• BMB Reports
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• 제30권6호
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• pp.390-396
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• 1997

A sandwich-type enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the quantification of human apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) was developed using monoclonal antibodies. For this assay, we used three monoclonal antibodies to trap and detect apo A-I. HDAI16 and HDA15 monoclonal antibodies were used for trapping apoA-I and HDAI8 monoclonal antibody was for detecting apoA-I. These three monoclonal antibodies were produced by immunizing mice with high density lipoprotein (HDL) isolated from human plasma. By immunoblot analysis, these three monoclonal antibodies were specific to apoA-I and showed no cross-reactivities with other plasma proteins. The results of competition assays for epitope cross-reactivity test also verified that these monoclonal antibodies identified separate and distinct epitopes on HDL and apoA-I. Affinity constants of monoclonal antibodies were measured by ELISA. Their association constants ranged from $10^7$ to $10^8$ $M^{-1}$. For this assay, pure apoA-I was isolated by affinity chromatography using monoclonal antibodies. In this sandwich assay, the amount of HRP-labeled HDAI8 bound to apoA-I trapped by HDAI16 and HDAI5 was proportional to apoA-I concentration in the range of 0 to 500ng/ml. ApoA-I concentration in plasma was calculated from the linear regression equation of standard curve. The precision and reliability of the assays are reflected in the low intra-and interassay coefficients of variation that averaged 3.25% and 4.30%, respectively. This assay is sensitive, simple, reproducible, convenient in incubation interval, and does not use radioisotope: thus it can be widely applied in clinical laboratories.

• 한국미생물·생명공학회지
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• 제48권3호
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• pp.373-382
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• 2020

Candidatus Carsonella ruddii is an endosymbiont that resides in specialized cells within the body cavity of plant sap-feeding insects called psyllids. The establishment of symbiotic associations is considered one of the key factors for the evolutionary success of psyllids, as it may have helped them adapt to imbalanced food resources like plant sap. Although C. ruddii is defined as a psyllid primary symbiont, the genes for some essential amino acid pathways are absent. Complete genome sequences of several C. ruddii strains have been published. However, in-depth intra-species comparison of C. ruddii strains has not yet been done. This study therefore aimed to perform a comparative genome analysis of six C. ruddii strains, allowing the interrogation of phylogenetic group, functional category of genes, and biosynthetic pathway analysis. Accordingly, overall genome size, number of genes, and GC content of C. ruddii strains were reduced. Phylogenetic analysis based on the whole genome proteomes of 30 related bacterial strains revealed that the six C. ruddii strains form a cluster in same clade. Biosynthetic pathway analysis showed that complete sets of genes for biosynthesis of essential amino acids, except tryptophan, are absent in six C. ruddii strains. All genes for tryptophan biosynthesis are present in three C. ruddii strains (BC, BT, and YCCR). It is likely that the host may depend on a secondary symbiont to complement its deficient diet. Overall, it is therefore possible that C. ruddii is being driven to extinction and replacement by new symbionts.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제40권9호
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• pp.643-654
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• 2017

Autophagy is a degradation pathway in eukaryotic cells in which aging proteins and organelles are sequestered into double-membrane vesicles, termed autophagosomes, which fuse with vacuoles to hydrolyze cargo. The key step in autophagy is the formation of autophagosomes, which requires different kinds of vesicles, including COPII vesicles and Atg9-containing vesicles, to transport lipid double-membranes to the phagophore assembly site (PAS). In yeast, the cis-Golgi localized t-SNARE protein Sed5 plays a role in endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-Golgi and intra-Golgi vesicular transport. We report that during autophagy, sed5-1 mutant cells could not properly transport Atg8 to the PAS, resulting in multiple Atg8 dots being dispersed into the cytoplasm. Some dots were trapped in the Golgi apparatus. Sed5 regulates the anterograde trafficking of Atg9-containing vesicles to the PAS by participating in the localization of Atg23 and Atg27 to the Golgi apparatus. Furthermore, we found that overexpression of SFT1 or SFT2 (suppressor of sed5 ts) rescued the autophagy defects in sed5-1 mutant cells. Our data suggest that Sed5 plays a novel role in autophagy, by regulating the formation of Atg9-containing vesicles in the Golgi apparatus, and the genetic interaction between Sft1/2 and Sed5 is essential for autophagy.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제55권3호
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• pp.351-355
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• 2017

Hymenolepis nana and Hymenolepis diminuta are globally widespread zoonotic cestodes. Rodents are the main reservoir host of these cestodes. Brown rats (Rattus norvegicus) are the best known and most common rats, and usually live wherever humans live, especially in less than desirable hygiene conditions. Due to the little information of the 2 hymenolepidid species in brown rats in China, the aim of this study was to understand the prevalence and genetic characterization of H. nana and H. diminuta in brown rats in Heilongjiang Province, China. Total 114 fecal samples were collected from brown rats in Heilongjiang Province. All the samples were subjected to morphological examinations by microscopy and genetic analysis by PCR amplification of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (COX1) gene and the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region of the nuclear ribosomal RNA gene. In total, 6.1% (7/114) and 14.9% (17/114) of samples were positive for H. nana and H. diminuta, respectively. Among them, 7 and 3 H. nana isolates were successfully amplified and sequenced at the COX1 and ITS2 loci, respectively. No nucleotide variations were found among H. nana isolates at either of the 2 loci. Seventeen H. diminuta isolates produced 2 different COX1 sequences while 7 ITS2 sequences obtained were identical to each other. The present results of H. nana and H. diminuta infections in brown rats implied the risk of zoonotic transmission of hymenolepiasis in China. These molecular data will be helpful to deeply study intra-specific variations within Hymenolepis cestodes in the future.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• 제55권3호
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• pp.279-285
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• 2017

The present study was performed to analyze molecularly the phylogenetic positions of human-infecting Trichostrongylus species in Mazandaran Province, Iran, which is an endemic area for trichostrongyliasis. DNA from 7 Trichostrongylus infected stool samples were extracted by using in-house (IH) method. PCR amplification of ITS2-rDNA region was performed, and products were sequenced. Phylogenetic analysis of the nucleotide sequence data was performed using MEGA 5.0 software. Six out of 7 isolates had high similarity with Trichostrongylus colubriformis, while the other one showed high homology with Trichostrongylus axei registered in GenBank reference sequences. Intra-specific variations within isolates of T. colubriformis and T. axei amounted to 0-1.8% and 0-0.6%, respectively. Trichostrongylus species obtained in the present study were in a cluster with the relevant reference sequences from previous studies. BLAST analysis indicated that there was 100% homology among all 6 ITS2 sequences of T. colubriformis in the present study and most previously registered sequences of T. colubriformis from human, sheep, and goat isolates from Iran and also human isolates from Laos, Thailand, and France. The ITS2 sequence of T. axei exhibited 99.4% homology with the human isolate of T. axei from Thailand, sheep isolates from New Zealand and Iran, and cattle isolate from USA.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• 제7권1호
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• pp.27-35
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• 2005

Eighty-five different cultivars of Brassica rapa, B. juncea, B. nap us, B. carinata, B. oleracea and hexaploid Brassica collected from Bangladesh, Japan, China and Denmark were analyzed by SDS-PAGE for seed and leaf protein variations, using esterase, acid phosphatase and peroxidase isozyme analysis. Ten polymorphic bands were identified from seed protein however no identifiable polymorphic band was found in the leaf protein. Polymorphic markers clearly distinguished the different Brassica species as well as yellow sarson (YS) and brown seeded (BS) cultivars of B. rapa. The $F_1$ cross between YS and brown seeded cultivars showed the existance of all poly-morphic bands of the respective parents. The Bangla-deshi and Japanese cultivars of B. rapa differed in the amount of seed protein. In the case of isozyme analysis, esterase showed the highest number of polymorphic bands (13) followed by acid phosphatase (9) and peroxidase (5). These polymorphic markers were very effec-tive for classification of all the species studied in this experiment. In parentage tests using isozymes, the hybridity of intra-and-interspecific crosses of almost all the seedlings could be identified from their respective cross combinations. Esterase polymorphism showed a clear differentiation between YS and BS types of B. rapa. In addition, two esterase polymorphic markers were iden ified to differentiate some cultivars of B. juncea. Segregation patterns in these two esterase bands showed a simple Mendelian monohybrid ratio of 3:1 in $F_2$, 1:1 in test cross and 1:0 in back cross progenies. No polymorphic band was identified to distinguish different cultivars of the same species by acid phosphatase or peroxidase. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was carried out with seed coat color specific marker of B. juncea. The yellow seeded cultivars produced a strong band at 0.5 kb and weak band 1.2 kb. In the addition of these two specific bands, Japanese yellow-seeded cultivars expressed two more weak bands at 1.0 kb and 1.1 kb. Where the brown seeded cultivars generated a single strong band at 1.1 kb. In segregating population, the yellow seed coat color marker segregated at a ratio 15 (brown) : 1 (yellow), indicating the digenic inheritance pattern of the trait.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제41권3호
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• pp.179-187
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• 2018

Proteomic analysis of extracellular vesicles (EVs) from biological fluid is a powerful approach to discover potential biomarkers for human diseases including cancers, as EV secreted to biological fluids are originated from the affected tissue. In order to investigate significant molecules related to the pathogenesis of bladder cancer, EVs were isolated from patient urine which was analyzed by mass spectrometry based proteomics. Comparison of the EV proteome to the whole urine proteome demonstrated an increased number of protein identification in EV. Comparative MS analyses of urinary EV from control subjects and bladder cancer patients identified a total of 1,222 proteins. Statistical analyses provided 56 proteins significantly increased in bladder cancer urine, including proteins for which expression levels varied by cancer stage (P-value < 0.05). While urine represents a valuable, non-invasive specimen for biomarker discovery in urologic cancers, there is a high degree of intra- and inter-individual variability in urine samples. The enrichment of urinary EV demonstrated its capability and applicability of providing a focused identification of biologically relevant proteins in urological diseases.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• 제24권3호
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• pp.269-278
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• 2008

Ripe rot was frequently observed on fruits, leaves and stems of grape growing in eight locations in Korea from 2004 to 2006. All 30 isolates of Colletotrichum sp. were obtained from lesions of the ripe rot on grape plants. Out of the isolates, 19 isolates were identified as Colletotrichum acutatum and the others as Colletotrichum gloeosporioides based on morphological and cultural characteristics. Inter and intra specific variations of the Colletotrichum spp. isolates were investigated using RAPD and sequences of rDNA ITS and $\beta$-tubulin-2. Isolates of C. acutatum and C. gloeosporioides were distinctly differentiated by molecular analyses. Phylogenetic trees of ITS and$\beta$-tubulin-2 showed that Korean isolates of C. acutatum were clustered into groups A2 and A3 among the eight global groups. A2 included non-chromogenic isolates and A3 chromogenic ones. Both C. acutatum and C. gloeosporioides isolates were tested for pathogenicity to grape leaves. All isolates tested induced lesions on the leaves of grape by artificial inoculation. There was no difference in pathogenicity between C. acutatum and C. gloeosporioides isolates. This is the first report that C. acutatum except C. gloeosporioides causes grape ripe rot in Korea.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
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• 제15권5호
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• pp.2225-2229
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• 2014

Background: Carcinoma of the tongue is the most common intra-oral malignancy in Western countries. Incidence and mortality rates have increased in recent years, and survival has not improved. This study aimed to determine etiologic factors for tongue cancer with age-sex matched case-control data. Materials and Methods: 47 patients with carcinoma of the tongue referred to our oral medicine clinic between years 2005-2006 were analyzed and compared with control group data. The medical records, including family history of cancer, dental trauma, and history of abuse of alcohol and tobacco products was recorded for all subjects. Chi square comparison tests and linear regression analysis were performed using the SPSS program for statistics. Results: Patient and randomly selected control groups each consisted of 30 male and 17 female subjects with mean ages 53.2 (${\pm}12.6$) and 52.6 (${\pm}11.5$) years respectively. Smoking and alcohol abuse proportions were significantly higher in the patient group (p=0.0001, p<0.0001 respectively). Chronic mechanical trauma was observed in 44.7% of the patients and 17.0% of the control group (p=0.004). Similarly, family history of cancer of any type (for the first degree relatives) was found to be more common in the patient group (p=0.009). On regression analysis, alcohol abuse, family history of cancer, smoking, chronic mechanical traumas appeared as significant etiologic factors (p=0.0001). Conclusions: We believe that field cancerization may become evident in oral and oropharyngeal mucosa with multiple steps of molecular changes starting from the first sign of dysplasia with chronic exposure to etiological factors. Chronic trauma cases need particular attention to search for very early signs of cancer.

• BMB Reports
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• 제43권11호
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• pp.761-765
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• 2010

Salivary testosterone levels in Korean adults were quantitatively measured for the first time by liquid chromatography-electrospray-tandem mass spectrometry (LC ESI MS/MS). Salivary testosterone was separated on a multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) chromatogram within 7 min. The LC ESI MS/MS assay was validated over the linearity range of 0.01-2.00 ng/ml (r=0.99987) using testosterone-$d_3$ as an internal standard. The lower limit of quantification (LOQ) was 0.01 ng/ml. The intra- and inter-assay precisions were 1.54% to 4.09% and 0.96% to 4.29%, respectively. The mean recovery was 93.32% (range 88.43-98.05%). The validated assay was then applied to measure the salivary testosterone levels of Korean adults. In men, the salivary testosterone level collected between 9：00-11：00 am was approximately 2.8 times higher than that in women (P < 0.0001). Salivary testosterone levels in both sexes negatively correlated with age. The present assay would also be useful in measuring salivary testosterone levels in clinical laboratories.