• Proceedings of the Microbiological Society of Korea Conference
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• 2001.11a
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• pp.46-53
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• 2001

A commensal thermophile, Symbiobacterium toebii, isolated from hay compost (toebii) in Korea commensally interacted with a thermophilic Geobacillus toebii sp. nov., which was a new species within the genus Geobacillus on the basis of the phenotypic traits and molecular systematic data. S. toebii required the crude extracts and/or culture supernatant of the Geobacillus toebii for axenic growth and could grow on the temperature between 45 and $70^{\circ}C$ (optimum: $60^{\circ}C$; 2.4 h doubling time) and pH 6.0 and 9.0 (optimum: pH 7.5). The G+C content of the genomic DNA was $65 mol\%$, and the major quinones were MK-6 and MK-7. A phylogenetic analysis of its 16S rDNA sequence indicated that Symbiobacterium toebii was closely related with solely reported Symbiobacterium thermophilum. The presence of the commensal thermophile 16S rDNA and accumulation of indole in all the enriched cultures indicate that Symbiobacterium toebii is widely distributed in the various soils. The genome of S. toebii constituted a circular chromosome of 3,280,275 base pairs and there was not an extra-chromosomal element (ECE). It contained about 4,107 predicted coding sequences. Of these protein coding genes, about $45.6\%$ was encoded well-known proteins and annotated the functional assignment of 1,874 open reading frames (ORFs), and the rest predicted to have unknown functions. The genes encoding thermostable tyrosine phenol-lyase and tryptophan indole-lyase were cloned from the genomic DNA of S. toebii and the enzymatic production of L-tyrosine and L-tryptophan was carried out with two thermostable enzymes overexpressed in recombinant E. coli.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.73-79
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• 2010

The Korea Polar Research Institute (KOPRI) has assembled a culture collection of cold-adapted bacterial strains from both the Arctic and Antarctic. To identify excellent protease-producers among the proteolytic bacterial collection (874 strains), 78 strains were selected in advance according to their relative activities and were subsequently re-examined for their extracellular protease activity on $0.1{\times}$ ZoBell plates supplemented with 1% skim milk at various temperatures. This rapid and direct screening method permitted the selection of a small group of 15 cold-adapted bacterial strains, belonging to either the genus Pseudoalteromonas (13 strains) or Flavobacterium (2 strains), that showed proteolytic activities at temperatures ranging between $5-15^{\circ}C$. The cold-active proteases from these strains were classified into four categories (serine protease, aspartic protease, cysteine protease, and metalloprotease) according to the extent of enzymatic inhibition by a class-specific protease inhibitor. Since highly active and/or cold-adapted proteases have the potential for industrial or commercial enzyme development, the protease-producing bacteria selected in this work will be studied as a valuable natural source of new proteases. Our results also highlight the relevance of the Antarctic for the isolation of protease-producing bacteria active at low temperatures.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.1661-1667
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• 2016

The ginsenoside-hydrolyzing β-glucosidase gene (bgy2) was cloned from Lactobacillus brevis. We expressed this gene in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3), isolated the resulting protein, and then utilized the enzyme for the biotransformation of ginsenosides. The bgy2 gene contains 2,223 bp, and encodes a protein of 741 amino acids that is a member of glycosyl hydrolase family 3. β-Glucosidase (Bgy2) cleaved the outer glucose moieties of ginsenosides at the C-20 position, and the inner glucose at the C-3 position. Under optimal conditions (pH 7.0, 30℃), we used 0.1 mg/ml Bgy2 in 20 mM sodium phosphate buffer (PBS) for enzymatic studies. In these conditions, 1.0 mg/ml ginsenoside Rb1 and ginsenoside F2 were converted into 0.59 mg/ml ginsenoside Rd and 0.72mg/ml compound K, with molar conversion productivities of 69% and 91%, respectively. In pharmaceutical and commercial industries, this recombinant Bgy2 would be suitable for producting ginsenoside Rd and compound K.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.9
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• pp.1433-1441
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• 2015

Pollution resulting from the discharge of textile dyes into water systems has become a major global concern. Because peroxidases are known for their ability to decolorize and detoxify textile dyes, the peroxidase activity of Vitreoscilla hemoglobin (VHb) has recently been studied. It is found that VHb and variants of this enzyme show great promise for enzymatic decolorization of dyes and may play a role in achieving their successful removal from industrial wastewater. The level of VHb peroxidase activity correlates with two amino acid residues present within the conserved distal pocket, at positions 53 and 54. In this work, sitedirected mutagenesis of these residues was performed and resulted in improved VHb peroxidase activity. The double mutant, Q53H/P54C, shows the highest dye decolorization and removal efficiency, with 70% removal efficiency within 5 min. UV spectral studies of Q53H/P54C reveals a more compact structure and an altered porphyrin environment (λ_Soret = 413 nm) relative to that of wild-type VHb (λ_Soret = 406), and differential scanning calorimetry data indicate that the VHb variant protein structure is more stable. In addition, circular dichroism spectroscopic studies indicate that this variant's increased protein structural stability is due to an increase in helical structure, as deduced from the melting temperature, which is higher than 90℃. Therefore, the VHb variant Q53H/P54C shows promise as an excellent peroxidase, with excellent dye decolorization activity and a more stable structure than wild-type VHb under high-temperature conditions.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.153-159
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• 2013

A mannitol dehydrogenase (MDH; EC 1.1.1.67) gene was cloned from the Sinorhizobium meliloti 1021 (KCTC 2353) genome and expressed in Escherichia coli. It was seen to have an open reading frame consisting of 1,485 bp encoding 494 amino acids (about 54 kDa), which shares approximately 35-55% of amino acid sequence identity with some known long-chain dehydrogenase/ reductase family enzymes. The recombinant S. meliloti MDH (SmMDH) showed the highest activity at $40^{\circ}C$, and pH 7.0 (D-fructose reduction) and pH 9.0 (D-mannitol oxidation), respectively. SmMDH could catalyze the oxidative/reductive reactions between D-mannitol and D-fructose in the presence of $NAD^+/NADH$ as a coenzyme, but not with NADP+/NADPH. These results indicate that SmMDH is a typical $NAD^+/NADH$-dependent mannitol dehydrogenase.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.5
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• pp.757-764
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• 2018

A cellulolytic fungus, YDJ14, was isolated from compost and identified as an Aspergillus sp. strain. Three extracellular ${\beta}$-glucosidases, BGL-A1, BGL-A2, and BGL-A3, were separated using ultrafiltration, ammonium sulfate fractionation, and High-Q chromatography. The molecular masses of the three enzymes were estimated to be 100, 45, and 40 kDa, respectively, by SDS-PAGE. The optimum pH and temperature of BGL-A3 were 5.0 and $50^{\circ}C$, respectively, whereas the optimum pH and temperature of BGL-A1 and BGL-A2 were identical (4.0 and $60^{\circ}C$, respectively). The half-life of BGL-A3 at $70^{\circ}C$ (2.8 min) was shorter than that of BGL-A1 and BGL-A2 (12.1 and 8.8 min, respectively). All three enzymes preferred p-nitrophenyl-${\beta}$-$\text\tiny{D}$-glucopyranoside (pNPG) and hardly hydrolyzed cellobiose, suggesting that these enzymes were aryl ${\beta}$-glucosidases. The $K_m$ of BGL-A3 (1.26 mM) for pNPG was much higher than that of BGL-A1 and BGL-A2 (0.25 and 0.27 mM, respectively). These results suggested that BGL-A1 and BGL-A2 were similar in their enzymatic properties, whereas BGL-A3 differed from the two enzymes. When tilianin (a flavone glycoside of acacetin) was reacted with the three enzymes, the inhibitory activity for monoamine oxidase, a target in the treatment of neurological disorders, was similar to that shown by acacetin. We conclude that these enzymes may be useful in the hydrolysis of flavone glycosides to improve their inhibitory activities.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.52 no.4
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• pp.157-162
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• 2009

An agar-liquefying bacteria (SC-22), which produces a diffusible agarase that caused agar softening around the colony was isolated from Daecheong lake in Korea. Chemotaxanomic and phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed the strain was classified as Cellvibrio mixtus SC-22. The isolate SC-22 showed maximal extracellular agarase activity with 58.5 U/mL after 48 h cultivation in the presence of 0.2% agar. It was observed that the isolate produced two kinds of extracellular and three kinds of intracellular isoenzymes. The major agarase was purified from the culture filtrate of agarolytic bacteria by ammonium sulfate precipitation, anion exchange and gel filtration column chromatographic methods. The molecular mass of the purified enzyme was estimated to be 25 kDa by SDS-PAGE. The optimum pH and temperature of the purified enzyme were pH 7.0 and $50^{\circ}C$, respectively. The agarase activity was activated by $Fe^{2+}$, $Na^+$ and $Ca^{2+}$ ions while it was inhibited by $Hg^{2+}$, $Mn^{2+}$ and $Cu^{2+}$ at 1 mM concentration. The predominant hydrolysis product of agarose by the enzyme was galactose and disaccharide on TLC, indicating the cleavage of $\beta$-1,4 linkage in a random manner. The enzyme showed high substrate specificity for only agar and agarose among various polysaccharides.

• The Korean Journal of Pharmacology
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.35-49
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• 1990

A highly purified $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ from the rectal gland of Squalus acanthias and from the electric organ of Electrophorus electricus has been used to raise antibodies in rabbits. The 97,000 dalton catalytic subunit and glycoprotein derived from the rectal gland of spiny shark were also used as antigens. The two $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ holoenzymes and the two shark subunits were antigenic. In Ouchterlony double diffusion experiments, these antibodies formed precipitation bands with their antigens. Antibodies prepared against the two subunits of shark holoenzyme also formed precipitation bands with their antigens and shark holoenzyme, but not with eel holoenzyme. These observations are in good agreement with inhibitory effect of these antibodies on the catalytic activity of $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ both from the shark and the eel, since there is very little cross-reaction between the shark anticatalytic subunit antibodies and the eel holoenzyme. The maximum antibodies titer of the anticatalytic subunit antibodies is found to be 6 weeks after the initial single exposure to this antigen. Multiple injections of the antigen increased the antibody titer. However, the time required to produce the maximum antibody titer was approximately the same. These antibodies also inhibit catalytic activity of $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ vesicles reconstituted by a slow dialysis of cholate after solubilization of the enzyme in a presonicated mixture of cholate and phospholipid. In these reconstituted $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ vesicles, effects of these antibodies on the fluxes of $Na^+$, $Rb^+$, and $K^+$ were investigated. Control or preimmune serum had no effect on the influx of $^{22}Na^+$ or the efflux of $^{86}Rb^+$. Immunized sera against the shark $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ holoenzyme, its glycoprotein or catalytic subunit did inhibit the influx of $^{22}Na^+$ and the efflux of $^{86}Rb^+$. It was also demonstrated that these antibodies inhibit the coupled counter-transport of $Na^+$ and $K^+$ as studied by means of dual labeling experiments. However, this inhibitory effect of the antibodies on transport of ions in the $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ vesicles is manifested only on the portion of energy and temperature dependent alkali metal fluxes, not on the portion of ATP and ouabain insensitive ion movement. Simultaneous determination of effects of the antibodies on ion fluxes and vesicular catalytic activity indicates that an inhibition of active ion transport in reconstituted $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ vesicles appears to be due to the inhibitory action of the antibodies on the enzymatic activity of $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ molecules incorporated in the vesicles. These findings that the inhibitory effects of the antibodies specific to $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ or to its subunits on ATP and temperature sensitive monovalent cation transport in parallel with the inhibitory effect of vesicular catalytic activity by these antibodies provide direct evidence that $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ is the molecular machinery of active cation transport in this reconstituted $(Na^+,\;K^+)-ATPase$ vesicular system.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.588-596
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• 2018

An endo-${\beta}$-1,4-glucanase gene, cel9K, was cloned using the shot-gun method from Paenibacillus sp. X4, which was isolated from alpine soil. The gene was 2,994 bp in length, encoding a protein of 997 amino acid residues with a predicted signal peptide composed of 32 amino acid residues. Cel9K was a multimodular enzyme, and the molecular mass and theoretical pI of the mature Cel9K were 103.5 kDa and 4.81, respectively. Cel9K contains the GGxxDAGD, PHHR, GAxxGG, YxDDI, and EVxxDYN motifs found in most glycoside hydrolase family 9 (GH9) members. The protein sequence showed the highest similarity (88%) with the cellulase of Bacillus sp. BP23 in comparison with the enzymes with reported properties. The enzyme was purified by chromatography using HiTrap Q, CHT-II, and HiTrap Butyl HP. Using SDS-PAGE/activity staining, the molecular mass of Cel9K was estimated to be 93 kDa, which is a truncated form produced by the proteolytic cleavage of its C-terminus. Cel9K was optimally active at pH 5.5 and $50^{\circ}C$ and showed a half-life of 59.2 min at $50^{\circ}C$. The CMCase activity was increased to more than 150% in the presence of 2 mM $Na^+$, $K^+$, and $Ba^{2+}$, but decreased significantly to less than 50% by $Mn^{2+}$ and $Co^{2+}$. The addition of Cel9K to a commercial enzyme set (Celluclast 1.5L + Novozym 188) increased the saccharification of the pretreated reed and rice straw powders by 30.4% and 15.9%, respectively. The results suggest that Cel9K can be used to enhance the enzymatic conversion of lignocellulosic biomass to reducing sugars as an additive.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.37-45
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• 2013

This study was conducted to improve the yield of extracts from Alaska pollock Theragra chalcogramma head and sea tangle Laminaria japonica byproducts using various commercial enzymes, such as Alcalase, Flavourzyme, Neutrase (NH), and Protamex. Among the enzymatic hydrolysates, the yield was highest in hydrolysate incubated with NH for 4 h. NH-treated hydrolysates (NHH) also improved functional properties, such as angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryldrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity, as compared to extracts from Alaska pollock head and sea tangle byproducts. Total free amino acid and taste values of NHH were 379.7 mg/100 mL and 24.03, respectively, after digestion for 4 h. These values are 2.2-fold and 1.9-fold higher compared with those of water soluble fractions extracted from Alaska pollock head and non-forming sea tangle, respectively. According to the taste value results, the major taste-active compounds among free amino acids of NHH were glutamic acid and aspartic acid. These results suggest that NHH can be used as an ingredient for natural seasoning preparation.