• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2022

Ginseng has been well-known as a medicinal plant for thousands of years. Bacterial endophytes ubiquitously colonize the inside tissues of ginseng without any disease symptoms. The identification of bacterial endophytes is conducted through either the internal transcribed spacer region combined with ribosomal sequences or metagenomics. Bacterial endophyte communities differ in their diversity and composition profile, depending on the geographical location, cultivation condition, and tissue, age, and species of ginseng. Bacterial endophytes have a significant effect on the growth of ginseng through indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and siderophore production, phosphate solubilization, and nitrogen fixation. Moreover, bacterial endophytes can protect ginseng by acting as biocontrol agents. Interestingly, bacterial endophytes isolated from Panax species have the potential to produce ginsenosides and bioactive metabolites, which can be used in the production of food and medicine. The ability of bacterial endophytes to transform major ginsenosides into minor ginsenosides using β-glucosidase is gaining increasing attention as a promising biotechnology. Recently, metabolic engineering has accelerated the possibilities for potential applications of bacterial endophytes in producing beneficial secondary metabolites.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Plant Pathology Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.99.2-99
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• 2003

An attempt was made to screen antifungal activities of Bacillus thuringiensis strains on various plant pathogens, Botryosphaeria dothidea, Diaporthe actinidiae, Botrytis cinerea, Glomerella cingulata, Colletorichum cocodes, Sclerotinia scierotiorum, Alternaria alternata, Helicobuidium mompa, Bipolaris coicis, Fusarium graminearum and Rhizoctosnia solani. Ten and forty-five strains of B. thuringiensis were isolated from animal feces in Korea and Japan, respectively. Inhibitory effects of the strains on the mycelial growth of the pathogens were examined on the mixed media of potato dextrose agar and nutrient agar. Approximately half of the strains inhibited the mycelial growth of one or more pathogens. Most of the pathogens were inhibited by any of the strains but Fusarium graminearum and Rhizoctonia solani were not inhibited at all. This is the first report that B. thuringiensis shows a potent antifungal activity on plant pathogens in Korea.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.322-328
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• 2024

Soybean (Glycine max), a crucial global crop, experiences yearly yield reduction due to diseases such as anthracnose (Colletotrichum truncatum) and root rot (Fusarium spp.). The use of fungicides, which have traditionally been employed to control these phytopathogens, is now facing challenges due to the emergence of fungicide-resistant strains. Streptomyces bacillaris S8 strain S8 is previously known to produce valinomycin t through a nonribosomal peptide synthetase (NRPS) pathway. The objective of this study was to evaluate the antifungal activity of S. bacillaris S8 against C. truncatum and Fusarium sp., assessing its efficacy against soybean pathogens. The results indicate that strain S8 effectively controlled both above-ground and underground soybean diseases, using the NRPS and NRPS-related compound, suggesting its potential as a biological control in plant-microbe interactions. These findings underscore the pivotal role of the stain S8 in fostering healthy soybean microbial communities and emphasize the significance of microbiota structure studies in unveiling potent biocontrol agents.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.52 no.2
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• pp.204-207
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• 2024

Here, we report the whole-genome sequence of Myxococcus stipitatus KYC2006, a bacterium whose conditioned media affect the growth of photosynthetic microorganisms such as cyanobacteria and microalgae. The genome of M. stipitatus KYC2006 was assembled into a 10,311,252 bp circular genome with 68.5% of GC content, containing 7,949 protein-coding genes, 12 rRNA genes, and 79 tRNA genes. Further analysis revealed that there are 29 secondary metabolite biosynthetic gene clusters in M. stipitatus KYC2006. These results suggest that M. stipitatus KYC2006 holds a significant potential as a resource for research on the development of biocontrol agents and value-added products from photosynthetic microorganisms.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.333-341
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• 2011

Two antifungal bacteria were selected from forest soils during the screening of microorganisms antagonistic to Cylindrocarpon destructans, a cause of ginseng root rot. The antifungal bacteria were identified as Bacillus subtilis (I4) and B. amyloliquefaciens (yD16) based on physiological and cultural characteristics, the Biolog program, and 16S rRNA gene sequencing analyses. Antagonistic activity of both bacterial isolates to C. destructans increased with increasing temperature. More rapid starch hydrolytic activity of the bacteria was seen on starch agar at higher temperatures than at lower temperatures, and in the higher density inoculum treatment than in the lower density inoculum treatment. The bacterial isolates failed to colonize ginseng root the root tissues inoculated with the bacteria alone at an inoculum density of $1{\times}10^6$ cfu/ml, but succeeded in colonizing the root tissues co-inoculated with the bacteria and C. destructans. Scanning electron microscopy showed that the pathogen was damaged by the low-density inoculum treatment with the bacterial isolates as much as by the high-density inoculum treatment. Both bacterial isolates were more effective in reducing root rot when they were treated at a concentration of $1{\times}10^6$ cfu/ml than at $1{\times}10^8$ cfu/ml. Also, only the former treatment induced prominent wound periderm formation, related to structural defense against pathogen infection. The results suggest that the bacterial antagonists may have high potential as biocontrol agents against ginseng root rot at relatively low-inoculum concentrations.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.70-76
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• 2009

The rhizobacteria of Panax notoginseng were isolated from six sites in Yanshan, Maguan and Wenshan Counties, Yunnan Province of China, and their antagonistic activity against P. notoginseng root-rot fungal pathogens was determined. Of the 574 rhizobacteria isolated, 5.8% isolates were antagonistic in vitro to at least one of the five pathogens, Cylindrocarpon didynum, Fusarium solani, Phytophthora cactorum, Phoma herbarum, and Rhizoctonia solani. The number of rhizo bacteria and the number that inhibited fungi differed depending on sampling sites and isolation methods. Rhizobacteria isolated from the site in Yanshan and Maguan showed more antagonistic effect than them in Wenshan. Heat treatment of rhizosphere soil at $80^{\circ}C$ for 20 min scaled the antagonists up to 14.0%. Antagonistic bacteria in the roots proportioned 3.9% of the total isolates. The most antagonistic isolates 79-9 and 81-4 are Bacillus subtilis based on their 168 rDNA sequence and biochemical and physiological characteristics. Identification and evaluation of antagonistic bacteria against P. notoginseng root-rot pathogens in the main planting areas improved our understanding of their distribution in rhizosphere soil. Furthermore these results indicated that the interactions between biocontrol agent and soil microbes should be seriously considered for the successful survival and biocontrol efficacy of the agents in soil.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.29 no.12
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• pp.1916-1924
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• 2019

Outbreaks of staphylococcal food poisoning (SFP) causing serious human diseases and economic losses have been reported globally. Furthermore, the spread of Staphylococcus aureus with increased resistance to multiple antimicrobial agents has become a major concern in the food industries and medicine. Here, we isolated an endolysin LysSAP8, as one of the peptidoglycan hydrolases, derived from the bacteriophage SAP8 infecting S. aureus. This endolysin was tagged with a 6×His at the C-terminal of the target protein and purified using affinity chromatography. LysSAP8 demonstrated lytic activity against a broad spectrum of bacteria, which included a majority of the staphylococcal strains tested in this study as well as the methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA); however, no such activity was observed against other gram-positive or gram-negative bacteria. Additionally, LysSAP8 could maintain bactericidal activity until 0.1 nM working concentration and after heat treatment at 37℃ for 30 min. The ability of LysSAP8 to lyse cells under varying conditions of temperature (4-43℃), pH (3-9), and NaCl concentrations (0-1,000 mM), and divalent metal ions (Ca²⁺, Co²⁺, Cu²⁺, Mg²⁺, Mn²⁺, Hg²⁺, and Zn²⁺) was examined. At the optimized condition, LysSAP8 could disrupt approximately 3.46 log CFU/ml of the planktonic cells in their exponential phase of growth within 30 min. In this study, we have suggested that LysSAP8 could be a potent alternative as a biocontrol agent that can be used to combat MRSA.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.598-608
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• 2019

Endophytic fungi have received much attention as plant growth promoters as well as biological control agents against many plant pathogens. In this study, 30 endophytic fungal species, isolated from various plants in China, were evaluated using in vitro dual culture assay against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum, causing wilt in cucumber. The results of the present study clearly showed that all the 30 endophytic fungal isolates were highly capable of inhibiting the mycelial colony growth of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum with inhibition % over 66% as compared to control treatments. Among all of them, 5 isolates were highly effective such as, Penicillium sp., Guignardia mangiferae, Hypocrea sp., Neurospora sp., Eupenicillium javanicum, and Lasiodiplodia theobromae, respectively. The Penicillium sp. and Hypocrea sp. were highly effective as compared to other isolates. From in vitro results 10 best isolates were selected for greenhouse studies. The results of the greenhouse studies showed that among all of them 3 endophytic fungal isolates successfully suppressed wilt severity when co-inoculation with pathogen Fusarium. oxysporum f. sp. cucumerinum. The endophytic fungi also enhanced plant growth parameters of the host plants, the antagonistic fungal isolates increased over all plant height, aerial fresh, and dry weight as compared to control.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.119-124
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• 2006

Kudzu vine(Pueraria montana var. lobata) is an invasive climbing woody vine that envelops trees and shrubs, pressing physically and shutting out sunlight, which needs to be controlled. Kudzu vine pathogens were surveyed as a way to seek its biocontrol agents in 2002. Occurrence of a bacterial halo blight disease of kudzu vine was observed at several localities in Korea including Euiwang and Suwon in Gyeonggi Province, Daejon, and Gochang and Buan in Jeonbuk Province. Symptoms of brown to black spots with a surrounding yellowish halo appeared from June and lasted till the rainy season without much expansion, but accompanying often leaf blight and defoliation. Isolated bacteria were identified as Pseudomonas syringae pv. phaseolicola based on physiological and cultural characteristics, Biolog, fatty acid and 16S rDNA sequencing analyses. In artificial inoculation test, these bacteria produced the same halo spot symptoms on kudzu vine and bean plants. They also induced hypersensitive responses (HR) on tobacco, tomato, and chili pepper leaves. This is the first report of a bacterial disease of kudzu vine in Korea, and the bacterial pathogen can be used as a biocontrol agent against the pest plant.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.23 no.2 s.73
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• pp.190-195
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• 1995

For the screening of biocontrol agents against red-pepper anthracnose (Colletotrichum gloeosporioides Penz) 248 isolates of bacteria, 51 of fungi and 30 of yeasts were obtained from phyllospere of medicinal plants. Of isolated microorganisms, four bacterial isolates, KB6, KB12, KB13 and KB14 were highly antagonistic to C. gloeosporioides than the others through dual culture test on potato dextrose agar (PDA). Among the four bacterial isolates, culture filtrate of the isolate KB12 showed the highest inhibition of C. gloeosporioides on PDA. The culture filtrates of four isolates controlled anthracnose on the red fruits, but not on the green fruits. In the living bacterial cell test, high control effect was observed both on the red and the green fruits. In the biochemical test, all isolates were identified as Bacillus subtilis.