• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.53-58
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• 2010

Purpose: To find the most effective method for extraction of cell-free DNA (cf-DNA) from maternal plasma, we compared a blood DNA extraction system (blood kit) and a viral DNA extraction system (viral kit) for non-invasive first-trimester fetal gender determination. Materials and Methods: A prospective cohort study was conducted with maternal plasma collected from 44 women in the first-trimester of pregnancy. The cf-DNA was extracted from maternal plasma using a blood kit and a viral kit. Quantitative fluorescent-polymerase chain reaction (QF-PCR) was used to detect the SRY gene and AMEL gene. The diagnostic accuracy of the QF-PCR results was determined based on comparison with the final delivery records. Results: A total of 44 women were tested, but the final delivery record was only obtained in 36 cases which included 16 male-bearing and 20 female-bearing pregnancies. For the blood kit and viral kit, the diagnostic accuracies for fetal gender determination were 63.9% (23/36) and 97.2% (35/36), respectively. Conclusion: In non-invasive first-trimester fetal gender determination by QF-PCR, using a viral kit for extraction of cf-DNA may result in a higher diagnostic accuracy.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.265-278
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• 2014

Microbes such as bacteria, fungi, archaea, protists, and viruses are ubiquitous and people are exposed to them continuously. Endotoxin is a component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria and a potent proinflammaotry substance. When a person is exposed to environmental endotoxin, an innate immune response is initiated upon the initial recognition and this response produces various inflammatory mediators and recruits inflammatory cells to the exposed tissues. A purified chemical form of endotoxin is called lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and the lipid A portion of the molecule is a biologically active moiety. Exposure to endotoxin may result in various complex health effects depending on time, route, and dose of exposure, as well as host susceptibility. Gene-environment interactions play important roles in health effects of endotoxin exposure, e.g. development or aggravation of asthma. To accurately assess exposure to endotoxin in environmental or epidemiologic studies, methods of sampling, extraction, and analysis must be carefully selected since the selected methods may substantially affect analytical results and there is no internationally-agreed standard method to date. The lack of a standardized method hampers the establishment of exposure-response relationships. While an internationally-agreed health-based exposure limit does not exist, the Dutch Expert Committee on Occupational Safety recently recommended $90EU/m^3$ as a health-based occupational exposure limit. The current article reviews various scientific issues on how we measure environmental endotoxin and the health effects of endotoxin exposure.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.770-778
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• 1996

A rapid and economical method of simultaneous extraction of DNA and RNA from seaweeds has been developed by the use of lithium chloride. Lithium chloride facilitates the softening of cell walls resulting in a decrease in both compressive and tensile modulus of elasticity. The DNA was characterized by high molecular weight larger than 27 kb and a relative lack of carbohydrate and protein contamination. The DNA and RNA extracted by the method from many seaweeds were of sufficient quality to be used as a template for per amplification with a plant intergenic gene primer set, for RAPD analysis with arbitrary primers, and for differential display with arbitrary primers in the morphologically distinct regions of the matured Porphyra thallus. The cDNA polymorphism indicated that the reproductive tissue types (male, female, patch) had a relatively high degree of similarity; the vegetative tissue types (dividing, non-dividing) also showed a similar pattern with respect to each other. Holdfast tissue had very low similarity with the other tissues, but appeared most similar to vegetative non-dividing tissue type.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.78-85
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• 1999

To investigate kernel hardness, a compression test which is widely used to measure the hardness of individual kernels as a physical testing method was made simultaneously with the measurement of friabilin (15KDa) which is strongly associated with kernel hardness and was recently developed as a biochemical marker for evaluating kernel hardness in 79 Korean wheat varieties and experimental lines. With the scattered diagram based on the principal component analysis from the parameters of the compression test, 79 Korean wheat varieties were classified into three groups based on the principal component analysis. Since conventional methods required large amount of flour samples for analysis of friabilin due to the relatively small amount of friabilin in wheat kernels, those methods had limitations for quality prediction in wheat breeding programs. An extraction of friabilin from the starch of a single kernel through cesium chloride gradient centrifugation was successful in this experiment. Among 79 Korean wheat varieties and experimental lines 50 lines (63.3%) exhibited a friabilin band and 29 lines (36.7%) did not show a friabilin band. In this study, lines that contained high maximum force and the lower ratio of minimum force to maximum force showed the absence of the friabilin band. Identification of friabilin, which is the product of a major gene, could be applied in the screening procedures of kernel hardness. The single kernel analysis system for friabilin was found to be an easy, simple and effective screening method for early generation materials in a wheat breeding program for quality improvement.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.40 no.6
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• pp.653-658
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• 1993

Background: Recent advancement of molecular genetics has revealed that malignant transformation of a cell may be a complex multistep process and this process is grouped, in general, into two distinct categories, activation of protooncogenes and inactivation of tumor suppressor genes. This study was focused on the mutation of p53 tumor suppressor gene, because p53 gene mutation is now generally accepted to be one of the most frequent genetic changes in a variety of human cancers. Although lung cancer is one of the common cancers in Korea, the genetic change in the carcinogenesis process is not yet known clearly. To investigate the role of p53 gene mutation in lung cancer, we examined the mutations of exon 4-8 of the p53 gene in humna lung cancer cell lines, because most of the mutations of p53 gene have been reported to develop in exon 4-8. Method: Genomic DNA was obtained by the digestion of proteinase K and the extraction by phenol-chloroform-ethanol method from two human pulmonary adenocarcinoma cell lines, PC-9 and PC-14, and one human small cell lung cancer cell line, H69. To detect the mutations of exon 4-8 of the p53 gene, polymerase chain reaction single-strand conformation polymorphism(PCR-SSCP) analysis was performed with the DNA extracted from the cells. Results: The mutation of p53 gene was present in all three cell lines tested. In PC-9, PC-14 and H69, the altered mobility was detected in exon 7, 7 and 5, respectively. Conclusion: These results suggest that p53 gene mutation plays an important role in certain steps of the carcinogenesis of human non-small cell and small cell lung cancer.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.72 no.3
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• pp.293-301
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• 2012

Background: Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) requires prompt and appropriate treatment. Since methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a frequent pathogen in VAP, rapid identification of it, is pivotal. Our aim was to evaluate the utility of quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) as a useful method for etiologic diagnoses of MRSA pneumonia. Methods: We performed qPCR for mecA, S. aureus-specific femA-SA, and S. epidermidis-specific femA-SE genes from bronchoalveolar lavage or bronchial washing samples obtained from clinically-suspected VAP. Molecular identification of MRSA was based on the presence of the mecA and femA-SA gene, with the absence of the femA-SE gene. To compensate for the experimental and clinical conditions, we spiked an internal control in the course of DNA extraction. We estimated number of colony-forming units per mL (CFU/mL) of MRSA samples through a standard curve of a serially-diluted reference MRSA strain. We compared the threshold cycle (Ct) value with the microbiologic results of MRSA. Results: We obtained the mecA gene standard curve, which showed the detection limit of the mecA gene to be 100 fg, which corresponds to a copy number of 30. We chose cut-off Ct values of 27.94 (equivalent to $1{\times}10^4$ CFU/mL) and 21.78 (equivalent to $1{\times}10^5$ CFU/mL). The sensitivity and specificity of our assay were 88.9% and 88.9% respectively, when compared with quantitative cultures. Conclusion: Our results were valuable for diagnosing and identifying pathogens involved in VAP. We believe our modified qPCR is an appropriate tool for the rapid diagnosis of clinical pathogens regarding patients in the intensive care unit.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• v.17 no.sup3
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• pp.155-160
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• 2016

Breast cancer (BC) is the second most common cancer in the world and by far the most frequent cancer among women, with an estimated 1.67 million new cancer cases diagnosed in 2012 (25% of all cancers). Polygene expression analysis is used to predict the prognosis and determine the most appropriate treatment regimen. The objective of this study was to examine the gene expression profiles of SIRT3, HRAS, LSP1, SCUBE2 and AP2A2 in Iranian women with BC.A total of 136 patients including healthy controls were categorized into three groups based on the relapse of the disease. Expression of desired genes in formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded tissues collected from all groups of participants was analyzed via the RT PCR method. RNA extraction and cDNA synthesis were performed then real-time quantitative PCR was carried out. Gene expression analysis revealed that the expression of SIRT3 was equal among patient and control groups. LSP1 was down regulated in all patient groups relative to controls but reduced expression in the metastatic group relative to the non-metastatic one was not significant. HRAS was significantly overexpressed in total and metastatic tumor samples versus normal but not in non-metastatic cases. SCUBE2 expression showed significant over-expression in both overall tumor samples and the non-metastatic group as compared to normal tissues. Gene expression level of AP2A2 in all groups was not detectable. Our data are compatible with a tumor suppressor role of LSP1 related to potential prognostic factor for tumor recurrence and outcome. This study for the first time assayed the prognostic value and changes in the expression of SIRT3, LSP1, HRAS, SCUBE2 and AP2A2 genes in women with breast cancer in the Iranian population and findings confirmed potential biomarker and prognostic capability of these genes. Such expression profiling data can critically improve prognosis and treatment decisions in cancer patients.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.9
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• pp.1401-1409
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• 2015

The aim of this study was to develop a SYBR Green-based real-time PCR assay for the rapid, specific, and sensitive detection of Acidovorax avenae subsp. citrulli, which causes bacterial fruit blotch (BFB), a serious disease of cucurbit plants. The molecular and serological methods currently available for the detection of this pathogen are insufficiently sensitive and specific. Thus, a novel SYBR Green-based real-time PCR assay targeting the YD-repeat protein gene of A. avenae subsp. citrulli was developed. The specificity of the primer set was evaluated using DNA purified from 6 isolates of A. avenae subsp. citrulli, 7 other Acidovorax species, and 22 of non-targeted strains, including pathogens and non-pathogens. The AC158F/R primer set amplified a single band of the expected size from genomic DNA obtained from the A. avenae subsp. citrulli strains but not from the genomic DNA of other Acidovorax species, including that of other bacterial genera. Using this assay, it was possible to detect at least one genomeequivalents of the cloned amplified target DNA using 5 × 10⁰ fg/µl of purified genomic DNA per reaction or using a calibrated cell suspension, with 6.5 colony-forming units per reaction being employed. In addition, this assay is a highly sensitive and reliable method for identifying and quantifying the target pathogen in infected samples that does not require DNA extraction. Therefore, we suggest that this approach is suitable for the rapid and efficient diagnosis of A. avenae subsp. citrulli contaminations of seed lots and plants.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.127-130
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• 2004

Grapevine leaf roll-associated virus 3 (GLRaV-3) is one of the most important viral diseases of grapevine in the world. In this study, GLRaV-3 Ampelovirus was identi-fied from grapevines in Korea by analyzing viral coat protein size, nucleotide, and amino acid sequences. The molecular weight of viral coat protein from virus-infected in vitro plantlets was determined by western blot using a commercial GLRaV-3 polyclonal antibody. Western blot analysis showed a coat protein of about 43 kDa. RT-PCR product of about 942 bp which encoded the coat protein (CP) gene was amplified with specific primers. When the viruses existed at low titers in the host plant, the dsRNA had very specific template in RT- PCR amplification of fruit tree viruses. Especially, small-scale dsRNA extraction method was very reliable and rapid. Sequence analysis revealed that the CP of the GLRaV-3 Ko consisted of 942 bp nucleotide, which encoded 314 amino acid residues. The CP gene of GLRaV-3 Ko had 98.9% nucleotide sequence and 98.7% amino acid sequence identities with earlier reported GLRaV-3. This is the first report on molecular assay of GLRaV-3 Ampelovirus identified from Korea. The GLRaV-3 Ko CP clone would be very useful for breeding of virus resistant grapevines.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.607-613
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• 2019

Objective: Intramuscular fat (IMF) content plays an important role in meat quality. Identification of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and genes related to pig IMF, especially using pig populations with high IMF content variation, can help to establish novel molecular breeding tools for optimizing IMF in pork and unveil the mechanisms that underlie fat metabolism. Methods: We collected muscle samples of 453 Chinese Lulai black pigs, measured IMF content by Soxhlet petroleum-ether extraction method, and genotyped genome-wide SNPs using GeneSeek Genomic Profiler Porcine HD BeadChip. Then a genome-wide association study was performed using a linear mixed model implemented in the GEMMA software. Results: A total of 43 SNPs were identified to be significantly associated with IMF content by the cutoff p<0.001. Among these significant SNPs, the greatest number of SNPs (n = 19) were detected on Chr.9, and two linkage disequilibrium blocks were formed among them. Additionally, 17 significant SNPs are mapped to previously reported quantitative trait loci (QTLs) of IMF and confirmed previous QTLs studies. Forty-two annotated genes centering these significant SNPs were obtained from Ensembl database. Overrepresentation test of pathways and gene ontology (GO) terms revealed some enriched reactome pathways and GO terms, which mainly involved regulation of basic material transport, energy metabolic process and signaling pathway. Conclusion: These findings improve our understanding of the genetic architecture of IMF content in pork and facilitate the follow-up study of fine-mapping genes that influence fat deposition in muscle.