• 한국통신학회논문지
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• 제41권7호
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• pp.750-753
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• 2016

Quorum sensing (QS) is a bacterium-to-bacterium cell communication mechanism allowing bio-cell network construction but such mechanism is not well defined yet. We construct a QS-based multiple access network (MAN) and then numerically analyse its average uplink channel capacity as well as BER performance over diffusion-based 3-D molecular communication channels.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국생물공학회 2001년도 추계학술발표대회
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• pp.545-548
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• 2001

Microbiologically influenced corrosion (MIC) of metal is common in the natural environment and sulfate reducing bacteria are representative microorganisms for MIC. We found that biofilm fomlation by SRB on the metal surface might be controlled by quorum sensing, which is a cell density dependent regulation of cell metabolism. As cell free culture fluids (spent media) of Desulfovibrio vulgaris and D. desulfuricans were tested for quontrn sensing related test strains, it was found that spent media of two SRB induced increased luminescence of Vibrio harveyi BB886 (sensor 1+, sensor 2-) and BB170 (sensor 1-, sensor 2+). Quorum activities of D. vulgaris and D. desulfuricans appeared to be parallel to growth patterns, i.e., it was low in the lag phase, highly increased in the exponential phase, and reached maximum in the stationary phase. Interestingly, however, luminescence of V. harveyi BB886 and BB170 induced by a unit cell mass of the SHB showed a maximal peak in the late lag phase. Hence, it was suspected that quorum sensing of these two SHB play unknown roles in shifting cells from dormant to growth stages.

• 한국미생물학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국미생물학회 2009년도 International Meeting of the Microbiological Society of Korea
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• pp.101-101
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• 2009

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제18권9호
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• pp.1518-1521
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• 2008

Bacteria sense their population density and coordinate the expression of target genes, including virulence factors in Gram-negative bacteria, by the N-acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs)-dependent quorum sensing (QS) mechanism. In contrast, several soil bacteria are able to interfere with QS by enzymatic degradation of AHLs, referred to as quorum quenching. A potent AHL-degrading enzyme, AiiA, from Bacillus thuringiensis has been reported to effectively attenuate the virulence of bacteria by quorum quenching. However, little is known about the role of AiiA in B. thuringiensis itself. In the present study, an aiiA-defective mutant was generated to investigate the role of AHA in rhizosphere competence in the root system of pepper. The aiiA mutant showed no detectable AHL￢-egrading activity and was less effective for suppression of soft-rot symptom caused by Erwinia carotovora on the potato slice. On the pepper root, the survival rate of the aiiA mutant significantly decreased over time compared with that of wild type. Interestingly, viable cell count analysis revealed that the bacterial number and composition of E. carotovora were not different between treatments of wild type and the aiiA mutant. These results provide evidence that AHA can play an important role in rhizosphere competentce of B. thuringiensis and bacterial quorum quenching to Gram-negative bacteria without changing bacterial number or composition.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제18권2호
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• pp.206-212
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• 2008

인간이 서로 간의 의사소통을 위해 언어를 사용하듯이, 세균의 경우도 외부 환경 변화를 신속히 감지하여 서로 효과적으로 대응하기 위해서 주변 세포들과 소통할 수 있는 세균만의 독특한 화학적 언어를 사용하는 것으로 알려져 있다. 특히, 일정 세포 농도에 도달했을 때 자체적으로 생산된 화학적 신호를 통해 개체 수를 인지하고 그에 따라 특정 유전자의 발현을 동시에 조절하는 quorum sensing (QS) 기작은 다양한 세균 종들에서 광범위하게 존재한다. 본 연구는 다양한 천연물 추출물들을 대상으로 QS 저해 활성을 확인하였는데 QS 지시균주인 Agrobacterium tumefaciens NT1과 화학적으로 합성한 QS autoinducers을 사용한 bioassay를 수행하였다. 그 결과 양배추, 파, 양파의 추출물들에서 QS 저해 활성을 확인하였고, recycling preparative HPLC (prep-HPLC)를 통한 정제 과정을 통해, 83분 지점의 peak에 해당하는 성분들이 공통으로 QS 저해 활성을 가지고 있음을 확인하였다. 따라서 그 QS 저해 성분을 QSI-83으로 지정하고 thin layer chromatography (TLC)를 통해 P. syringae pv. tabaci의 autoinducers 합성을 저해하는 활성을 가지고 있음을 확인하였다. 또한 열에 대한 안정성과 세균 생장에서의 영향을 조사하였는데, 그 결과 QSI-83은 열에 안정하며 세균의 생장에는 영향을 끼치지 않는 물질임을 확인하였다. 따라서 우리는 천연물로부터 분리된 새로운 성분이 QS 저해제로서 이용될 수 있음을 제안한다.

• 한국미생물·생명공학회지
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• 제41권1호
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• pp.105-111
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• 2013

다기능 식물생장촉진근권세균(PGPR)인 P. fluorescens 2112 균주가 고추의 생물방제와 성장촉진에 긍정적인 영향을 주기 위해서는 생물막을 형성하여 근권에 정착하는 colonization이 필수조건이다. 따라서 근권정착능에 주요한 생물막 형성에 필요한 quorum sensing의 신호분자인 AHLs의 생산 유무를 조사한 결과, petri dish bioassay에서 AHLs를 생산하여 푸른색환을 형성하는 것을 확인할 수 있었으며 아울러 P. fluorescens 2112 균주의 생장곡선에서 대수증식기 중반에서 정체기 초반에 가장 많은 AHLs를 생산함을 확인하였다. 또한 탄소길이가 6개인 AHLs를 생산한다는 사실을 TLC bioassay를 통해 확인하였다. 그리고 고추의 뿌리 및 근권토양에서의 정착밀도를 Double layer filter paper와 Ahmad와 Baker 법으로 분석하여 확인하였다. 그 결과, 뿌리 상단과 말단에서 각각 $3{\times}10^5$ CFU/g root와 $8{\times}10^3$ CFU/g root로 확인되었으며, 근권토양에서 균주는 표면으로부터 가까운 1 cm 깊이에서는 $3.5{\times}10^6$ CFU/g soil의 높은 밀도로 존재하였으나, 먼 5 cm 깊이의 근권토양에서는 $1.1{\times}10$ CFU/g soil의 낮은 밀도로 존재하였다. 그리고 주사전자현미경을 통해 고추 뿌리의 표피 및 말단에서 처리한 균주가 생물막 형태의 군집을 형성하는 것을 확인하였다. 결과적으로 P. fluorescens 2112 균주가 AHLs를 생산하여 quorum sensing이 이루어졌으며, 이로 인해 고추의 뿌리에 생물막과 유사한 군집을 형성하여 고밀도로 colonization이 일어났을 것으로 생각된다. 따라서 P. fluorescens 2112 균주의 특징인 다양한 항진균 물질과 auxin을 생산함과 동시에 colonization을 통해 고추의 생육촉진이나 생물방제에 긍정적인 효과를 줄 수 있을 것이다.

• 한국축산식품학회지
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• 제26권3호
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• pp.402-409
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• 2006

Although microorganisms are, in fact, the most diverse and abundant type of organism on Earth, the ecological functions of microbial populations remains poorly understood. A variety of bacteria including marine Vibrios encounter numerous ecological challenges, such as UV light, predation, competition, and seasonal variations in seawater including pH, salinity, nutrient levels, temperature and so forth. In order to survive and proliferate under variable conditions, they have to develop elaborate means of communication to meet the challenges to which they are exposed. In bacteria, a range of biological functions have recently been found to be regulated by a population density-dependent cell-cell signaling mechanism known as quorum-sensing (QS). In other words, bacterial cells sense population density by monitoring the presence of self-produced extracellular autoinducers (AI). N-acylhomoserine lactone (AHL)-dependent quorum-sensing was first discovered in two luminescent marine bacteria, Vibrio fischeri and Vibrio harveyi. The LuxI/R system of V. fischeriis the paradigm of Gram-negative quorum-sensing systems. At high population density, the accumulated signalstrigger the expression of target genes and thereby initiate a new set of biological activities. Several QS systems have been identified so far. Among them, an AHL-dependent QS system has been found to control biofilm formation in several bacterial species, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Aeromonas hydrophila, Burkholderia cepacia, and Serratia liquefaciens. Bacterial biofilm is a structured community of bacterial cells enclosed in a self-produced polymeric matrix that adheres to an inert or living surface. Extracellular signal molecules have been implicated in biofilm formation. Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain NT1(traR, tra::lacZ749) and Chromobacterium violaceum strain CV026 are used as biosensors to detect AHL signals. Quorum sensing in lactic acid bacteria involves peptides that are directly sensed by membrane-located histidine kinases, after which the signal is transmitted to an intracellular regulator. In the nisin autoregulation process in Lactococcus lactis, the NisK protein acts as the sensor for nisin, and NisR protein as the response regulator activatingthe transcription of target genes. For control over growth and survival in bacterial communities, various strategies need to be developed by which receptors of the signal molecules are interfered with or the synthesis and release of the molecules is controlled. However, much is still unknown about the metabolic processes involved in such signal transduction and whether or not various foods and food ingredients may affect communication between spoilage or pathogenic bacteria. In five to ten years, we will be able to discover new signal molecules, some of which may have applications in food preservation to inhibit the growth of pathogens on foods.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• 제10권4호
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• pp.322-328
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• 2005

Acylhomoserine lactones (AHLs) are known to be the triggering molecules in the quorum sensing mechanism of many gram-negative bacteria. In order to detect AHL inhibitors that are potential biofilm inhibitors, a convenient and sensitive bioassay was developed based on the $\beta$-galactosidase activity ($\beta$-GAL) of a recombinant Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain. A series of commercially available AHLs were tested for inducing $\beta$-GAL at varying concentrations in agar-plate and liquid cultures of the reporter strain. All AHLs tested exhibited a concentration­dependent induction, and octanoyl homoserine lactone (OHL) showed the highest sensitivity with a detection limit of 0.1 nM in the liquid culture assay. When fimbrolide, a known quorum sensing inhibitor, was added, induction of $\beta$-GAL by OHL was repressed. The repression at a constant OHL concentration was dependent on the fimbrolide concentration with the detection limit below 1 ppm, indicating that this assay is a sensitive method for screening AHL inhibitors.

• Membrane and Water Treatment
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• 제6권3호
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• pp.189-203
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• 2015

Membrane biofouling impedes wide application of membrane bioreactor (MBR) for wastewater treatment. Recently, quorum sensing (QS) mechanisms are accounted for one of major mechanisms in biofouling of MBRs. In this study, vanillin was applied to investigate reduction of biofouling in MBRs. MBR sludge was analyzed to contain QS signal molecules by cross-feeding biosensor assay and HPLC. In addition, the inhibitory activity of vanillin against bacterial quorum sensing was verified using an indicator strain CV026. The vanillin doses greater than 125 mg/L to 100 mL of MBR sludge showed 25% reduction of biofilm formed on the membrane surfaces. Two MBRs, i.e., a typical MBR as a control and an MBR with vanillin, were operated. The TMP increases of the control MBR were more rapid compared to those of the MBR with the vanillin dose of 250 mg/L. The treatment efficiencies of the two MBRs on organic removal and MLSS were maintained relatively constant. Extracellular polymeric substance concentrations measured at the end of the MBR operation were 173 mg/g biocake for the control MBR and 119 mg/g biocake for the MBR with vanillin. Vanillin shows great potential as an anti-biofouling agent for MBRs without any interference on microbial activity for wastewater treatment.

• 한국해양바이오학회지
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• 제1권4호
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• pp.260-267
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• 2006

재조합 Agrobacterium tumefaciens균주를 사용한 Liquid Culture Assay는 quorum sensing autoinducer를 검색하는 생물학적 분석 방법으로 개발되었다. 그러나 이 시스템에 사용되는 해양천연물 시료들이 일반적으로 낮은 수용액에 대한 용해도를 갖기 때문에 활성검색에 걸림돌이 되고 있다. 시료의 용해도는 유기용매 혹은 계면활성제의 첨가로 증가될 수 있으나, 유기용매나 계면활성제 자체가 검색결과의 정확한 해석을 방해할 수 있으므로 적절한 조건의 확립이 매우 중요하다. Methanol, ethanol, 1-propanol, DMSO와 DMF를 0~10% 농도 범위에서 재조합 A. tumefaciens균주에 대한 세포 성장에 미치는 영향과 ${\beta}$-galactosidase activity에 미치는 영향을 살펴본 결과 methanol 2%이하의 농도가 가장 적합하였으며, 계면활성제의 경우, Tween 20, Tween 80보다는 Triton X-100이 약 0.05% 농도에서 세포내로의 활성물질의 전달효율을 높이는데 효과적이었다.