• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.104-114
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• 2021

Petroleum-contaminated soil is considered among the most important potential anthropogenic atmospheric methane sources. Additionally, various rhizoremediation factors can affect methane emissions by altering soil ecosystem carbon cycles. Nonetheless, greenhouse gas emissions from soil have not been given due importance as a potentially relevant parameter in rhizoremediation techniques. Therefore, in this study we sought to investigate the effects of different plant and soil amendments on both remediation efficiencies and methane emission characteristics in diesel-contaminated soil. An indoor pot experiment consisting of three plant treatments (control, maize, tall fescue) and two soil amendments (chemical nutrient, compost) was performed for 95 days. Total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) removal efficiency, dehydrogenase activity, and alkB (i.e., an alkane compound-degrading enzyme) gene abundance were the highest in the tall fescue and maize soil system amended with compost. Compost addition enhanced both the overall remediation efficiencies, as well as pmoA (i.e., a methane-oxidizing enzyme) gene abundance in soils. Moreover, the potential methane emission of diesel-contaminated soil was relatively low when maize was introduced to the soil system. After microbial community analysis, various TPH-degrading microorganisms (Nocardioides, Marinobacter, Immitisolibacter, Acinetobacter, Kocuria, Mycobacterium, Pseudomonas, Alcanivorax) and methane-oxidizing microorganisms (Methylocapsa, Methylosarcina) were observed in the rhizosphere soil. The effects of major rhizoremediation factors on soil remediation efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions discussed herein are expected to contribute to the development of sustainable biological remediation technologies in response to global climate change.

• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.87 no.1
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• pp.106-112
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• 1998

This study was conducted to figure out the relationships among soil chemical properties and bacterial biomass related to denitrification and sulfur-reducing and the activity of dehydrogenase, and ultimately to consider the usefulness of dehydrogenase activity as a tool for evaluating the dynamics of forest soil ecosystem. Four sites were selected for the collection of soil samples within two regions(Onsan industrial estate as a polluted region and Mt. Mani at Kanghwa island as a clean area) with two forest types (coniferous and deciduous stands). The soils of Mt. Mani showed higher amount of organic matter, total nitrogen and available phosphorus than those collected from Onsan industrial estate, which indicated that the soils were more beneficial for microbial growth than those of Onsan. The dehydrogenase activity was more sensitive than the denitrifying bacteria or sulfur-reducing bacteria since the activity was significantly different between the regions and season while the two bacterial biomass were not significantly different between the two regions. In addition, the dehydrogenase activity showed relatively high correlation coefficients with organic matter(r=0.53, p=0.004), total nitrogen(r=0.41, p=0.008) and C/Ava. P-ratio(r=-0.52, p=0.001), which was thought to be closely related with microbial activity. Thus, the dehydrogenase activity was thought to be a useful index of soil ecosystem dynamics with considering that the technique need to be applied with the same soil texture for the comparison of the activity as other researchers indicated.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.139-144
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• 1988

Examination of many microorganisms and soil isolated for the activity of aspartase proved that R, rubra, G, suboxydans, A. versicolor, P. purpurogenum, E. coli, Ps. aeruginosa, A. gigantus, A, unguis, A. parasiticus and a soil isolate (S-90) had high activity of aspartase. Comparison of the activity of the aspartase by cell free extracts of these microorganisms with the activity of the enzyme catalyzing the deamination of aspartame by the same cell free extracts showed similar kinetic characteristics. The aspartase existing in the cell free extracts seemed to catalyze the deamination of aspartame, too.

• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.57-60
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• 2000

$(R)-\beta-acetylmercaptoisobutyric$ acid (RAM), a chiral compound, is an important intermediate for the chemical synthesis of various antihypertensive and congestive heart failure drugs. Microorganisms capable of converting $(R,S)-\beta-acetylmercaptoisobutyric$ acid ((R,S)-ester) to RAM were screened from soil microorganisms. A strain of Pseudomonas sp. 1001 screened from a soil sample was selected to be the best. Cells showed an activity of 540 U/mL from culture broth and the enzyme was thermostable up to $70^{\circ}C$. This strain could produce RAM asymmetrically from (R,S)-ester.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.408-413
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• 2006

A strain, P821, with phospholipase D activity was isolated from soil and identified as a Streptomyces species. The phospholipase D enzyme was purified from a culture broth of the isolated strain using ammonium sulfate precipitation and DEAE-Sepharose, phenyl-Sepharose, and Superose 12 HR column chromatographies. The purified enzyme exhibited an optimum temperature and pH of $55^{\circ}C$ and 6.0, respectively, in the hydrolysis of phosphatidylcholine and remained stable up to $60^{\circ}C$ within a pH range of 3.5-8.0. The enzyme also catalyzed a transphosphatidylation reaction to produce phosphatidylserine with phosphatidylcholine and serine substrates. The optimum conditions for the transphosphatidylation were $30^{\circ}C$ and pH 5.0, indicating quite different optimum conditions for the hydrolysis and transphosphatidylation reactions. The gene encoding the enzyme was cloned by Southern hybridization and colony hybridization using a DNA probe designed from the conserved regions of other known phospholipase D enzymes. The resulting amino acid sequence was most similar to that of the PLD enzyme from Streptomyces halstedii (89.5%). Therefore, the enzyme was confirmed to be a phospholipase D with potential use in the production of phosphatidylserine.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society for Applied Microbiology Conference
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• 1979.04a
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• pp.113.2-114
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• 1979

$\beta-Galactosidase$ is an enzyme which catalizes hydrolysis of lactose, a natural substrate, to glucose and galctose and transferring some monosac-charide units to active acceptors as sugar or alcohol. The occurence of $\beta-Galactosidase$ is known in various microorganisms, animals and higher plants and has been studied by many investigatigators. Especially, a great deal of articles for the enzyme of E. coli have been presented in genetic control mechanism and induction-repression effects of proteins, On the other hand, in the dairly products industry, it is important to hydrolyes lactosd which is the principal sugar of milk and milk products. During the last few years, the interest in enzymatic hydrolysis of milk lactose has teen increased, because of the lactose intolerence in large groups of the population. Microbial $\beta-Galactosidases$ are considered potentially most suitable for processing milk to hydrolyse lactose and, in recent years, the immobilized enzyme from yeast has been examined. Howev, most of the microbial $\beta-Gal$ actosidase are intracellular enzymes, except a few fungal $\beta-Gala-$ ctosidases, and extracellular $\beta-Galactosidase$ which may be favorable to industrial applieation is not so well investigated. On this studies, a mold producing a potent extracellular $\beta-Galactosidase$ was isolated from soil and identified as an imperfect fungus, Beauveria bassians. In this strain, both extracellular and intracellular $\beta-Galactosidases$ were produced simultaneously and a great increase of the extracellular production was acheved by improving the cultural conditions. The extracellular enzyme was purified more than 1, 000 times by procedures including Phosphocellulose and Sephadex G-200 chromatographies. Several characteristics of the enzymewas clarified with this preparation. The enzyme has a main subunit of molecular weight of 80, 000 which makes an active aggregate. And at neutral pH range, it has optimum pH for activity and stability. The Km value was determined to be 0.45$\times$10$^{-3}$ M for $o-Nitrophenyl-\beta-Galactoside.$ In any event, it is interesting to sttudy the $\beta-Galactosidase$ of B. bassiana for the mechanism of secretion and conformational structure of enzyme.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.176-180
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• 2000

Microbial protease has been interesting due to the biological roles in the producing microorganism. A thermophilic Actinomyces produing protease was isolated from soil. The optimal medium composition and culture conditions for maximum protease production was as follows 0.5% soluble starch, 0.5% yeast extract. 0.1% K2HPO4, 0.05% CaCl2, initial pH 8.0 at 50$^{\circ}C$ for 48hours. The protease was purified by the procedure of ammonium sulfate precipitation, anion exchange chromatography(LC), DEAE high performance liquid chromatography and GPC HPLC. The purification fold of the purified enzyme was increased about 22.6. The optimal pH and temperature for reaction of the purified enzyme were 7.5 and 60$^{\circ}C$. The purified enzyme was stable for the pH range from 6.0 to 8.5, but was unstable when treated at 80$^{\circ}C$ for 10 minutes. The activity of the enzyme was inhibited by Ag+ and Cu2+.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.405-410
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• 1995

In order to screen dextranase with high dextranolytic activity from microbial origins, dextranase producing fungal isolates were isolated from soil of the Taeion area. 197 strains with dextranolytic activities were isolated, out of which 3 strains with high dextranolytic activities were selected in the first screening. A strain (GR-98) with a best dextranolytic activity was selected in the second screening. The strain was identified to be similiar Aspergillus ustus by the morphological and cultural characteristics. The optimum culture temperature and initial pH for the dextranase production of the strain was 30$\circ$C and 7.0, respectively. The optimum culture medium was composed of 2% dextran, 0.3% KNO$_{3}$, 0.05% K$_{2}$HPO$_{4}$, 0.02% MgSO$_{4}$-7H$_{2}$O, 0.05% KC1, and 2.5 $\mu$g/ml pyridoxamine, and the enzyme production was maximum when the strain was subcultured at 30$\circ$C for 7 days.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.84-90
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• 2011

It is imperative to study the hydrolysis of urea in high saline-sodic condition of a newly reclaimed tidal land in order to overcome the problems associated with use of urea fertilizer. The methodology adopted in this study tried to get a convenient way of estimating rate for N transformation needed in N fate and transport studies by reviewing pH and salt contents which can affect the microbial activity which is closely related to the rate of urea hydrolysis. The hydrolysis of urea over time follows first-order kinetics and soil urease activity in reclaimed soils will be represented by Michaelis-Menten-type kinetics. However, high pH and less microorganisms may delay the hydrolysis of urea due to decrease in urease activity with increasing pH. Therefore, the rate of urea hydrolysis should adopt $V_{max}$ referring enzyme activity ($E_0$) accounting for urease concentration which is indicative for urea hydrolysis, especially in a high saline and sodic soils.

• Advances in environmental research
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.97-108
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• 2012

Microbial degradation of hydrocarbons is found to be an attractive process for remediation of contaminated habitats. However the poor bioavailability of hydrocarbons results in low biodegradation rates. Cyclodextrins are known to increase the bioavailability of variety of hydrophobic compounds. In the present work we purified the Cyclodextrin Glucanotransferase (CGTase) enzyme which is responsible for converting starch into cyclodextrins and studied its role on biodegradation of diesel oil contaminated soil. Purification of CGTase from Enterobacter cloacae was done which resulted in 6 fold increase in enzyme activity. The enzyme showed maximum activity at pH 7, temperature $60^{\circ}C$ with a molecular weight of 66 kDa. Addition of purified CGTase to the treatment setup with Pseudomonas mendocina showed enhanced biodegradation of diesel oil ($57{\pm}1.37%$) which was similar to the treatment setup when added with Pseudomonas mendocina and Enterobacter cloacae ($52.7{\pm}6.51%$). The residual diesel oil found in treatment setup added with Pseudomonas mendocina at end of the study was found to be $73{\pm}0.21%$. Immobilization of Pseudomonas mendocina on alginate containing starch also led to enhanced biodegradation of hydrocarbons in diesel oil at 336 hours.