• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.438-443
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• 2018

The emergence of biofilms have generated urgent alarm in clinical and medicine manufacturing fields engaged in the search for novel antimicrobials from ethno-medicinal plants. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has estimated that 70% of all microbial infections in the world are associated with biofilms. In addition, the emergence of strains resistant to conventional antibiotics has become a serious threat to global public health. Therefore, finding alternative medicines is a major issue in the field of integrative medicine. In this study, four different herb extracts were screened for biofilm formation and the activities of Klebsiella pneumoniae. Of them, Scutellaria scordifolia Fisch. ex Schrank extracts had inhibitory effects on bacterial growth and biofilm formation. The Scutellaia scordifolia Fisch. ex Schrank extracts did not cause any cytotoxicity to L929 cells. The growth of K. pneumoniae was inhibited compared to other comparators in the experimental group containing Scutellaia scordifolia Fisch. ex Schrank. In a group of experiments with plant extracts, a maximum of 60 times the level of living bacteria was confirmed compared to the controls without the addition of the Scutellaia scordifolia Fisch. ex Schrank extracts. In a group of experiments with a significantly lower level of fluorescence extraction, differential interference contrast imaging showed that the number of K. pneumonae was reduced. These results suggest that extracts of this plant be applied as antimicrobial agents against K. pneumoniae, particularly in biofilm forms.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.12
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• pp.1545-1553
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• 2018

The International Society of Rare Sugars (ISRS) defines rare sugars as monosaccharides and their derivatives that rarely occur in nature. Rare sugars have recently received much attention because of their many uses including low-calorie sweeteners, bulking agents, and antioxidants, and their various applications including as immunosuppressants in allogeneic rat liver transplantation, as potential inhibitors of various glycosidases and microbial growth, in ischemia-reperfusion injury repair in the rat liver, and in segmented neutrophil production without detrimental clinical effects. Because they rarely exist in nature, the production of rare sugars has been regarded as one of the most important research areas and, generally, they are produced by chemical synthesis. However, the production of rare sugars by bioconversion using enzymes from microorganisms has been receiving increased attention as an environmentally friendly alternative production method. In particular, D-allulose, D-allose, and D-tagatose are of interest as low-calorie sweeteners in various industries. To date, D-tagatose 3-epimerase, D-psicose 3-epimerase, and D-allulose 3-epimerase have been reported as D-allulose bioconversion enzymes, and L-rhamnose isomerase, Galactose 6-phosphate isomerase, and Ribose 5-phosphate isomerase have been identified as D-allose production enzymes. Elsewhere, D-tagatose has been produced by L-arabinose isomerase from various microorganisms. In this study, we report the production of D-allulose, D-allose, and D-tagatose by microorganism enzymes.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.31 no.9
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• pp.1231-1240
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• 2021

Members of the genus Bacillus are known to play an important role in promoting plant growth and protecting plants against phytopathogenic microorganisms. In this study, 21 isolates of Bacillus spp. were obtained from the root micro-ecosystem of Suaeda glauca. Analysis of the 16S rRNA genes indicated that the isolates belong to the species Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Bacillus velezensis, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus aryabhattai and Brevibacterium frigoritolerans. One of the interesting findings of this study is that the four strains B1, B5, B16 and B21 are dominant in rhizosphere soil. Based on gyrA, gyrB, and rpoB gene analyses, B1, B5, and B21 were identified as B. amyloliquefaciens and B16 was identified as B. velezensis. Estimation of antifungal activity showed that the isolate B1 had a significant inhibitory effect on Fusarium verticillioides, B5 and B16 on Colletotrichum capsici (syd.) Butl, and B21 on Rhizoctonia cerealis van der Hoeven. The four strains grew well in medium with 1-10% NaCl, a pH value of 5-8, and promoted the growth of Arabidopsis thaliana. Our results indicate that these strains may be promising agents for the biocontrol and promotion of plant growth and further study of the relevant bacteria will provide a useful reference for the development of microbial resources.

• Journal of the korean academy of Pediatric Dentistry
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.140-148
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• 2022

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of silver diamine fluoride (SDF) and potassium iodide (KI) on the formation of cariogenic biofilm and surface roughness in vitro. A total of 48 bovine dentin specimens with artificially induced caries were prepared and divided into 3 groups of 16: untreated control, SDF-treated, and SDF-treated followed by KI (SDFKI). Ten specimens from each group were used to observe microbial adhesion. Multispecies cariogenic biofilms including Streptococcus mutans, Lactobacillus casei, and Candida albicans were cultured on the specimens. Microbes were cultured for 24 hours, and the colony-forming unit was calculated. The remaining specimens were observed by atomic force microscope and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The number of bacteria was significantly lower in the SDF and SDFKI groups. KI did not inhibit the antibacterial activity of SDF significantly. SEM images showed particles generated after SDF and SDFKI application were deposited on the dentin, but there was no significant difference in surface roughness between the 3 groups. This study confirmed that SDF and SDFKI application did not have a significant effect on the surface roughness of dentin, but effectively inhibited the formation of the early cariogenic bacterial film after 24 hours compared to the control.

• Korean Journal of Organic Agriculture
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.561-574
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• 2021

This study was conducted to evaluate the control efficacy of the organic farming materials (OFMs) on tuber rot of Gastrodia elata caused by Fusarium spp. The antifungal activities in vitro as well as the suppressive effect of 15 OFMs on the spore germination and germ tube growth by inoculating spore suspension on immature tubers in vivo were investigated. 7 OFMs inhibited the mycelial growth of Fusarium spp. and 7 of them were microbial agents. In the screening using immature tubers, 3 OFMs were very effective with control efficacy value of 70%. Among them, sulfur provided suppressive effect on both mycelial growth and spore germination against tuber rot of G. elata. Finally, 3 OFMs were selected to test the protective and curative effects, and all chosen OFMs significantly suppressed disease incidence when applied in the preventive action, in comparison with the curative action. Especially, sulfur and Bacillus subtilis gave excellent protective control efficacy with control values of 93.2% and 86.9%, respectively, whereas its curative control effect was relatively low (73.3%, 60.2%). On the other hand, the preventive and curative effects of citronella + paraffin oil + ethyl alcohol were 73.3% and 67.0%, respectively. This study suggests that tuber rot of G. elata can be controlled by some OFMs in the rain shelter greenhouse under continuous cultivation condition and protective treatment is more important and efficient.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.54 no.1
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• pp.75-79
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• 2022

Fresh, washed ginseng can be contaminated with microorganism loads as high as 6.5 log CFU/g for total bacteria and 4.3 log CFU/g for mold. The goal of this study was to test eight antibacterial agents on ginseng. Immersing fresh ginseng washed in 1% (w/w) sodium citrate, sodium diacetate, sodium acetate, citric acid, and sodium lactate solution for 1 h resulted in a bactericidal effect of 31.0-97.5% for total bacteria. Among the organic acids, sodium citrate had the best antibacterial effect, with total bacteria reduced from 6.5 log to 4.9 log CFU/g. A 1% (w/w) vitamin B₁ lauryl sulfate solution with surfactant function by hydrophilic and hydrophobic sites can reduce 2.7 log CFU/g (99.8% inactivation) on total bacteria. In the 1% (w/w) calcium oxide solution, total bacteria were reduced by 3 log, showing an excellent inactivation effect of 99.9%. Calcium oxide is a highly useful material for inactivation of microorganisms in fresh ginseng.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.66
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• pp.213-220
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• 2023

The most common skin disease, acne, often occurs in adolescence, but it is also detected/observed in adults due to air pollution and drug abuse. One of the causative agents of acne, Cutibacterium acnes (C. acnes) plays a role in the development of skin acne by inducing inflammatory mediators. Torreya nucifera (TN) is an evergreen tree of the family Taxaceae, having well reported antioxidant, anti-proliferative, liver protection, and nerve protection properties. Improvement of these bioactive properties of natural products is one of the purposes of natural product chemistry and pharmaceuticals. We believe biorenovation could be one improvement strategy that utilizes microbial metabolism to produce unique derivatives having enhanced bioactivity. Therefore, in this study, the C. acnes-induced RAW264.7 inflammation model was used to evaluate the anti-inflammatory activity of the biorenovated Torreya nucifera product (TNB). The results showed improved viability of TNB-treated cells compared to TN-treated cells in the concentration range of 50, 100, and 200 ㎍/mL. At non-toxic concentrations, TNB inhibited the production of nitric oxide and prostaglandin E2 by suppression of inducible nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 protein expression. TNB also attenuated the expression of interleukin-1β, interleukin-6, interleukin-8, and tumor necrosis factor-α induced by C. acnes. Furthermore, TNB inhibited the nuclear factor-κB signaling pathway, a transcription factor known to regulate inflammatory mediators. Based on these results, this study suggests the potential of using TNB as natural material for the treatment of acnes and thus, supporting our postulation of biorenovation as an bioactivity improvement strategy.

• Horticultural Science & Technology
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.447-455
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• 2011

To investigate the effects of the improvement of postharvest quality on fresh tomato, antimicrobial microperforated (AMP) films were prepared and their antimicrobial abilities were observed. AMP films were made by coating different types of natural antimicrobial agents such as cinnamon, clove, and clary sage essential oils into microperforated (MP) films. Cinnamon essential oil of 10% (v/v) has proven to be very effective as inhibitor of the mold growth on tomato, compared to the clove and clary sage essential oils. Quality changes of fresh tomatoes packed using the natural AMP films (AMP10 and AMP30) and MP films (MP10 and MP30) during storage were evaluated. Total microbial growth, weight loss, firmness, lycopene content, and decay rate as the major quality parameters were monitored over 9 days at $15^{\circ}C$. The oxygen transmission rates and mechanical properties between the natural AMP and MP films were also compared. There was no significant difference in change of oxygen transmission rate, tensile strength and elongation between the AMP and MP films. For storage studies, the freshness of tomato packaged in AMP30 film was higher than that in OPP film (the control), MP10, MP30, and AMP10 films. Especially, AMP30 film exhibited high efficiency compared to the control for tomato decay during storage periods. Based on the results, the microperforation and antimicrobial properties of the packaged films may significantly affect the maintenance of an optimum gas composition within the package atmosphere for increasing the storage life and quality of produce. They were also effective on the inhibition of microbial growth by controlled release of antimicrobial agent at an appropriate rate from the package into the tomato. Natural antimicrobial agent coating microperforated films could use potential functional package as a method of extending the freshness of postharvest tomato for storage.

• The Korean Journal of Pesticide Science
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.428-439
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• 2015

Pepper anthracnose caused by Collectotrichum acutaum has been known as one of the most damaging diseases of pepper, which has reduced not only yield but also quality of pepper produce almost every year. This study was conducted to develop control strategy against pepper anthracnose by alternate application of agricultural organic materials and chemical fungicides. The alternate application effect of agricultural organic materials and chemical fungicides for controlling pepper anthracnose were examined in vitro and in the field. First, thirteen microbial agents and twenty two agricultural organic materials were screened for antifungal activity against C. acutatum through the dual culture method and bioassay. As a result, one microbial agent (Bacillus subtilis QST-713) and three agricultural organic materials (sulfur, bordeaux mixture, marine algae extracts) were found to show high inhibition effect against C. acutatum. In the field test, when Iminoctadine tris+thiram, a chemical fungicide for controlling pepper anthracnose, was sprayed, it reduced disease incidence by 89.5%. Meanwhile Sulfur, bordeaux mixture, copper, marine algae extracts and Bacillus subtilis QST-713 showed low disease incidence at the range of 33.1~81.0%. However, when Iminoctadine tris+thiram and agricultural organic materials(bordeaux mixture, marine algae extracts) were applied to pepper fruits alternately two times at 7 days interval, there was a 81.7 and 87.1% reduction in disease, respectively. Consequently, the alternate spray of chemical fungicide (Iminoctadine tris+thiram) and agricultural organic materials (bordeaux mixture, marine algae extracts) could be recommended as a control method to reduce the using amount of chemical fungicide.

• Food Science and Preservation
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.571-577
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• 2007

Storage characteristics of fresh and thawed sliced raw fish (flounder and rockfish) washed in different solutions (tap water, A; jade water, B; 0.2% chitosan-ascorbate (CA), C; 0.03 ppm ozone water, D; 1.5% vinegar containing jade water, E; 1.5% vinegar and 0.2% CA containing jade water, F) at $10^{\circ}C$ were investigated. Changes in pH and acidity of thawed sliced raw fish (TS) during storage were lower than for fresh sliced raw fish (DS). The total microbial content (log cfu/g) of A stored for 3 days in DS was 6.7 (which represented an increase of 1 log cycle compared with day zero), but was 5.50 in B, 3.23 in C, 4.90 in D, 2.40 in E and 1.77 in F, the latter similar to counts at day zero. The degree of microbial contamination of DS and TS followed the order F > E > D > C > B > A in flounder, and F > E > C > D > B > A in rockfish. In general the hardness and chewiness of TS was less than for DS. While the effect of CA on TS texture was not significant in flounder, the effect showed in rockfish. For DS, the appearance in B, C and D was relatively good, as was freshness. Fishiness of flavor was in the order A > B > F > E > D > C. Overall acceptability of flounder and rockfish treated with C was better than treatment with the other washing agents. For TS the appearance of flounder and rockfish were good in B and C. The freshness of flounder and rockfish were in the order of D > C > B > A > E > F and D > C > B > A > E > F, respectively. Fishiness of the flavor of sliced raw fish was lowest in D, which also provided the best overall acceptability.