• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.265-274
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• 2016

Toxin-antitoxin (TA) systems are ubiquitous genetic modules that are evolutionally conserved in bacteria and archaea. TA systems composed of an intracellular toxin and its antidote (antitoxin) are currently classified into five types. Commonly, activation of toxins under stress conditions inhibits diverse cellular processes and consequently induces cell death or reversible growth inhibition. These effects of toxins play various physiological roles in such as regulation of gene expression, growth control (stress response), programmed cell arrest, persister cells, programmed cell death, phage protection, stabilization of mobile genetic elements or postsegregational killing of plasmid-free cells. Accordingly, bacterial TA systems are commonly considered as stress-responsive genetic modules. However, molecule screening for activation of toxin in TA system is available as development of antimicrobial agents. In addition, cytotoxic effect induced by toxin is used as effective cloning method with antitoxic effect of antitoxin; consequently cells containing cloning vector inserted a target gene can survive and false-positive transformants are removed. Also, TA system is applicable to efficient single protein production in biotechnology industry because toxins that are site-specific ribonuclease inhibit protein synthesis except for target protein. Furthermore, some TA systems that induce apoptosis in eukaryotic cells such as cancer cells or virus-infected cells would have a wide range of applications in eukaryotes, and it will lead to new ways of treating human disease. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on bacterial TA systems and their applications.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.44 no.10
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• pp.770-779
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• 2021

Transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana expressing an anti-rabies monoclonal antibody (mAb), SO57, was obtained using Agrobacterium-mediated floral dip transformation. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) retention signal Lys-Asp-Glu-Leu (KDEL) was tagged to the C-terminus of the anti-rabies mAb heavy chain to localize the mAb to the ER and enhance its accumulation. When the inaccurately folded proteins accumulated in the ER exceed its storage capacity, it results in stress that can affect plant development and growth. We generated T₁ transformants and obtained homozygous T₃ seeds from transgenic Arabidopsis to investigate the effect of KDEL on plant growth. The germination rate did not significantly differ between plants expressing mAb SO57 without KDEL (SO plant) and mAb SO57 with KDEL (SOK plant). The primary roots of SOK agar media grown plants were slightly shorter than those of SO plants. Transcriptomic analysis showed that expression of all 11 ER stress-related genes were not significantly changed in SOK plants relative to SO plants. SOK plants showed approximately three-fold higher mAb expression levels than those of SO plants. Consequently, the purified mAb amount per unit of SOK plant biomass was approximately three times higher than that of SO plants. A neutralization assay revealed that both plants exhibited efficient rapid fluorescent focus inhibition test values against the rabies virus relative to commercially available human rabies immunoglobulins. KDEL did not upregulate ER stress-related genes; therefore, the enhanced production of the mAb did not affect plant growth. Thus, KDEL fusion is recommended for enhancing mAb production in plant systems.

• Korean Journal of Breeding Science
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• v.42 no.5
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• pp.534-539
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• 2010

'Hongro' is early-mid maturing cultivar with good quality like 'Tsugaru' and it has not preharvest drop. The CAX1 gene was introduced into Korean apple cultivar 'Hongro' by Agrobacterium tumefaciens LBA4404 harboring pBI121 to obtain transgenic apple with enhanced Ca level. The CAX1 gene playing the role of $H^+/Ca^{2+}$ transporter from Arabidopsis thaliana increases Ca concentration in several plants. Regenerated transgenic lines were confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis and Southern blot analysis of genomic DNA for the existence of CAX1 gene. Southern blot analysis of 'Hongro' transformants showed that two putative transgenic lines were integrated with CAX1 gene in genomic DNA. The CAX1 comparative expression levels of two transgenic lines were higher than that of non-transformant evaluated by comparative quantification analysis using a real-time PCR. These two lines were multiplied in vitro, and micro-grafted on apple rootstocks 'M.9' in the isolated greenhouse. Since two years after micro-grafting, the fruits came into bearing. Compared to Ca level of the non-transgenic 'Hongro', that of the CAX1 transgenic 'Hongro' in the flesh and leaves was higher.

• Korean Journal of Breeding Science
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.482-487
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• 2009

The apple rootstock M.26 (Malus pumila) is very popular apple rootstock with semi-dwarf habit and the trees on M.26 produce high quality fruit at a young age. Since it is prone to poor prop ability to soil, however, young trees require staking in windy locations. The rolC gene was introduced into M.26 by Agrobacterium tumefaciens LBA4404 harboring pBI121 to obtain its transformants with dwarfism and enhanced rooting ability. One regenerated transgenic line was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) analysis and Southern blot analysis of genomic DNA for the existence of rolC gene. The characteristics of transgenic line in vitro were not significantly different from non-transgenic line except for the active root formation and lateral root number. The rolC transgenic line showed reduced stem length and increased root number in vitro. Rooting ability was examined in the isolated greenhouse after mound layering. Compared to non-transgenic M.26, rolC transgenic line showed significantly higher rooting ability. The transgenic line did not show any other observable variation in shoot phenotype compared with non-transgenic line excepting increased branching

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.28 no.11
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• pp.1277-1284
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• 2018

In this study, a repeated yeast integrative plasmid (R-YIp) harboring Cre/loxP system was constructed to integrate various gene expression cassettes into the yeast chromosome. The R-YIp system contains a reusable selective marker (CgTRP1), loxP sequence, and target sequence for integration. Therefore, many gene expression cassettes can be integrated into the same position of the same yeast chromosome. In the present study, several model enzymes involving xylan/xylose metabolism were examined, including endoxylanase (XYLP), ${\beta}$-xylosidase (XYLB), xylose reductase (GRE3) and xylitol dehydrogenase (XYL2). Efficient expression of these genes was obtained using two promoters (GAL10p and ADH1p) and various plasmids (pGMF-GENE and pAMF-GENE plasmids) were constructed. The XYLP, XYLB, GRE3, and XYL2 genes were efficiently expressed under the control of the GAL10 promoter. Subsequently, R-YIps containing the GAL10p-GENE-GAL7t cassette were constructed, resulting in pRS-XylP, pRS-XylB, pRS-Gre3, and pRS-Xyl2 plasmids. These plasmids were sequentially integrated into chromosome VII of a Saccharomyces cerevisiae strain by repeated gene integration and selective marker rescue. These genes were integrated by the R-YIp system and were stably expressed in the yeast transformants to produce active recombinant enzymes. Therefore, we expect that the R-YIp system will be able to overcome current limitations of the host cells and allow selective marker selection for the integration of various genes into the yeast chromosome.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.343-349
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• 2019

Gul jeotgals (GJs) were prepared using solar salt aged for 3 years. One sample was fermented using starters, such as Bacillus subtilis JS2 and Tetragenococcus halophilus BS2-36 (each $10^6CFU/g$), and another sample was fermented without starters for 49 days at $10^{\circ}C$. Initial counts of bacilli and lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in non-starter GJ were found to be $3.20{\times}10^2$ and $7.67{\times}10^1CFU/g$ on day 0, and increased to $1.37{\times}10^3$ and $1.64{\times}10^6CFU/g$ on day 49. Those of starter GJ were found to be $2.10{\times}10^5$ and $3.30{\times}10^7CFU/g$ on day 49, indicating the growth of starters. The pH values of GJ were $5.93{\pm}0.01$ (non-starter) and $5.92{\pm}0.01$ (starter) on day 0 and decreased to $5.78{\pm}0.01$ (non-starter) and $5.75{\pm}0.01$ (starter) on day 49. Amino-type nitrogen (ANN) production increased continuously during fermentation, and $407.19{\pm}15.85$ (non-starter) and $398.04{\pm}13.73$ (starter) mg% on day 49. Clone libraries of 16S rRNA genes were constructed from total DNA extracted from non-starter GJ on days 7, 21, and 42. Nucleotide sequences of Escherichia coli transformants harboring recombinant pGEM-T easy plasmid containing 16S rRNA gene inserts from different bacterial species were analyzed using BLAST. Uncultured bacterium was the most dominant group and Gram - bacteria such as Acidovorax sp., Afipia sp., and Variovorax sp. were the second dominant group. Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (day 7), Bacillus velezensis (day 21 and 42), and Bacillus subtilis (day 42) were observed, but no lactic acid bacteria were detected. Acidovorax and Variovorax species might play some role in GJ fermentation. Further studies on these bacteria are necessary.

• Journal of Mushroom
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.178-182
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• 2022

Despite the long history of mushroom use, studies examining the genetic function of mushrooms and the development of new varieties via bio-molecular methods are significantly lacking compared to those examining other organisms. However, owing to recent developments, attempts have been made to use a novel gene-editing technique involving CRISPR/Cas9 technology and genetic scissors in mushroom studies. In particular, research is actively being conducted to utilize ribonucleoprotein particles (RNPs) that can be genetically edited with high efficiency without foreign gene insertion for ease of selection. However, RNPs are too large for Cas9 protein to pass through the cell membrane of the protoplasmic reticulum. Furthermore, guide RNA is unstable and can be easily decomposed, which remarkably affects gene editing efficiency. In this study, nanoparticles were used to mitigate the shortcomings of RNP-based gene editing techniques and to obtain transformants stably. We used Lentinula edodes (shiitake mushroom) Sanjo705-13 monokaryon strain, which has been successfully used in previous genome editing experiments. To identify a suitable osmotic buffer for the isolation of protoplast, 0.6 M and 1.2 M sucrose, mannitol, sorbitol, and KCl were treated, respectively. In addition, with various nanoparticle-forming materials, experiments were conducted to confirm genome editing efficiency via the formation of nanoparticles with calcium phosphate (CaP), which can be bound to Cas9 protein without any additional amino acid modification. RNPs/NP complex was successfully formed and protected nuclease activity with nucleotide sequence specificity.

• Proceedings of the KSAR Conference
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• 2001.03a
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• pp.52-52
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• 2001

Many nucleoside diphosphate (NDP) kinases are ubiquitous enzymes responsible for the exchange of ${\gamma}$-phosphates between tri- and diphosphonucleosides. The catalytic Many nucleoside diphosphate (NDP) kinases are ubiquitous enzymes responsible for the exchange of ${\gamma}$-phosphates between tri- and diphosphonucleosides. The catalytic reaction follows a ping-pong mechanism in which the enzyme is transiently phosphorylated on a histidine residue conserved in all nucleoside diphosphate kinases. Beside their role in nucleotide synthesis, these enzymes present additional functions, possibly independent of catalysis, in processes such as differentiation, cell growth, tumor progression, metastasis and development. To clone murine nm23-M5, several expressed sequence tags (ESTs) of the GenBank data base, selected according to their homology to nm23-H5 cDNA, reconstituted a complete open reading frame (GenBank AF222750). To test whether murine NDPKs (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6) can inhibit Bax-mediated toxicity in yeast, co-transformation was performed respectively. The yeast S.cerevisiae was transformed with a copy expression plasmid containing the histidine selection marker and expressing murine Bax under the control of a galactose-inducible promoter. Several clones were selected and found to be growth inhibited when Bax expression was induced with galactose. A representative clone was transformed again with a copy expression plasmid containing the tryptophane selection marker and expressing either murine Bcl-xL or NDPK under the control of a galactose-inducible promoter. Several subclones of the double-transformants were selected and characterized. The ability of Bcl-xL and NDPKs to suppress Bax-mediated toxicity was determined by growing yeast cells overnight in galactose media and spot-testing on galactose plates starting with an equal number of yeast cells as determined by taking the OD$_{600}$. Ten-fold serial dilutions were used in the spot-test. Plates were grown at 3$0^{\circ}C$ for 2-3 days. All murine NDPKs suppressed Bax dependent apoptosis. Futher study will be peformed whether Bax-toxicity inhibition was caused by NDP kinase activity or additional function.n.

• 한국균학회소식:학술대회논문집
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• 2015.05a
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• pp.53-53
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• 2015

Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation(ATMT) of Flammulina velutipes was used to produce a diverse number of transformants to discover the functions of gene that is vital for its variation color, spore pattern and cellulolytic activity. Futhermore, the transformant pool will be used as a good genetic resource for studying gene functions. Agrobacterium-mediated transformation was conducted in order to generate intentional mutants of F. velutipes strain KACC42777. Then Agrobacterium tumefaciens AGL-1 harboring pBGgHg was transformed into F. velutipes. This method is use to determine the functional gene of F. velutipes. Inverse PCR was used to insert T-DNA into the tagged chromosomal DNA segments and conducting sequence analysis of the F. velutipes. But this experiment had trouble in diverse morphological mutants because of dikaryotic nature of mushroom. It needed to make monokaryotic fruiting varients which introduced genes of compatible mating types. In this study, next generation sequencing data was generated from 28 strains of Flammulina velutipes with different phenotypes using Illumina Hiseq platform. Filtered short reads were initially aligned to the reference genome (KACC42780) to construct a SNP matrix. And then we built a phylogenetic tree based on the validated SNPs. The inferred tree represented that white- and brown- fruitbody forming strains were generally separated although three brown strains, 4103, 4028, and 4195, were grouped with white ones. This topological relationship was consistently reappeared even when we used randomly selected SNPs. Group I containing 4062, 4148, and 4195 strains and group II containing 4188, 4190, and 4194 strains formed early-divergent lineages with robust nodal supports, suggesting that they are independent groups from the members in main clades. To elucidate the distinction between white-fruitbody forming strains isolated from Korea and Japan, phylogenetic analysis was performed using their SNP data with group I members as outgroup. However, no significant genetic variation was noticed in this study. A total of 28 strains of Flammulina velutipes were analyzed to identify the genomic regions responsible for producing white-fruiting body. NGS data was yielded by using Illumina Hiseq platform. Short reads were filtered by quality score and read length were mapped on the reference genome (KACC42780). Between the white- and brown fruitbody forming strains. There is a high possibility that SNPs can be detected among the white strains as homozygous because white phenotype is recessive in F. velutipes. Thus, we constructed SNP matrix within 8 white strains. SNPs discovered between mono3 and mono19, the parental monokaryotic strains of 4210 strain (white), were excluded from the candidate. If the genotypes of SNPs detected between white and brown strains were identical with those in mono3 and mono19 strains, they were included in candidate as a priority. As a result, if more than 5 candidates SNPs were localized in single gene, we regarded as they are possibly related to the white color. In F. velutipes genome, chr01, chr04, chr07,chr11 regions were identified to be associated with white fruitbody forming. White and Brown Fruitbody strains can be used as an identification marker for F. veluipes. We can develop some molecular markers to identify colored strains and discriminate national white varieties against Japanese ones.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.16 no.2 s.75
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• pp.289-296
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• 2006

In order to establish highly efficient gene transfer condition at early stage of soybean transformation, various experiments were performed and compared their efficiencies by transient GUS analysis; those conditions are genotype determination of Korean soybean cultivars for amenability to Agro-infection, appropriate agar and selective agent concentration, orientation of explant placement, hormone pre-culture, and liquid selection condition. In the genotype screen of Korean soybean varieties, 14 amenable genotypes were selected. For efficient Agrobacterium washing, cefotaxime was chosen and hygromycin at the concentration of 10 and 15 ppm was used as selection agent in the media. Agar concentration was slightly better in 0.6% and 0.8% for both shoot and callus formation, and explant placement with adaxial side down showed high frequency of GUS expression. For wounding treatment, oriental needle was efficient than scalpel for shoot formation and gene transfer. To increase the frequency of gene transfer, hormone pre-treatment was applied. BA at the concentration of 5 and 10 ppm resulted in better survival at the late stage of selection in shoot elongation media. Selection in liquid media after hormone pre-treatment seemed to be effective to remove the escaped non-transformants at early stage of procedure. Considering the results obtained, Eunhakong could be the first choice as a material for soybean transformation among Korean soybean genotypes.