• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.198-205
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• 1996

Two proteases were partially characterized from culture filtrate of Mycobacterium, tuberculosis KIT110. Their molecular weights were approximately 200 and 180 kDa, respectively and they exhibited similar enzymatic characteristics. These enzymes were inhibited significantly by EDTA and to some extent by EGTA. Their activity was enhanced by $Ca^{2+}$ and $Mg^{2+}$ to some degree. However, $Cu^{2+}$ and $Ag^{2+}$ completely inhibited the enzyme activity at the concentration of 2.5 and 5 mM, respectively. The optimal pH was 7.0 and optimal temperature was around $40^{\circ}C$. These enzymes were rapidly inactivated at $80^{\circ}C$. Therefore, they were heat-labile, neutral metalloproteases. These enzymes exhibited antigenicity shown by their reacting with sera from the partients with pulmonary tuberculosis. These enzymes were able to degrade serum proteins including hemoglobin, bovine serum albumin, lysozyme and immunoglobulin G and structural matrix protein such as type I collagen. Therefore, these enzymes may be thought to contribute to tissue necrosis and pathogenesis during infection.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.144-148
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• 2013

Lycopene cyclase converts lycopene to ${\beta}$-carotene by catalyzing the formation of two beta-rings at each end of the linear carotene structure. This reaction takes place as a two-step reaction in which both sides of of the lycopene molecule are cyclized into ${\beta}$-carotene rings via the monocyclic ${\gamma}$-carotene as an intermediate. The crtY gene coding for lycopene cyclase from Paracoccus haeundaensis consists of 1,158 base pairs encoding 386 amino acids residues. An expression plasmid containing the crtY gene (pET44a-CrtY) was constructed and expressed in Escherichia coli, and produced a recombinant protein of approximately 43 kDa, corresponding to the molecular mass of lycopene cyclase. The expressed protein was purified to homogeneity by His-tag affinity chromatography and showed enzymatic activity corresponding to lycopene cyclase. We also determined the lycopene substrate specificity and NADPH cofactor requirements of the purified protein. The $K_m$ values for lycopene and NADPH were 3.5 ${\mu}M$ and 2 mM, respectively. The results obtained from this study will provide a wider base of knowledge on the enzyme characterization of lycopene cyclase at the molecular level.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.401-407
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• 2014

Quorum sensing and the stringent response are well-known regulation systems for the expression of virulence genes in enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC). However, how these two systems interact is not well known. E. coli strains with mutations in two regulation systems, ${\Delta}luxS$ (ECM101) and ${\Delta}luxS{\Delta}relA{\Delta}spoT$ (ECM201), and the ${\Delta}luxS$ complement strain to ECM201 (ECM202) were created from EHEC O157:H7 EDL933 to investigate how the regulatory systems interact. The phenotypic changes of the mutant strains were characterized and compared with the wild type. The mutant strains exhibited no obvious growth defects, although acid resistance and cellular cytotoxicity were decreased significantly in all the mutant strains. Phenotypic characterization revealed that mutations in the stringent response system (ECM201 and ECM202) influenced the metabolic (defective utilization of arabinose and L-sorbose) and enzymatic activities (decreased trypsin activity, and increased ${\alpha}$-glucosidase activity). In contrast, the quorum sensing system mutant (ECM101) did not display these phenotypes. The motility of the quorum sensing system mutant (ECM101) was unchanged, but mutation in the stringent response system influenced the motility. Our results suggest that quorum sensing interacts with the stringent response regulation system.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.6 no.3
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• pp.180-186
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• 2001

Bone marrow cell proliferating arabinogalactan-like polysaccharide (ALR-3IIa-1-1) has been purified from rhizomes of Atractylodes lancea DC. In order to characterize the essential structure of ALR-3IIa-1-1 for expression of the activity, sequential enzymatic digestion using ego-$\alpha$-L-arabinofurasidase (AFase) and ego-$\beta$-D-(1longrightarrow3)-galactanase (GNase) was employed. After ALR-3IIa-1-1 was digested with the AFase, the GNase digestion cleaved only 10% and 23% of 3-linked and 3,6-branched galactose, respectively, from arabinose-trimmed ALR-3IIa-1-1 (AT-ALR-3IIa-1-1), and gave small amounts of intermediate size (AT-G-2) and shorter oligosaccharides (AT-G-3) fractions in addition to a large amount of the GNase resistant fraction (AT-G-1). When AT-G-1 was redigested gradually with the AFase and GNase, it released trace amounts of oligosaccharides in addition to a large amount of the resistant fraction. When the final enzyme-resistant fraction from AT-G-1 was digested simultaneously with both AFase and GNase, the resistant fraction was significantly degraded into two long fragments (3AT-3G-1 and 2). The mixture of digestion products from the first GNase digestion of AT-ALR-3IIa-1-1 showed a significantly decreased bone marrow cell proliferation activity to about 30% of the activity of ALR-3IIa-1-1, but the GNase resistant fraction (AT-7-1) still had significant activity. Although the second gradual enzymatic digestion of AT-G-1 showed a marginal decrease in activity, the resulting fragments (3AT-3G-1 and 2) by the final simultaneous enzymatic digestion lost most of the activity. Component sugar, methylation and FAB-MS analyses indicated that the digestion products (AT-G-21 AT-G-31 2AT-2G-2 and 2AT-2G-3) released from AT-ALR-3IIa-1-1 by the sequential enzymatic digestion contained galactose-containing oligosaccharides mainly comprising 6-linked galactose, that some of which were partially arabinosylated, and these oligosaccharides were attached to $\beta$-D-(1longrightarrow3)-galactan backbone in its non-reducing terminal side as side chains.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.246-255
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• 1996

To develop a natural antioxidative peptide, the gelatin was extracted from fish (Yellowfin sole) skin by hot $water(50^{\circ}C)$ extraction method and hydrolyzed with Alcalase, pronase and collagenase through a continuous 3-step membrane reactor. Each step enzymatic hydrolysates were determined the antioxidative activity and their synergistic effects, compared with $\alpha-tocopherol$ and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT). Also, we tried to investigate the antioxidative disposition of peptide which was successfully separated by gel filtration, ion-exchange chromatography, and HPIC in cultured rat hepatocytes intoxicated with tert-butyl hydroperoxide (TBHP). Second step enzymatic hydrolysate (SSEH) among all hydrolysates and $\alpha-tocoperol$ was showed the strongest antioxidative activity. The optimum concentration of antioxidative activity for SSEH was $1\%(w/w)$ in linoleic acid. The synergistic effects were increased in using the hydrolysate with tocopherol and BHT. In the presence of the peptide isolated from SSEH, supplemented hepatocytes exposed to TBHP showed that delayed cell killing and decreased significantly the lipid peroxidation, compared with hepatocytes not cultured with isolated peptide.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.27-51
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• 2013

During cleaning steps, ultrafiltration membranes are mechanically and chemically stressed. This may result in membrane degradations and failures. In this paper, polysulfone membranes were used to evaluate membrane deteriorations by commercial detergents in static conditions. Ageing of the membrane was simulated by immersing samples in solutions containing commercial detergents with various concentrations, temperatures and times defined by experimental designs. Indeed, an innovative approach in the chemical membranes ageing researches, based on methodological tools, was used in order to achieve significant ageing experiments without using an accelerated ageing protocol. The macroscopic changes were monitored by permeability measurements and mechanical strength tests coupled with a microscopic characterization by ATR-FTIR and HRSEM. The present work details results obtained for three commercial detergents: an alkaline, an acidic and an enzymatic detergent. It was found that the detergents used in the industrial advised conditions (concentration, temperature and time of contact) were not detrimental for membrane properties (permeability and elongation at break) and so for the quality of the produced water. Over the industrial cumulated time of contact, different ageing effects can be observed and compared with the ones induced by NaOCl.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.759-765
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• 2013

The gene encoding squalene synthase (SQS) of the lipid-producing heterotrophic microalga Aurantiochytrium sp. KRS101 was cloned and characterized. The krsSQS gene is 1,551 bp in length and has two exons and one intron. The open reading frame of the gene is 1,164 bp in length, yielding a polypeptide of 387 predicted amino acid residues with a molecular mass of 42.7 kDa. The deduced krsSQS sequence shares at least four conserved regions known to be required for SQS enzymatic activity in other species. The protein, tagged with $His_6$, was expressed into soluble form in Escherichia coli. The purified protein catalyzed the conversion of farnesyl diphosphate to squalene in the presence of NADPH and $Mg^{2+}$. This is the first report on the characterization of an SQS from a Thraustochytrid microalga.

• BMB Reports
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• v.40 no.5
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• pp.801-804
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• 2007

The products of reactions catalyzed by Methanococcus. jannaschii (Mj) aldolase using various substrates were identified by gas chromatography (GC). Although Mj aldolase is considered a fuculose-1-phosphate aldolase based on homology searching after gene sequencing, it has not been proven to be a fuculose-1-phosphate aldolase based on its reaction products. Mj aldolase was found to catalyze reactions between glycoaldehyde or D, L-glyceraldehyde and DHAP (dihydroxyacetone phosphate). Before performing GC the ketoses produced were converted into peracetylated alditol derivatives by sequential reactions, i.e., dephosphorylation, $NaBH_4$ reduction, and acetylation. By comparing the GC data of final products with those of standard alditol samples, it was found that the enzymatic reactions with glycoaldehyde, D-glyceraldehyde, and D, L-glyceraldehyde produced D-ribulose-1-phosphate, D-psicose-1-phosphate, and a mixture of D-psicose and L-tagatose-1-phosphate, respectively. These results provide direct evidence that Mj aldolase is a fuculose-1-phosphate aldolase.

• Mycobiology
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.42-46
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• 2012

This report describes the isolation and identification of a potent acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibitor-producing yeasts. Of 731 species of yeast strain, the S-3 strain was selected as a potent producer of AChE inhibitor. The selected S-3 strain was investigated for its microbiological characteristics. The S-3 strain was found to be short-oval yeast that did not form an ascospore. The strain formed a pseudomycelium and grew in yeast malt medium containing 50% glucose and 10% ethanol. Finally, the S-3 strain was identified by its physiological characteristics and 26S ribosomal DNA sequences as $Yarrowia$ $lipolytica$ S-3.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2010.06a
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• pp.243.1-243.1
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• 2010

Devices based on nanomaterials platforms are emerging as a powerful tool for ultrasensitive sensors for the direct detection of biological and chemical species. In this talk, we will report the preparation and the full characterization of electrochemical polymerization of biopolymers platforms and nano-structure formation for electrochemical detection of enzymatic activity and toxic compound in electrolyte for biosensor applications. Formation of an electroactive polymer film of two different compounds has been quantified by observing new redox peak at higher potentials in cyclic voltammogram measurements. RCT value of at various biopolymer concentration based hybrid films has been obtained from electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analysis and possible mechanism for formation of complexes during electrochemical polymerization on conducting substrates has been investigated. Biosensors developed based on these hybrid biopolymers have very high sensitivity.