• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.522-528
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• 2000

A total of about 300 fungal isolates from forest havitats were screened for inhibitors of tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) infection using its local lesion host, Nicotiana tabacum cv. Xanthi nc. Ine of the isolates, 14T, showed a strong activity against TMV infection, and was identified as an Apiocrea sp. based on its morphological characterstics. Rice was an optimum culture medium for its fermentation, and two antiviral compounds, KGT 141 and KGT 142, were resolved from the rice culture through column chromatography, TLC, and HPLC. By NMR and FAB-MS, the two compounds were identified as chrysospermins B (KGT 141) and D (KGT 142), both of which are peptaibols with 19-mer amino acids possessing an acetylated N-terminus and a hydroxy-amino acid (tryptophanol) at the C-terminus. Both compounds showed inhibitory activities against TMV infection, but chrysospermin D showed the stronger activity than chrysospermin B. The former of $100{\;}\mu\textrm{g}/ml$ and 54.7% at $10{\;}\mu\textrm{g}/ml$, respectively. Furthermore, the chrysospermins were highly cytotoxic toward cancer cell lines of PC-3 (prostrate) and K562 (leukemia), and inhibited growth of the Gram-positive bacteria tested, especially the plant pathogenic bacterium Corynebacterium lilium. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the inhibition of plant virus infection by antimicrobial peptaibols.

• Journal of Food Hygiene and Safety
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.103-108
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• 2015

Weissella spp. from traditional Korean foods of Kimchi were isolated and characterized against food-borne pathogenic Listeria monocytogens. The isolates were identified as W. cibaria 0D17 and W. confusa 0D23 from Kimchi by the biochemical characteristics and 16S DNA sequencing. The culture solutions of the isolates adjusted to pH 7.0 showed L. monocytogens inhibition. To analyze the quantitative detection of L. monocytogenes, real-time PCR was performed according to the SYBR Green I method. The isolates grew well and L. monocytogens did not grow during the co-culture with those strains at $37^{\circ}C$. Therefore, W. cibaria 0D17 and W. confusa 0D23 might be the candidates as the functional lactic acid bacteria for improving food safety.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.593-598
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• 2015

This study determined the thermal resistance of Bacillus cereus, Escherichia coli O157:H7, and Listeria monocytogenes in multi-grain soymilk and proposes processing conditions that meet the national standard for retort food products in Korea. D and z values were calculated from thermal inactivation kinetic curves after heating at 55, 60, and $65^{\circ}C$. The D value for B. cereus at $55^{\circ}C$ was the highest (22.8 min), followed by that for E. coli O157:H7 (18.8 min) and L. monocytogenes (17.6 min). At $60-65^{\circ}C$, the order was L. monocytogenes ($D_{60-65^{\circ}C}=3.4-0.9min$), E. coli O157:H7 (3.0-0.3 min), and B. cereus (1.2-0.3 min). The z values for these species were 5.2, 5.5, and $7.7^{\circ}C$, respectively. The Korean national standard for retort food products was achieved by thermal processing at $124{\pm}2^{\circ}C$ for 0.3-2.2 min. This study provides useful data for ensuring both the microbiological safety and product quality of multi-grain soymilk products.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.1073-1079
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• 2005

To investigate plant protection, pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins and plant defense enzymes related to cell wall lignification were studied in pepper plants inoculated with antagonistic Bacillus subtilis HJ927 and pathogenic strain Phytophthora capsici. Phytophthora blight disease was reduced by $53\%$ in pepper roots when preinoculated with B. subtilis HJ927 against P. capsici. The activities of PR proteins (chitinase and ${\beta}$-1,3,-glucanase) and defense-related enzymes (peroxidase, polyphenoloxidase, and phenylalanine ammonia lyase) decreased in roots of B. subtilis+P capsid-treated plants, but increased in leaves with time. The decrease and increase were much greater in P. capsici-treated plants than in B. subtilis HJ927+P capsici-treated plants, although P. capsici-treated plants had more severe damage. Therefore, changes of enzyme activities do not seem to be directly related to plant protection. We suggest that the change of these enzymes in pathogen-treated plants may be related to plant response rather than to resistance against pathogen attacks.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.9
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• pp.1269-1279
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• 2014

Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) strains are plant pathogenic bacteria that can cause serious blight of rice, and their virulence towards plant host is complex, making it difficult to be elucidated. Caenorhabditis elegans has been used as a powerful model organism to simplify the host and pathogen system. However, whether the C. elegans is feasible for studying plant pathogens such as Xoo has not been explored. In the present work, we report that Xoo strains PXO99 and JXOIII reduce the lifespan of worms not through acute toxicity, but in an infectious manner; pathogens proliferate and persist in the intestinal lumen to cause marked anterior intestine distension. In addition, Xoo triggers (i) the p38 MAPK signal pathway to upregulate its downstream C17H12.8 expression, and (ii) the DAF-2/DAF-16 pathway to upregulate its downstream gene expressions of mtl-1 and sod-3 under the condition of daf-2 mutation. Our findings suggest that C. elegans can be used as a model to evaluate the virulence of Xoo phytopathogens to host.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.30 no.7
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• pp.974-981
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• 2020

Sequence type 410 (ST410) of Escherichia coli is an extraintestinal pathogen associated with multi drug resistance. In this study, we aimed to investigate the horizontal propagation pathway of a high-risk clone of E. coli ST410 that produces Klebsiella pneumoniae carbapenemase (KPC). blaKPC-encoding E. coli and K. pneumoniae isolates were evaluated, and complete sequencing and comparative analysis of blaKPC-encoding plasmids from E. coli and K. pneumoniae, antimicrobial susceptibility tests, polymerase chain reaction, multilocus sequence typing, and conjugal transfer of plasmids were performed. Whole-genome sequencing was performed for plasmids mediating KPC-2 production in E. coli and K. pneumoniae clinical isolates. Strains E. coli CPEc171209 and K. pneumoniae CPKp171210 were identified as ST410 and ST307, respectively. CPEc171209 harbored five plasmids belonging to serotype O8:H21, which is in the antimicrobial-resistant clade C4/H24. The CPKp171210 isolate harbored three plasmids. Both strains harbored various additional antimicrobial resistance genes. The IncX3 plasmid pECBHS_9_5 harbored blaKPC-2 within a truncated Tn4401a transposon, which also contains blaSHV-182 with duplicated conjugative elements. This plasmid displayed 100% identity with the IncX3 plasmid pKPBHS_10_3 from the K. pneumoniae CPKp171210 ST307 strain. The genes responsible for the conjugal transfer of the IncX3 plasmid included tra/trb clusters and pil genes coding the type IV pilus. ST410 can be transmitted between patients, posing an elevated risk in clinical settings. The emergence of a KPC-producing E. coli strain (ST410) is concerning because the blaKPC-2-bearing plasmids may carry treatment resistance across species barriers. Transgenic translocation occurs among carbapenem-resistant bacteria, which may spread rapidly via horizontal migration.

• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.343-349
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• 2015

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Fermentation of dietary fiber results in production of various short chain fatty acids in the colon. In particular, butyrate is reported to regulate the physical and functional integrity of the normal colonic mucosa by altering mucin gene expression or the number of goblet cells. The objective of this study was to investigate whether butyrate modulates mucin secretion in LS174T human colorectal cells, thereby influencing the adhesion of probiotics such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium strains and subsequently inhibiting pathogenic bacteria such as E. coli. In addition, possible signaling pathways involved in mucin gene regulation induced by butyrate treatment were also investigated. MATERIALS/METHODS: Mucin protein content assay and periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) staining were performed in LS174T cells treated with butyrate at various concentrations. Effects of butyrate on the ability of probiotics to adhere to LS174T cells and their competition with E. coli strains were examined. Real time polymerase chain reaction for mucin gene expression and Taqman array 96-well fast plate-based pathway analysis were performed on butyrate-treated LS174T cells. RESULTS: Treatment with butyrate resulted in a dose-dependent increase in mucin protein contents in LS174T cells with peak effects at 6 or 9 mM, which was further confirmed by PAS staining. Increase in mucin protein contents resulted in elevated adherence of probiotics, which subsequently reduced the adherent ability of E. coli. Treatment with butyrate also increased transcriptional levels of MUC3, MUC4, and MUC12, which was accompanied by higher gene expressions of signaling kinases and transcription factors involved in mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways. CONCLUSIONS: Based on our results, butyrate is an effective regulator of modulation of mucin protein production at the transcriptional and translational levels, resulting in changes in the adherence of gut microflora. Butyrate potentially stimulates the MAPK signaling pathway in intestinal cells, which is positively correlated with gut defense.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.47 no.1
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• pp.18-22
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• 2014

The antibacterial activities of methanol extracts of 19 commercial herbal medicines were measured against the fish pathogens Vibrio ichthyoenteri and Streptococcus iniae, which cause several fish diseases. Rhus javanica showed the strongest antibacterial activity against V. ichthyoenteri and S. iniae. The methanol extract of R. javanica was extracted further using several organic solvents with different polarities. The extract from the ethyl acetate fraction showed strong activity against both fish pathogens. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the R. javanica extract was $32{\mu}g/mL$ for V. ichthyoenteri and $128{\mu}g/mL$ for S. iniae. Further purification and isolation of the active compound (s) responsible for these activities and further study of the synergistic effect using combinations of antibiotics against pathogenic bacteria are needed.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.603-610
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• 2014

We investigated a nematode infection in the epithelial tissue of rockfish Sebastes schlegeli cultured in Cheonsu Bay, western Korea, from May 2013 to April 2014. Nematodes infected the epithelial tissues of various external organs, including the fins, operculum, nares, mouth, and head. Over a 1-year period, the overall nematode infection rate in rockfish was 55% (n=89/163): 56.7% (n=17/30) in May 2013, 88% (n=29/33) in August 2013, 0% (n=0/30) in October 2013, 70% (n=21/30) in January 2014, and 55% (n=22/40) in April 2014. During this study, the only mass mortality of cultured rockfish in Cheonsu Bay was in August 2013, when we identified skin wounds on the rockfish caused by the nematodes escaping from their hosts. During this period, the accumulated mortality for 2 weeks was 1.4-22.4% in different farms. In addition, several pathogenic bacteria (Photobacterium damselae, Vibrio spp., and Streptococcus iniae) were isolated from the moribund rockfish; these were thought to be transmitted through the skin wounds caused by the nematodes.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.243-249
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• 2017

Crabs are a popular seafood item. However, they can harbor many microorganisms, heavy metals, radioactivity, and benzo(a)pyrene, which are potential health risks to humans. The objective of this study was to assess the potential of swimming crabs for use in foods such as Ganjang-gejang, by measuring their sanitary biological and chemical properties. Viable microbial cell counts in swimming crab samples were $3.4{\times}10^2-6.7{\times}10^4CFU/g$, but no coliform, Escherichia coli, or pathogenic bacteria, such as Vibrio parahaemolyticus, Enterohemorrhagic E. coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Staphylococcus aureus, or Salmonella spp., were detected. Heavy metal concentrations in swimming crab samples were non-detectable to 0.112 mg/kg for total mercury, non-detectable to 0.435 mg/kg for lead, and 0.115-0.836 mg/kg for cadmium. Benzo(a)pyrene concentrations ranged from $0.025-0.060{\mu}g/kg$, and the volatile basic nitrogen content ranged from 8.7-15.6 mg/100 g. No radioactivity was detected in samples. These results suggest that swimming crabs are viable for use in seafood products.