• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.2 no.4
• /
• pp.243-247
• /
• 1992

The thr operon of Escherichia coli TF427, an $\alpha$-amino-$\beta$-hydroxyvaleric acid (AHV)-resistant threonine overproducer, was cloned in a pBluescriptII $KS^＋$ plasmid by complementation of E. coli mutants. All clones contained a common 8.8 kb HindIII-generated DNA fragment and complemented the thrA, thrB, and thrC mutants by showing that these clones contained the whole thr operon. This thr operon was subcloned in the plasmid vectors pBR322, pUC18, and pECCG117, an E. coli/Corynebacterium glutamicum shuttle vector, to form recombinant plasmids pBTF11, pUTF25 and pGTF18, respectively. The subcloned thr operon was shown to be present in a 6.0 kb insert. A transformant of E. coli TF125 with pBTF11 showed an 8~11 fold higher aspartokinase I activity, and 15~20 fold higher L-threonine production than TF125, an AHV-sensitive methionine auxotroph. Also, it was found that the aspartokinase I activity of E. coli TF125 harboring pBTF11 was not inhibited by threonine and its synthesis was not repressed by threonine plus isoleucine.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.25 no.2
• /
• pp.196-205
• /
• 2015

A Sulfolobus-E. coli shuttle vector for an efficient expression of the target gene in S. acidocaldarius strain was constructed. The plasmid-based vector pSM21 and its derivative pSM21N were generated based on the pUC18 and Sulfolobus cryptic plasmid pRN1. They carried the S. solfataricus P2 pyrEF gene for the selection marker, a multiple cloning site (MCS) with C-terminal histidine tag, and a constitutive promoter of the S. acidocaldarius gdhA gene for strong expression of the target gene, as well as the pBR322 origin and ampicillin-resistant gene for E. coli propagation. The advantage of pSM21 over other Sulfolobus shuttle vectors is that it contains a MCS and a histidine tag for the simple and easy cloning of a target gene as well as one-step purification by histidine affinity chromatography. For successful expression of the foreign genes, two genes from archaeal origins (PH0193 and Ta0298) were cloned into pSM21N and the functional expression was examined by enzyme activity assay. The recombinant PH0193 was successfully expressed under the control of the gdhA promoter and purified from the cultures by His-tag affinity chromatography. The yield was approximately 1 mg of protein per liter of cultures. The enzyme activity measurements of PH0913 and Ta0298 revealed that both proteins were expressed as an active form in S. acidocaldarius. These results indicate that the pSM21N shuttle vector can be used for the functional expression of foreign archaeal genes that form insoluble aggregates in the E. coli system.

• Applied Microscopy
• /
• v.20 no.2
• /
• pp.57-70
• /
• 1990

Characterization and electron microscopic visualization of the plasmid and the gene expression of Escherichia coli were carried out. Transcriptional units of active structural genes were observed after lysis of Escherichia coli cells. The ribosomes attached to the E. coli genome on mRNA molecule as polyribosomes. From this gradient of polyribosome length, we estimated location of mRNA synthesis initiation site. In this experiment, a granule is ofen present which may correspond to a RNA polymerase at the promoter site. pOX1, pOX7, pOX7A, $pOX7{\Delta}1$, pSTP36, pSTP21, pBR322, and pJH12 were visualized by way of electron microscope, and their estimated sizes were determined to be $5.70{\pm}0.08{\mu}m,\;2.15{\pm}0.10{\mu}m,\;2.14{\pm}0.12{\mu}m,\;7.39{\pm}0.08{\mu}m,\;4.03{\pm}0.04{\mu}m,\;1.50{\pm}0.03{\mu}m\;and\;1.25{\pm}0.09{\mu}m$ respectively. One micrometer of measured length corresponded to about 3.0 Kb. Mica-press adsorption method that allows selectivs visualization of the plasmid DNA released in situ from the bacterial cell is rapid and useful for visualization of plasmids. The released plasmid DNA was adsorbed preferently on mica in a divalent cation-free solution. Miller chromatin-spreading method was useful to observe the plasmid and transcripts. BAC method and cytochrome C monolayer were useful to observe the plasmid DNA. Our ability to visualize ultrastructural aspects of the expression of E. coli has given us a unique tool with which to study the regulation the level of an individual gene.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.8 no.6
• /
• pp.560-567
• /
• 1998

We have found that Thermoactinomyces vulgaris KFB-Cl00 produces a chitinase. The optimum temperature and pH of the enzyme activity were $55^{\circ}C$ and 6.5. The enzyme was stable after heat treatment at $80^{\circ}C$ for 30 min and stable in acidic and basic conditions (PH 6.0~11.0). The thermostable endo-chitinase from Thermoactinomyces vulgaris KFB-C100 was cloned into the plasmid pBR322 by using E. coli DH5$\alpha$ as a host strain. The positive clone carrying a recombinant plasmid (PKCHI23) with a 4.1-kb fragment containing the chitinase gene was found. The recombinant plasmid was analyzed to determine the essential region for chitinase activity and obtained a 2.3-kb fragment, which was sub cloned into pTrc99A using the PstI and SalI sites to construct pTrc99A/pKCHI23-3. The resulting plasmid exerted high chitinase activity upon transformation of E. coli XL1-Blue cells. Chitinase was overproduced 14 times more in the clone cells than in the wild-type cells and the enzyme was purified to homogeneity. The purified enzyme showed the similar properties as the native chitinase from T. vulgaris in terms of molecular weight and substrate specificity. The catalytic action of the cloned enzyme was an endo type, producing chitobiose as a major reaction product.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Pharmacology
• /
• 1996.04a
• /
• pp.174-174
• /
• 1996

Extract of Pulsatilla Koreana (SB-31) showed promising antitumor activity in vitro (J. Kor Cancer Asso 26:959-963, 1994). We studied the mechanism of cytotoxicity of SB-31. HL-60 cells were cocultivated with various concentrations of SB-31 for 5 hours. The DNAs from HL-60 cells exposed to SB-31 showed the ladder pattern typical of apoptosis. Effect of SB-31 on topoisomerase I activity was determined by slight modification of the method by E. Aflalo(1994). The pBR322 DNA showed dose-dependent increase of R-Form DNA upon incubation with SB-31. The topoisomerase Ⅰ-like activity (Increase of R-Form DNA) was accentuated with higher dose of SB-31. It is postulated that SB-31, which is a fermentation product of Pulsatilla koreana and which loses its activity when kept in ambient temperature for more than 96 hours, may contain topoisomerase Ⅰ-like activity and the enhanced excessive single strand breaks induced by 55-31 may result in apoptosis.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.8 no.1
• /
• pp.28-33
• /
• 1998

A gene coding for ${\beta}$-xylosidase from thermophilic xylanolytic Bacillus sp. KK-1 was cloned into Escherichia coli using plasmid pBR322. Recombinant plasmid DNAs were isloated from E. coli clones which were capable of hydrolyzing 4-methylumbelliferyl-${\beta}$-D xylopyranoside. Restriction analysis showed the DNAs to share a common insert DNA. Xylo-oligosaccharides, including xylotriose, xylotetraose, xylopentaose, and xylobiose were hydrolyzed to form xylose as an end product by cell-free extracts of the E. coli clones, confirming that the cloned gene from strain KK-1 is ${\beta}$-xylosidase gene. The ${\beta}$-xylosidase gene of strain KK-1 designated as xylB was completely sequenced. The xylB gene consisted of an open reading frame of 1,602 nucleotides encoding a polypeptide of 533 amino acid residues, and a TGA stop codon. The 3' flanking region contained one stem-loop structure which may be involved in transcriptional termination. The deduced amino acid sequence of the KK-1 ${\beta}$-xylosidase was highly homologous to the ${\beta}$-xylosidases of Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus pumilus, but it showed no similarity to a thermostable ${\beta}$-xylosidase from Bacillus stearothermophilus.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.12 no.5
• /
• pp.716-721
• /
• 2002

The ldhL gene encoding the $_L$-(+) lactate dehydrogenase was cloned from Lactobacillus reuteri ATCC 55739 chromosomal DNA and characterized. An internal 750-bp fiagment of ldhL gene was amplified by PCR using primers based on the conserved region of lactobacilli ldhL genes. A genomic library off. reuteri ATCC 55739 was constructed using pBR322, and colony hybridization experiments were performed using the 750-bp fragment as aprobe. One clone harboring a 4.0-kb PstI fragment was identified, and nucleotide sequencing confirmed it as an open reading frame of 972 bp in size in the middle. In addition to IdhL gene, an ORF homologous to Streptococcus pneumoniae TIGR4 hydrolase gene and 3' part of phosphomevalonate kinase gene (mvaK2) were also found on the 4 kb fragment. $_L$-LDH of L. reuteri ATCC 55739 showed the highest degree of homology with the $_L$-LDH of Pediococcus acidilactici (62.4%), fullowed by the $_L$-LDH of Lactobacillus pentosus (58.7%). The size of IdhL transcript determined by Northern blot was 1 kb, indicating the monocistronic nature of IdhL.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.3 no.4
• /
• pp.256-260
• /
• 1993

DNA subfragments, sopA, sopB and sopC which help to maintain the stability of an ori C plasmid, were derived from a mini-F plasmid DNA (EcoRI restriction fragment f5) after digestion with restriction endonuclease, and cloned in the vector plasmid pBR322. The recombinant plasmids obtained were introduced into E. coli KY7231 and E. coli CSR603 strains, and proteins specified by the mini-F fragments were analysed by SDS-PAGE. Two proteins encoded by the F fragments were detected, and their molecular weights were 41,000 and 37,000 daltons. Fluorography after one and two dimensional gel electrophoresis of the lysates showed that these two proteins had been overproduced in the cells which were allowed to incorporate radioactive amino acid after plasmid amplification by chloramphenicol treatment. The isoelectric points of sopA and sopB proteins were 6.6 and 7.0, respectively.

• Food Science and Biotechnology
• /
• v.18 no.1
• /
• pp.207-212
• /
• 2009

Celandine (Chelidonium majus, family Papaveraceae) is an herb used extensively in traditional Korean medicine. To investigate its antioxidant and antiproliferative activities, the methanolic extract of celandine was introduced. The antioxidant properties of the extract were tested using various in vitro systems, including hydroxyl radical scavenging assay, DNA damage protection assay, 1,1-diphenyll-2-2-pricylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity, metal chelating activity, and reducing power assay. The extract exhibited stronger antioxidant activity ($IC_{50}=7.92{\mu}g/mL$) against hydroxyl radicals in the Fenton system than butylated hydroxyanisole ($IC_{50}=51.46{\mu}g/mL$) and $\alpha$-tocopherol ($IC_{50}=67.48{\mu}g/mL$). Likewise, damage to the plasmid pBR 322 induced by hydroxyl radicals was found to be protected by the extract at a concentration of $400{\mu}g/mL$. Cellular proliferation and the induction of apoptosis were also examined by a cellular proliferation assay, flow cytometry, and mRNA expression analysis. Taken together, the extract significantly inhibited the growth of HT-29 cells in a concentration- and time-dependent manner, and gradually increased both the proportion of apoptotic cells and the expression of caspase-3. Overall, our research suggests that celandine possesses antioxidant and antiproliferative properties.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• v.40 no.2
• /
• pp.87-91
• /
• 2015

We have employed X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) technique to examine the combined effects of low-energy electron (LEE) irradiation and $Fe^{3+}$ ion on DNA damage. pBR322 plasmid DNA extracted from E. coli ER2420 was used for preparing DNA-$Fe^{3+}$ sample. The C1s XPS spectra were scanned for LEE-irradiated and LEE-unirradiated samples and then curve-fitted. For the samples with LEE irradiation only or with Fe ion only, no significant changes from pure DNA samples were observed - a single effect of either $Fe^{3+}$ ion or LEE irradiation did not cause a significant damage. However, when these two components were combined, the DNA damage was increased quite significantly, compared to the sum of DNA damages caused by $Fe^{3+}$ ion and by LEE irradiation independently. This observation is consistent with our previous results [Radiat. Res. 177, 775 (2012)] which was done using gel-electrophoresis technique. Partial interpretation of the observed spectrum peaks was also attempted.