• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.27 no.11
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• pp.1147-1153
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• 2004

Bladder cancer is a common cancer with high risk of recurrence and mortality. Intravesicle chemotherapy after trans-urethral resection is required to prevent tumor recurrence and progression. It has been known that antioxidants enhance the antitumor effect of bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG), the most effective intravesical bladder cancer treatment. Capsaicin, the major pungent ingredient in genus Capsicum, has recently been tried as an intravesical drug for overactive bladder and it has also been shown to induce apoptotic cell death in many cancer cells. In this study, we investigated the apoptosis-inducing effect and alterations in the cellular redox state of capsaicin in MBT-2 murine bladder tumor cells. Capsaicin induced apoptotic MBT-2 cell death in a time- and dose-dependent manner. The capsaicin-induced apoptosis was blocked by the pretreatment with Z-VAD-fmk, a broad-range caspase inhibitor, or Ac-DEVD-CHO, a caspase-3 inhibitor. In addition to the caspase-3 activation, capsaicin also induced cytochrome c release and decrease in Bcl-2 protein expression with no changes in the level of Bax. Furthermore, capsaicin at the concentration of inducing apoptosis also markedly reduced the level of reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation, implying that capsaicin may enhance the antitumor effect of BCG in bladder cancer treatment. These results further suggest that capsaicin may be a valuable intravesical chemotherapeutic agent for bladder cancers.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.113-119
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• 2003

Soybean sprout pathogenic bacteria were isolated from the large, deep containers of a commercial factory. Over a period of one year, 40 pathogenic-like bacteria were isolated among a total of 732 isolates. In addition to bacteria previously reported to be associated with rotting, such as Pseudomonas putida and Erwinia carotovora, several other genera were also identified: Acinetobacter spp., Chryseobacterium spp., Klebsiella sp., Pantoea agglomerans, Bacillus sp. Fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) analysis using the Microbial ID (MIDI) system, and 16s rRNA sequence analysis, yielded identical results, confirming the identities of these microorganisms. Several types of selective media were not good for identification and determination of population structure in commercial environments, as colony type was not specific to the genus. There was no dominant bacterium, and we were not able to find the main bacterium responsible for soybean spout rot. Even though we did not identify a major target for controlling rot or screening for resistant cultivars, the results of this study indicated that bacterial rot of soybean sprout is endemic. In addition, it emerged that factory epidemics in summer are not caused by the bacteria isolated in this study.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.12
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• pp.1672-1676
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• 2010

The Actinomycete strain KH29 is antagonistic to the multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. Based on the diaminopimelic acid (DAP) type, and the morphological and physiological characteristics observed through the use of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), KH29 was confirmed as belonging to the genus Streptomyces. By way of its noted 16S rDNA nucleotide sequences, KH29 was found to have a relationship with Streptomyces cinnamonensis. The production of an antibiotic from this strain was found to be most favorable when cultured with glucose, polypeptone, and yeast extract (PY) medium for 6 days at $27^{\circ}C$. The antibiotic produced was identified, through comparisons with reported spectral data including MS and NMR as a cyclo(L-tryptophanyl-L-tryptophanyl). Cyclo(L-Trp-L-Trp), from the PY cultures of KH29, was seen to be highly effective against 41 of 49 multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. Furthermore, cyclo(L-Trp-L-Trp) had antimicrobial activity against Bacillus subtilis, Micrococcus luteus, Staphylococcus aureus, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Aspergillus niger, and Candida albicans, However, it was ineffective against Streptomyces murinus.

• Journal of Species Research
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.77-84
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• 2020

As a part of the research project "Survey of freshwater organisms and specimen collection," freshwater samples were collected from the Nakdong River. Among the bacterial isolates, we selected strains that showed higher than 98.7% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with confirmed bacterial species previously unreported in South Korea. The 14 new records to South Korea were phylogenetically diverse and belonged to four phyla, six classes, 11 orders, and 14 genera. At the genus level, these species were found to be affiliated with Reyranella, Ferrovibrio, Brevundimonas, and Aquidulcibacter of the class Alphaproteobacteria; Pseudomonas, Cellvibrio, and Photobacterium of the class Gammaproteobacteria; Paenibacillus and Bacillus of the phylum Firmicutes; Chryseobacterium, Flavobacterium, Pedobacter of the phylum Bacteroidetes; and Actinomadura and Leifsonia of the phylum Actinobacteria. These species were further characterized by examining their Gram reaction, colony and cell morphologies, biochemical properties, and phylogenetic positions. The detailed descriptions of these 14 previously unreported species are provided.

• Mycobiology
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• v.50 no.5
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• pp.269-293
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• 2022

Oomycete pathogens that belong to the genus Phytophthora cause devastating diseases in solanaceous crops such as pepper, potato, and tobacco, resulting in crop production losses worldwide. Although the application of fungicides efficiently controls these diseases, it has been shown to trigger negative side effects such as environmental pollution, phytotoxicity, and fungicide resistance in plant pathogens. Therefore, biological control of Phytophthora-induced diseases was proposed as an environmentally sound alternative to conventional chemical control. In this review, progress on biological control of the soilborne oomycete plant pathogens, Phytophthora capsici, Phytophthora infestans, and Phytophthora nicotianae, infecting pepper, potato, and tobacco is described. Bacterial (e.g., Acinetobacter, Bacillus, Chryseobacterium, Paenibacillus, Pseudomonas, and Streptomyces) and fungal (e.g., Trichoderma and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi) agents, and yeasts (e.g., Aureobasidium, Curvibasidium, and Metschnikowia) have been reported as successful biocontrol agents of Phytophthora pathogens. These microorganisms antagonize Phytophthora spp. via antimicrobial compounds with inhibitory activities against mycelial growth, sporulation, and zoospore germination. They also trigger plant immunity-inducing systemic resistance via several pathways, resulting in enhanced defense responses in their hosts. Along with plant protection, some of the microorganisms promote plant growth, thereby enhancing their beneficial relations with host plants. Although the beneficial effects of the biocontrol microorganisms are acceptable, single applications of antagonistic microorganisms tend to lack consistent efficacy compared with chemical analogues. Therefore, strategies to improve the biocontrol performance of these prominent antagonists are also discussed in this review.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.211-215
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• 1983

The changes of microflora during fermentation of low salted sardine were observed. The viable cell count in the low salt fermented sardine with $8\%\;or\;10\%$ salt showed lower than that of control ($20\%$ salt) during the fermentation period and it was considered that the microbial growth was controlled by adding ethanol, sorbitol and lactic acid. Among 48 strains isolated, 7 genus of bacteria and 1 genus of yeast were identified during the fermentation of sardine. The changes of microflora also occurred during fermentation depending on the salt levels in the product. Brevibacterium, Pseudomonas, Flavobacterium and Baciilus were detected at early stage of fermentation and they disappeared after 50 days fermentation from the product with $20\%$ salt and Halobacterium, Micrococcus, Pediococcus and Torulopsis were isolated, whereas Brevibacterium, Micrococcus and Pediococcus were isolated from the product with $8\%\;or\;10\%$ salt.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.48 no.5
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• pp.469-476
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• 2015

Button mushroom compost (BMC) was prepared by fermenting the mixture of waste button mushroom bed collected from Boryeong area in South Korea (4): sawdust (8) : pig and fowl manure (1) for 40 days at $30^{\circ}C$. The BMC compromised diverse microorganisms including aerobic bacteria $8.1{\times}10^6cfu\;g^{-1}$, Gram negative bacteria $1.7{\times}10^7cfu\;g^{-1}$, genus Bacillus $6.4{\times}10^6cfu\;g^{-1}$, genus Pseudomonas $1.5{\times}10^4cfu\;g^{-1}$, actinomycetes $1.0{\times}10^4cfu\;g^{-1}$, and fungi $3.5{\times}10^3cfu\;g^{-1}$. BMC was used as a microbial inoculant for estimating the mobilization of heavy metals in soil or plant. When metal solubilization potential of BMC was assessed in a batch experiment, the inoculation of BMC was shown to increase the concentrations of water soluble Co, Pb, Cd, and Zn by 29, 26, 27, and 43% respectively, than those of non-inoculated soils. BMC-assisted growth promotion and metal uptake in sunflower (Helianthus annuus) was also evaluated in a pot experiment. In comparison with non-inoculated seedlings, the inoculation led to increase the growth of H. annuus by 17, 15, 18, and 21% respectively in Co, Pb, Cd, and Zn contaminated soils. Moreover, enhanced accumulation of Co, Pb, Cd, and Zn in the shoot and root systems was observed in inoculated plants, where metal translocation from root to the above-ground tissues was also found to be enhanced by the BMC. The apparent results suggested that the BMC could effectively be employed in enhancing phytoextraction from the soils contaminated with heavy metals such as Co, Pb, Cd, and Zn.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.128-136
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• 2014

Acyl homoserine lactone (AHL) lactonase has been proved to be the AHL-degrading enzyme with the highest substrate specificity for AHL molecules and has shown a considerable potential as low-cost and efficient quorum quenching (QQ) technique. However, few studies focused on its inhibitory effect on biofilm formation which is also a quorum sensing (QS)-regulated phenomenon. In this study, QQ activity of six isolates from biofouled reverse osmosis membranes was studied using Chromobacterium violaceum CV026 and Agrobacterium tumefaciens NTL4 as biosensors under various conditions. All of the isolates belonged to the genus Bacillus and showed QQ activity regardless of the acyl chain length or substitution of AHL molecule. The isolates were capable of significantly inhibiting biofilm formation (46.7-58.3%) by Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 and produced heat-sensitive extracellular QQ substances. The LC-MS analysis of the QQ activity of a selected isolate, RO1S-5, revealed the degradation of N-(3-oxododecanoyl)-L-homoserine lactone (3-oxo-C12 AHL) and the production of corresponding acyl homoserine (3-oxo-C12-HS), which indicated the activity of AHL lactonase. The broad AHL substrate range and high substrate specificity suggested that the isolate would be useful for the control of biofilm-related pathogenesis and biofouling in industrial processes.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.37-42
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• 2011

I isolated the actinomycete strain KH223 from soil samples collected from the Kye Ryong mountain area. This strain is antagonistic to the multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. KH223 was confirmed as belonging to the genus Streptomyces based on the scanning electronmicroscopy(SEM) observations of the diaminopimelicacid(DAP) type and morphological and physiological characteristics. Comparison of the 16S rDNA nucleotide sequences revealed that KH223 has a relationship with Streptomyces galbus. Production of antibiotics by KH223 was most favorable when cultured on a glucose, polypeptone, and yeast extract(PY) medium for 6 days at 27$^{\circ}C$. The supernatant was found to exhibit an antimicrobial effect on various kinds of bacteria and fungi. Particularly, butanol and ethylacetate extracts of KH223 and cyclo(trp-trp) exhibited significant activity against A. baumannii at concentration ranges of 0.8-12.5 ${\mu}g$/mL, 5.0-25 ${\mu}g$/mL and 12.5${\rightarrow}$100 ${\mu}g$/mL, respectively. Moreover, in contrast to cyclo(trp-trp) had shown to activity against Micrococcus luteus JCM 1464 at the concentration of 12.5 ${\mu}g$/mL, the butanol extract of KH223 showed significant activity against Bacillus subtilis IAM 1069 and Micrococcus luteus JCM 1464 at the concentration of 0.4 and 0.8 ${\mu}g$/mL, respectively. These results suggest that KH223 may have a great potential in the production of new antibiotics to combat multidrug-resistant pathogens and further studies may be warranted for the same.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.369-376
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• 2013

We isolated the ${\beta}$-glucosidase producing bacteria (BGB) in ginseng root system (rhizosphere soil, rhizoplane, inside of root). Phylogenetic analysis of the 28 BGB based on the 16S rRNA gene sequences, BGB from rhizosphere soil belong to genus Stenotrophomonas (3 strains), Bacillus (1 strain), and Pseudoxanthomonas (1 strain). BGB isolates from rhizoplane were Stenotrophomonas (16 strains), Streptomyces (1 strain) and Microbacterium (1 strain). BGB from inside of root were categorized into Stenotrophomonas (3 strains) and Lysobacter (2 strains). Especially, Stenotrophomonas comprised the largest portion (approximately 90%) of total isolates and Stenotrophomonas was a dominant group of the ${\beta}$-glucosidase producing bacteria. We selected strain 4KR4, which had high ${\beta}$-glucosidase activity (108.17 unit), could transform ginsenoside Rb1 into Rd, Rg3, and Rh2 ginsenosides. In determining its relationship on the basis of 16S rRNA sequence, 4KR4 strain was most closely related to Stenotrophomonas rhizophila e-$p10^T$ (AJ293463) (99.62%). Therefore, on the basis of these polyphasic taxonomic evidence, the ginsenoside Rb1 converting bacteria 4KR4 was identified as Stenotrophomonas sp. 4KR4 (=KACC 17635).