• The Journal of the Korean Society for Microbiology
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.109-115
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• 2000

FtsH is a membrane-bound, ATP-dependent metalloprotease that is involved in a variety of cellular functions including the regulation of responses to heat and stress shock. Previously, we had cloned and sequenced pneumococcal ftsH gene whose deduced amino acid sequence was very similar to those of several gram-positive bacteria and Escherichia coli, except for the N-terminal domain that was responsible for membrane anchoring. In order to better understand the role of Streptococcus pneumoniae FtsH, we expressed pneumococcal ftsH gene in Escherichia coli. When it was expressed from a strong promoter, $P_{tac}$, a considerable amount of the recombinant FtsH was produced, although the prolonged induction resulted in not only accumulation of breakdown products but also ceasing of the further growth of E. coli host. This indicated that the expression of the exogenous ftsH gene was tightly regulated since the excessive FtsH appeared detrimental to bacterial cells. In Western blotting, the pneumococcal FtsH protein, whether native or recombinant, was reactive to anti-E. coli FtsH serum. The observation that FtsH proteins were well conserved throughout the bacterial kingdom and its expression level was fine-tuned suggests an important role for this protein in the stress adaptation which may be related to infecting process by pneumococci.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.270-277
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• 2008

This study addresses the physiological functions of the Ran-binding protein homolog NbRanBP1 in Nicotiana benthamiana. Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) of NbRanBP1 caused stunted growth, leaf yellowing, and abnormal leaf morphology. The NbRanBP1 gene was constitutively expressed in diverse tissues and an NbRanBP1:GFP fusion protein was primarily localized to the nuclear rim and the cytosol. BiFC analysis revealed in vivo interaction between NbRanBP1 and NbRan1 in the nuclear envelope and the cytosol. Depletion of NbRanBP1 or NbRan1 reduced nuclear accumulation of a NbBTF3:GFP marker protein. In the later stages of development, NbRanBP1 VIGS plants showed stress responses such as reduced mitochondrial membrane potential, excessive production of reactive oxygen species, and induction of defense-related genes. The molecular role of RanBP1 in plants is discussed in comparison with RanBP1 function in yeast and mammals.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.166-169
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• 2012

In several biotechnological applications of living bacterial cells with inducible gene expression systems, the extent of overexpression and the specificity to the inducer are key elements. In the present study, we established the concentration ranges of $Zn^{2+}$, $Ni^{2+}$, $Co^{2+}$, ${AsO_2}^-$, and $Cd^{2+}$ ions that caused significant activation of the respective promoters of Synechocystis sp. without concomitant unspecific stress responses. The low expression levels can be increased up to 10-100-fold upon treatments with $Cd^{2+}$, ${AsO_2}^-$, $Zn^{2+}$, and $Co^{2+}$ ions and up to 800-fold upon $Ni^{2+}$ treatment. These results facilitate the development of conditional gene expression systems in cyanobacteria.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.21 no.3
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• pp.204-209
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• 2008

We have cloned an LTP gene (PoLTP1) from poplar (Populus alba ${\times}$ P. tremula var. glandulosa) suspension cells and examined changes in its expression levels in response to various stresses and ABA treatment. The full-length PoLTP1 cDNA clone encodes a polypeptide of 116 amino acids with typical characteristics of LTPs, notably a conserved arrangement of cysteine residues. Southern blot analysis indicate that two or three copies of the PoLTP1 are present in the genome of the investigated hybrid poplar. In addition, northern analysis of samples from soil-grown plants indicate that PoLTP1 is tissue-specifically expressed in the leaves and flowers. The gene is significantly up-regulated by treatment with mannitol, NaCl and ABA, but not by either cold or wounding. These results indicate that PoLTP1 is involved in osmotic stress responses in poplar plants and suspension cells.

• Journal of fish pathology
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.191-211
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• 2023

Rock bream iridovirus (RBIV) causes high mortality and economic losses in rock bream (Oplegnathus fasciatus) aquaculture industry in Korea. Although, the immune responses of rock bream under RBIV infection have been studied, there is not much information at the different stages of infection (initial, middle and recovery). Gene expression profiling of rock bream under different RBIV infection stages was investigated using a microarray approaches. In total, 5699 and 6557 genes were significantly up- or down-regulated over 2-fold, respectively, upon RBIV infection. These genes were grouped into categories such as innate immune responses, adaptive immune responses, complements, lectin, antibacterial molecule, stress responses, DNA/RNA binding, energy metabolism, transport and cell cycle. Interestingly, hemoglobins (α and β) appears to be important during pathogenesis; it is highly up-regulated at the initial stage and is gradually decreased when the pathogen most likely multiplying and fish begin to die at the middle or later stage. Expression levels were re-elevated at the recovery stage of infection. Among up-regulated genes, interferon-related genes were found to be responsive in most stages of RBIV infection. Moreover, X-linked inhibitor of apoptosis (XIAP)-associated factor 1 (XAF1) expression was high, whereas expression of apoptosis-relate genes were low. In addition, stress responses were highly induced in the virus infection. The cDNA microarray data were validated using quantative real-time PCR. Our results provide novel inslights into the broad immune responses triggered by RBIV at different infection stages.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.20 no.8
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• pp.1173-1180
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• 2010

We investigated changes in photosynthesis and activity of ascorbate peroxidase (APX) that scavenges ROS as responses to oxidative stress induced by salinity in rice (Oryza sativa L.). Photosynthetic efficiency of rice leaves, monitored in terms of Fv/Fm, declined with the increase of salt concentration (100-300 mM NaCl). Salinity caused an increase of $H_2O_2$ in leaves of rice, with an increase of APX activity. Among total APX isoforms, an isoform of stromal-APX 1 in leaves of rice was completely inactivated by 300 mM NaCl, but was not affected by chilling or drought. The results suggest that salt stress acts in quite a different mechanism in relation to the activity of stromal-APX from that of other stresses such chilling and drought. We carried out RT-PCR for analysis of genes expression of APX isoforms as affected by salt stress. The expression of cytosolic APX/thylakoid-bound APX genes in leaves of rice exposed to salt stress was increased, while stromal APX gene expression rapidly declined.

• BMB Reports
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• v.53 no.11
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• pp.576-581
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• 2020

Dimethylation of the histone H3 protein at lysine residue 9 (H3K9) is mediated by euchromatin histone methyltransferase II (EHMT2) and results in transcriptional repression of target genes. Recently, chemical inhibition of EHMT2 was shown to induce various physiological outcomes, including endoplasmic reticulum stress-associated genes transcription in cancer cells. To identify genes that are transcriptionally repressed by EHMT2 during apoptosis, and cell stress responses, we screened genes that are upregulated by BIX-01294, a chemical inhibitor of EHMT2. RNA sequencing analyses revealed 77 genes that were upregulated by BIX-01294 in all four hepatic cell carcinoma (HCC) cell lines. These included genes that have been implicated in apoptosis, the unfolded protein response (UPR), and others. Among these genes, the one encoding the stress-response protein Ras-related GTPase C (RRAGC) was upregulated in all BIX-01294-treated HCC cell lines. We confirmed the regulatory roles of EHMT2 in RRAGC expression in HCC cell lines using proteomic analyses, chromatin immune precipitation (ChIP) assay, and small guide RNA-mediated loss-of-function experiments. Upregulation of RRAGC was limited by the reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenger N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), suggesting that ROS are involved in EHMT2-mediated transcriptional regulation of stress-response genes in HCC cells. Finally, combined treatment of cells with BIX-01294 and 5-Aza-cytidine induced greater upregulation of RRAGC protein expression. These findings suggest that EHMT2 suppresses expression of the RRAGC gene in a ROS-dependent manner and imply that EHMT2 is a key regulator of stress-responsive gene expression in liver cancer cells.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.9
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• pp.1452-1459
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• 2007

The Dps protein, which is overexpressed in harsh environments, is known to playa critical role in the protection of DNA against oxidative stresses. In this study, the roles of Fur in the expression of the dps gene in Salmonella and the protection mechanisms against oxidative stress in Salmonella cells preexposed to iron-stress were investigated. Two putative Fur boxes were predicted within the promoter region of the S. typhimurium dps gene. The profile of dps expression performed by the LacZ reporter assay revealed growth-phase dependency regardless of iron-status under the culture conditions. The fur mutant, $_X4659$, evidenced a reduced level of ${\beta}$-galactosidase as compared to the wild-type strain. The results observed after the measurement of the Dps protein in various Salmonella regulatory mutants were consistent with the results acquired in the reporter assay. This evidence suggested that Fur performs a function as a subsidiary regulator in the expression of dps. The survival ability of Salmonella strains after exposure to oxidative stress demonstrated that the Dps protein performs a pivotal function in the survival of stationary-phase S. typhimurium against oxidative stress. Salmonella cells grown in iron-restricted condition required Dps for full protection against oxidative stress. The CK24 (${\Delta}dps$) cells grown in iron-replete condition survived at a rate similar to that observed in the wild-type strain, thereby suggesting the induction of an unknown protection mechanism(s) other than Dps in this condition.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.368-375
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• 2008

Approximately 120 UDP-glycosyltransferases (UGTs), which are classified into 14 distinct groups (A to N), have been annotated in the Arabidopsis genome. UGTs catalyze the transfer of sugars to various acceptor molecules including flavonoids. Previously, UGT71C1 was shown to glycosylate the 3-OH of hydroxycinnamates and flavonoids in vitro. Such secondary metabolites are known to play important roles in plant growth and development. To help define the role of UGT71C1 in planta, we investigated its expression patterns, and isolated and characterized a loss-of-function mutation in the UGT71C1 gene (named ugt71c1-1). Our analyses by quantitative real-time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR), microarray data mining, and histochemical detection of GUS activity driven by the UGT71C1 promoter region, revealed the tissue-specific expression patterns of UGT71C1 with highest expression in roots. Interestingly, upon treatment with methyl viologen (MV, paraquat), ugt71c1-1 plants displayed enhanced resistance to oxidative stress, and ROS scavenging activity was higher than normal. Metabolite profiling revealed that the levels of two major glycosides of quercetin and kaempferol were reduced in ugt71c1-1 plants. In addition, when exposed to MV-induced oxidative stress, eight representative ROS response genes were expressed at lower levels in ugt71c1-1 plants, indicating that ugt71c1-1 probably has higher non-enzymatic antioxidant activity. Taken together, our results indicate that ugt71c1-1 has increased resistance to oxidative stress, suggesting that UGT71C1 plays a role in some glycosylation pathways affecting secondary metabolites such as flavonoids in response to oxidative stress.

• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.67-74
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• 2004

Cells consistently face stressful conditions, which cause them to modulate a variety of intracellular processes and adapt to these environmental changes via regulation of gene expression. Hyperosmotic and oxidative stresses are significant stressors that induce cellular damage, and finally cell death. In this study, oligonucleotide microarrays were employed to investigate mRNA level changes in cells exposed to hyperosmotic or oxidative conditions. In addition, since heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) is one of the most inducible stress proteins and plays pivotal role to protect cells against stressful condition, we performed microarray analysis in HSP70-overexpressing cells to identify the genes expressed in a HSP70-dependent manner. Under hyperosmotic or oxidative stress conditions, a variety of genes showed altered expression. Down­regulation of protein phosphatase1 beta (PP1 beta) and sphingosine-1-phosphate phosphatase 1 (SPPase1) was detected in both stress conditions. Microarray analysis of HSP70-overexpressing cells demonstrated that diverse mRNA species depend on the level of cellular HSP70. Genes encoding Iysyl oxidase, thrombospondin 1, and procollagen displayed altered expression in all tested conditions. The results of this study will be useful to construct networks of stress response genes.