• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• 제29권11호
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• pp.1601-1607
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• 2016

This study was conducted to determine the effect of lysozyme addition on in vitro rumen fermentation and to identify the lysozyme inclusion rate for abating methane ($CH_4$) production. An in vitro ruminal fermentation technique was done using a commercial concentrate to rice straw ratio of 8:2 as substrate. The following treatments were applied wherein lysozyme was added into 1 mg dry matter substrate at different levels of inclusion: Without lysozyme, 2,000, 4,000, and 8,000 U lysozyme. Results revealed that, lysozyme addition had a significant effect on pH after 24 h of incubation, with the highest pH (p<0.01) observed in 8,000 U lysozyme, followed by the 4,000 U, 2,000 U, and without lysozyme. The highest amounts of acetic acid, propionic acid (p<0.01) and total volatile fatty acid (TVFA) (p<0.05) were found in 8,000 U after 24 h of incubation. The $CH_4$ concentration was the lowest in the 8,000 U and the highest in the without lysozyme addition after 24 h of incubation. There was no significant differences in general bacteria, methanogen, or protozoan DNA copy number. So far, addition of lysozyme increased the acetate, propionate, TVFA, and decreased $CH_4$ concentration. These results suggest that lysozyme supplementation may improve in vitro rumen fermentation and reduce $CH_4$ emission.

• Journal of Korean Neurosurgical Society
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• 제37권2호
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• pp.129-136
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• 2005

Objective: Currently available therapies for human malignant gliomas have limited efficacy. Toxoplasma gondii, an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite, and Quil-A are nonspecific, potent immune stimulants. T. gondii is shown to have antitumor activity in some types of cancers. Therefore, this study is undertaken to evaluate the antitumor effect of Toxoplasma lysate antigen (TLA), alone or in combination with Quil-A, on human glioma U373MG and U87MG cells. Methods: The in vitro effects of TLA alone or in combination with Quil-A on the proliferation, invasion, and apoptosis of glioma cells were tested using MTT, Matrigel invasion, and DNA fragmentation assays, and the in vivo effects on the growth of gliomas were evaluated in athymic nude mice transplanted with glioma cells. Results: Treatment with TLA resulted in the suppressed proliferation and invasion of both U373MG and U87MG cells, in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, at high concentration, TLA induced glioma cell apoptosis. When TLA was administered in the mouse glioma model, malignant glioma growth was decreased. The combined treatment of TLA with Quil-A significantly inhibited the proliferation and invasion of cultured cells as well as tumor mass of implanted mice. Conclusion: TLA inhibits the proliferation and invasion of glioma cells in vitro and in vivo, and these antitumor effects of TLA are significantly enhanced by the addition of Quil-A.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• 제25권3호
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• pp.237-247
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• 2003

The temporal dynamics of the meiofauna community in Marian Cove, King George Island were observed from January 22 to October 29 1996. Generally, 14 taxa of metazoan meiofauna were found. Nematodes were dominant comprising 90.12% of the community, harpacticoid 6.55%, and Kinorhynchs 1.54%. Meiofauna abundance increased monthly from January to May 1996, while varying in abundance after August 1996. Overall mean abundance of metazoan meiofauna was $2634ind./10cm^2$ during the study periods, which is about as high as that found in temperate regions. Nematodes were most abundant representing $2399ind./10cm^2$. Mean abundance of harpacticoids, including copepodite and nauplius was $131ind./10cm^2$ by kinorhynchs $(26ind./10cm^2)$. The overall abundance of other identified organisms was $31ind./10cm^2$ Other organisms consisted of a total of 11 taxa including Ostracoda $(6ind./10cm^2)$, Polycheata $(7ind./10cm^2)$, Oligochaeta $(8ind./10cm^2)$, and Bivalvia $(6ind./10cm^2)$. Additionally, protozoan Foraminifera occurred at the study area with a mean abundance of $263ind./10cm^2$. Foraminiferans were second in dominance to nematodes. The dominant taxa such as nematodes, harpacticoids, kinorhynchs and the other tua were trained and extensively scattered in the map through the Kohonen network. The temporal pattern of the community composition was most affected by the abundance dynamics of kinorhynchs and harpacticoids. The neural network model also allowed for simulation of data that was missing during two months of inclement weather. The lowest meiofauna abundance was found in August 1996 during winter. The seasonal changes were likely caused by temperature and salinity changes as a result of meltwater runoff, and the physical impact by passing icebergs.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제14권1호
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• pp.134-139
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• 2004

Hybrid cluster protein (HCP) was investigated because of its unique iron-sulfur clusters, which have been found in bacteria and archaea. Here, HCP homologous proteins from the third domain, 'eukarya'(3 amitochondriate protozoans, Giardia lamblia, Entamoeba histolytica, and Trichomonas vaginalis), were identified. All three amitochondriate protozoan HCPs (GlHCP, EhHCP, and TvHCP) belonged to Class I on the basis of two key characters, the cysteine spacing, Cys-(Xaa)₂Cys(Xaa)/sub 7-8/-Cys(Xaa)/sub 5/-Cys, and the absence of N-terminal deletion characteristic to the Class III. In phylogenetic analysis performed with amino acid sequences of 3 eukaryal, 5 bacterial, and 4 archaeal HCPs, the maximum likelihood (ML) tree indicated that TvHCP was clustered with Class I HCPs, whereas the other two HCPs (GlHCP and EhHCP) formed an independent clade with a high bootstrapping value (96%) not belonging to any previously recognized HCP class. In spite of the relatively lower bootstrapping value (61%), the position of the new eukaryal GlHCP-EhHCP clade was close to Class I, including the TvHCP, and Classes II and III were closely related with each other. The finding of eukaryal HCPs would help to understand the evolutionary history of HCP.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제53권3호
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• pp.253-258
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• 2015

Toxoplasma gondii, an obligate intracellular protozoan parasite of the phylum Apicomplexa, can infect all warm-blooded vertebrates, including humans, livestock, and marine mammals. The aim of this study was to investigate whether superoxide dismutase (SOD) of T. gondii can be used as a new marker for genetic study or a potential vaccine candidate. The partial genome region of the SOD gene was amplified and sequenced from 10 different T. gondii isolates from different parts of the world, and all the sequences were examined by PCR-RFLP, sequence analysis, and phylogenetic reconstruction. The results showed that partial SOD gene sequences ranged from 1,702 bp to 1,712 bp and A + T contents varied from 50.1% to 51.1% among all examined isolates. Sequence alignment analysis identified total 43 variable nucleotide positions, and these results showed that 97.5% sequence similarity of SOD gene among all examined isolates. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that these SOD sequences were not an effective molecular marker for differential identification of T. gondii strains. The research demonstrated existence of low sequence variation in the SOD gene among T. gondii strains of different genotypes from different hosts and geographical regions.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제53권3호
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• pp.341-344
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• 2015

Toxoplasma gondii is an opportunistic protozoan parasite that can infect almost all warm-blooded animals including humans with a worldwide distribution. Micronemes play an important role in invasion process of T. gondii, associated with the attachment, motility, and host cell recognition. In this research, sequence diversity in microneme protein 6 (MIC6) gene among 16 T. gondii isolates from different hosts and geographical regions and 1 reference strain was examined. The results showed that the sequence of all the examined T. gondii strains was 1,050 bp in length, and their A + T content was between 45.7% and 46.1%. Sequence analysis presented 33 nucleotide mutation positions (0-1.1%), resulting in 23 amino acid substitutions (0-2.3%) aligned with T. gondii RH strain. Moreover, T. gondii strains representing the 3 classical genotypes (Type I, II, and III) were separated into different clusters based on the locus of MIC6 using phylogenetic analyses by Bayesian inference (BI), maximum parsimony (MP), and maximum likelihood (ML), but T. gondii strains belonging to ToxoDB #9 were separated into different clusters. Our results suggested that MIC6 gene is not a suitable marker for T. gondii population genetic studies.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제52권4호
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• pp.355-365
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• 2014

The enteric protozoan parasite Entamoeba histolytica is the causative agent of human amebiasis. During infection, adherence of E. histolytica through Gal/GalNAc lectin on the surface of the amoeba can induce caspase-3-dependent or -independent host cell death. Phosphorylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) and protein kinase C (PKC) in E. histolytica play an important function in the adhesion, killing, or phagocytosis of target cells. In this study, we examined the role of amoebic PI3K and PKC in amoeba-induced apoptotic cell death in Jurkat T cells. When Jurkat T cells were incubated with E. histolytica trophozoites, phosphatidylserine (PS) externalization and DNA fragmentation in Jurkat cells were markedly increased compared to those of cells incubated with medium alone. However, when amoebae were pretreated with a PI3K inhibitor, wortmannin before being incubated with E. histolytica, E. histolytica-induced PS externalization and DNA fragmentation in Jurkat cells were significantly reduced compared to results for amoebae pretreated with DMSO. In addition, pretreatment of amoebae with a PKC inhibitor, staurosporine strongly inhibited Jurkat T cell death. However, E. histolytica-induced cleavage of caspase-3, -6, and -7 were not inhibited by pretreatment of amoebae with wortmannin or staurosporin. In addition, we found that amoebic PI3K and PKC have an important role on amoeba adhesion to host compartment. These results suggest that amebic PI3K and PKC activation may play an important role in caspase-independent cell death in Entamoeba-induced apoptosis.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• 제2권1호
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• pp.85-92
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• 1999

저자들은 15세 된 남아와 8세된 남아에서 C. parvum에 의한 위장관염 2례를 경험하였으며 전자 현미경상으로 확진하여 보고하는 바이다. 향후 국내에서도 소아의 설사질환의 원인으로서 cryptosporidiosis에 대한 임상의들의 많은 관심이 요구된다.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제56권3호
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• pp.281-285
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• 2018

Cryptosporidium is the most common protozoan that can infect a wide range of animals, including mammals and birds. Avian Cryptosporidium spp. can cause enteric and respiratory diseases which can be fatal in birds and some species are zoonotic. Companion birds have the potential as reservoir due to their close contact with humans. Pet shops are the major source of companion birds. However, few reports are available regarding Cryptosporidium spp. infection among companion birds kept in pet shops. The present study reports the prevalence and molecular characteristics of Cryptosporidium spp. among companion birds kept in pet shops in Japan. A total of 265 fresh fecal samples were obtained from birds kept in 4 pet shops; these birds belonged to 41 species in 3 bird orders. A nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay targeting the small subunit rRNA gene was employed for the detection of Cryptosporidium spp. A total of 24 samples (9.1%) were positive, and Cryptosporidium spp. were detected from all pet shops. The prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in each of the bird orders was 6.5% (10/153) in Psittaciformes, 14.4% (13/90) in Passeriformes, and 4.5% (1/22) in Galliformes. Based on sequence analysis, 13 (54.2%) isolates were classified to C. galli, 8 (33.3%) were avian genotype III, and the remaining 3 (12.5%) were C. baileyi. No infection with zoonotic C. meleagridis and no coinfection with multiple Cryptosporidium spp. and/or genotypes were observed. The zoonotic potential of Cryptosporidium spp. infecting companion birds kept in pet shops in Japan is likely to be low.

• 한국동물위생학회지
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• 제32권2호
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• pp.131-137
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• 2009

This study was conducted to determine the prevalence of antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii (TG) in cattle and pigs reared in eastern areas of Gyeongbuk province by ELISA. Among 368 sera collected from 119 cattle farms, 76 (20.7%) sera from 34 (28.6%) farms had antibodies to TG. Fifty (27.2%) out of 184 cattle in Uljin-gun and 26 (14.1%) out of 184 cattle in Yeongdeok-gun were positive. Pyeonghae (50.0%) in Uljin-gun and Dalsan (33.3%) in Yeongdeok-gun had the highest TG antibodies in cattle compared to other areas. Prevalence of TG antibodies in cattle was increased with age. Among 368 sera collected from 43 pig farms, 62 (16.8%) sera from 16 (37.2%) farms had antibodies to TG. Forty (21.7%) out of 184 pigs in Uljin-gun and 22 (12.0%) out of 184 pigs in Yeongdeok-gun were positive. Uljin and Puk (40.0%) in Uljin-gun and Yeonghae (33.3%) in Yeongdeok-gun had the highest TG antibodies in pigs compared to other areas. Prevalence of TG antibodies in sows was higher than that in fattening pigs. Seasonally, prevalence of TG antibodies in pigs was highest in summer (23.4%) and lowest in winter (12.5%). Based on these observations, data indicate that infection by the protozoan parasite TG is widely prevalent in cattle and pigs reared in eastern areas of Gyeongbuk province.