• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.25 no.11
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• pp.1540-1545
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• 2012

Steroidogenesis requires coordination of the anabolic and catabolic pathways of lipid metabolism, but the profile of proteins associated with progesterone synthesis in cyclic and pregnant corpus luteum (CL) is not well-known in cattle. In Experiment 1, plasma progesterone level was monitored in cyclic cows (n = 5) and pregnant cows (n = 6; until d-90). A significant decline in the plasma progesterone level occurred at d-19 of cyclic cows. Progesterone level in abbatoir-derived luteal tissues was also determined at d 1 to 5, 6 to 13 and 14 to 20 of cyclic cows, and d-60 and -90 of pregnant cows (n = 5 each). Progesterone level in d-60 CL was not different from those in d 6 to 13 CL and d-90 CL, although the difference between d 6 to 13 and d-90 was significant. In Experiment 2, protein expression pattern in CL at d-90 (n = 4) was compared with that in CL of cyclic cows at d 6 to 13 (n = 5). Significant changes in the level of protein expression were detected in 32 protein spots by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-DE), and 23 of them were identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF-MS). Six proteins were found only in pregnant CL, while the other 17 proteins were found only in cyclic CL. Among the above 6 proteins, vimentin which is involved in the regulation of post-implantation development was included. Thus, the protein expression pattern in CL was disorientated from cyclic luteal phase to mid pregnancy, and alterations in specific CL protein expression may contribute to the maintenance of pregnancy in Korean native cows.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.2153-2158
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• 2014

Beclin 1 is a key factor for initiation and regulation of autophagy, which is a cellular catabolic process involved in tumorigenesis. To investigate the role of alternative splicing of Beclin1 in the regulation of autophagy in leukemia cells, Beclin1 mRNA from 6 different types of cell lines and peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 2 healthy volunteers was reversely transcribed, subcloned, and screened for alternative splicing. New transcript variants were analyzed by DNA sequencing. A transcript variant of Beclin 1 gene carrying a deletion of exon 11, which encoded a C-terminal truncation of Beclin 1 isoform, was found. The alternative isoform was assessed by bioinformatics, immunoblotting and subcellular localization. The results showed that this variable transcript is generated by alternative 3' splicing, and its translational product displayed a reduced activity in induction of autophagy by starvation, indicating that the spliced isoform might function as a dominant negative modulator of autophagy. Our findings suggest that the alternative splicing of Beclin 1 might play important roles in leukemogenesis regulated by autophagy.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.302-311
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• 2004

Comamonas testosteroni (formerly Pseudomonas sp.) NCIMB 10643 can grow on biphenyl and alkylbenzenes $(C_2-C_7)$ via 3-substituted catechols. Thus, to identify the genes encoding the degradation, transposon-mutagenesis was carried out using pAG408, a promoter-probe mini-transposon with a green fluorescent protein (GFP), as a reporter. A mutant, NT-1, which was unable to grow on alkylbenzenes and biphenyl, accumulated catechols and exhibited an enhanced expression of GFP upon exposure to these substrates, indicating that the gfp had been inserted in a gene encoding a broad substrate range catechol 2,3-dioxygenase. The genes (2,826 bp) flanking the gfp cloned from an SphI-digested fragment contained three complete open reading frames that were designated bphCDorfl. The deduced amino acid sequences of bphCDorfl were identical to 2,3-dihydroxybiphenyl 1,2-dioxygenase (BphC), 2-hydroxy-6-oxo-6-phenylhexa-2,4-dienoate hydrolase (BphD), and OrfI, respectively, that are all involved in the degradation of biphenyl/4-chlorobiphenyl (bph) by Ralstonia oxalatica A5. The deduced amino acid sequence of the orfl revealed a similarity to those of outer membrane proteins belonging to the OmpW family. The introduction of the bphCDorfl genes enabled the NT-l mutant to grow on aromatic hydrocarbons. In addition, PCR analysis indicated that the DNA sequence and gene organization of the bph operon were closely related to those in the bph operon from Tn4371 identified in strain A5. Furthermore, strain A5 was also able to grow on a similar set of alkylbenzenes as strain NCIMB 10643, demonstrating that, among the identified aromatic hydrocarbon degradation pathways, the bph degradation pathway related to Tn4371 was the most versatile in catabolizing a variety of aromatic hydrocarbons of mono- and bicyclic benzenes.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.158-163
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• 1999

A ploygalacturonase-produchg yeast was isolated from Cheju soil by selective eivichment media. One strain which has the highesl activity of polygalacturonase was selected. The characle~ishcs of the strain CS-2 were as follows: CS-2 utilized xylose. sucrose, maltose, u.ehalose, cellobiose. melibiose, lactose, raffinose, inosiiol, dulicilol, and dextrose, but did not utilized galactose, nitrate. nit~te, and lysine. Growth of CS-2 was inhibited by cyclohexamide, 1% acetic acid, and high concenaation (over 50%) of glucose. It grew at $30^{\circ}C$ but did 'IIOL $35^{\circ}C$. The cell size ofthe strain CS-2 was 2.9 p ~ n in length and 1.3 $\mu$ in diameter. Vegetable reproductmn was multiple budding and ascospre was present I to 4. Pseudomycelia or true myceliua formation were not observed In any of the cullureq. These results suggest that strain CS-2 is most likely a strain related Cryptococcus spp. (Cryptococcu spp. CS-2). When polygalacturonase or ihe yeast was induced by addition of polygalactoronic acid, polygalacturonase activity was detected in culture supernatent. There was a peak of specific activity a1 he mid-stationary phase(3 days culture) of growth. Polygalacturonase specific activity of Crylmcoccus sp. CS-2 was 2.96 unitsling. The molecular weighl ol'polygalacturonase was showed to be 46 KDa by both SDS-PAGE and activity stailling.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.361-365
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• 2001

The effects of purine catabolites in growth media on the biosynthesis of Serratia marcescens and Lactobacillus plantarum purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP) activity were examined. Serratia PNP activity was decreased approximately by 30% in the presence of high concentrations of inosine $(5{\sim}15\;mM)$, but was not affected at low concentrations of inosine $(0.1{\sim}1\;mM)$. However, Lactobacillus PNP activity was increased above 60% by inosine among the range from 5 to 15 mM. Serratia PNP activity was decreased approximately by 45% in the presence of high concentrations of hypoxanthine $(5{\sim}15\;mM)$, but was not affected at low concentrations of hypoxanthine $(0.1{\sim}0.5\;mM)$. Lactobacillus PNP activity was increased approximately by 20% in the presence of low concentrations of hypoxanthine $(0.1{\sim}0.5\;mM)$, and increased approximately by $50{\sim}65%$ in the presence of concentrations of hypoxanthine $(1{\sim}15\;mM)$. Serratia and Lactobacillus PNP activity was increased 20% by low concentrations of uric acid (0.5 mM), but was decreased $40{\sim}80%$ at high concentrations of same purine catabolite $(10{\sim}15\;mM)$. These data suggest that purine nucleoside phosphorylase in Serratia marcescens ATCC 25419 and Lactobacillus plantarum ATCC 8014 is positively regulated by a low uric acid concentration, and then may play a regulatory role in a purine nucleotide catabolic pathway.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.1-29
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• 1961

A routine hematological observation in the course of starvation was carried out on eight experimentel1y starved rabbits. They were strictly selected and restricted all of food intake with the exception of optional water intake until death. The body weight of each rabbit on the day before starvation was about 2 kilograms. The results are summarized as follows. 1. The average decrememt ratio of body weight on the terminal day before death was $34.3{\pm}7.5$ per cent with the range from 24.5 to 46.3 per cent. The average life duration until death was $10.25{\pm}2.6$ days, the range being from 6 to 14 days. 2. The decrease in number of reticulocytes with a parallel disappearance of polychromatic erythrocytes in peripheral blood in the course of starvation Was the most remarkable change in erythrocytic series, an evidence suggesting marked restriction of the erythropoietic function on 3rd to 4th day and almost complete suspension in about a week of starvation. 3. Erythrocyte count, hemoglobin content and haematocrit value of peripheral blood, were normal or indicative of slight hemoconcentration. 4. Mean Corpuscular Hemogloin Concentration was slightly higher than normal and Mean Corpuscular Volume tended to be low and no appreciable shifts were observed in Mean Corpuscular Diameter and Price-Jones curve of erythrocytes, while fewer macrocytes than normal were seen. These changes were considered to have resulted from a marked decrease in young erythrocytes in peripheral blood in the course of starvation. 5. Neither poikilccytoses or anisosytosis was observed. 6. Leukopenia was observed in all of 8 starved rabbits. The decrement ratio on the terminal day of starvation was between 13 to 64 per cent. The leukopenia was mainly due to fall of lymphocytes in 6 cases and to fall of neutrophilic leukocytes in the other 2 cases. In many cases, irregular fluctuation of neutrophilic leukocytes in its biological curve were seen in contrast to the relatively smooth changes of lymphocytes. Eosinophilic leukocytes tended to decrease in absolute number especially in later stage of starvation. Little significance in regard to monocytes and basophilic leukocytes in this study was discussed. 7. Proplasma cells, rarely plasma cells, appeared with a tendency to increase in number at later stage of starvation. 8. The most characteristic changes on circulating blood cells in complete starvation of rabbits were the leukoponia and failure of regeneration of erythroctes. These changes were considered as adaptive phenomena in response to the catabolic consumption of body constituents.

• The Journal of Korea Assosiation for Disability and Oral Health
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.96-100
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• 2016

Metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD) is a progressive and degenerative neurological disease caused by a deficiency of the catabolic enzyme arylsulfatase A. Deficiency of arylsulfatase A results in accumulation of sulfatide in the white matter of the peripheral and central nervous system and it occurs demyelination as a result. The patient gradually goes through mental and motor failure. General symptoms of MLD include gait disturbance, mental deterioration, muscle rigidity and impaired swallowing. Inheritance of the disease is autosomal recessive. We report a dental caries treatment of a 3-year old boy with MLD. The patient underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) to slow the progression of the disease. He was suffered from difficulties of mastication and swallowing from the degenerative neurological symptom. He was ingesting food by both oral feeding and tubal feeding after he took percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG). The cause of multiple caries was mainly presumed as patient's prolonged time of meal. The treatment was performed under general anesthesia considering patient's incompliance. Severely affected lower primary molars were treated with pulp treatment and restored with stainless steel crown. Others were restored with composite resin. There were no postoperative complications. MLD is life threatening progressive disease and also has an impact on unfavorable condition for oral health. Routine home oral care and periodic professional dental care should be emphasized to the caregiver of patient considering the susceptibility of dental caries. Not only the medical care, but periodic dental office visit would benefit the quality of life of the patient.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.144-150
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• 2006

The exploitation of metagenome, the access to the natural extant of enormous potential resources, is the way for elucidating the functions of organism in environmental communities, for genomic analyses of uncultured microorganism, and also for the recovery of entirely novel natural products from microbial communities. The major breakthrough in metagenomics is opened by the construction of libraries with total DNAs directly isolated from environmental samples and screening of these libraries by activity and sequence-based approaches. Screening with activity-based approach is presumed as a plausible route for finding new catabolic genes under designed conditions without any prior sequence information. The main limitation of these approaches, however, is the very low positive hits in a single round of screening because transcription, translation and appropriate folding are not always possible in E. coli, a typical surrogate host. Thus, to obtain information about these obstacles, we studied the genetic organization of individual URF's(unidentified open reading frame from metagenome sequenced and deposited in GenBank), especially on the expression factors such as codon usage, promoter region and ribosome binding site(rbs), based on DNA sequence analyses using bioinformatics tools. And then we also investigated the above-mentioned properties for 4100 ORFs(Open Reading Frames) of E. coli K-12 generally used as a host cell for the screening of noble genes from metagenome. Finally, we analyzed the differences between the properties of URFs of metagenome and ORFs of E. coli. Information derived from these comparative metagenomic analyses can provide some specific features or environmental blueprint available to screen a novel biocatalyst efficiently.

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.94-100
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• 2001

Background: It is doubtful that aging causes deteriorated glucose metabolism and insulin resistance of skeletal muscle. Some researchers had different results about it. So we have studied the mechanism responsible for the abnormal glucose tolerance associated with aging in rapidly growing and matured rats. Materials and Methods: Animals were used S.D. rats. Growing rats were 7 weeks old (BW: 160-190 gm) and matured rats were 28 weeks old (BW: 420-525 gm). Results: Fasting blood glucose and plasma insulin levels were significantly elevated in matured rat compared with growing rats. And during oral glucose tolerance test the glucose level was also significantly elevated in matured rats. These results confirmed an insulin resistant state of aging. Insulin levels at 30 minutes of oral glucose tolerance test was significantly elevated in growing rat. But at 120 minutes it was maintained at higher level in matured rats than in growing rats. It suggested the possibility of increased insulin secretion by initial stimulation of beta-cells in growing rats, and increased secretion and decreased catabolic rate of insulin in matured rats. Glucose uptake rate of soleus muscle in matured rats was lower than that of growing rats, but the difference was not statistically significant. The dose(insulin)-responsive(glucose uptake) curve of soleus muscle was only slightly deviated to the right side. Conclusion: Glucose metabolism of rat skeletal muscle was worsened by aging. The data of glucose uptake experiments suggested the possibility of insulin resistance of skeletal muscle in matured rats. but the mechanism of insulin resistance of skeletal muscle need further studies.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.32 no.10
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• pp.812-820
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• 2022

Depression is a psychiatric disorder characterized by depressed mood, anhedonia, fatigue, and altered cognitive function, leading to a decline in daily functioning. In addition, depression is a serious and common mental illness not only in an individual's life but also in society, so it must be actively treated. Autophagy is involved in the pathophysiological mechanism of mental illness. According to a recent study, it is known that autophagy-induced apoptosis affects neuroplasticity and causes depression and that antidepressants regulate autophagy. Autophagy is a catabolic process that degradation and removes unnecessary organelles or proteins through a lysosome. And, it is essential for maintaining cellular homeostasis. Autophagy is activated in stress conditions, and depression is a stress-related disease. Stress causes damage to cellular homeostasis. Recently, although the role of autophagy mechanisms in neurons has been investigated, the autophagy of depression has not been fully studied. This review highlights the new evidence for the involvement of autophagy in the pathophysiological mechanisms and treatment of depression. To highlight the evidence, we present results from clinical and preclinical studies showing that autophagy is associated with depression. Understanding the relevance of autophagy to depression and the limitations of research suggest that autophagy regulation may provide a new direction for antidepressant development.