• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.30 no.12
• /
• pp.1862-1869
• /
• 2020

The spread of plasmid-mediated colistin resistance has posed a serious threat to public health owing to its effects on the emergence of pandrug-resistant bacteria. In this study, we investigated the prevalence and characteristics of mcr-1-positive Escherichia coli isolated from retail meat samples in Korea. In total, 1,205 E. coli strains were isolated from 3,234 retail meat samples in Korea. All E. coli strains were subjected to antimicrobial susceptibility testing and were examined for the presence of mcr-1 gene. All mcr-1-positive E. coli (n = 10, 0.8%) from retail meat were subjected to pulse-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) and whole-genome sequencing (WGS). The transferability of mcr-1 gene was determined by conjugation assays. The mcr-1-positive strains exhibited diverse clonal types. Our mcr-1 genes were located in plasmids belonged to the IncI2 (n = 1) and IncX4 (n = 8) types, which were reported to be prevalent in Asia and worldwide, respectively. Most mcr-1 genes from mcr-1-positive strains (9/10) were transferable to the recipient strain and the transfer frequencies ranged from 2.4 × 10-3 to 9.8 × 10-6. Our data suggest that the specific types of plasmid may play an important role in spreading plasmid-mediated colistin resistance in Korea. Furthermore, our findings suggest that the retail meat may be an important tool for disseminating plasmid-mediated colistin resistance.

• Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology
• /
• v.37 no.2
• /
• pp.113-120
• /
• 2022

Sperm cryopreservation is a fundamental process for the long-term conservation of livestock genetic resources. Yet, the packaging method has been shown, among other factors, to affect the frozen-thawed (FT) sperm quality. This study aimed to develop a new mini-straw for sperm cryopreservation. In addition, the kinematic patterns, viability, acrosome integrity, and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) of boar spermatozoa frozen in the developed 0.25 mL straw, 0.25 mL (minitube, Germany), or 0.5 mL (IMV technologies, France) straws were assessed. Post-thaw kinematic parameters were not different (experiment 1: total motility (33.89%, 32.42%), progressive motility (19.13%, 19.09%), curvilinear velocity (42.32, 42.86), and average path velocity (33.40, 33.62) for minitube and the developed straws, respectively. Further, the viability (38.56%, 34.03%), acrosome integrity (53.38%, 48.88%), MMP (42.32%, 36.71%) of spermatozoa frozen using both straw were not differ statistically (p > 0.05). In experiment two, the quality parameters for semen frozen in the developed straw were compared with the 0.5 mL IMV straw. The total motility (41.26%, 39.1%), progressive motility (24.62%, 23.25%), curvilinear velocity (46.44, 48.25), and average path velocity (37.98, 39.12), respectively, for IMV and the developed straw, did not differ statistically. Additionally, there was no significant difference in the viability (39.60%, 33.17%), acrosome integrity (46.23%, 43.23%), and MMP (39.66, 32.51) for IMV and the developed straw, respectively. These results validate the safety and efficiency of the developed straw and highlight its great potential for clinical application. Moreover, both 0.25 mL and 0.5 mL straws fit the present protocol for cryopreservation of boar spermatozoa.

• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.19 no.3
• /
• pp.213-224
• /
• 2016

Objectives: Ginseng Rh2+ is enzyme-treated ginseng extract containing high amounts of converted ginsenosides, such as compound k, Rh2, Rg3, which have potent anticancer activity. We conducted general and genetic toxicity tests to evaluate the safety of ginseng Rh2+. Methods: An acute oral toxicity test was performed at a high-level dose of 4,000 mg/kg/day in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. A 14-day range-finding study was also conducted to set dose levels for the 90-day study. A subchronic 90-day toxicity study was performed at dose levels of 1,000 and 2,000 mg/kg/day to investigate the no-observed-adverse-effect level (NOAEL) of ginseng Rh2+ and target organs. To identify the mutagenic potential of ginseng Rh2+, we conducted a bacterial reverse mutation test (Ames test) using amino-acid-requiring strains of Salmonella typhimurium and Escherichia coli (E. coli), a chromosome aberration test with Chinese hamster lung (CHL) cells, and an in vivo micronucleus test using ICR mice bone marrow as recommended by the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. Results: According to the results of the acute oral toxicity study, the approximate lethal dose (ALD) of ginseng Rh2+ was estimated to be higher than 4,000 mg/kg. For the 90-day study, no toxicological effect of ginseng Rh2+ was observed in body-weight changes, food consumption, clinical signs, organ weights, histopathology, ophthalmology, and clinical pathology. The NOAEL of ginseng Rh2+ was established to be 2,000 mg/kg/day, and no target organ was found in this test. In addition, no evidence of mutagenicity was found either on the in vitro genotoxicity tests, including the Ames test and the chromosome aberration test, or on the in vivo in mice bone marrow micronucleus test. Conclusion: On the basis of our findings, ginseng Rh2+ is a non-toxic material with no genotoxicity. We expect that ginseng Rh2+ may be used as a novel adjuvant anticancer agent that is safe for long-term administration.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.31 no.2
• /
• pp.290-297
• /
• 2021

Leptolyngbya sp. KIOST-1 (LK1) is a newly isolated cyanobacterium that shows no obvious cytotoxicity and contains high protein content for both human and animal diets. However, only limited information is available on its toxic effects. The purpose of this study was to validate the safety of LK1 powder. Following Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) guidelines, a single-dose oral toxicity test in Sprague Dawley rats was performed. Genotoxicity was assessed using a bacterial reverse mutation test with Salmonella typhimurium (strains TA98, TA100, TA1535, and TA1537) and Escherichia coli WP2 uvrA, an in vitro mammalian chromosome aberration test using Chinese hamster lung cells, and an in vivo mammalian erythrocyte micronucleus test using Hsd:ICR (CD-1) SPF mouse bone marrow. After LK1 administration (2,500 mg/kg), there were no LK1-related body weight changes or necropsy findings. The reverse mutation test showed no increased reverse mutation upon exposure to 5,000 ㎍/plate of the LK1 powder, the maximum tested amount. The chromosome aberration test and micronucleus assay demonstrated no chromosomal abnormalities and genotoxicity, respectively, in the presence of the LK1 powder. The absence of physiological findings and genetic abnormalities suggests that LK1 powder is appropriate as a candidate biomass to be used as a safe food ingredient.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Pharmacy
• /
• v.31 no.1
• /
• pp.21-26
• /
• 2021

Background: Pharmacogenomics is the study of how genetic mutations in patients affect their response to drugs. Pharmacogenomic studies aim to maximize drug effects and minimize adverse drug events. The Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicine Agency published guidelines for pharmacogenetics in 2005 and 2006, respectively; the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety followed suit in 2015. Methods: This study analyzed pharmacogenomic information in the Korean Ministry of Food and Drug Safety's integrated drug information system to evaluate whether domestic pharmaceutical products reflect the current research on pharmacogenomic differences. Results: In June 2020, the Korean pharmacogenomic database contained genomic data on 90 compounds. Of these, 45 compounds were classified as "Antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents." The other 45 non-antineoplastic agents were in the following categories: Anti-infectives, Mental & behavior disorder, Hormone & metabolism related diseases, Cardiovascular system, Skin & subcutaneous tissue disease, Genito-urinary system and sex hormones, Blood and blood forming organs, Nervous system, Alimentary tract and metabolism, Musculo-skeletal system, and Other conditions including the respiratory system. In addition, 30 additives unrelated to the main ingredient were associated with genetic precautions. Conclusion: This study showed that antineoplastic and immunomodulating agents accounted for half the drugs associated with pharmacogenetic information. For antitumor and immunomodulatory drugs, genomic tests were recommended depending on the indication; this was in contrast to genomic testing recommendations for non-antineoplastic medications. Genomic tests were rarely requested or recommended for non-antineoplastic medications because the relationships between genotype and efficacy among those drugs were relatively weak.

• Research in Plant Disease
• /
• v.16 no.3
• /
• pp.224-231
• /
• 2010

Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae, causal agent of bacterial leaf blight (BLB) of rice, had been collected and identified using Biolog and fatty acid analysis. Epidemics of BLB had been occurred all the times at several rice cultivating areas in Korea in 1999-2004. Most X. oryzae pv. oryzae isolated in 1999 and 2002 belonged to Korean race K1, but more than 50% of the pathogen isolated in 2003 belonged to Korean race K3. Especially, most pathogens isolated in Jeonnam and Joenbuk provinces belonged to Korean race K3. Inoculation test of near isogenic lines (NIL) of rice carrying single resistance genes against BLB showed that many isolates belonging to Korean race 1 reacted differently to diverse resistant monogenic lines of rice. Southern blot analysis also showed that the bacterial pathogens belonged to the same race had different numbers of avirulence genes. This results suggested that each Korean race type may respond to many resistance genes of rice. All the K3 races isolated in Jeonnam and Joenbuk provinces were able to cause disease on Xa3 monogenic lines of rice. Since most rice cultivars cultivated in Jeonnam and Jeonbuk were carrying Xa3 resistance genes, the bacterial pathogens isolated in Jeonnam and Jeonbuk were likely to develop to adapt to Xa3 resistance gene. Together with avirulence gene patterns of the bacterial isolates and the results of disease reaction of monogenic lines of rice to them, Korean X. oryzae pv. oryzae was classified into 19 pathotypes. This newly classified pathotypes should help the breeding of new resistance rice cultivars in Korea.

• Safety and Health at Work
• /
• v.7 no.2
• /
• pp.156-160
• /
• 2016

Background: Workers in pesticide manufacturing industries are constantly exposed to pesticides. Genetic biomonitoring provides an early identification of potential cancer and genetic diseases in exposed populations. The objectives of this biomonitoring study were to assess DNA damage through comet assay in blood samples collected from industry workers and compare these results with those of classical analytical techniques used for complete blood count analysis. Methods: Samples from controls (n = 20) and exposed workers (n = 38) from an industrial area in Multan, Pakistan, were subjected to various tests. Malathion residues in blood samples were measured by gas chromatography. Results: The exposed workers who were employed in the pesticide manufacturing industry for a longer period (i.e., 13-25 years) had significantly higher DNA tail length ($7.04{\mu}m$) than the controls ($0.94{\mu}m$). Workers in the exposed group also had higher white blood cell and red blood cell counts, and lower levels of mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), MCH concentration, and mean corpuscular volume in comparison with normal levels for these parameters. Malathion was not detected in the control group. However, in the exposed group, 72% of whole blood samples had malathion with a mean value of 0.14 mg/L (range 0.01-0.31 mg/L). Conclusion: We found a strong correlation ($R^2=0.91$) between DNA damage in terms of tail length and malathion concentration in blood. Intensive efforts and trainings are thus required to build awareness about safety practices and to change industrial workers' attitude to prevent harmful environmental and anthropogenic effects.

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
• /
• v.34 no.4
• /
• pp.205-212
• /
• 2021

Offshore jacket structures generally comprise steel members, and the safety standard for jacket structures typically focuses on the steel components. However, large amounts of concrete grouting is filled in the legs of the Gageocho jacket structure to aid in the recovery from typhoon damage. This paper proposes a safe and lightweight design for the Gageocho ocean research station comprising steel members instead of large amounts of concrete reinforcement in the legs. Based on the actual design, the structural members are grouped according to their functional roles, and the inner diameter of the cross-section in each design group is defined as a design variable. Structural optimization is carried out using a genetic algorithm to minimize the total weight of the structure. To satisfy the conservative safety standards in the offshore field, both the maximum stress and the unity check criteria are considered as design constraints during optimization. For enhanced safety confidence, extreme environmental conditions are assumed. The maximum marine attachment thickness and the section erosion in the splash zone are applied. Additionally, the design load is defined as the force induced by extreme waves, winds, and currents aligned in the same direction. All the loading directions surrounding the structure are considered to design the structure in a balanced and safe manner. As a result, compared with the current structure, the proposed structure features a 45% lighter design, satisfying the strict offshore safety criteria.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
• /
• v.42 no.4
• /
• pp.513-522
• /
• 2002

Antigenic ompC genes of S. gallinarum, S. pullorum and S. dublin were characterized among Salmonella spp. isolated from chickens and other animals to identify genetic variation. Salmonella ompC gene fragment (1,027 bp) was amplified by PCR and the amplicons were cloned for comparison of nucleotide sequences. The identity of the sequences between S. gallinarum and S. pullorum, S. gallinarum and S. dublin, S. pullorum and S. dublin was 99.8%, 97.6% and 97.8%, respectively. Also, we found that ompC has some diversity between S. gallinarum and S. pullorum, and other Salmonella spp. which may be useful to type the organisms. Similar to diagnosis in other organisms, the TaqMan PCR method can be applied to rapid and accurate diagnosis of salmonellosis in chickens and other animals. We designed PCR primers and TaqMan probe for flagellin gene (fliC) for detection of Salmonella spp. by TaqMan PCR. The TaqMan PCR method was 10,000 times more sensitive than conventional PCR.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
• /
• v.30 no.1
• /
• pp.33-42
• /
• 2014

Nivalenol (NIV) and deoxynivalenol (DON) are predominant Fusarium-producing mycotoxins found in grains, which are mainly produced by Fusarium asiaticum and F. graminearum. NIV is found in most of cereals grown in Korea, but the genetic basis for NIV production by F. asiaticum has not been extensively explored. In this study, 12 genes belonging to the trichothecene biosynthetic gene cluster were compared at the transcriptional level between two NIV-producing F. asiaticum and four DON-producing F. graminearum strains. Chemical analysis revealed that time-course toxin production patterns over 14 days did not differ between NIV and DON strains, excluding F. asiaticum R308, which was a low NIV producer. Both quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and Northern analysis revealed that the majority of TRI gene transcripts peaked at day 2 in both NIV and DON producers, which is 2 days earlier than trichothecene accumulation in liquid medium. Comparison of the gene expression profiles identified an NIV-specific pattern in two transcription factor-encoding TRI genes (TRI6 and TRI10) and TRI101, which showed two gene expression peaks during both the early and late incubation periods. In addition, the amount of trichothecenes produced by both DON and NIV producers were correlated with the expression levels of TRI genes, regardless of the trichothecene chemotypes. Therefore, the reduced production of NIV by R308 compared to NIV or DON by the other strains may be attributable to the significantly lower expression levels of the TRI genes, which showed early expression patterns.