• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.9
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• pp.1629-1635
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• 2016

A novel bacteriophage, PBES 02, infecting Cronobacter sakazakii was isolated and characterized. It has a spherical head of 90 nm in diameter and a tail of 130 nm in length, and belongs to Myoviridae as observed under a transmission electron microscope. The major virion protein appears to be 38 kilodaltons (kDa) in size. The latent period of PBES 02 is 30 min and the burst size is 250. Infectivity of the phage remained intact after exposure to temperatures ranging from 4℃ to 55℃ for 1 h. It was also stable after exposure to pHs ranging from 6 to 10 for 1 h. The phage effectively removed contaminating Cronobacter sakazakii from broth infant formula. PBES 02 has a double-stranded DNA genome of 149,732 bases. Its GC ratio is 50.7%. Sequence analysis revealed that PBES 02 has 299 open reading frames (ORFs) and 14 tRNA genes. Thirty-nine ORFs were annotated, including 24 related to replication and regulation functions, 10 related to structural proteins, and 5 related to DNA packaging. The genome of PBES 02 is closely related to that of two other C. sakazakii phages, CR3 and CR8. Comparison of DNA sequences of genes encoding the major capsid protein revealed a wide geographical distribution of related phages over Asia, Europe, and America.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.1120-1124
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• 2005

Pseudomonas putida KCTC 1639 was newly identified as a potential producer of biodegradable medium chain length polyhydroxyalkanoates. It exhibited a carbon assimilation pattern quite different from other known P. putida strains, but a more similar pattern with P. oleovorans, which assimilates the carbon sources mainly through ${\beta}$-oxidation rather than the fatty acid biosynthesis pathway. The PHA synthesis gene cluster from P. putida KCTC1639 was composed of two gene loci; the PHA synthase gene locus and granule-associated gene locus, which were cloned and deposited in the GenBank under accession numbers AY286491 and AY750858 as a new nucleotide sequence, respectively. The molecular structure and amino acid homology of the new gene cluster were compared with those from Pseudomonas species, including other P. putida strains and P. oleovorans, and a higher than $90\%$ homology was observed.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.771-776
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• 2001

A pregnant-induced clone was identified by differential screening from a cDNA library of bovine mammary gland. The clone was identified as a cDNA encoding a polyadenylate binding protein 1 (PABP). The cDNA clone had a total length of 1,911 nucleotides coding for 636 amino acids. The nucleotide sequence of the bovine PABP was 95% and 94% identical to those of human and mouse species, respectively. Comparison of the deduced amino acid sequences of bovine PABP with those of human species showed 100% identity. Induction of the PABP mRNA was observed in bovine mammary tissues at pregnant 7 and 8 months compared to virgin, lactating and involuted states. Expression of the PABP gene was examined in mammary epithelial HC11 cells at proliferating, differentiated and apoptotic conditions. The mRNA levels of PABP gene were similar between proliferating and differentiated cells, but expression levels were very low in apoptotic cells compared to other conditions. Results demonstrate that the PABP gene is induced during pregnancy at which stage mammary epithelial cells are actively proliferating.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.46 no.3
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• pp.300-312
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• 2018

Whole-genome sequencing of the wood-rotting fungus, Flammulina fennae, was carried out to identify carbohydrate-active enzymes (CAZymes). De novo genome assembly (31 kmer) of short reads by next-generation sequencing revealed a total genome length of 32,423,623 base pairs (39% GC). A total of 11,591 gene models in the assembled genome sequence of F. fennae were predicted by ab initio gene prediction using the AUGUSTUS tool. In a genome-wide comparison, 6,715 orthologous groups shared at least one gene with F. fennae and 10,667 (92%) of 11,591 genes for F. fennae proteins had orthologs among the Dikarya. Additionally, F. fennae contained 23 species-specific genes, of which 16 were paralogous. CAZyme identification and annotation revealed 513 CAZymes, including 82 auxiliary activities, 220 glycoside hydrolases, 85 glycosyltransferases, 20 polysaccharide lyases, 57 carbohydrate esterases, and 45 carbohydrate binding-modules in the F. fennae genome. The genome information of F. fennae increases the understanding of this basidiomycete fungus. CAZyme gene information will be useful for detailed studies of lignocellulosic biomass degradation for biotechnological and industrial applications.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.461-467
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• 2009

A bacterial strain was screened and identified from sea sediments in Tongyeong coastal area in order to obtain proteases or peptidase cleaving C-terminal of glutamic acid. Strain TS0611, which showed the highest activity from 5 isolated protease producing strains, was selected and its properties investigated. Strain TS0611 was a gram-positive rod, $1.2\;{\mu}m$ in cell length, catalase positive, motility-positive, melanin-negative and grew at 15~$50^{\circ}C$, and hydrolyzed gelatin and casein. This strain was identified as Bacillus thuringiensis or Bacillus cereus based on results from the API system(API 50 CHB) which examined saccharides properties, fatty acid composition of cell wall, and 16S rRNA gene sequence.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.86-90
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• 2000

We have earlier reported on the cloning and identification of bft-k from an enterotoxigenic strain of Bacteroides fragilis 419, which was isolated from the blood of a Korean patient who suffered from systemic infections [4,5]. The bft-k gene encodes a 397-amino-acids metalloprotease enterotoxin, and the protein has been identified as a new isoform of B. fragilis enterotoxins (BFTs), which are cytopathic to intestinal epithelial cells to induce fluid secretion and tissue damage in ligated intestinal loops [4, 6, 18, 20]. This report describes the cloning and sequencing of the enterotoxin pahogenicity islet of B. fragilis 419 which contains the bft-k gene. the cloned enterotoxin pathogenicity islet was found to have 6,045 bp in length and to contain 120bp direct repeats near its end. In the pathogenicity islet, in addition to the BFR-K, two putative open reading frames (ORFs) were identified; (1) the t-3 gene encoding a 396-amino-acids protein of a putative metalloprotease; (2) the third gene encoding an ORF of a 59-amino-acids protein, whose function has not yet beenn characterized. The expression of the t-3 gene in B. fragilis 419 was verified by western blot analysis.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.680-686
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• 2003

This study was carried out to characterize the antilisterial substances produced by Leuconostoc sp. W65 and to evaluate the effects of pH, temperature, and time on inhibitory activity using response surface methodology. Leucocin W65, an antilisterial substance produced by Leuconostoc sp. W65, markedly inhibited the growth of Listeria monocytogenes, L. innocua, and L. ivanovii, whereas other pathogens including Gram-negative bacteria were not susceptible. The pH was the most effective factor with regard to bacteriocin activity, while temperature and time of heat treatment had no significant effect. Fifty percent of inhibitory activity remained after 22.8 min at pH 4.2 and $121^{\circ}C$. Leucocin W65 was purified by ammonium sulfate precipitation, hydrophobic interaction chromatography, and tricine-SDS-PAGE. Compositional analysis originally estimated the peptide to be 56 amino acids in length without asparagine, glutamine, and tryptophane. The sequence of partial N-terminal amino acid residues of purified bacteriocin was identified as follows: $NH_{2}-XGXAGVXPXGGQQPXVPLXYP$.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.11
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• pp.1805-1810
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• 2007

Purple nonsulfur bacteria were isolated from river sediments and their growth promoting capabilities on tomato were examined. Isolated strains KL9 and BL6 were identified as Rhodopseudomonas spp. by 16S rDNA sequence analysis. Rhodopseudomonas strain KL9 maximally produced 5.56 mM/min/mg protein and $67.2\;{\mu}M/min/mg$ protein of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA), respectively, which may be one of the mechanisms of plant growth enhancement. The germination percentage of tomato seed, total length, and dry mass of germinated tomato seedling increased by 30.2%, 71.1%, and 270.8%, respectively, compared with those of the uninoculated control 7 days after inoculation of strain KL9. The lengths of the root and shoot of germinated seedling treated with 3 mM tryptophan, a precursor of IAA, increased by 104.4% and 156.5%, respectively, 7 days after inoculation of strain KL9. Rhodopseudomonas KL9 increased 123.5% and 54% of the root and shoot lengths of germinated seedling, respectively, treated with 15 mM glycine and succinate, precursors of ALA. This plant growth promoting capability of purple nonsulfur bacteria may be a candidate for a biofertilizer in agriculture.

• Animal Systematics, Evolution and Diversity
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2016

Vermamoeba vermiformis is a very important free-living amoeba for human health in association with Legionnaires' disease and keratitis. This interesting amoeba was firstly isolated from a freshwater of Dokdo (island), which was historically used for drinking water. Trophozoites and cyst forms of V. vermiformis strain MG1 are very similar to previous reported species. Trophozoites of V. vermiformis strain MG1 showed cylindrical shape with prominent anterior hyaline region. The average ratio of length and width was about 6.5. Typically, cysts of the strain MG1 showed a spherical or slightly ovoidal shape with smooth wall, and lacked cyst pores. Some cysts had crenulate-walled ectocyst, which was separated from endocyst wall. Further, 18S rRNA gene sequence of V. vermiformis strain MG1 showed very high similarity to other V. vermiformis species (99.4%-99.9% identity). Molecular phylogenetic analysis based on 18S rRNA gene sequences clearly confirmed that the isolate was one strain of V. vermiformis with maximum bootstrap value (maximum likelihood: 100%) and Bayesian posterior probability of 1. Thus, the freshwater of Dokdo in Korea could harbor potentially pathogenic amoeba that may cause diseases in humans.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.535-540
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• 2010

Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL), a key enzyme of the phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathway, is activated by a number of developmental and environmental cues. The coding region of the NtPAL4 gene was 2,154 bp in length, and its deduced protein was composed of 717 amino acids. Sequence analysis of NtPAL4 cDNA from tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) revealed high structural similarity to PAL genes of other plant species. The NtPAL4 gene exists as a single copy in the tobacco plant, and its transcripts were strongly expressed in flowers and leaves. NtPAL4 expression was significantly induced in response to NaCl, mannitol, and cold treatments, but it was not induced by abscisic acid (ABA). NtPAL4 expression decreased gradually after treatment with ABA and $H_2O_2$; however, NtPAL4 transcripts accumulated after treatment with methyl viologen (MV). Our results suggest that the NtPAL4 gene may function in response to abiotic stresses.