• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.117-123
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• 2010

BT toxin is produced by a soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis and has long been used as a biological insecticide without any competition. Recently, Photorhabdus, a symbiotic bacterium from entomopathogenic nematodes, family Heterorhabditae, has been researched and discussed as alternatives to B. thuringiensis. Photorhabdus, which lives in the gut of entomopathogenic nematodes, is a highly virulent pathogen of a wide range of insect larvae. When an insect is infected by the nematodes, the bacteria are released into the cadaver, and produce a number of insecticidal toxins. The biological role of the different Photorhabdus toxins in the infection process is still unclear. Photorhabdus toxin complex (Tc) is highly secreted gut-active toxin and has been characterized as a potent three-component (A, B and C) insecticidal protein complex. These components are necessary for full oral activity against insect larvae. The Photorhabdus PirAB binary toxins exhibit a potent injectable activity for Galleria mellonella larvae, and have oral toxicity against mosquitoes and caterpillar pest Plutella xylostella. Other toxin, 'makes caterpillars floppy' (Mcf) showed injectable activity on caterpillars. Recombinant Mcf triggers apoptosis in both insect hemocytes and the midgut epithelium and carries a BH3 domain. In this review, the relationship between the Photorhabdus and the nematode is discussed and recent important insecticidal toxins from Photorhabdus are described.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.132-139
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• 2015

In order to use the symbiotic bacteria from ethomophatogenic nematodes as a biological control agent for agriculture, the cultural condition for maintaining phase I and antifungal activity was investigated. Symbiotic bacteria (SB) 1 stain from nematodes were selected from the three strains isolated from entomopathogenic nematodes. The growth of the SB 1 strain in NB, TSB, TY and YS medium was higher than that of the SB 2 and SB 3 strain. The packed cell volume of the SB 1 strain was reduced in NB medium which showed radical pH change. Phase I of the SB 1 strain was maintained in TSB medium after being stored for 2 weeks at $4^{\circ}C$. Culture broth with the SB 1 strain in TSB medium for 6 days and 7 days showed antifungal activities against Rhizoctonia solani KACC 40142, Botrytis cinerea Pers. KACC 40854, and Botrytis cinerea Pers. KACC 41008. Culture broth with the SB 1 strain in TSB medium containing 100 mM L-proline for 5 days showed antifungal activities against Rhizoctonia solani KACC 40142, and Botrytis cinerea Pers. KACC 40854.

• International Journal of Industrial Entomology and Biomaterials
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.40-44
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• 2015

To investigate whether Serratia marcescens (Enterobacteriales: Enterobacteriaceae) isolated from Protaetia brevitarsis seulensis (Coleoptera: Cetoniidae) acts as an opportunistic bacterium in peroral infection, the primary entomopathogenic bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis (Bacillales: Bacillaceae) and Paenibacillus popilliae (Eubacteriales: Bacillaceae) were added to sawdust to perform a bioassay experiment. We found that peroral infection caused by S. marcescens could be fatal beyond a concentration of $4{\times}10^8pfu/mL$ in $2^{nd}$ stage P. b. seulensis larvae and at $6{\times}10^8pfu/mL$ in $3^{rd}$ stage P. b. seulensis larvae. In particular, mortality resulting from a combination of P. popilliae and S. marcescens was markedly increased in $2^{nd}$ stage P. b. seulensis larvae. Therefore, we confirmed that mortality was increased when S. marcescens was infected together with other entomopathogenic bacteria, and that peroral infection itself can be fatal beyond certain concentrations.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.9 no.5
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• pp.379-382
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• 2004

Entomopathogenic nematodes are used for insect control. Herein, an extracellular protease was partially purified from a culture supernatant of Xenorhabdus nematophilus, a symbiotic bacterium of an entomopathogenic nematode, Steinernema glaseri: using precipitation with $80\%$ v/v isopropyl alcohol followed by gel permeation chromatography with a packed Sephacryl S-300 HR media. The partially purified protease exhibited maximal activity at pH 7 in the presence of 1 mM $CaCl_2$. The protease was identified as a metallo-protease based on the inhibition of its activity by the metal chelating agent, EDTA.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Entomolohy Conference
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• 2004.05a
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• pp.55-55
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• 2004

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Applied Microbiology Conference
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• 2000.04a
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• pp.201-207
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• 2000

The strategies of commercial development have been focused on the economy of scale for a process. The design of media has been recognized as a key in assuring mass production of entomopathogenic nematodes. Media optimization was conducted with insect host, proteins, lipids, and symbiotic bacteria mass. G. mellonella (insect host) produced about 290,000 infective juveniles per one. Complex media produced about 250,000 infective juveniles / ml in liquid culture within 8 days (one generation).

• Korean journal of applied entomology
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.259-264
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• 2001

Toxicological studies of two potential biological control agents, the entomopathogenic nematode (Steinernema carpocapsae) and the symbiotic bacteria (Xenorhabdus nematophilus) were conducted against two beneficial insects and one mammal species. Two microbial agents varied in their toxicities between two insect species: an ant, Pristomyrmex pungens, and silkworm, Bombyx mori. In oral toxicity test, the symbiotic bacteria resulted in significant lethal [half lethal concentration of $1.4$\times$10^3$colony-forming units (cfu)/ml] on the ants, while they gave little lethal effect (half lethal concentration of more than $10^{8}$ cfu/ml) on the silkworms. The nematodes, however, gave significant lethal effect [half lethal concentration of 4 infected juveniles (IJs)/ml] on the silkworms, while they did little lethal effect (half lethal concentration of 150,000 IJs/ml) on the ants in topical assays. Both the nematodes and the bacteria did not give lethal effect to the albino rats, Rattus norvegicus, when they were fed orally into the rats. Also, any of these microbial agents were not detected in the internal organs of the treated rats.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.526-529
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• 2002

Lysis of erythrocytes isolated from human, rabbit, and mouse blood samples was investigated with the culture supernatant of Xenorhabdus nematophilus in a primary form. Prior to use, the culture supernatant of the bacteria was concentrated and the concentrate was dialyzed against Tris-HCl buffer (10 mM, pH 8.1) by ultrafiltration using PM-5 membrane with a molecular weight cut-off of 5,000. At $30^{\circ}C$, the supernatant exhibited no lytic activity towards three types of erythrocytes. However, at $4^{\circ}C$, the supernatant showed selective lytic activity towards rabbit erythrocytes within 90 min. yet did not lyze human or mouse erythrocytes. Microscopic examination clearly revealed that most of the rabbit erythrocytes had been fumed into ghost forms.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Entomolohy Conference
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• 2004.05a
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• pp.69-69
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• 2004

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Applied Entomolohy Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.163-163
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• 2003