• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.168-173
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• 2002

Gastrointestinal infections kill over two million people each year, and pathogen contamination of livestock causes many cases of food poisoning. Two candidate intestinal probiotic strains, L. rhamnosus GR-1 and L. fermentum RC-14 were found to inhibit the growth of Salmonella typhi, Shigella dysenteriae, E. coli O157:H7, Listeria monocytogenes, L. innocua, Enterococcus faecalis, and Bacteroides fragilis. In a series of mouse experiments, L. rhamosus GR-1 and L rhamnosus GG protected against S. typhimurium infection and translocation to the liver and spleen, reduced mortality and induced intestinal phagocytic and immunoglobulin responses. In a second series of experiments, the combination of L. rhamnosus GR-1 and L. fermentum RC-14 was superior to L. rhamnosus GG and placebo in protecting the mice from the lethal effect of salmonella. In summary, the use of combinations of probiotic lactobacilli as dietary supplements or foods could be considered for people at high risk of salmonella intestinal infection. Given the post-infection complications that can arise, such natural methods warrant further exploration especially given the increasing problem of antibiotic resistance and the lack of alternative measures available to many developing countries.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.22-28
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• 2004

Livestock industry requires alternatives of antibiotics to prevent environmental pollution and to maintain public health. We herein report on an effective method to reduce ammonia from livestock manure, and confirmed environmentally-friendly livestock production by adding three types of yeast probiotics, Pichia farinosa SKM-1, Pichia anomala SKM-T, and Galactomyces geotrichum SJM-59, into the feed stuff, separately and/or mixed, and these three types of yeasts were administered to the Hy-line brown layers for 8 weeks. Compared with control, the laying performance, the egg quality, and the number of intestinal lactic acid producing bacteria of the treated group were improved and/or increased significantly. Pichia anomala SKM-T potently reduced ammonia production from poultry manure, and the other strains were also able to reduce the ammonia from it. The optimum condition for the reduction of ammonia with Pichia farinosa SKM-1, Pichia anomala SKM-T, and Galactomyces geotrichum SJM-59 was obtained by using the augmented centroid-simplex design. The ratio of optimum condition was Pichia farinosa SKM-1:Pichia anomala SKM-T:Galactomyces geotrichum SJM-59=0.295:0.209:0.080, and the estimate was -123.36 (p=0.0l38). An ability to reduce the ammonia production from livestock manure was maintained at $30^{\circ}C$ for 15 weeks.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.11
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• pp.1393-1400
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• 2009

A bacteriocin-producing strain PI80 was isolated from the gut of Penaeus indicus (Indian white shrimp) and identified as Streptococcus phocae PI80. The bacteriocin was purified from a culture supernatant to homogeneity as confirmed by Tricine SDS-PAGE. Reverse-phase HPLC analysis revealed a single active fraction eluted at 12.94 min, and MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry analysis showed the molecular mass to be 9.244 kDa. This molecular mass does not correspond to previously described streptococcal bacteriocins. The purified bacteriocin was named phocaecin PI80 from its producer strain, as this is the first report of bacteriocin production by Streptococcus phocae. The bacteriocin exhibited a broad spectrum of activity and inhibited important pathogens: Listeria monocytogenes, Vibrio parahaemolyticus, and V. fischeri. The antibacterial substance was also sensitive to proteolytic enzymes: trypsin, protease, pepsin, and chymotrypsin, yet insensitive to catalase, peroxidase, and diastase, confirming that the inhibition was due to a proteinaceous molecule (i.e., the bacteriocin), and not due to hydrogen peroxide or diacetyl. Phocaecin PI80 moderately tolerated heat treatment (up to $70^{\circ}C$ for 10 min) and resisted certain solvents (acetone, ethanol, and butanol). A massive leakage of $K^+$ ions from E. coli $DH5\alpha$, L. monocytogenes, and V. parahaemolyticus was induced by phocaecin PI80, as measured by Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICPOES). Therefore, the results of this study show that phocaecin PI80 may be a useful tool for inhibiting L. monocytogenes in seafood products that do not usually undergo adequate heat treatment, whereas the cells of Streptococcus phocae PI80 could be used to control vibriosis in shrimp farming.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.27 no.11
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• pp.1952-1960
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• 2017

Recently, soybean isoflavone aglycones (i.e., daidzein and genistein) and ${\gamma}-aminobutyric$ acid (GABA) have begun to receive considerable consumer attention owing to their potential as nutraceuticals. To produce these ingredients, multiple microorganisms and their enzymes are commonly used for catalysis in the nutraceutical industry. In this work, we introduce a novel fermentation process that uses whole-cell biocatalysis to accelerate GABA and isoflavone aglycone production in doenjang (a traditional Korean soybean paste). Microbial enzymes transform soybean isoflavone glycosides (i.e., daidzin and genistin) and monosodium glutamate into soybean isoflavone aglycones and GABA. Lactobacillus brevis GABA 100 and Aspergillus oryzae KACC 40250 significantly reduced the production time with the aid of a protease. The resulting levels of GABA and daidzein were higher, and genistein production resembled the levels in traditional doenjang fermented for over a year. Concentrations of GABA, daidzein, and genistein were measured as 7,162, 60, and $59{\mu}g/g$, respectively on the seventh day of fermentation. Our results demonstrate that the administration of whole-cell L. brevis GABA 100 and A. oryzae KACC 40250 paired with a protease treatment is an effective method to accelerate GABA, daidzein, and genistein production in doenjang.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.10
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• pp.1604-1613
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• 2018

Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (LGG) is a probiotic commonly used in fermented dairy products. In this study, RNA-sequencing was performed to unravel the effects of acid stress on LGG. The transcriptomic data revealed that the exposure of LGG to acid at pH 4.5 (resembling the final pH of fermented dairy products) for 1 h or 24 h provoked a stringent-type transcriptomic response wherein stress response- and glycolysis-related genes were upregulated, whereas genes involved in gluconeogenesis, amino acid metabolism, and nucleotide metabolism were suppressed. Notably, the pilus-specific adhesion genes, spaC, and spaF were significantly upregulated upon exposure to acid-stress. The transcriptomic results were further confirmed via quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. Moreover, acid-stressed LGG demonstrated an enhanced mucin-binding ability in vitro, with 1 log more LGG cells (p < 0.05) bound to a mucin layer in a 96-well culture plate as compared to the control. The enhanced intestinal binding ability of acid-stressed LGG was confirmed in an animal study, wherein significantly more viable LGG cells (${\geq}2log\;CFU/g$) were observed in the ileum, caecum, and colon of acid-stressed LGG-treated mice as compared with a non-acid-stressed LGG-treated control group. To our knowledge, this is the first report showing that acid stress enhanced the intestine-binding ability of LGG through the induction of pili-related genes.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.739-748
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• 2020

In this study, a method of heat adaptation was implemented in an attempt to increase the upper thermal threshold of two Streptococcus thermophilus found in South Korea and identified the alterations in membrane fatty acid composition to adaptive response to heat. In order to develop heat tolerant lactic acid bacteria, heat treatment was continuously applied to bacteria by increasing temperature from 60℃ until the point that no surviving cell was detected. Our results indicated significant increase in heat tolerance of heat-adapted strains compared to the wild type (WT) strains. In particular, the survival ratio of basically low heat-tolerant strain increased even more. In addition, the strains with improved heat tolerance acquired cross protection, which improved their survival ratio in acid, bile salts and osmotic conditions. A relation between heat tolerance and membrane fatty acid composition was identified. As a result of heat adaptation, the ratio of unsaturated to saturated fatty acids (UFA/SFA) and C18:1 relative concentration were decreased. C6:0 in only heat-adapted strains and C22:0 in only the naturally high heat tolerant strain were detected. These results support the hypothesis, that the consequent increase of SFA ratio is a cellular response to environmental stresses such as high temperatures, and it is able to protect the cells from acid, bile salts and osmotic conditions via cross protection. This study demonstrated that the increase in heat tolerance can be utilized as a mean to improve bacterial tolerance against various environmental stresses.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.267-272
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• 2013

Chicken-type lysozyme (c-lysozyme) is present in shrimp and is active against some bacteria. To further understand the regulation of c-lysozyme in the fleshy shrimp Fenneropenaeus chinensis, we determined the tissue-specific gene expression of c-lysozyme and the time-course of mRNA expression in response to Vibrio anguillarum and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) injection by quantitative reverse real-time polymerase chain reaction. The results showed that c-lysozyme was expressed in all tissues tested, including gill, eyestalk, eye, hemocytes, hepatopancreas, intestine, heart, and pleopod. It was most highly expressed in the intestine followed by the eyestalk, gill, hemocytes and hepatopancreas. The mRNA expression level began to decline in a short time after V. anguillarum challenge and was then upregulated by two fold or more at 24 h post injection (hpi) compared to that at 0 h. Expression was suppressed shortly after LPS injection and began to increase with higher levels of 5.8-, 5.2- and 8.4-fold at 24, 48, and 72 hpi, respectively. Higher expression was sustained and showed a gradual increasing trend until the end of the experiment (72 hpi). These results increase our understanding of the regulation of defense mechanisms and facilitate an evaluation of the effects of probiotics or immunostimulants in shrimp culture.

• Korean Journal of Poultry Science
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• v.43 no.3
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• pp.159-167
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• 2016

A total of 528 broilers ($47{\pm}0.1g$; 1 day of age) were used in a 35-day feeding trial to evaluate probiotics, prebiotics and their interactive effects on growth performance, blood characteristics, relative organ weight and meat quality. Broilers were randomly distributed into 1 of 6 treatments on the basis of body weight (BW) (4 replicate pens per treatment, 22 broilers per pen). The dietary treatments were CON, basal diet; B, CON + 0.1 g kg-1 Bacillus subtilis; K, CON + 1 g kg-1 Kefir; G, CON + 1 g kg-1 ${\beta}-glucan$; GB, G + 1 g kg-1 Bacillus subtilis; and GK, G + 1 g kg-1 Kefir. The overall effects indicated that broilers fed the K, G and GK diets had greater body weight gain (BWG) than those fed the CON diet (P<0.05). The number of white blood cells increased (P<0.05) in the GB group compared with the CON, B and G treatments; however, the lymphocyte percentage in the B group was higher than in the G group. The weight of bursa fabricii was lower in the B and G groups compared to the K group (P<0.05), whereas a higher spleen weight was observed in chickens that were fed the GB and GK diets compared to the B group (P<0.05). The treatments did not affect the meat quality parameters, except for meat redness, which improved with all of the supplementation groups (P<0.05). The population of Lactobacillus spp. in gizzard was significantly higher in the K treatment compared with CON, B, G and GB. In conclusion, supplementation with kefir and ${\beta}-glucans$ improved growth performance.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.178-185
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• 2014

Purpose: The use of dietary supplements (DS) has increased in most nations. We investigated the amount of DS intake in the Korean population by analyzing a national survey, to support the preparation of a national institutional strategy regarding DS intake and marketing. Methods: The data of the fifth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (a year between 2010 and 2012) were investigated, analyzing the rate of DS intake, and the characteristics of the intake group and non-intake group in Korean preschool children. Results: The intake rate of DS was 49.0-54.2% (1,313,874-1,491,240) and 19.6-30.3% (250,603-421,922) in children from 1 to 6 years old and in those less than 1 year, respectively, from 2010 to 2012. The highest intake rate was observed in the age group of five. The mean age was significantly higher in the DS intake group than in the non-intake group. Intake of essential nutrients, minerals, and vitamins were also higher in the DS intake group. The level of family income was significantly associated with the intake rate (p<0.001). In children less than 1 year, probiotics accounted for the highest intake of DS. Conclusion: Korean preschool children have high consumption of DS. Therefore, problems may arise from the waste of money purchasing unnecessary DS, and from the overuse of DS in preschoolers who do not require DS intake. We hope these results can be used to produce an appropriate national institutional strategy regarding DS intake and marketing.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.54 no.3
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• pp.139-146
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• 2014

Jeotgal (salted seafood) has been one of major fermented foods in Korea for long time. Although there are many studies about Jeotgal in various aspects of food, its immunological importance on hosts has not been elucidated yet. In this study, we investigated if several bacteria isolated from Jeotgal may modulate the function of dendritic cells (DCs), powerful antigen-presenting cells equipped with special immunological capabilities. 4 Jeotgal bacteria were selected as representatives and used for experiments. To treat viable DCs, those bacteria were killed at $60^{\circ}C$ for 30 min. The viability of DCs treated with Jeotgal bacteria was verified and two isolates significantly induced high production of interleukin-12, a representative cell-mediated cytokine of DCs. Surface activation and maturation markers (MHC class II, CD40, CD86) of DCs were analyzed by flow cytometer. In addition, the treated DCs showed significantly high lymphocyte stimulatory capability compared to control DCs based on allogeneic mixed lymphocyte reactions. These observations suggest that Jeotgal isolates can function as immunostimulating bacteria in hosts, like Lactobacillus. Taken together, these experimental evidences may broaden the use of Jeotgal isolates in immunological fields in addition to as a fermented food.