• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.186-195
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• 2008

In this paper, a prototype tele-operative system with a mobile base was developed in order to automate cultivation of house melon. A man-machine interactive hybrid decision-making system via tele-operative task interface was proposed to overcome limitations of computer image recognition. Identifying house melon including position data from the field image was critical to automate cultivation. And it was not simple especially when melon is covered partly by leaves and stems. The developed system was composed of 5 major modules: (a) main remote monitoring and task control module, (b) wireless remote image acquisition and data transmission module, (c) three-wheel mobile base mounted with a 4 dof articulated type robot manipulator (d) exchangeable modular type end tools, and (e) melon storage module. The system was operated through the graphic user interface using touch screen monitor and wireless data communication among operator, computer, and machine. Once task was selected from the task control and monitoring module, the analog signal of the color image of the field was captured and transmitted to the host computer using R.F. module by wireless. A sequence of algorithms to identify location and size of a melon was performed based on the local image processing. Laboratory experiment showed the developed prototype system showed the practical feasibility of automating various cultivating tasks of house melon.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.451-456
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• 2003

An expression vector system was developed for the secretory production of recombinant Bacillus stearothermophilus L1 lipase in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The mature L1 lipase gene was fused to ${\alpha}-amylase$ signal sequence from Aspergillus oryzae for the effective secretion into the culture broth and the expression was controlled under GAL10 (the gene coding UDP-galactose epimerase of S. cerevisiae) promoter. S. cerevisiae harboring the resulting plasmid successfully secreted L1 lipase into the culture broth. To examine an optimum condition for L1 lipase expression in the fed-batch culture, L1 lipase expression was induced at three different growth phases (early, mid, and late-exponential growth phases). Maximum product on of L1 lipase (1,254,000 U/l, corresponding to 0.65/1) was found when the culture was induced at an early growth phase. Secreted recombinant L1 lipase was purified only through CM-Sepharose chromatography, and the purified enzyme showed 1,963 U/mg of specific activity and thermoalkalophilic properties similar to those reported for the enzyme expressed in Escherichia coli.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.257-264
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• 2009

A $\beta$-agarase gene, agaB34, was functionally cloned from the genomic DNA of a marine bacterium, Agarivorans albus YKW-34. The open reading frame of agaB34 consisted of 1,362 bp encoding 453 amino acids. The deduced amino acid sequence, consisting of a typical N-terminal signal peptide followed by a catalytic domain of glycoside hydrolase family 16 (GH-16) and a carbohydrate-binding module (CBM), showed 37-86% identity to those of agarases belonging to family GH-16. The recombinant enzyme (rAgaB34) with a molecular mass of 49 kDa was produced extracellularly using Escherichia coli $DH5{\alpha}$ as a host. The purified rAgaB34 was a $\beta$-agarase yielding neoagarotetraose (NA4) as the main product. It acted on neoagarohexaose to produce NA4 and neoagarobiose, but it could not further degrade NA4. The maximal activity of rAgaB34 was observed at $30^{\circ}C$ and pH 7.0. It was stable over pH 5.0-9.0 and at temperatures up to $50^{\circ}C$. Its specific activity and $k_{cat}/K_m$ value for agarose were 242 U/mg and $1.7{\times}10^6/sM$, respectively. The activity of rAgaB34 was not affected by metal ions commonly existing in seawater. It was resistant to chelating reagents (EDTA, EGTA), reducing reagents (DTT, $\beta$-mercaptoethanol), and denaturing reagents (SDS and urea). The E. coli cell harboring the pUC18-derived agarase expression vector was able to efficiently excrete agarase into the culture medium. Hence, this expression system might be used to express secretory proteins.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.19-28
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• 2007

To identify regulatory molecules which play key roles in the development of obesity, we investigated the transcriptional profiles in 3T3-L1 cells at early stage of differentiation and analyzed the promoter sequences of differentially regulated genes. One hundred and sixty-one (161) genes were found to have significant changes in expression at the 2nd day following treatment with differentiation cocktail. Among them, 86 transcripts were up-regulated and 75 transcripts were down-regulated. The 161 transcripts were classified into 10 categories according to their functional roles; cytoskeleton, cell adhesion, immune, defense response, metabolism, protein modification, protein metabolism, regulation of transcription, signal transduction and transporter. To identify transcription factors likely involved in regulating these differentially expressed genes, we analyzed the promoter sequences of up- or - down regulated genes for the presence of transcription factor binding sites (TFBSs). Based on coincidence of regulatory sites, we have identified candidate transcription factors (TFs), which include those previously known to be involved in adipogenesis (CREB, OCT-1 and c-Myc). Among them, c-Myc was also identified by our microarray data. Our approach to take advantage of the resource of the human genome sequences and the results from our microarray experiments should be validated by further studies of promoter occupancy and TF perturbation.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.113-118
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• 1999

The insulin-like growth factor (IGF) is found in all vertebrates and its type-II molecule is regarded as a fundamental embryonic growth factor during development. We have firstly identified, in this study, a cDNA clone corresponding to IGF-II (flIGF-II) from the adult brain of the teleost, Paralichthys olivaceus. We also examined the tissue expression of flIGF-II in several adult tissues by RT-PCR. The flIGF-II cDNA contained a complete ORF consisting of 215 amino acids and one stop codon. Its molecular characteristics appear to be similar to the previously identified IGF-II molecules, in which a common primary structure exhibiting B, C, A, D, and E domains is evidently observed. This cDNA clone seems to be cleaved at $Ala_{52}$ for the $NH_2$-end signal peptide and appears to produce a 98 amino acid-long E-peptide from the $Arg^{118}$. The functional B-D domain regions, therefore, include 65 amino acids and is able to encode a 7.4-kDa protein. The most prominent structural difference between IGF-I and IGF-II was that the D domain of IGF-II exhibits a two-codon-deleted pattern compared to the 8 amino acid-containing IGF-I. The insulin family signature in the A domain and six cysteins forming three disulfide bridges between the B and A domains were evolutionary-conserved from teleosts to mammalian IGF-II. Interestingly, the E-peptide region appears to provide a distinct hallmark between teleosts in amino acid composition. The flIGF-II shows 85.1% of sequence identity to salmon and trout, 90.6% to tilapia, and 98.4% to perch in amino acid level. In tissue expressions of IGF-II, it is very likely that flIGF-II has a significant expression in the adult brain. However, liver seems to be the main source for IGF-II production, and relatively low signals were observed in the adult muscle and kidney. Taken together, it would be concluded that the functional region for IGF-II mRNA is highly similar in phylogeny and is evolutionary, conserved as a mediator for the growth of vertebrates.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Applied Microbiology Conference
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• 2000.04a
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• pp.178-181
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• 2000

In order to develop the novel gene expression system, we introduced new control elements which could influence the foreign gene expression in animal cells. When the foreign genes are introduced into the genome of higher eukaryotic cells, the expressions from these integrated genes are often low and can vary greatly depending on the positions of the integration sites due to the complex nature of the chromatin structures (1). First we screened the various DNA sequence elements which can function as an insulator of gene expression from these position effects and can cooperate with the SV40 enhancer/promoter. Among the several DNA elements from the various sources, we identified the particular DNA element which confers the increased frequency of the positive colonies, assayed by the reporter gene from stable selections indicating significantly reduced position effects. This element also showed the several fold-increased expression level as well as the copy-number dependent expression with host cell specificity. Second we modified the transcription termination element where we introduced the specific terminator in combination with SV40 polyA signal. This modified terminator showed the increased efficiency and the level of the gene expression. By combining these two elements, we made the animal cell expression system and tested successfully for the recombinant protein productions of TGF ${\beta}$-soluble receptor, Antithrombin III, and single chain Pro-Urokinase. [Supported by grants from MOCIE]

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.10
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• pp.1606-1613
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• 2015

Porcine pleuropneumonia is an infectious disease caused by Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae. The identification of A. pleuropneumoniae genes, specially expressed in vivo, is a useful tool to reveal the mechanism of infection. IVIAT was used in this work to identify antigens expressed in vivo during A. pleuropneumoniae infection, using sera from individuals with chronic porcine pleuropneumonia. Sequencing of DNA inserts from positive clones showed 11 open reading frames with high homology to A. pleuropneumoniae genes. Based on sequence analysis, proteins encoded by these genes were involved in metabolism, replication, transcription regulation, and signal transduction. Moreover, three function-unknown proteins were also indentified in this work. Expression analysis using quantitative real-time PCR showed that most of the genes tested were up-regulated in vivo relative to their expression levels in vitro. IVI (in vivo-induced) genes that were amplified by PCR in different A. pleuropneumoniae strains showed that these genes could be detected in almost all of the strains. It is demonstrated that the identified IVI antigen may have important roles in the infection of A. pleuropneumoniae.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.270-282
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• 2008

The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has defense mechanisms identical to higher eukaryotes. It offers the potential for genome-wide experimental approaches owing to its smaller genome size and the availability of the complete sequence. It therefore represents an ideal eukaryotic model for studying cellular redox control and oxidative stress responses. S. cerevisiae Yap1 is a well-known transcription factor that is required for $H_2O_2$-dependent stress responses. Yap1 is involved in various signaling pathways in an oxidative stress response. The Gpx3 (Orp1/PHGpx3) protein is one of the factors related to these signaling pathways. It plays the role of a transducer that transfers the hydroperoxide signal to Yap1. In this study, using extensive proteomic and bioinformatics analyses, the function of the Gpx3 protein in an adaptive response against oxidative stress was investigated in wild-type, gpx3-deletion mutant, and gpx3-deletion mutant overexpressing Gpx3 protein strains. We identified 30 proteins that are related to the Gpx3-dependent oxidative stress responses and 17 proteins that are changed in a Gpx3-dependent manner regardless of oxidative stress. As expected, $H_2O_2$-responsive Gpx3-dependent proteins include a number of antioxidants related with cell rescue and defense. In addition, they contain a variety of proteins related to energy and carbohydrate metabolism, transcription, and protein fate. Based upon the experimental results, it is suggested that Gpx3-dependent stress adaptive response includes the regulation of genes related to the capacity to detoxify oxidants and repair oxidative stress-induced damages affected by Yap1 as well as metabolism and protein fate independent from Yap1.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.305-311
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• 2002

Acetyl xylan esterase gene (AXE) from Aspergillus ficuum was cloned and its Pichia expression plasmid, pPICZ$\alpha$C-AXE (4.6 kb), was constructed, in which the AXE gene was under the control of the AOXI promoter and connected downstream of mating factor u-1 signal sequence. The plasmid linearized by Sacl was integrated into the 5'AOXI region of the chromosomal DNA of P. pastoris. In the flask batch culture of P. pastoris transformant on methanol medium, the cell concentration and total AXEase activity reached at 6.0 g-dry cell weight/1 and 77 unit/ml after 36 h cultivation, respectively. In the fed-batch culture employing the optimized methanol and histidine feeding strategy, the cell concentration and total AXEase activity were significantly increased to about 97 g-dry cell weight/1 and 930 unit/ml. Most of AXEase activity (>90%) was found in the extracellular medium and the majority of extracellular protein (>80%) was AXEase enzyme (33.5 kDa). This result means that about 9.8 g/1 of AXEase protein was produced in the extracellular medium.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.9
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• pp.1237-1244
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• 2012

Agarase genes of non-marine agarolytic bacterium Cellvibrio sp. were cloned into Escherichia coli and one of the genes obtained using HindIII was sequenced. From nucleotide and putative amino acid sequences (713 aa, molecular mass; 78,771 Da) of the gene, designated as agarase AgaA, the gene was found to have closest homology to the Saccharophagus degradans (formerly, Microbulbifer degradans) 2-40 aga86 gene, belonging to glycoside hydrolase family 86 (GH86). The putative protein appears to be a non-secreted protein because of the absence of a signal sequence. The recombinant protein was purified with anion exchange and gel filtration columns after ammonium sulfate precipitation and the molecular mass (79 kDa) determined by SDS-PAGE and subsequent enzymography agreed with the estimated value, suggesting that the enzyme is monomeric. The optimal pH and temperature for enzymatic hydrolysis of agarose were 6.5 and $42.5^{\circ}C$, and the enzyme was stable under $40^{\circ}C$. LC-MS and NMR analyses revealed production of a neoagarobiose and a neoagarotetraose with a small amount of a neoagarohexaose during hydrolysis of agarose, indicating that the enzyme is a ${\beta}$-agarase.