• Journal of Oral Medicine and Pain
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.137-150
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• 2007

Trees emit phytoncide into atmosphere to protect them from predation. Phytoncide from different trees has its own unique fragrance that is referred to as forest bath. Phytoncide, which is essential oil of trees, has microbicidal, insecticidal, acaricidal, and deodorizing effect. The present study was performed to examine the effect of phytoncide on Porphyromonas gingivalis, which is one of the most important causative agents of periodontitis and halitosis. P. gingivalis 2561 was incubated with or without phytoncide extracted from Hinoki (Chamaecyparis obtusa Sieb. et Zucc.; Japanese cypress) and then changes were observed in its cell viability, antibiotic sensitivity, morphology, and biochemical/molecular biological pattern. The results were as follows: 1. The phytoncide appeared to have a strong antibacterial effect on P. gingivalis. MIC of phytoncide for the bacterium was determined to be 0.008%. The antibacterial effect was attributed to bactericidal activity against P. gingivalis. It almost completely suppressed the bacterial cell viability (>99.9%) at the concentration of 0.01%, which is the MBC for the bacterium. 2. The phytoncide failed to enhance the bacterial susceptibility to ampicillin, cefotaxime, penicillin, and tetracycline but did increase the susceptibility to amoxicillin. 3. Numbers of electron dense granules, ghost cell, and vesicles increased with increasing concentration of the phytoncide, 4. RT-PCR analysis revealed that expression of superoxide dismutase was increased in the bacterium incubated with the phytoncide. 5. No distinct difference in protein profile between the bacterium incubated with or without the phytoncide was observed as determined by SDS-PAGE and immunoblot. Overall results suggest that the phytoncide is a strong antibacterial agent that has a bactericidal action against P. gingivalis. The phytoncide does not seem to affect much the profile of the major outer membrane proteins but interferes with antioxidant activity of the bacterium. Along with this, yet unknown mechanism may cause changes in cell morphology and eventually cell death.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.414-420
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• 2007

Nanomaterials have been applied to various fields due to their advantageous characteristics such as high surface area, rapid diffusion, high specific surface areas, reactivity in liquid or gas phase, and a size close to biomacromolecules. Up to date, increased manufacturing and frequently use of the materials, however, revoke people's concerns on their hazard impact including toxicity the materials. Many research groups have carried out different protocols to evaluate toxic effects of nanomaterilas on different organisms, and consequently, nanomaterials are known to cytotoxicity. In this paper, we reviewed some of the most reports on toxic effects of several nanoparticles specifically on bacteria. There are numbers of reports focused on antibacterial effect of nanoparticles based on bacterial cell viability. Therefore, the application of each nanomaterial should be concerned with its toxicity and its toxic effect should be evaluated in terms of concentrations and sizes of the nanomaterials used, prior to use of a nanomaterial.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.564-570
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• 2003

The antibacterial mechanism of enterobacter Salmonella typhimurium was studied. The rfa (Waa) gene cluster of S. typhimurium encodes the core oligosaccharide biosynthesis of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Among the rfa gene cluster, we recently cloned the rfaE gene, which is involved in ADP-L-glycero-D-manno-heptose biosynthesis. The rfaE mutant synthesizes heptose-deficient LPS, which consists of only lipid A and 3-deoxy-D-manno-octulosonic acid (KDO), thus making an incomplete LPS and a rough phenotype mutant. S. typhimurium deep-rough mutants with the heptose region of the inner core show a reduced growth rate, sensitivity to high temperature, and hypersensitivity to hydrophobic antibiotics such as baicalin isolated from the medicinal herb of Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi. Thus, in this study, the cloned rfaE gene was added to the S. typhimurium rfaE mutant strain SL1102 (rfaE543), which makes heptose-deficient LPS and has a deep-rough phenotype. The complementation created a smooth phenotype in the SL1102 strain. The sensitivity of SL1102 to bacteriophages was also recovered to that of wild-type strain, indicating that LPS is used as the receptor for bacteriophage infection. The permeability barrier of SL1102 to hydrophobic antibiotics such as novobiocin and baicalin was restored to that of the wild-type, suggesting that antibiotic resistance of the wild-type strain is highly correlated with their LPS. Through an agar diffusion assay, the growth-inhibition activity of baicalin was fully observed in the mutant SL1102 strain. However, only a half of the inhibitory activity was detected in the rfaE complemented SL1102 strain. Furthermore, the LPS produced by the rfaE-complemented SL1102 strain was indistinguishable from LPS biosynthesis of smooth strains.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Service
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.169-174
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• 2021

Mastitis is an inflammatory condition of the mammary gland, most often caused by bacterial infections, resulting in significant economic losses to the dairy industry. Antimicrobial resistance has been of great concern because of the extensive clinical use of antibiotics. For this reason, the development of new compounds as an alternative treatment to bovine mastitis is needed. Bee venom has been widely used as an oriental treatment for several inflammatory diseases and bacterial infections. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the antimicrobial activity of bee venom on bacteria isolated from bovine mastitis. A total of 107 isolates from bovine mastitic milk samples collected in 2019 and 2020 in Jeonbuk province. All bacterial isolates were tested for susceptibility to bee venom of the honey bee (Apis mellifera). In order to obtain comprehensive antibacterial activities of the bee venom, we measured the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the bee venom against bacterial strains. Bee venom showed significant inhibition of bacterial growth of Gram-negative bacteria Citrobacter spp., Escherchia coli, Klebsiella spp., Pseudomonas spp., Serratia spp. and Raoultella with MIC values of 96, 81, 72, 230, and 85 ㎍/mL, respectively, and Gram-positive bacterial Enterococcus spp., Staphylococcus spp. and Streptococcus spp. with MIC values of 29, 21 and 16 ㎍/mL, respectively. The results indicated that the MIC values were different depending on the bacterial strains, and those of Gram-positive bacteria were lower than those of Gram-negative bacteria for bee venom. These findings suggested that bee venom could be an effective antimicrobial treatment for bovine mastitis; however, further research is necessary to evaluate the mechanism underlying the antimicrobial action, its effectiveness/safety in vivo and effective application for therapeutic use.

• Restorative Dentistry and Endodontics
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.561-574
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• 2000

Poly-P has been used to prevent decomposition of foods and has been shown to have inhibitory effect on the growth of gram positive bacteria. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of poly-P on the growth of Porphyromonas endodontalis, a gram negative obligate anaerobic rod, endodontopathic bacterium. P. endodontalis ATCC 35406 was in BHI broth containing hemin and vitamin K with or without poly-P. Inhibitory effect of each poly-P which was added at the beginning(lag phase) or during(exponential phase) the culture, MIC(minimum inhibitory concentration) was determined by measuring the optical density of the bacterial cell at 540nm. Viable cell counts were measured to determined whether poly-P has a bactericidal effect. Leakage of intracellular nucleotides from P. endodontalis was determined at 260nm and morphological change of P. endodontalis was observed under the TEM(transmission electron microscope). Binding of 32P-labeled poly-P to P. endodontalis was examined. SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and zymography were performed to observe the changes in protein and enzyme profiles of P. endodontalis, respectively. The results from this study were as follows : 1. The minimal inhibitory concentration(MIC) of poly-P to P. endodontalis appeared to be 0.04~0.05%. 2. Poly-P added to the P. endodontalis culture during the exponential phase of P. endodontalis was as much effective as poly-P added at the begining of the culture, suggesting that the antibacterial effect of poly-P is not much dependent on the initial inoculum size of P. endodontalis. 3. Poly-P are bactericidal to P. endodontalis, demonstrating the decrease of the viable cell counts. 4. Intracellular nucleotide release from the P. endodontalis, was not increased in the presence of poly-P and was not reversed by the addition of divalent cations like $Ca^{2+}$ and $Mg^{2-}$. 5. Under the TEM, it was observed that fine electro-dense materials were prominent in the poly-P grown P. endodontalis, appearing locally in the cell, and the materials were more abundant and more dispersed in the cell as the incubation time with poly-P increased. In addition, highly electron dense granules accumulated in many poly-P grown cells, most of which were atypical in their shape. 6. Binding of 32P-labeled poly-P to P. endodontalis appeared to be 32.8 and 45.5 and 53.4% at 30 minutes, 1 hours and 2 hours, respectively. 7. In the presence of poly-P. the synthesis of proteins with apparent molecular masses of 25, 27, 35, 45 was lost or drastically decreased whereas expression of a protein with an apparent molecular mass of 75 was elevated. 8. Proteolytic activity of P. endodontalis was decreased by poly-P. The overall results suggest that use of poly-P may affect the growth of P. endodontalis, and the anti-bacterial activity of poly-P seems largely bactericidal. Changes in shape, protein expression, and proteolytic activity of P. endodontalis by poly-P may be directly and indirectly attributed to the antibacterial effect of poly-P. Further studies will be needed to confirm the effect of poly-P.

• Advances in Traditional Medicine
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.13-20
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• 2010

The leaves of Madhuca (M.) indica J.f.Gmel. (Sapotaceae) have been used traditionally in folk medicine due to its astringent properties and are effective in treatment of eczema and snake bites. Methanolic extract of M. indica is rich in tannins and has been proven experimentally to possess antibacterial activity. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the anti-ulcer and antioxidant activity of M. indica in rats. The methanolic extract of leaves of M. indica was tested at various doses (75, 150 and 300 mg/kg, p.o.) for its effect on gastric secretion and gastric ulcers in pylorus-ligation and on ethanol- induced gastric mucosal injury in rats. The significant reduction in ulcer index in both the models along with an increase in the pH of the gastric fluid and mucin content of stomach, and the acid secretory parameters such as total acidity and volume of gastric fluid were also significantly reduced along with reduction in the pepsin activity in pylorusligated rats proved the anti-ulcer activity of M. indica. The increase in the levels of superoxide dismutase, catalase and reduced glutathione and decrease in lipid peroxidation in both the models proved the antioxidant activity of M. indica. Thus it can be concluded that M. indica possesses anti-ulcer activity, which can be attributed to its antioxidant mechanism of action.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.18 no.8
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• pp.1427-1430
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• 2008

Decursinol, found in the roots of Angelica gigas Nakai, has been traditionally used to treat anemia and other various diseases. Recently, numerous biological activities such as cytotoxic effect on leukemia cells, and antitumor, neuroprotection, and antibacterial activities have been reported for this compound. Although a number of proteins including protein kinase C, androgen receptor, and acetylcholinesterase were proposed as molecular targets responsible for the activities of decursinol, they are not enough to explain such a diverse biological activity mentioned above. In this study, we employed a chemical proteomic approach, leading to identification of seven proteins as potential proteins interacting with decursinol. Most of the proteins contain a defined ATP or nucleic acid binding domain and have been implied to be involved in the pathogenesis and progression of various human diseases including cancer, autoimmune disorders, or neurodegenerative diseases. The present results may provide clues to understand the molecular mechanism of the biological activities shown by decursinol, an anticancer natural product.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.228-236
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• 2016

The aim of this study was to characterize the hemolytic Aeromonas sp. MH-8 exposed to green tea catechin, epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). Initially, the hemolytic Aeromonas sp. MH-8 was enriched and isolated from stale fish. Bactericidal effects of MH-8 exposed to EGCG ranging from 1 mg/mL to 4 mg/mL were monitored, and complete bactericidal effects were achieved within 3 h at 3 mg/mL and higher concentrations. SDS-PAGE with silver staining revealed that the amount of lipopolysaccharides increased or decreased in the strain MH-8 treated to different concentrations and exposing periods of EGCG in exponentially growing cultures. The stress shock proteins (70-kDa DnaK and 60-kDa GroEL), which might contribute to enhancing the cellular resistance to the cytotoxic effect of EGCG, were induced at different concentrations of EGCG exposed to cell culture of MH-8. Scanning electron microscopic analysis demonstrated the presence of irregular rod shapes with umbilicated surfaces for cells treated with EGCG. 2-DE of soluble protein fractions from MH-8 cultures showed 18 protein spots changed by EGCG exposure. These proteins involved in chaperons (e.g., DnaK, GroEL and trigger factor), enterotoxins (e.g., aerolysin and phospholipase C precursor), LPS synthesis (e.g., LPS biosynthesis protein and outer membrane protein A precursor), and various biosynthesis and energy metabolism were identified by peptide mass fingerprinting using MALDI-TOF. In consequence, EGCG was found to have substantial antibacterial effects against food-poisoning causing bacterium, hemolytic Aeromonas sp. MH-8. Also the results provide clues for understanding the mechanism of EGCG-induced stress and cytotoxicity on Aeromonas sp. MH-8.

• ALGAE
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.147-161
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• 2015

Brown algal extracts have long been used as feed supplements to promote health of farm animals. Here, we show new molecular insights in to the mechanism of action of a fucose containing polymer (FCP) rich fraction from the brown seaweed Ascophyllum nodosum using the Caenorhabditis elegans-Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14 infection model. FCP enhanced survival of C. elegans against pathogen stress, correlated with up-regulation of key immune response genes such as: lipases, lysozyme (lys-1), saponin-like protein (spp-1), thaumatin-like protein (tlp-1), matridin SK domain protein (msk-1), antibacterial protein (abf-1), and lectin family protein (lfp). Further, FCP caused down regulation of P. aeruginosa quorum sensing genes: (lasI, lasR, rhlI, and rhlR), secreted virulence factors (lipase, proteases, and elastases) and toxic metabolites (pyocyanin, hydrogen cyanide, and siderophore). Biofilm formation and motility of pathogenic bacteria were also greatly attenuated when the culture media were treated with FCP. Interestingly, FCP failed to mitigate the pathogen stress in skn-1, daf-2, and pmk-1 mutants of C. elegans. This indicated that, FCP treatment acted on the regulation of fundamental innate immune pathways, which are conserved across the majority of organisms including humans. This study suggests the possible use of FCP, a seaweed component, as a functional food source for healthy living.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.220-224
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• 2016

Anti-Helicobacter pylori activity guided fractionation led to the isolation of five anthraquinones, two stilbenes and one naphthoquinone from the EtOAc fraction of Polygonum cuspidatum, using silica gel column chromatography, Sephadex-LH20, MPLC and recrystallization. The chemical structures were identified to be physcion (1), emodin (2), anthraglycoside B (3), trans-resveratrol (4), anthraglycoside A (5), polydatin (6), 2-methoxy-6-acetyl-7-methyljuglone (7) and citreorosein (8) by UV, $^1H$-NMR, $^{13}C$-NMR and mass spectrometry. Anti-Helicobacter pylori activity including MIC values of each compound was evaluated. All of the isolates exhibited anti-H. pylori activity of which MIC values were lower than that of a positive control, quercetin. Compounds 2 and 7 showed potent growth inhibitory activity. Especially, a naphthoquinone, compound 7 displayed most potent antibacterial activity with $MIC_{50}$ value of $0.30{\mu}M$ and $MIC_{90}$ value of $0.39{\mu}M$. Although anti-H. pylori activity of this plant was previously reported, this is the first report on that of compounds isolated from this species. From these findings, P. cuspidatum roots or its isolates may be useful for H. pylori infection and further study is needed to elucidate mechanism of action.