• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.21-27
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• 1998

The xylA gene of Bacillus stearothermophilus encoding the major ${\beta}$-xylosidase was previously cloned and sequenced. In the present study we examined the regulation of the cloned xylA gene expression in Bauillus subtilis MW15 carrying the xylA::aprA fusion plasmids. The induction of the fused xylA gene expression remained uninfluenced by any of the carbon sources tested but the gene expression was repressed about 2-3 fold in the presence of glucose. Two CRE-like sequences (CRE-1: nucleotides ＋ 124 to ＋136 and CRE-2: ＋247 to ＋259) were recognized within the reading frame region of the xylA gene. The deletion experiments showed that the CRE-2 sequence had a role in catabolite repression (CR) as a true CRE of the xylA gene, but the CRE-1 had no effect on CR of the xylA gene expression. Surprisingly, the deletion of the CRE- 1 sequence reduced about 2~3 fold of the expression of the xylA fused gene. The repression ratios of the xylA gene expression were estimated to be about 0.4 from the assay of subtilisin activity, and about 0.3 at the level of transcription by determining the amounts of xylA transcripts in B. subtilis. While, the level of CR of the xylA gene was assessed to be about l0-fold in previous work when the relative amounts of the xylA transcripts were measured in B. stearothermophilus.

• Environmental Mutagens and Carcinogens
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.7-13
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• 1999

The mouse lymphoma thymidine kinase (tk+/-) gene assay (MOLY) using L5178Y tk+/- mouse lymphoma cell line is one of the mammalian forward mutation assays. It is well known that MOLY has many advantages and more sensitive than the other mammalian forward mutation assays such as x-linked hyposanthine phosphoribosyltransferase (hprt) gene assay. The target gene of MOLY is a heterozygous tk+/- gene located in 11 chromosome of L5178Y tk+/- cell, so it is able to detect the wide range of genetic changes like point mutation, deletion, rearrangement, and mitotic recombination within tk gene or deletion of entire chromosome 11. MOLY has relatively short expression time (2-3 days) compared to 1 week of hprt gene assay. MOLY can also induce relatively high mutant frequency so a large number of events can be recorded. The bimodal distribution of colony size which may indicate gene mutation and chromosome breakage potential of chemicals according to mutation scale such as large normal-growing mutants and small slow-growing mutants can be observed in this assay. The statistical analysis of data can be performed using the MUTANT program developed by York Electronic Research in association with Hazelton as recommended by the UKEMS (United Kingdom Environmental Mutagen Society) guidelines. This report reviewed MOLY using the microtiter cloning technique (microwell assay).

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.703-709
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• 2010

Glucuronidation is a major pathway for NNAL [4-(methylnitrosamno)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol] and UGT2B17 (UGT, uridine diphospho-glucuronosyltransferase) is from the UGT2B family that glucuronidates carcinogens. UGT2B17 deletion was associated with decreased levels of NNAL and with increased risk of some cancers. The UGT2B17 gene varies in copy number from zero to two per individual in humans. To examine whether UGT2B17 gene deletion is associated with the risk of lung cancer, we investigated copy number variants (CNV) in 271 cancer-free controls and 176 cases of lung cancer in Koreans by a PCR-based method. The frequency of the UGT2B17 deleted alleles was much higher than in other Caucasian and African-American groups which have already been reported. While only up to 10% of Caucasians have zero copies of the gene, up to 74% of Koreans in this study showed that both copies of the gene were deleted. Furthermore, the overall frequency of this dual deletion in female groups was higher than in male groups. However, there was no association between CNV in UGT2B17 and lung cancer. This result suggested that the UGT2B17 deletion allele was not associated with the susceptibility of lung cancers in the Korean group. However, this UGT2B17 CNV polymorphism may be a useful marker for evolutionary analysis among races.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.146-152
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• 2010

Streptomyces clavuligerus NRRL3585 produces a clinically important $\beta$-lactamase inhibitor, clavulanic acid (CA). In order to increase the production of CA, the glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) gene (gap) was deleted in S. clavuligerus NRRL3585 to overcome the limited glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate pool; the replicative and integrative expressions of ccaR (specific regulator of the CA biosynthetic operon) and claR (Lys-type transcriptional activator) genes were transformed together into a deletion mutant to improve clavulanic acid production. We constructed two recombinant plasmids to enhance the production of CA in the gap1 deletion mutant of S. clavuligerus NRRL3585: pHN11 was constructed for overexpression of ccaR-claR, whereas pHN12 was constructed for their chromosomal integration. Both pHN11 and pHN12 transformants enhanced the production of CA by 2.59-fold and 5.85-fold, respectively, compared with the gap1 deletion mutant. For further enhancement of CA, we fed the pHN11 and pHN12 transformants ornithine and glycerol. Compared with the gap1 deletion mutant, ornithine increased CA production by 3.24- and 6.51-fold in the pHN11 and pHN12 transformants, respectively, glycerol increased CA by 2.96- and 6.21-fold, respectively, and ornithine and glycerol together increased CA by 3.72- and 7.02-fold, respectively.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.33 no.11
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• pp.1420-1427
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• 2023

The forkhead domain genes are important for development and morphogenesis in fungi. Six forkhead genes fkhA-fkhF have been found in the genome of the model filamentous Ascomycete Aspergillus nidulans. To identify the fkh gene(s) associated with fungal development, we examined mRNA levels of these six genes and found that the level of fkhB and fkhD mRNA was significantly elevated during asexual development and in conidia. To investigate the roles of FkhB and FkhD, we generated fkhB and fkhD deletion mutants and complemented strains and investigated their phenotypes. The deletion of fkhB, but not fkhD, affected fungal growth and both sexual and asexual development. The fkhB deletion mutant exhibited decreased colony size with distinctly pigmented (reddish) asexual spores and a significantly lower number of conidia compared with these features in the wild type (WT), although the level of sterigmatocystin was unaffected by the absence of fkhB. Furthermore, the fkhB deletion mutant produced sexual fruiting bodies (cleistothecia) smaller than those of WT, implying that the fkhB gene is involved in both asexual and sexual development. In addition, fkhB deletion reduced fungal tolerance to heat stress and decreased trehalose accumulation in conidia. Overall, these results suggest that fkhB plays a key role in proper fungal growth, development, and conidial stress tolerance in A. nidulans.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.129-136
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• 2003

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-encoded latent membrane protein 1 (LMPI) exhibits considerable sequence heterogeneity among EBV isolates. Seven distinct EBV strains have been defined based on sequence polymorphisms in the LMPI gene, which are designated China 1, China 2, China 3, Alaskan, Mediterranean, NC, and the B95-8 strains. In this study, we analyzed a 30-bp deletion and sequence variations in the carboxy-terminal region of the LMPl gene in 12 EBV isolates from spontaneous lym-phoblastoid cell lines derived from individuals with non-EBV associated cancers in Korea. Eleven of the 12 isolates showed a 30-bp deletion spanning LMPI amino acids 342 to 353, suggesting a high prevalence of the LMPI 30-bp deletion variant among EBV isolates in Korea. In addition, all 12 isolates had a 15-bp common deletion in the 33-bp repeat region and multiple base-pair changes relative to the prototype B95-8 EBV strain along with variations in the number of the 33-bp repeats. The bp changes at positions 168746, 168694, 168687, 168395, 168357, 168355, 168631, 168320, 168308, 168295, and 168225 were highly conserved among the isolates. Comparative analysis of sequence change patterns in the LMPI carboxy-terminal coding region identified nine 30-bp deletion variants as China 1, two deletion variants as a possible interstrain between the Alaskan and China 1 strains, and a single undeleted variant as a possible variant of the Alaskan strain. These results suggest the predominance of the China 1 EBV strain in the Korean population.

• The Journal of the Korean Society for Microbiology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.215-224
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• 2000

In this study, the distribution of the mec regulator genes and the presence of the mutation in mecI gene and mec promoter region among 50 MRSA clinical isolates derived from a single university hospital in Korea were analyzed. Among 50 MRSA strains, 13 strains had a deletion of mecI gene, and 37 strains were found to have mutations in mecI gene or mecA promoter region corresponding to a presumptive operator of mecA, i.e., the binding site of the repressor protein. Furthermore, in order to track the evolution of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) distributed in Korea, we determined the MRSA clonotype by combined use of genetic organization patterns of mec regulator genes, ribotype, and coagulase type. As the result, 48 of 50 MRSA strains could be classified into four distinct clones. Clonotype I is characterized by the coagulase type 3, deletion of mecI gene, and ribotype 1 shared by NCTC10442, the first reported MRSA isolate in England (9 strains). Clonotype II is characterized by the coagulase type 4, C to T substitution at position 202 of mecI gene, and ribotypes 2, 3 and 4 shared by 85/3619 strain isolated in Austria (10 strains). Clonotype III is characterized by the coagulase type 2, mutations of mecA promoter region and/or mecI, and ribotypes 4, 5, and 6 shared by N315 strain isolated in Japan (25 strains). Clonotype IV is characterized by the coagulase type 4, deletion of mecI gene, and ribotype 7 (4 strains). The clonality of two strains could not be determined due to their undefined ribotype.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.662-667
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• 2020

Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations are not only genetic markers for diagnosis but also biomarkers of clinical-response against tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs) in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Among the EGFR mutations, the in-frame deletion mutation in EGFR exon 19 kinase domain (EGFR exon 19-del) is the most frequent mutation, accounting for about 45% of EGFR mutations in NSCLCs. Development of sensitive method for detecting the EGFR mutation is highly required to make a better screening for drug-response in the treatment of NSCLC patients. Here, we developed a fluorometric tandem gene amplification assay for sensitive detection of low-abundance EGFR exon 19-del mutant genomic DNA. The method consists of pre-amplification with PCR, thermal cycling of ligation by Taq ligase, and subsequent rolling circle amplification (RCA). PCR-amplified DNA from genomic DNA samples was used as splint DNA to conjugate both ends of linear padlock DNA, generating circular padlock DNA template for RCA. Long stretches of ssDNA harboring multiple copies of G-quadruplex structure was generated in RCA and detected by thioflavin T (ThT) fluorescence, which is specifically intercalated into the G-quadruplex, emitting strong fluorescence. Sensitivity of tandem gene amplification assay for detection of the EGFR exon 19-del from gDNA was as low as 3.6 pg, and mutant gDNA present in the pooled normal plasma was readily detected as low as 1% fraction. Hence, fluorometric detection of low-abundance EGFR exon 19 deletion mutation using tandem gene amplification may be applicable to clinical diagnosis of NSCLC patients with appropriate TKI treatment.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 2015.11a
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• pp.28-28
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• 2015

Asexual reproduction or conidiation in aspergilli is a primary mean to produce their progenies that is environmentally and genetically controlled tightly. Previously, intensive researches in the model fungus Aspergillus nidulans disclosed some genes playing important roles in asexual and sexual development. Among them, one gene encoding a putative helix-loop-helix (HLH) transcription factor, named ndrA, has been isolated and characterized as a downstream regulator of developmental master regulator NsdD. By using comparative genome search of A. niduans NdrA protein, its orthologues have been identified in A. fumigatus and A. flavus, respectively (AfudrnA and AfldrnA). Deletion of the ndrA genes in both Aspergillus species made them unable to produce the conidia yet abundant production of sclerotia in A. flavus. Complementation of ndrA deletion strains by intact ndrA ORFs has restored the conidiation as in the control strains. In A. fumigatus, ndrA deletion also resulted in loss of conidiation phenotype. Northern analyses showed that the ndrA genes in both Aspergillus species are highly expressed at the early stage of the conidiation. Interestingly, the ndrA genes were found to be necessary for the proper expression of brlA genes. Antifungal sensitivity test revealed that the ndrA genes might be responsible for the sensitivity or resistance to some antifungal agents. However, ndrA deletion did not greatly influence the growth in both strains. And the A. flavus ndrA gene did not affect the aflatoxin production. Taken together, ndrA genes in Aspergillus species could be an important positive regulator of conidiation under the regulation of the nsdD gene yet upstream of the brlA gene.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.16 no.3 s.76
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• pp.454-458
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• 2006

HSF1 is the heat shock transcription factor in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. S. cerevisiae KNU5377 can ferment at high temperature such as $40^{\b{o}}C$. We have been the subjects of intense study because Hsf1p mediates gene expression not only to heat shock, but to a variety of cellular and environmental stress challenges. Basing these facts, we firstly tried to construct the hsf1 gene-deleted mutant. PCR-method for fast production of gene disruption cassette was introduced in a thermotolerant yeast S. cerevisiae KNU5377, which allowed the addition of short flanking homology region as short as 45 bp suffice to mediate homologous recombination to kanMX module. Such a cassette is composed of linking genomic DNA of target gene to the selectable marker kanMX4 that confers geneticin (G418) resistance in yeast. That module is extensively used for PCR-based gene replacement of target gene in the laboratory strains. We describe here the generation of hsf1 gene disruption construction using PCR product of selectable marker with primers that provide homology to the hsf1 gene following separation of haploid strain in wild type yeast S. cerevisiae KNU5377. Yeast deletion overview containing replace cassette module, deletion mutant construction and strain confirmation in this study used Saccharomyces Genome Deletion Project (http:://www-sequence.standard.edu/group/yeast_deletion_project). This mutant by genetic manipulation of wild type yeast KNU5377 strain will provide a good system for analyzing the research of the molecular biology underlying their physiology and metabolic process under fermentation and improvement of their fermentative properties.