• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.407-414
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• 2024

Phosphorus is an essential but non-renewable nutrient resource critical for agriculture. Luxury phosphorus uptake allows microalgae to synthesize polyphosphate and accumulate phosphorus, but, depending on the strain of algae, polyphosphate may be degraded within 4 hours of accumulation. We studied the recovery of phosphorus from wastewater through luxury uptake by an engineered strain of Synechocystis sp. with inhibited polyphosphate degradation and the effect of this engineered Synechocystis biomass on lettuce growth. First, a strain (∆phoU) lacking the phoU gene, which encodes a negative regulator of environmental phosphate concentrations, was generated to inhibit polyphosphate degradation in cells. Polyphosphate concentrations in the phoU knock-out strain were maintained for 24 h and then decreased slowly. In contrast, polyphosphate concentrations in the wild-type strain increased up to 4 h and then decreased rapidly. In addition, polyphosphate concentration in the phoU knockout strain cultured in semi-permeable membrane bioreactors with artificial wastewater medium was 2.5 times higher than that in the wild type and decreased to only 16% after 48 h. The biomass of lettuce treated with the phoU knockout strain (0.157 mg P/m²) was 38% higher than that of the lettuce treated with the control group. These results indicate that treating lettuce with this microalgal biomass can be beneficial to crop growth. These results suggest that the use of polyphosphate-accumulating microalgae as biofertilizers may alleviate the effects of a diminishing phosphorous supply. These findings can be used as a basis for additional genetic engineering to increase intracellular polyphosphate levels.

• Proceedings of the Zoological Society Korea Conference
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• 2000.10a
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• pp.255.1-255
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• 2000

No Abstract, See Full Text

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.566-572
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• 2009

A recombinant plasmid, pDH3, was obtained from the genomic library of Serattia marcescens KCTC 2172, and several recombinant subclones constructed from pDH3. The nucleotide sequence of a 5,137 bp segment, pPH4, was determined and three open reading frames were detected. The three ORFs encoded the phosphate specific transport (pst) operon, which was pstC, pstA, and pstB, with the same direction of transcription. Comparison of the pst operon of S. marcescens with that of other organisms revealed that the genes for pstS and phoU were missing. A potential CRP bonding site and pho box sequence was found in the upstream of the putative promoter at the regulatory region. Analysis of the nucleotide sequence showed that homology in amino acid sequences between the PstC protein and Yersinia sp., Vibrio sp., and Pseudomonas sp. were 49, 37 and 33%, respectively. The PstA protein and Yersinia sp., Vibrio sp., and Pseudomonas sp. showed homologies of 64, 51, and 47%, respectively. PstB protein and Methanocaldococcus sp., E. coli, and Mycoplasma sp. showed homologies of 60, 50, and 48%, respectively. The pst genes could be expressed in vivo and positively regulated by cAMP-CRP. The E. coli strain harboring plasmid pPH7, with pst genes, increased with the transport of phosphate.

• Journal of Aquaculture
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.547-556
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• 1998

This study was performed to obtain the basic data on the serum constituents of several marine fish spesies commonly cultured in Korea. Blood samples taken from six species of fish were analyzed for various components of serum, total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), triglyceride (TRIG), cholesterol (CHOL), glucose (GLC), lipase (LIPA), amylase (AMYL), aspartate transaminoferase (AST), sodium (Na), potassium (K), chloride (CI) and phosphorus (PHOS). The fish used were coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch), rock fish (Sebastes schlegeli), sea bass (Lateolabrax japonicus), olive flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus), rock fish (Sebastes schlegeli), sea bass (Lateolabrax japonicus), olive flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus), parrot fish (Oplegnathus fasciatus) and jack mackerel (Trachurus jaonicus) reared at the Chungmu Experimental Fish Culture Station of KORDI when the water tempetature was ca. 16.5$^{\circ}C$. There were significant differences in TRIG, CHOL, LIPA and AMYZ among the species analyzed. TRIG concentratin were ranged 178~180mg/dl in jack mackeerel and rock fish, 126~159 mg/dl in olive flounder and sea bass, and 102~114 mg/dl in coho salmon and parrot fish, respectively. Jack mackerel showed the highest levels in CHOL (255mg/dl) and GLC(138mg/dl) among species. LIPA levels were recorded 256 U/dl in coho salmon, 41~42 U/dl in parrot fish and rock fisk, and 5~11 U/dl jack mackerel and sea bass, respectively. AMYL activity of coho salmon was measured as 2, 665 U/dl, and that of jack mackerel was 1,210 U/dl while sea bass showed 60 U/dl and parrot fish, olive flounder and rock fish had at most 5 U/dl. On the other hand, there was no significant difference in the concentration of Na and CI. Na and K were proved that they were negatively correlated in all the species. Generally, among blood components, PHOS and CHOL levels were different depending on environmental temperature of each fish species, especially in olive flounder. Rock fish and parrot fish showed high blood concentration of those components during low temperature period while olive flounder and jack mackerel reached high level during their optimal environmental temperature period. The electrolyte concentration and LIPA activity were high during low water temperature period, in general, but TP and ALB concentrations were high during optimal temperature period. The concentrations of TRIG, CHOL and GLC, those which were used as energy sourses, were different among species by season.