• Korean Journal of Environment and Ecology
• /
• v.24 no.3
• /
• pp.318-324
• /
• 2010

The aim of this study is to examine feeding habits of the Korean water deer(Hydropotes inermis argyropus) from its rumen contents using a PCR-DGGE method. For this study, rumen contents were collected from water deer causalities by natural death or road-kill in two different sites(Cheorwon, Gangwon province and the Eastern part of Jeonnam province). DNA was extracted from rumen contents of a total of 44 individuals. Two primers, rbcLZ1aF(GC) and rbcL19bR, were used for PCR amplifications of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase large subunit (rbcL) gene. Among 44 samples, twenty-nine samples were successfully amplified by PCRs. The 29 PCR products of partial rbcL gene were applied for PCR-DGGE. Totally, six families of plants were detected from the diet analyses. Five families of plants were found in Cheorwon, Gangwon province, but only three families of plants were found in the Eastern part of Jeonnam province. The PCR-DGGE method will provide us with a potential tool to study feeding habits of ungulates including water deer, even though our results failed to identify the prey plants at the level of species.

• Environmental Engineering Research
• /
• v.14 no.1
• /
• pp.63-67
• /
• 2009

Escherichia coli K-12 (E. coli K-12) is a representative indicator globally used for distinguishing and monitoring dynamic fates of pathogenic microorganisms in the environment. This study investigated how to most critically quantify lacZ ($\beta$-galactosidase) gene in E. coli K-12 by two different real-time polymerase chain reaction (real-time PCR) in association with three different DNA extraction practices. Three DNA extractions, i.e., sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)/proteinase K, magnetic beads and guanidium thiocyanate (GTC)/silica matrix were each compared for extracting total genomic DNA from E. coli K-12. Among them, GTC/silica matrix and magnetic beads beating similarly worked out to have the highest (22-23 ng/${\mu}L$) concentration of DNA extracted, but employing SDS/proteinase K had the lowest (10 ng/${\mu}L$) concentration of DNA retrieved. There were no significant differences in the quantification of the copy numbers of lacZ gene between SYBR Green I qPCR and QProbe-qPCR. However, SYBR Green I qPCR obtained somewhat higher copy number as $1{\times}10^8$ copies. It was decided that GTC/silica matrix extraction or magnetic beads beating in combination with SYBR Green I qPCR can be preferably applied for more effectively quantifying specific gene from a pure culture of microorganism.

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

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
• /
• v.23 no.3
• /
• pp.248-256
• /
• 2008

To investigate the epidemiological characteristics of 68 Listeria monocytogenes isolates, including 11 reference strains and 57 isolates from imported US beef, domestic meats(beef, pork, chicken meat), raw milk, and milk plants. L. monocytogenes was to evaluate the production of virulence proteins, such as hemolysin(LLO) and lecithinase(LCP), the adsorption of Congo red(CRA), and to detect virulence genes using the polymerase chain reaction(PCR). In the study of virulence protein production, 68(100%), 62(91.2%), and 54(79.4%) of the 68 L. monocytogenes strains were positive for LLO production, the LCP test, and the CRA test, respectively, while strains of other species, such as L. innocua, L. gray, L. murrayi, and L. welshimeri, were not. There were no significant differences between L. monocytogenes serotypes and the ability to produce LLO or LCP. L. monocytogenesstrains had very high hemolytic titers(2 to 16 fold), while the other Listeria species, other than L. ivanovii and L. seeligeri, did not. The hemolysin activities of L. monocytogenes, L. ivanovii, and L. seeligeri usually exceeded 1.0 HU/mg, while those of other Listeria spp. were less than 0.04 HU/mg. In the PCR assay, all of the L. monocytogenes strains contained the hlyA, plcA, plcB, inlA, and inlB virulence genes and produced a product of the expected size. In the PCR of the actA gene, the expected 385-bp product was seen in 39(57.4%) L. monocytogenesstrains, while an unexpected 268-bp product was seen in 29(42.6%) strains. Most L. monocytogenes strains isolated from Hanwoo beef produced the 385-bp actA gene product, while strains of imported US beef usually produced the 268-bp actA gene product. By contrast, no virulence gene products were amplified in the other Listeria spp.

• Journal of Plant Biology
• /
• v.37 no.1
• /
• pp.77-83
• /
• 1994

DNA uptake in dry embryos of rice by DNA imbibition was detected by monitoring the expression of chimeric vectors. The selective markers of expression vectors used were ${\beta}-glucuronidase$ ronidase (GUS) and hygromycin phosphotransferase (HPT) genes under the control of CaMV35 S promoter. Frequency of transient expression of the foreign gene was generally 30-50% varying according to the types of vectors and rice cultivars. Dot blot analysis and DNA sequence analysis of inverse polymerase chain reaction products showed that selected rice in hygromycin B (HmB) medium had HPT gene and CaMV35S promoter DNA sequence in genomic DNA of rice. To investigate what ratio of rice having two marker genes simultaneously as rice embryos imbibed the vector DNA having two HPT and GUS gene, transform ants selected in lImB medium were subjected to PCR for GUS gene. It was shown that about 90 percentage of surviving ones in HmB medium had GUS gene.S gene.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.36 no.2
• /
• pp.94-99
• /
• 2003

Mitochondrial DNAs has been used frequently as genetic markers for the population genetic studies of salmonid fishes. Samples used in this experiment were chum salmons (Oncorhynchus keta) from Korea. We analyzed variation of mitochondrial NADH dehydrogenase subunit 3 gene (ND3) among 4 individuals of the Korea population. Genomic DNA was extracted from the liver of the chum salmon samples. Then, the ND3 gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) including the 3' region of cytochrome oxidase III gene (COIII) and the 5` region of NADH dehydrogenase subunit 4L gene (ND4L). The size of the PCR product was 752 Up and the sequences showed some genetic variation among those four individuals. Genetic variations were observed in 7 sites as single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP). Within the open reading frame of the ND3 gene which encodes 116 amino acids, 5 nucleotide substitutions were found. Both transitional and transversional changes occurred more frequently with transitional changes. Comparison of these sequences with the others of a Japanese chum salmon in GenBank showed 5 sites of SNPs. This study provided the basic information of SNP in ND3 gene among Korean chum salmons and demonstrated the possible use of the SNP data as a genetic marker.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.16 no.10
• /
• pp.1397-1401
• /
• 2003

The aim of this study was to determine genotypes of four genetic markers and to investigate their association with milk production traits in Brown Swiss cattle imported to Slovakia. The bovine $\kappa$-casein, $\beta$-lactoglobulin, growth hormone and prolactin genotypes of 107 cows were identified by polymerase chain reaction. Effects all four genetic markers on milk, fat, protein and lactose yields and fat, protein and lactose percentage were estimated from a data set of 249 lactations. The frequency of desirable B allele of $\kappa$-casein gene to milk production was 0.46, alleles A of $\beta$-lactoglobulin gene was 0.55, allele and L of growth hormone gene was 0.45 and allele A and B of bovine prolactin gene were 0.61 and 0.39. The results of milk production obtained in our work showed that BB genotypes of $\kappa$-CN gene, AA genotypes of $\beta$-LG gene, LL genotypes of bGH gene were significantly associated with better milk production traits, mainly about the fat content. Association of a bovine prolactin genotypes with milk production were not found.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.17 no.7
• /
• pp.885-891
• /
• 2004

To evaluate the feasibility of using sperm-mediated gene transfer (SMGT) for carrying foreign gene into chicken oocyte, a reporter gene, CX-EGFP, was used in this study. The reporter gene was first mixed with liposome or liposome-like compound and the mixtures were further combined with ejaculated cock spermatozoa. The spermatozoa treated with liposome and CX-EGFP mixture was subsequently coincubated with DNaseI to remove the extra DNA which insured the authenticity of positive signals. The treated sperms were then subjected to transgene (reporter gene) existence analysis and artificial insemination of laying hens. Obtained results indicated that the spermatozoa were able to take-in the foreign DNA; which was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction and Southern blot analysis. In the following experiment, fresh ejaculated sperms were mixed with CX-EGFP-liposome or CX-EGFP-liposome-like complex then used for artificial insemination of each of six laying hens. Eggs laid between day-3 and day-7 post insemination were collected. Newly hatched chicks, two out of 53 from CX-EGFP/liposome treated group and two out of 21 from CXEGFP/liposome-like treated group, were proven to be transgenic. This study suggests that SMGT is a powerful method for generating transgenic chickens.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
• /
• v.40 no.2
• /
• pp.141-150
• /
• 2016

Background: Adipocyte-macrophage communication plays a critical role regulating white adipose tissue (WAT) inflammatory gene expression. Because WAT inflammation contributes to the development of metabolic diseases, there is significant interest in understanding how exogenous compounds regulate the adipocyte-macrophage crosstalk. An aqueous (AQ) extract of North American (NA) ginseng (Panax quinquefolius) was previously shown to have strong inflammo-regulatory properties in adipocytes. This study examined whether different ginseng extracts influence adipocyte-macrophage crosstalk, as well as WAT inflammatory gene expression. Methods: The effects of AQ and ethanol (EtOH) ginseng extracts ($5{\mu}g/mL$) on adipocyte and macrophage inflammatory gene expression were studied in 3T3-L1 and RAW264.7 cells, respectively, using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Adipose tissue organ culture was also used to examine the effects of ginseng extracts on epididymal WAT (EWAT) and inguinal subcutaneous WAT (SWAT) inflammatory gene expression. Results: The AQ extract caused significant increases in the expression of common inflammatory genes (e.g., Mcp1, Ccl5, Tnf-${\alpha}$, Nos2) in both cell types. Culturing adipocytes in media from macrophages treated with the AQ extract, and vice versa, also induced inflammatory gene expression. Adipocyte Ppar-${\gamma}$ expression was reduced with the AQ extract. The AQ extract strongly induced inflammatory gene expression in EWAT, but not in SWAT. The EtOH extract had no effect on inflammatory gene expression in either both cell types or WAT. Conclusion: These findings provide important new insights into the inflammo-regulatory role of NA ginseng in WAT.

• Korean Journal of Plant Tissue Culture
• /
• v.24 no.1
• /
• pp.37-41
• /
• 1997

The in vitro regeneration and genetic transformation systems in hot pepper(Capsicum annuum L.) have not been routinely available, which has been a major limiting factor in the application of new genetic manipulations. An efficient procedure to regenerate whole pepper plants and to generate transgenic plants expressing a foreign gene was established. A relatively high frequency of plant regeneration was observed when hypocotyl and cotyledon explants were cultured on MS medium supplemented with NAA 0.1 mg/L plus zeatin 2.0 mg/L or IBA 10.0 mg/L plus BAP 1.0 mg/L. Addition of AgNO$_3$5 $\mu$M to these media improved the regeneration frequency up to 8%. For plant transformation, hypocotyl and cotyledon explants of hot pepper were precultured on shoot induction media without kanamycin added for 2 days, and then cocultured with Agrobacterium tumefaciens pDY183 for 2 days. Putative transformants were obtained from selection media containing 100 mg/L kanamycin sulfate and 500 mg/L carbenicillin. Putatively selected transformants were confirmed by amplification of selectable marker genes (ADA and NPT II) by polymerase chain reacion. Successful transcripts of ADA gene were detected by Northern blot analysis. Enzyme activity of ADA was also examined by spectrophotometric analysis, and expression of ADA gene in hot pepper suggests the potential application of ADA gene as a selectable marker in plants.