletion of reducing power required for reduction of GSSG to GSH.

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Screening of Useful Plants with Anti-inflammatory and Antioxidant Activity (항염증 및 항산화 활성 보유 유용 식물 탐색)

  • Lee, Seung-Eun;Choi, Jehun;Lee, Jeong-Hoon;Noh, Hyung-Jun;Kim, Geum-Sook;Kim, Jinkyung;Chung, Hae-Young;Kim, Seung-Yu
    • Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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    • v.26 no.4
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    • pp.441-449
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    • 2013
  • This study was conducted to select some useful plants as functional material candidates. A total of 38 plants were preliminarily screened for the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities. The preliminarily selected 8 plants were further investigated to verify the in vitro inhibitory effect on inflammation and oxidative stress. Boehmeria platanifolia (root), Carpinus coreana (branch), and Eupatorium japonicum (leaf) inhibited the expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-treated RAW 264.7 cells. Eupatorium japonicum (leaf) suppressed the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), whereas Boehmeria platanifolia (root) and Prunus yedoensis (branch) inhibited the transcription of nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-${\kappa}B$). Treatment with the extracts ($2.5{\sim}20{\mu}g/ml$) of Abutilon theophrasti (leaf, flower/seed) and Hemistepta lyrata (stem) did not show toxicity on RAW 264.7 cell proliferation, but treatment with $2.5{\mu}g/ml$ of Boehmeria platanifolia (root) exhibited cell toxicity. Carpinus coreana (branch) and Prunus yedoensis (branch) showed potent scavenging activities on peroxynitrite. Akebia quinata (flower), Carpinus coreana (branch), and Prunus yedoensis (branch) effectively inhibited reactive oxygen species (ROS). Abutilon theophrasti (leaf), Boehmeria platanifolia (root), Carpinus coreana (branch), and Eupatorium japonicum (leaf) exhibited strong inhibitory capacity with regard to nitric oxide (NO) production. The results suggested that Abutilon theophrasti (leaf) has in vitro anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities, and that is a useful functional material candidate.

Effects of Probiotic Complex on Performance, Blood Biochemical and Immune Parameters, Digestive Enzyme Activity, Fecal Microbial Population and Noxious Gas Emission in Broiler Chicks (복합생균제가 육계의 생산성, 혈액생화학성분과 면역지표, 소화효소 활성도, 분중 미생물 및 유해가스 발생에 미치는 영향)

  • Kim, Min-Jeong;Jeon, Dong-Gyung;Ahn, Ho-Sung;Yoon, Il-Gyu;Moon, Eun-Seo;Lee, Chai-Hyun;Lim, Yong;Jang, In-Surk
    • Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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    • v.47 no.3
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    • pp.169-180
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    • 2020
  • This study examined the effects of a probiotic complex (PC) containing Lactobacillus plantarum, Bacillus subtilis, and Saccharomyces cerevisiae on growth performance, organ weight, immune parameters, fecal microbial count, and noxious odor in broiler chicks. A total of 216 birds (4-day-old) were fed a basal diet (CON) and a diet supplemented with 0.25% (PC1) and 0.5% (PC2) of PC until 35 days of age. No difference in body weight, feed intake, and FCR was observed among the groups. The intestinal mucosal weight of the PC1 group was greater than that of the CON group without affecting weights of the other organs. Intestinal secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) levels in the PC2 group increased significantly (P<0.05) compared with that in the CON group. The PC2 group also had a strong tendency for elevated blood sIgA levels. Dietary PC did not affect the level of interleukin-1β in the blood and mucosal tissues or alter maltase, sucrase, and leucine aminopeptidase activities in the intestinal mucosa. The PC2 group had higher colony-forming units (cfu) for L. plantarum and S. cerevisiae, but lower cfu for E. coli than those in the CON group. Compared to the CON diet, the PC2 diet resulted in a decreased H2S concentration and a tendency toward decreased CH3SH concentration. In conclusion, a 0.5% PC diet showed increased sIgA and desirable microbial population, and decreased noxious odor in the feces, suggesting that PC could be applied as an environmentally friendly feed additive in broiler chicks.

Physiological and Biochemical Characterization of Bacillus spp. from Polychaete, Perinereis aibuhitensis (갯지렁이(Perinereis aibuhitensis)에서 분리한 Bacillus spp.의 생리생화학적 특성 분석)

  • Shin, Seyeon;Yundendorj, Khorloo;Lee, Sang-Suk;Kang, Kyoung-Ho;Kahng, Hyung-Yeel
    • Journal of Life Science
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    • v.23 no.3
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    • pp.415-425
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    • 2013
  • This study compared the characteristics of five Bacillus strains capable of aerobic and anaerobic growth, CBW3, CBW4, CBW9, CBW14 and EBW10. They were isolated and selected from a polychaete, Perinereis aibuhitensis, which is known as a good degrader of organic compounds in marine wetland. Based on a 16S rRNA sequence, CBW3 and CBW14 were found to share more than 99.8% similarity with B. nanhaiensis, B. arsenicus and B. barbaricus. CBW4, CBW9 and EBW10 shared 92.7%, 99.8%, and 99.8% similarity with B. anthracis, B. algicoa and B. thuringiensis, respectively. The temperature, salinity, and pH ranges of the cell growth of the Bacillus strains were $4-45^{\circ}C$, 0-17%, and pH 5-pH 9, respectively. All Bacillus strains were found to exhibit enzyme activities for the degradation of casein and starch. Notably, strain EBW10 exhibited the enzyme activities for all the tested macromolecules, DNA, casein, starch, cellulose, and four kinds of Tweens, which suggests the possibility that it had protease, amylase, cellulose, and lipase. All five Bacillus strains had alkaline phosphatase activities, and the strains CBW3, CBW4, and EBW10 also had acid phospatase. Strains CBW3 and EBW10 exhibited the enzyme activities both for esterase (C4) and esterase lipase (C8). The analysis of fatty acids revealed that in all strains, major fatty acids were anteiso $C_{15:0}$ and iso $C_{15:0}$.