• KSBB Journal
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• v.21 no.6 s.101
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• pp.489-492
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• 2006

For molecular breeding purpose, genetic transformation of Brassica napus cultivars has been extensively performed using Agrobacterium method. B. napus cv. napus, one of major oil crops, can be transformed via Agrobacterium-based method. We demonstrated that Agrobacterium-mediated transformation via vacuum infiltration slightly worked for the seedlings of B. napus cv. napus according to fluorometric GUS enzyme analysis. In contrast, transformation efficiency was highly enhanced when the seedlings, prior to agroinfiltration, were treated with sodium hydrosulfite solution as a chemical wounding agent. GUS gene expression in transformed seedlings that was confirmed by RT-PCR suggests their usefulness for the development of transient expression system.

• International Journal of Oral Biology
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• v.41 no.3
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• pp.119-123
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• 2016

Acetylcholine receptors (AChR) including muscarinic and nicotinic AChR are widely expressed and mediate a variety of physiological cellular responses in neuronal and non-neuronal cells. Notably, a functional cholinergic system exists in oral epithelial cells, and nicotinic AChR (nAChR) mediates cholinergic anti-inflammatory responses. However, the pathophysiological roles of AChR in periodontitis are unclear. Here, we show that activation of AChR elicits increased cytosolic $Ca^{2+}([Ca^{2+}]_i)$, transient cytotoxicity, and induction of receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand (RANKL) expression. Intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ mobilization in human gingival fibroblast-1 (hGF-1) cells was measured using the fluorescent $Ca^{2+}$ indicator, fura-2/AM. Cytotoxicity and induction of gene expression were evaluated by measuring the release of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and RT-PCR. Activation of AChR in hGF-1 cells by carbachol (Cch) induced $[Ca^{2+}]_i$ increase in a dose-dependent manner. Treatment with a high concentration of Cch on hGF-1 cells caused transient cytotoxicity. Notably, treatment of hGF-1 cells with Cch resulted in upregulated RANKL expression. The findings may indicate potential roles of AChR in gingival fibroblast cells in bone remodeling.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.190-198
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• 2012

RNA interference (RNAi) is rapidly becoming a valuable tool in biological studies, as it allows the selective and transient knockdown of protein expression. The short-interfering RNAs (siRNAs) transiently silence gene expression. By contrast, the expressed short-hairpin RNAs induce long-term, stable knockdown of their target gene. Trichoplusia ni (T. ni) cells are widely used for mammalian cell-derived glycoprotein expression using the baculovirus system. However, a suitable shRNA expression system has not been developed yet. We investigated the potency of shRNA-mediated gene expression inhibition using human and Drosophila U6 promoters in T. ni cells. Luciferase, EGFP, and ${\beta}$-N-acetylglucosaminidase (GlcNAcase) were employed as targets to investigate knockdown of specific genes in T. ni cells. Introduction of the shRNA expression vector under the control of human U6 or Drosophila U6 promoter into T. ni cells exhibited the reduced level of luciferase, EGFP, and ${\beta}$-N-acetylglucosaminidase compared with that of untransfected cells. The shRNA was expressed and processed to siRNA in our vector-transfected T. ni cells. GlcNAcase mRNA levels were down-regulated in T. ni cells transfected with shRNA vectors-targeted GlcNAcase as compared with the control vector-treated cells. It implied that our shRNA expression vectors using human and Drosophila U6 promoters were applied in T. ni cells for the specific gene knockdown.

• Journal of Plant Biology
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.27-36
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• 1994

For establishing a transformation system of rice, an efficient introduction of foreign genes into embryogenic cell suspension by particle bombardment was conducted. The particle inflow gun based on the acceleration of DNA-coated tungsten particles using pressurized helium was constructed for delivery of DNA into rice cells. Several bombardment parameters were optimized using the transient expression of GUS gene. The conditions that gave the highest GUS gene expression of about 1000 blue spots per g fresh weight of bombarded cells include treatment of the cells with 0.5 M osmotic pressure, and use of the 410 kPa helium, 110 mm target distance, 13 mm syringe filter holder and 5 $\mu$L DNA/tungsten mixtures. It was also confirmed that rice actin promoter-intron construct gave the highest expression of all promoter-sequences studied. Eight weeks after the bombardment, stably transformed calluses were obtained on the selection medium containing 100 mg/L G418 and showed the strong activity in in situ GUS assay.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.399-408
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• 2004

Odontoblasts are responsible for the formation and maintenance of dentin. They are known to synthesize unique gene products including dentin sialophosphoprotein (DSPP). Another unique genes of the cells remain unclear. OD314 was isolated from the odontoblasts/pulp cells of rats and partially characterized as an odontoblast-enriched gene (Dey et al., 2001). This study aimed to elucidate the biological function of OD314, relating to odontoblast differentiation and dentinogenesis. After determining the open reading frame (ORP) of OD314 by transient transfection analysis using green fluorescent protein (GPP) expression vector, mRNA in-situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and western analysis were performed. The results were as follows: 1. In in-situ hybridization, OD314 mRNAs were expressed in odontoblasts of developing coronal and root pulp. 2. OD314 was a novel protein encoding 154 amino acids, and the protein was mainly expressed in cytoplasm by transient transfection analysis. 3. Mineralized nodules were associated with multilayer cell nodules in the culture of human dental pulp cells and first detected from day 21 using alizarin-red S staining. 4. In RT-PCR analysis, OD314, osteocalcin (OC) and DSPP strongly expressed throughout 28 days of culture. Whereas, osteonectin (ON) mRNA expression stayed low up to day 14, and then gradually decreased from day 21. 5. Western blots showed an approximately 17 kDa band. OD314 protein was expressed from the start of culture and then increased greatly from day 21. In conclusion, OD314 is considered as an odontoblast-enriched gene and may play important roles in odontoblast differentiation and dentin mineralization.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.296-304
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• 2008

The transient and rapid expression system of a foreign protein in planta is a very useful technique in biotechnology application. We have investigated optimum condition of Agrobacterium-infiltration technique in which expression level of foreign proteins were maximized without detrimental effects on plants using GFP and Cucumber mosaic virus 2b protein, which is known as an enhancer of gene expression and a suppressor of post-transcriptional gene silencing(PTGS). The optimum expression level of both RNA and protein of GFP with minimum leaf impairment was obtained at $OD_{600}$=0.2 of Agrobactrium inocula. The steady-state levels of GFP RNA and protein generally peaked at 3 and 7 days post-infiltration(dpi), respectively. In the presence of 2b, both the magnitude and duration of GFP expression was highly increased and we could detect GFP level until 17 dpi. On the other hands, the 2b-mediated higher accumulation of foreign proteins resulted in the repression of normal leaf growth, possibly due to the limitation of supply of energy or materials required for growth maintenance. Using this Agrobacterium-infiltration system with 2b and GFP, we tested a hypothesis for the threshold model of PTGS initiation. Four GFP transgenic lines of N. benthamiana, which shows different expression level of GFP were tested to determine the threshold level for PTGS initiation. Agrobacterium-infiltration of GFP into those GFP-transgenic plants resulted in the co-silencing of the transgenic GFP. It was found that very low concentration of Agrobacterium with GFP and GFP+2b($OD_{600}$=0.002-0.02) which could not phenotypically induce an additive GFP expression, was enough to trigger PTGS pathway in all GFP transgenic plants. This strongly indicates that each GFP-transgenic plant should be expressing the transgenic GFP at its own pre-determined level and there was no buffer zone of additive GFP-expression to the threshold. In other words, the PTGS seems to be immediately activated as a self-defensive mechanism if an internal balance of gene expression is broken.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.42-49
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• 2016

The retinoic acid (RA) plays an important role in the growth and development of many cells, and bioactive RA concentration is regulated by several enzymes, including CYP26A1. The expression of the CYP26A1 gene is regulated by RA, and the CYP26A1 gene is one of the candidates for RA-responsive genes. Although CYP26A1 genes are cloned from several animals, cloning of the CYP26A1 gene from cows has not been reported yet. The promoter region of CYP26A1 from cows was cloned by PCR and analyzed by sequence alignment with human and mouse CYP26A1. The RA-responsive element (RARE), DR-5 (ttggg), was located in this region and was perfectly conserved. The promoter region of bovine CYP26A1, which contains DR-5, was ligated to the luciferase reporter gene on transient transfection assays. The expression of CYP26A1-Luc promoter was activated by ATRA treatment in lung-derived mtCC cells. Co-transfection with RAR-α or -β with ATRA significantly activates the expression of CYP26A1-Luc promoter; however, it was less effective with either RAR-γ or RXR-γ. In addition, the endogenous gene expressions measured by Q-RT-PCR in mtCC cells were not significantly affected by ATRA treatment for 2 days; however, the expression of the endogenous CYP26A1 gene was diminished sharply at day 3 with ATRA treatment. In conclusion, the promoter region of bovine CYP26A1 contains conserved DR-5 RARE, which functions as a binding site for RAR-α or -β, and it is involved in the regulation of CYP26A1 gene expression and the control of RA signaling in mtCC cells.

• Journal of Aquaculture
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.457-463
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• 1998

An expression vector, pUC19N6-luc, containing nuclear matrix attachment region(MAR) isolated from Misgurnus mizolepis liver and control expressino vector, pUC19-luc, were constructed. After these vectors were transferred into CHSE-214 cell line by electroporation, the expression rate of luckferase gens, copy number of vectors and chromosome integration of vectors were analyzed by using assay of luciferase activity, PCR and Southern blotting. While the expression pattern of luciferase gene of pUC19-luc was shown in typicla transient ecpression pattern, that of pUC19N6-luc was highly increased at the 5 days after transfectrion. Although the cope number of pUC19N6-luc vector was higher than that of pUC19-luc vector, these vectors were integrated into chromosome at the same time point in the transfected CHSE-214 cells. In conclusion, the increase of luciferase gene expression of pUC19N6-luc was resulted from not the maintaining of the high copy number but the formation of transcription-favorable structure by MAR effect after chromosomal integration.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.101-108
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• 1998

We investigated the effect of ${\alpha}-subunit$ of the stimulatory GTP-binding protein ($G{\alpha}_s$) gene mutation on the expression of the thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) receptor (TRH-R) gene in GH3 cells and in growth hormone (GH)-secreting adenomas of acromegalic patients. In the presence of cyclohexicmide, forskolin and isobutylmethylxanthine, cholera toxin, and GH-releasing hormone (GHRH) decreased rat TRH-R (rTRH-R) gene expression by about 39%, 43.7%, and 46.7%, respectively. Transient expression of a vector expressing mutant-type $G{\alpha}_s$ decreased the rTRH-R gene expression by about 50% at 24 h of transfection, whereas a wild-type $G{\alpha}_s$ expression vector did not. The transcript of human TRH-R (hTRH-R) gene was detected in 6 of 8 (75%) tumors. Three of them (50%) showed the paradoxical GH response to TRH and the other three patients did not show the response. The relative expression of hTRH-R mRNA in the tumors from patients with the paradoxical response of GH to TRH did not differ from that in the tumors from patients without the paradoxical response. Direct PCR sequencing of $G{\alpha}_s$ gene disclosed a mutant allele and a normal allele only at codon 201 in 4 of 8 tumors. The paradoxical response to TRH was observed in 2 of 4 patients without the mutation, and 2 of 4 patients with the mutation. The hTRH-R gene expression of pituitaty adenomsa did not differ between the tumors without the mutation and those with mutation. The present study suggests that the expression of TRH-R gene is not likely to be a main determinant for the paradoxical response of GH to TRH, and that $G{\alpha}_s$ mutation may suppress the gene expression of TRH-R in GH-secreting adenoma. However, a certain predisposing factor(s) may play an important role in determining the expression of TRH-R.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.26 no.4
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• pp.402-408
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• 2010

Plant matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) are a family of apoplastic metalloproteases closely related to human matrilysins. Up-regulation of Nicotiana benthamiana matrix metalloprotease 1 (NMMP1) expression by treatment with pathogens, ethephon and aging indicates that the gene is related to plant defense and the aging process through ethylene signaling. NMMP1 expression was higher than in normal growth leaves following infection with an incompatible pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato T1 or a compatible pathogen P. syringae pv. tabaci and in aged leaves. Transient overexpression of NMMP1 in N. benthamiana leaves lowered the growth of P. syringae pv. tabaci. However, NMMP1-silenced leaves showed increased growth of P. syringae pv. tabaci. These data strongly suggest that NMMP1 in N. benthamiana is a defense related gene, which is positively regulated by ethylene.