• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.258-265
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• 1999

Entry into meiosis in the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is regulated by two major factors: the cell type MATa/MAT${\alpha}$ and the nutriational state (starvation) of the cell. The two independent regulations act through IME1and IME2 expression to initiate meiosis. IME2 encodes a meiosis-specific protein kinase, and it enabled MATa/MAT${\alpha}$ diploid cells to undergo meiosis and sporulation. The PCR mutagenesis method was applied for the isolation of thermosensitive ime2 mutants. Among sixty two mutants isolated from the phenotype of defective spore formation under the restrictive temperature, three with the most easily observed temperature-sensitive phenotype (ts ${\cdot}$ime2-11, ts ${\cdot}$ime2-12 and ts ${\cdot}$ime2-13) were selected for further study. To understand the detailed functions of IME2, we examined the defects of these mutants in the early meiotic pathway including the premeiotic DNA replication and exhibited decreased level in meiotic recombination. These results suggest that the IME2 gene plays essential role in meiotic recombination pathway as well as premeiotic DNA replication. As the result of the IME2 overexpression in ${\Delta}$mre4. moreover, it was suggested that the IME2 and MRE4 genes act on the same pathway of initiation step in meiotic recombination.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.34 no.5
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• pp.459-463
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• 2010

Amphotericin B (AmB) is anti-fungal agent for the treatment of systemic fungal infections, but its poor solubility has limited clinical applications. In this study, a new gel formulation made up of L-arginine as solubilizer, thermosensitive Poloxamer 407 (P 407), and adhesive carbopol was designed for effective solubilization and delivery of AmB. The aqueous solubility of AmB was enhanced up to 2.6 mg/mL by addition of L-arginine. Aqueous P 407 solutions of more than 20% w/v showed thermo-induced sol-gel-sol phase transition. The phase transition behavior was affected by the presence of AmB and L-arginine, and the phase transition range was broadened by addition of carbopol. In vitro drug release was improved by the solubilizing effect of L-arginine, and the presence of mucoadhesive carbopol prolonged the release rate as a function of concentration.

• Journal of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.58 no.6
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• pp.575-579
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• 2014

Development of liposomes has been actively studied for effective delivery of drug at tumor site. However, despite their preferential accumulation at tumor site, the therapeutic efficacy of such liposomal drug has been limited because of low drug release. Therefore, we developed a temperature-sensitive liposome (TSL), which can be made to maximize release of drug by external stimulation such as ultrasound. Doxorubicin (DOX) as a model drug was encapsulated into TSL by a pH gradient method. The particle size of the TSL was $142.0{\pm}6.24nm$. Surface charge was $-10.55{\pm}1.12mV$. Release of drug from TSLs was up to 80% within 15 min at over $42^{\circ}C$ measured by fluorescence intensity. Cytotoxicity of released DOX from TSLs with ultrasound was highly increased compared to TSLs without ultrasound. Taken together, we demonstrate that temperature sensitive drug release from TSLs with ultrasound, which may be useful for cancer therapy to increase drug concentration at tumor site by external stimulation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Applied Microbiology Conference
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• 2005.06a
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• pp.154-164
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• 2005

Saccharomyces cerevisiae KNU5377 is a thermotolerant strain, which can ferment ethanol from wasted papers and starch at 40$^{\circ}C$ with the almost same rate as at 30$^{\circ}C$. This strain showed alcohol fermentation ability to convert wasted papers 200 g (w/v) to ethanol 8.4% (v/v) at 40$^{\circ}C$, meaning that 8.4% ethanol is acceptable enough to ferment in the industrial economy. As well, all kinds of starch that are using in the industry were converted into ethanol at 40$^{\circ}C$ with the almost same rate as at 30$^{\circ}C$. Hyperthermic cell killing kinetics and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) revealed that exponentially growing cells of this yeast strain KNU5377 were more thermotolerant than those of S. cerevisiae ATCC24858 used as a control. This intrinsic thermotolernace did not result from the stability of entire cellular components but possibly from that of a particular target. Heat shock induced similar results in whole cell DSC profiles of both strains and the accumulation of trehalose in the cells of both strains, but the trehalose contents in the strain KNU5377 were 2.6 fold higher than that in the control strain. On the contrary to the trehalose level, the neutral trehalase activity in the KNU5377 cells was not changed after the heat shock. This result made a conclusion that though the trehalose may stabilize cellular components, the surplus of trehalose in KNU5377 strain was not essential for stabilization of whole cellular components. A constitutively thermotolerant yeast, S. cerevisiae KNU5377, was compared with a relatively thermosensitive control, S. cerevisiae ATCC24858, by assaying the fluidity and proton ATPase on the plasma membrane. Anisotropic values (r) of both strains were slightly increased by elevating the incubation temperatures from 25$^{\circ}C$ to 37$^{\circ}C$ when they were aerobically cultured for 12 hours in the YPD media, implying the membrane fluidity was decreased. While the temperature was elevated up to 40$^{\circ}C$, the fluidity was not changed in the KNU5377 cell, but rather increased in the control. This result implies that the plasma membrane of the KNU5377 cell can be characterized into the more stabilized state than control. Besides, heat shock decreased the fluidity in the control strain, but not in the KNU5377 strain. This means also there's a stabilization of the plasma membrane in the KNU5377 cell. Furthermore, the proton ATPase assay indicated the KNU5377 cell kept a relatively more stabilized glucose metabolism at high temperature than the control cell. Therefore, the results were concluded that the stabilization of plasma membrane and growth at high temperature for the KNU5377 cell. Genome wide transcription analysis showed that the heat shock responses were very complex and combinatory in the KNU5377 cell. Induced by the heat shock, a number of genes were related with the ubiquitin mediated proteolysis, metallothionein (prevent ROS production from copper), hsp27 (88-fold induced remarkably, preventing the protein aggregation and denaturation), oxidative stress response (to remove the hydrogen peroxide), and etc.