• Proceedings of the Korean Environmental Health Society Conference
• /
• 2005.06a
• /
• pp.45-72
• /
• 2005

C. neoformans-associated cryptococcosis is primarily a disease of immunocompromised persons, has a world-wide distribution, and is often spread by pigeons in the urban environment. In contrast, C. gattii causes infection in normal hosts, has only been described in tropical and semi-tropical areas of the world, and has a unique niche in river gum Eucalyptus trees. Cryptococcosis is acquired through inhalation of the yeast propagules from the environment. C. gattii has been identified as the cause of an emerging infectious disease centered on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. No cases of C. gattii-disease were diagnosed prior to 1999; the current incidence rate is 36 cases per million population. A search was initiated in 2001 to find the ecological niche of this basidiomycetous yeast. C. gaftii was found in the environment in treed areas of Vancouver Island. The highest percentage of colonized-tree clusters were found around central Vancouver Island, with decreasing rates of colonization to the north and south. Climate, soil and vegetation cover of this area, called the Coastal Douglas fir biogeoclimatic zone, is unique to British Columbia and Canada. The concentration of airborne C. gattii was highest in the dry summer months, and lowest during late fall, winter, and early spring, months which have heavy rainfall. The study of the emerging colonization of this organism and subsequent cases of environmentally acquired disease will be informative in planning public health management of new routes of exposure to exotic agents in areas impacted by changing climate and land use patterns. Cryptococcosis is an infection associated with an encapsulated, basidiomycetous yeast Cryptococcus neoformans. The route of entry for this organism is through the lungs, with possible systemic spread via the circulatory system to the brain and meninges. There are four cryptococcal serogroups associated with disease in humans and animals, distinguished by capsular polysaccharide antigens. Cryptococcus neoformans: variety grubii (serotype A), variety neoformans (serotype D), and variety gattii (serotypes B and C) (Franzot et at. 1999). C. neoformans variety gattii has recently been elevated to species status, C. gattii. C. neoformans val. grubii and var. neoformans have a world-wide distribution, and are particularly associated with soil and weathered bird droppings. In contrast, C. gattii (CG) is not associated with bird excrement, is primarily found in tropical and subtropical climates, and has a restricted environmental niche associated with specific tree species. (Ellis & Pfiffer 1990) Ellis and Pfeiffer theorize that, as a basidiomycete, CG requires an association with a tree in order to become pathogenic to mammals. In Australia, CG has been found to be associated with five species of Eucalypts, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, E. tereticornis, E. blakelyi, E. gomphocephala, and E. rudis. Eucalypts, although originally native to Australia, now have a world-wide distribution. CG has been found associated with imported eucalypts in India, California, Brazil, and Egypt. In addition, in Brazil and Columbia, where eucalypts have been naturalized, native trees have been shown to harbour CG (Callejas et al. 1998; Montenegro et al. 2000). In British Columbia, Canada, since the beginning of 1999, there have been 120 confirmed cases of cryptococcal mycoses associated with CG in humans, including 4 fatalities (data from British Columbia Centre for Disease Control), and over 200 cases in animal pets in BC (data from Central Laboratory for Veterinarians). What is remarkable about the BC outbreak of C. gattii-cryptococcosis is that all of the cases have been residents of, or visitors to, a narrow area along the eastern coast of Vancouver Island, BC, from the tip of the island in the south (Victoria) to Courtenay on the north-central island as illustrated in Figure 1. Of the first 38 human cases, 58% were male with a mean age of 59.7 years (range 20 - 82): 36 cases (95%) were Caucasian. Ten cases (26%) presented with meningitis, the remainder presented with respiratory symptoms. Cultures recovered from cases of cryptococcosis associated with the outbreak were typed as serogroup B, which is specific to CG (Bartlett et al. 2003). This was the first reported outbreak of CVG in Canada, or indeed, the world. Where infection with CG is endemic, for example, Australia, the incidence of cryptococcosis ranges from 1.8 - 4.7 per million between the southern and northern states (Sorrell 2001). However, the overall incidence of cryptococcosis in immunocompenent individuals has been estimated at 0.2 per million population per year (Kwon-Chung et al. 1984). The population of Vancouver Island is approximately 720,000,consequently, even if the organism were endemic, one would expect a maximum of 0.15 cases of cryptococcal disease annually.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.31 no.3
• /
• pp.423-428
• /
• 1998

The effective extraction methods and chemical components of crude polysaccharides of ascidian tunics were investigated. Tow extraction conditions, autoclaving or enzyme treatment, were applied. The proximate composition of ascidian tunics was not much different between those dried in raw (containing pigments) and those acetone treated and dried (decolorized), showing $50\%$ of carbohydrate and $40\%$ of protein. It was possible to extract up to $10\%$ of crude polysaccharides from ascidian tunics regardless of the extraction methods, autoclaving or enzyme treatment. In case of the latter the extraction yield by neutrase was higher than that with alkalase (Novo co.) or mixture 2000 (Pacific chemical co.). The most effective enzyme concentration and extraction time appeared to be 24 hrs of extraction with $3\%$ neutrase. On the other hand, in autoclave treatment, 6 hrs extraction showed most desirable extraction yield, about $9.7\%$. The compositions of amino acid of decolorized ascidian tunic (acetone treated group) and the crude polysaccharide from the autoclaving (water solubles) or neutrase treatment (enzyme digestibles) were similar to each other. Histidine was the highest both in the neutrase and autoclave treatment group and the yield were $29.2\%,\;20.4\%$, respectively, followed by aspartic acid and glutamic acid. Among the minerals, the content of Ca was significantly high, followed by Mg and Na.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• v.44 no.2
• /
• pp.228-234
• /
• 2012

The varying characteristics between traditional and commercial soy sauce may be initiated by raw materials and fermentation techniques for the production of $meju$ and $koji$. We examined properties regarding polysaccharides isolated from commercial soy sauce made by the $koji$ process (CSP-0) and Korean traditional soy sauce made by the $meju$ process (KTSP-0) as well as their immuno-stimulating activities. KTSP-0 had rhamnogalacturonan II (RG-II) including 1.1% of unusual monosaccharides 3-deoxy-D-$manno$-2-octulosonic acid (KDO). Anti-complementary activities of CSP-0 and KTSP- 0 were increased dose-dependently but KTSP-0 (64.7%) was higher than CSP-0 (56%) at $1,000{\mu}g/mL$. C3 activation products were identified by crossed immuno-electrophoresis. CSP-0 caused complementary activations $via$ only classical pathway while KTSP-0 caused complementary activations $via$ both alternative and classical pathways. KTSP-0 significantly increased the secretion of interleukin (IL)-6 at $8-1,000{\mu}g/mL$ and IL-12 at $40{\mu}g/mL$ on macrophages. The results suggest that the immuno-stimulating activity of KTSP-0 is greater than that of CSP-0 from anti-complementary activity.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
• /
• v.32 no.4
• /
• pp.843-850
• /
• 2000

We have produced the microcapsule composed of ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ as a core material (Cm) and the gelatinized polysaccharide as a wall material (Wm). Firstly, we have developed a simple, sensitive, and quantitative analysis method of the microencapsulation product using 5% cupric acetate pyridine solution. We could then optimize all the conditions for the microencapsulation process such as the ratio of [Cm] to [Wm], the temperature of dispersion fluid, and the emulsifier concentration using response surface methodology (RSM). As for the microencapsulation of ${\alpha}-tocopherol$, the regression model equation for the yield of microencapsulation (YM, %) to the change of an independent variable could be predicted as follows : YM=99.77-1.76([Cm]:[Wm])-1.72$([Cm]\;:\;[Wm])^2$. From the ridge of maximum response, the optimum conditions for the microencapsulation of ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ were able to be determined as the ratio of [Cm] to [Wm] of 4.6:5.4(w/w), the emulsifier concentration of 0.49%, and dispersion fluid temperature of $25.5^{\circ}C$, respectively. Finally, the microcapsules produced under the optimal conditions were applied for the analysis of storage stability. The optimal conditions for the storage were found to be the values of pH 9.0 and $25{\sim}35^{\circ}C$. And the storage stability of the microcapsules containing ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ were higher than 99% for a week at pH 9.0 and $25^{\circ}C$.

• Food Science and Preservation
• /
• v.9 no.1
• /
• pp.114-119
• /
• 2002

This research was performed to investigate the immnomodulative effects of ploysaccharides extracted from the fruiting body of Agarcus blazei cultivated with the media which are fermented with sugar cane bagasse containing Pueraria thunbergiana in open-air storage. In MTT test, methanol extracts from the fruiting body of A. blazei cultivated with P. thunbergiana media showed in colon carcinoma line(HT29) by 1.5∼3.5 fold and human heptoma cell line (HepG2) by 1.3 ∼2.4 fold antitumor activites compared to two types media (rice straw plus sugar cane bagasse, rice straw only) often used in the fauns. To clarify the antimutagenic principles, three extracts, Ab-l, Ab-2 and Ab-3, were separated by the solvent fractionations such as hot water, cold & hot sodium hydroxide respectively, and their antimutagenic effects was determined against N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-cnitrso-guanidine(MNNG) using Salmonella typhymurium. There was no significant differencies of inhibition levels among the used media, but Ab-3 tractions still showed a high antimutagenicity in the Ames test regardless of cultivating areas or media. To prove the cell immunofunction, nitric oxide (NO) produced from Raw 264.7 matrophage cultured with three fractions (Ab-l, Ab-2, Ab-3) was measured, and showed generally increase about 45 ∼58 percent compared to another two media (rice straw plus sugar cane bagasse, rice straw only), in the fraction of hot alklai extracts of the fruiting body cultivated with P. thunbergiana, which means that the media selection could be very important factors for improving medicinal effects in agaricus blazei fruiting body.