• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.58 no.4
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• pp.349-354
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• 2015

Brown blotch disease in cultivated mushrooms is caused by Pseudomonas tolaasii, which secretes a lipodepsipeptide, tolaasin. Tolaasin is a pore-forming toxin in the cell membranes, thus destroying the fruiting body structure of mushroom. In this study, we isolated pathogenic bacteria from mushrooms that had symptoms of brown blotch disease. In order to identify these bacteria, their 16S rRNA genes were sequenced and analyzed. Pathogenic bacteria identified as Pseudomonas species were thirty five and classified into five subgroups: P1 to P5. Each subgroup showed different metabolic profile measured by API 20NE kit. Fifty percent of the bacteria were identified as P. tolaasii (P1 subgroup). All five subgroups caused the formation of brown blotches on mushroom tissues and the optimum temperature was 25oC, indicating that they may be able to secrete causal factors, such as tolaasin and similar peptide toxins. These results show that there are at least five different pathogenic Pseudomonas species as blotch-causing bacteria and, therefore, strains from the P2 to P5 subgroups should be also considered and studied as pathogens in order to improve the quality and yield of mushroom production.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.238-243
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• 1998

For simple and rapid detection of Pseudomonas tolaasii (PT), a bacterial brown blotch pathogen of oyster mushroom, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) were developed. To produce specific antibody, PT ($5{\times}10^7$ cfu) and Freund's adjuvant were subcutaneously immunized into rabbits several times. By using the antiserum showing the highest titer, we established noncompetitive and competitive ELISA's. Standard curves of the ELISA's showed that the detection limits were $2{\times}10^2$cfu/ml and $3{\times}10^2$cfu/ml, respectively When investigated by noncompetitive ELISA, cross reactivities of the anti-PT antibodies against P. agarici, P. reactans, and other fluorescent Pseudomonas spp. were very low (<1/10$^3$), but those against P. solanacearum, Erwinia chrysanthemi, Streptococcus mutans, Xanthomonas citri, and a fungus Fusarium oxysporum were almost none. However, when investigated by competitive ELISA, the reactivities against any other strains except PT were almost none. When the ELISA's were applied to 18 strains derived from mushrooms in order to identify PT, only 11 strains showing both pathogenicity and white line reactivity were obviously positive. These results showed that the ELISA's could be convenient tools to detect PT in accordance with existing methods.

• The Korean Journal of Mycology
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• v.41 no.4
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• pp.248-254
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• 2013

A Gram-negative bacterium was isolated from mushroom media that markedly reduces the level of extracellular toxins (i.e., tolaasins) produced by Pseudomonas tolaasii, the most destructive pathogen of cultivated mushrooms. The HC1 strain was selected as detoxifying tolaasin by bioassay on potato and it was identified Pseudomonas sp. by the cultural, morphological and physiological characteristics, and analysis of the 16S rRNA. The isolated bacterium is saprophytic but not parasitic nor pathogenic to cultivation mushroom. The isolated bacterium for P. tolaasii cell, was sufficient for detoxification in vitro. Inoculation of the isolated bacterium prevents the development of bacterial disease in Pleurotus ostreatus, Flammunia velutipes and Agaricus bisporus. Control efficacy of brown blotch of strain HC1 treatment was 69, 68 and 55% on Agaricus bisporus, Flammulina velutipes and Pleurotus ostreatus, respectively. The suppressive bacterium may be useful in future for the development of biocontrol system and the construction of genetically modified edible fungi resistant to the disease caused by P. tolaasii.

• BMB Reports
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.113-118
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• 2007

Tolaasin, a pore-forming peptide toxin, is produced by Pseudomonas tolaasii and causes brown blotch disease of the cultivated mushrooms. P. tolaasii 6264 was isolated from the oyster mushroom damaged by the disease in Korean. In order to isolate tolaasin molecules, the supernatant of bacterial culture was harvested at the stationary phase of growth. Tolaasin was prepared by ammonium sulfate precipitation and three steps of chromatograpies, including a gel permeation and two ion exchange chromatographies. Specific hemolytic activity of tolaasin was increased from 1.7 to 162.0 HU $mg^{-1}$ protein, a 98-fold increase, and the purification yield was 16.3%. Tolaasin preparation obtained at each purification step was analyzed by HPLC and SDS-PAGE. Two major peptides were detected from all chromatographic preparations. Their molecular masses were analyzed by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry and they were identified as tolaasin I and tolaasin II. These results demonstrate that the method used in this study is simple, time-saving, and successful for the preparation of tolaasin.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.257-261
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• 2007

Tolaasin, a peptide toxin produced by Pseudomonas tolaasii, causes a serious disease on the cultivated mushrooms, known as brown blotch disease. Hemolysis using red blood cells was designed to measure the cytotoxicity of tolaasin molecules. Since tolaasin has two amine groups near the C-terminus, its membrane binding will be dependent on the ionic states of the amine groups. When the tolaasin peptide was titrated, its titration curve indicated the presence of titratable amine(s) at pH ranges from 7.0 to 9.6. When the pH-dependence of tolaasin-induced hemolysis was measured at various pHs, hemolysis was more efficient at alkaline pHs. In order to measure the membrane binding activity of tolaasin at different pHs, RBCs were incubated with tolaasin molecules for short time periods and washed out with fresh buffer. Because of the tolaasin binding during the preincubation period, fast hemolyses were observed at pH 8 or higher. These results imply that non-charged or less positively charged states of tolaasin molecules easily bind to membrane and show high hemolytic activity.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.59 no.4
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• pp.351-356
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• 2016

Bacterial blotch caused by Pseudomonas tolaasii is one of the major diseases of oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus. Application of bacteriophages is a very useful tool to decrease the density of pathogens and it has been successful to making disease-free cultivation area, known as phage therapy. Effect of phages on pathogen sterilization is very limited to the specific host strains. Minor variations of the host strains may cause changes in phage sensitivity. The phage-resistant strains of P. tolaasii were isolated and their pathogenic characters were investigated to improve the effectiveness of phage therapy. In the phylogenetic analysis, both phage-resistant strains and the corresponding host strains were identical based on the sequence comparison of 16S rRNA genes. The pathogenic characters, such as hemolytic activity and brown blotch formation, were measured on the phage-resistant strains and no correlation between phage-resistance and pathogenic characters was observed. Nevertheless, pathogenic characters were sometimes changed in the phage-resistant strains depending on the host strains. In order to make the phage therapy successful, the bacteriophages having a wide host range should be isolated.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.63 no.4
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• pp.387-392
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• 2020

Pseudomonas tolaasii is a pathogen causing brown blotch disease in cultivated mushrooms. In previous study, various strains of P. tolaasii were isolated from the mushrooms with disease symptoms and they were further divided into Ptα, Ptβ, and Ptγ subtypes according to the 16S rRNA gene analysis. To investigate the secretion of peptide toxins, tolaasin and its analog peptides, culture extracts of Pt group strains were analyzed by gel permeation chromatography. Those of Ptα subtype strains contained two chromatographic peaks, band A and B. Meanwhile, those of Ptβ and Ptγ subtype strains contained mainly band A component and a little of band B. Molecular weights of toxic peptides of culture extracts were measured by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry. In Ptα subtype strains, the peptide compositions of band A and B were same including tolaasin I (1,987 Da), tolaasin II (1,943 Da), and its two analog peptides, 1,973 Da and 2,005 Da. The strains of Ptβ and Ptγ subtype secreted many components of MW 1,100-1,200 Da, but they did not synthesize any tolaasin-like peptides. These results suggest that the only Ptα subtype strains secrete tolaasin and its analog peptide toxins and the strains of Ptβ and Ptγ subtypes have different pathogenic characters causing brown blotch disease.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.61 no.1
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• pp.69-73
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• 2018

Oak mushroom (Lentinus edodes) is cultivated by using oak logs and sawdust medium. Green mold (Trichoderma) infection on these media severely suppresses the growth of oak mushroom. Usages of antibiotics and chemicals are not generally allowed to control of green mold since the mushroom is a fresh food. Tolaasin and its analogues, peptide toxins secreted by Pseudomonas tolaasii, have the antifungal activity and they have been successful to control the green mold disease. When the green mold, Trichoderma harzianum H1, was cultured in the presence of these toxins, the growth of fungus was effectively suppressed. In sawdust media, when the bacterial culture supernatants were sprayed on the aerial hyphae of green molds, the fungal growth was completely suppressed. Particularly, the antifungal activity was greatly increased by the combined culture extracts of P. tolaasii 6264 and HK11 strains. Therefore, these bacterial strains and their peptide toxins were able to suppress the growth of green molds and these can be good candidates to prevent from Trichoderma disease in oak mushroom cultivation.

• Journal of Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.62 no.3
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• pp.287-292
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• 2019

Pseudomonas tolaasii causes brown blotch disease on the oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus). Various pathogenic strains of P. tolaasii were isolated and divided into three subtypes, $P1{\alpha}$, $P1{\beta}$, and $P1{\gamma}$. For phage therapy, bacteriophages against to these subtype strains were applied to mushroom cultivation and very successful to prevent from the disease. In this study, bacteriophages were isolated against the representative strains of subtype pathogens and their polyclonal antibodies were synthesized to investigate structural relationship among capsid proteins of phages. Phage preparations over $10^{10}pfu/mL$ were injected to rabbit thigh muscle and polyclonal antibodies were obtained after three times of boost injection. Titers of the antibodies obtained were over $2{\times}10^7Ab/mL$ for the phage ${\phi}6264$, $1{\times}10^6Ab/mL$ for the phage ${\phi}HK2$, and $1{\times}10^7Ab/mL$ for the phage ${\phi}HK19$ and phage ${\phi}HK23$. High specific activities were observed between antibodies and the corresponding bacteriophages. Some cross-reactivities between the antibodies and non-corresponding bacteriophages were also measured. Antibody $Ab{\phi}6264$ inactivated all phages of $P1{\alpha}$ subtype and only phage ${\phi}HK16$ among $P1{\beta}$ subtype phages. Antibody $Ab{\phi}HK23$ of $P1{\gamma}$ subtype neutralized all phages of $P1{\beta}$ subtype as well as the phage ${\phi}HK23$, showing the widest phage-inactivation range. When the structural-similarity studies of phages were investigated by using phage antibodies, closeness obtained by phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA genes of pathogenic strains were quite different from that of polyclonal antibody-specific structural similarity of phage capsid proteins. In conclusion, there is weak correlation between the host strain specificity of bacteriophage and its capsid structural similarity measured by phage antibodies.

• Journal of Sericultural and Entomological Science
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• v.44 no.2
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• pp.64-68
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• 2002

The antibacterial protein gene, nuecin was expressed in Sf9 cells using baculovirus expression vector system (BEVS). The antibactetial activity of mature nuecin against Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum, Ralstonia solanacearum and Pseudomonas tolaasii was significantly high, demonstrating that nuecin had a wider antibacterial spectrum on gram negative and positive bacteria. The result appears to be superior to other antibacterial peptide, attacin. The nuecin was purified by SP-sepharose and Mono Q HR ion-exchange chromatography, and then by Superdex 200 HR 10/30 column. The purified nuecin is quite stable at 80$\^{C}$ and 100$\^{C}$ for several hours of incubation and in a wide pH range (pH 2-12).