• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.62-73
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• 2004

Purpose: The herpes simplex virus type 1 thymidine kinase gene(HSV1-tk) is an attractive candidate as a reporter gene in noninvasive reporter gene monitoring system. The HSV1-tk gene was chosen as a reporter gene, because it has been extensively studied, and there are appropriate reporter probes, substrates of HSV1-tk gene product, to apply for HSV1-tk gene imaging. We used radiolabeled 5-iodovinyl-2'-deoxyuridine (IVDU) and 5-iodovinyl-2'-fluoro-2'-deoxyuridine (IVFRU) as reporter probes for HSV1-tk gene monitoring system. Materials and Methods: We prepared HSV1-tk gene transduced Morris hepatoma cell line using retroviral vector, MOLTEN containing HSV1-tk gene. And we confirmed the HSV1-tk gene expression by Northern blotting and Western blotting. We compared in vitro uptakes of radioiodinated IVDU and IVFRU to monitor HSV1-tk gene expression in Morris hepatoma cell line (MCA) and HSV1-tk gene tranduced MCA (MCA-tk) cells until 480 minutes. We also peformed correlation analysis between percentage of HSV1-tk gene tranduced MCA cell % (MCA-tk%) and uptakes of radiolabeled IVDU or IVFRU. Results: MCA-tk cell expressed HSV1-tk mRNA and HSV1-TK protein. Two compounds showed minimal uptake in MCA, but increased uptake was observed in MCA-tk. IVDU showed 4-fold higher accumulation than IVFRU at 480 min in MCA-tk (p<0.01). Both IVDU and IVFRU uptake were linearly correlated ($R^2>0.96$) with increasing MCA-tk%. Conclusion: The radiolabeld IVDU and IVFRU showed higher specific accumulation in retrovirally HSV1-tk gene transfected Morris hepatoma cell line. Both IVDU and IVFRU could be used as good substrates for evaluation of HSV1-tk gene expression.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.71-75
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• 1990

Yoghurt was prepared with Bifidobacterium longum TK-100 and Lactobacillus acidophilus TK-2070. The prepared yoghurt showed the increase of the titratable acidity under cold storage condition. This was derived from the active L. acidophilus TK-2070 on the logarithmic phase rather than from the B. longumn TK-2070. B. longum TK-100 grew well in the facultative anaerobic condition as well as in the strict anaerobic condition. Reinforced clostridial agar medium with 0.1% aniline blue was tried for the differential viable cell counts in the mixed culture and in the yoghurt. B. longurn TK-2070 had the light gray, blue-dotted colonies of about 2 mm diameter. L. acidophilus TK-2070 had the light gray colonies of about 1 mm diameter.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.235-245
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• 2008

Purpose: The HSV1-tk gene has been extensively studied as a type of reporter gene. In hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), only a small proportion of patients are eligible for surgical resection and there is limitation in palliative options. Therefore, there is a need for the development of new treatment modalities and gene therapy is a leading candidate. In the present study, we investigated the usefulness of substrate, 2'-fluoro-2'-deoxy-1-${\beta}$-D-arabino-furanosyi-5-[$^{124/125}I$]iodo- uracil ([$I^{124/125}I$]FIAU) as a non-invasive imaging agent for HSV1-tk gene therapy in hepatoma model using small animal PET. Material and Methods: With the Morris hepatoma MCA cell line and MCA-tk cell line which was transduced with the HSV1-tk gene, in vitro uptake and correlation study between [$^{125}I$]FIAU uptake according to increasing numeric count of percentage of MCA-tk cell were performed. The biodistribution data and small animal PET images with [$^{124}I$]FIAU were obtained with Balb/c-nude mice bearing both MCA and MCA-tk tumors. Results:, Specific accumulation of [[$^{125}I$]FIAU was observed in MCA-tk cells but uptake was low in MCA cells. Uptake in MCA-tk cells was 15 times higher than that of MCA cells at 480 min. [$^{125}I$]FIAU uptake was linearly correlated (R2 =0.964, p =0.01) with increasing percentage of MCA-tk numeric cell count. Biodistribution results showed that [$^{125}I$]FIAU was mainly excreted via the renal system in the early phase. Ratios of MCA-tk tumor to blood acting were 10, 41, and 641 at 1 h, 4 h, and 24 h post-injection, respectively. The maximum ratio of MCA-tk to MCA tumor was 192.7 at 24 h. Ratios of MCA-tk tumor to liver were 13.8, 66.8, and 588.3 at 1 h, 4 h, and 24 h, respectively. On small animal PET, [$^{124}I$]FIAU accumulated in substantial higher levels in MCA-tk tumor and liver than MCA tumor. Conclusion: FIAU shows selective accumulation to HSV1-tk expressing hepatoma cell tumors with minimal uptake in normal liver. Therefore, radiolabelled FIAU is expected to be a useful substrate for non-invasive imaging of HSV1-tk gene therapy and therapeutic response monitoring of HCC.

• Laboratory Medicine Online
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.25-30
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• 2016

Background: The cell cycle-dependent enzyme thymidine kinase 1 (TK1) is known to increase during cancer cell proliferation and has been reported as a prognostic marker for various hematologic malignancies and solid tumors. This study aimed to determine the reference interval in Korean healthy controls and to evaluate the usefulness of TK1 as a biomarker for aggressive clinical behavior in B-cell lymphoma patients. Methods: We enrolled 72 previously untreated patients with B-cell lymphoma and 143 healthy controls. Serum TK1 levels were measured by chemiluminescence immunoassay ($Liaison^{(R)}$, DiaSorin, USA). We established the reference intervals in healthy controls. The diagnostic performance of serum TK1 was studied using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, and the correlation between the cutoff level for serum TK1 and clinical characteristics of B-cell lymphoma was evaluated. Results: The reference range (95th percentile) of serum TK1 in healthy controls was 5.4-21.8 U/L. There was a clear difference in TK1 levels between patients with B-cell lymphoma and healthy controls ($40.6{\pm}68.5$ vs. $11.8{\pm}4.4U/L$, P <0.001). The area under the curve of serum TK1 for the diagnosis of B-cell lymphoma was 0.73 (cutoff, 15.2 U/L; sensitivity, 59.7%; specificity, 83.2%). An increased TK1 level (${\geq}15.2U/L$) correlated with the advanced clinical stage (P <0.001), bone marrow involvement (P =0.013), international prognostic index score (P =0.001), lactate dehydrogenase level (P =0.001), low Hb level (<12 g/dL) (P =0.028), and lymphocyte count (P =0.023). Conclusions: The serum TK1 level could serve as a useful biomarker for aggressive clinical behavior in B-cell lymphoma patients.

• Journal of Animal Environmental Science
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.111-116
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• 2005

The purpose of this study was to analyze the performance of vehicle disinfector nozzles using at the livestock farm. The nozzle of vehicle disinfectors was measured spraying rate and equality distribution ratio by pressures. The spraying rate of TK-I's nozzle was 1,605 ml/min at 3 MPa, TK-II's nozzle was 2,020 ml/min, JA's nozzle was 1,150 ml/min and IS's nozzle was 795 ml/min. The number of nozzles of TK-I's, TK-II's, JA's and IS's for reasonable spraying rate($25{\ell}/min$. at 3 MPa) was respectively 16, 13, 22 and 32 units. The equality distribution ratio of TK-I's nozzle by pressures was equalized and the nozzles of TK-II's, JA's and IS's was sprayed to the center or side more then other sides in the measured boxes.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.115-121
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• 1985

Five representative virulent phages (J1, TK93, K1, PD5, and CP1) and one temperate phage (.phi.1043) of Lactobacillus casei were compared to each other by analyzing the agarose gel electrophoretic patterns of restriction enzyme-digested phage DNAs. Nucleic acids of all the tested phages were double stranded DNA. DNAs of J1, TK93, K1, and ${\phi}$ 1043 phages had a size of about 42kb, but the size of PD5 and CP1 DNAs was avout 140kb. J1, TK93, K1, PD5, CP1, and ${\phi}$ 1043 DNAs were digested to 13, 13, 11, 14, 14, and 12 fragments by EcoR1, respectively, and showed its characteristec restriction patterns. Cohesive ends were present in J1, TK93, and ${\phi}$ 1043, but were absent in K1, PD5, and CP1. Restriction maps of J1 and TK93 DNAs showed nearly complete homology and their evolutionary relationship based upon the restriction analysis was discussed.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.234-241
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• 2001

The C-terminal 393 bp region of the human interleukin-16 (IL-16) gene was cloned and expressed in E. coli along with mammalian cell lines. Recombinant IL-16 expressed from E. coli was 22 kDa on SDS-PAGE and showed 260% of chemoattractant activity at a concentration of $0.1\;{\mu}g/ml$. HeLa, COS, and Neuro-2a cells were transduced by recombinant retrovirus vector pLNC/IL-16/IRES/TK and the intracellular and secreted amounts of IL-16 produced by HeLa/IL-16/TK, COS/IL-16/TK, and Neuro-2a/IL-16/TK cells were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). HeLa/IL-16/TK $(1{\times}10^5)$ and COS/IL-16/TK $(1{\times}10^5)$ cells secreted 36.1 and 13.3 ng of IL-16 for 48 h, respectively. Forty-nine ng and 86.4 ng of IL-16 remained in the cell lysates of HeLa/IL-16/TK and COS/IL-16/TK. Intracellular and secreted amounts of IL-16 from Neuro-2a/IL-16/TK $(5{\times}10^5)$ cells during 24 h cultivation were 50 ng and 3.3 ng, respectively. Also, HeLa and COS cells wee stably transfected with mammalian expression vector pCRIII/IL-16. Both culture media and cell lysates prepared from HeLa/IL-16 cells and COS/IL-16 cells showed chemoattractant activity ranging from 190% to 460% as compared to the control experiment. Expression of the herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSV0tk) gene in pLNC/IL-16/ IRES/TK bicistronic retroviral expression vector was verified by performing a genciclovir (GCV) sensitivity assay. Finally, IL-16 repressed Tat-transactivated human immunodeficiency virus type 1 long terminal repeat (HIV-1 LTR) promoter activity.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.30-35
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• 2006

Tissue-type plasminogen activator (t-PA) is a multidomain serine protease containing two kringle domains, TK1-2. Previously, Pichia-derived recombinant human TK1-2 has been reported as an angiogenesis inhibitor although t-PA plays an important role in endothelial and tumor cell invasion. In this work, in order to improve in vivo efficacy of TK1-2 through elimination of immune reactivity, we mutated wild type TK1-2 into non-glycosylated form (NE-TK1-2) and examined whether it retains anti-angiogenic activity. The plasmid expressing NE-TK1-2 was constructed by replacing $Asn^{l17}\;and\;Asn^{184}$ with glutamic acid residues. After expression in Pichia pastoris, the secreted protein was purified from the culture broth using S-sepharose and UNO S1-FPLC column. The mass spectrum of NE-TK1-2 showed closely neighboring two peaks, 19631.87 and 19,835.44 Da, and it migrated as one band in SDS-PAGE. The patterns of CD-spectra of these two proteins were almost identical. Functionally, purified NE-TK1-2 was shown to inhibit endothelial cell migration in response to bFGF stimulation at the almost same level as wild type TK1-2. Therefore, the results suggest that non-glycosylated NETK1-2 can be developed as an effective anti-angiogenic and anti-tumor agent devoid of immune reactivity.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.43 no.5
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• pp.468-477
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• 2009

Purpose: Hydrodynamic-based procedure is a simple and effective gene delivery method to lead a high gene expression in liver tissue. Non-invasive imaging reporter gene system has been used widely with herpes simplex virus type 1 thymidine kinase (HSV1-tk) and its various substrates. In the present study, we investigated to image the expression of HSV1-tk gene with 5-(2-iodovinyD-2'-deoxyuridine (IVDU) in mouse liver by the hydrodynamicbased procedure. Materials and Methods: HSV1-tk or enhanced green fluorescence protein (EGFP) encoded plasmid DNA was transferred into the mouse liver by hydrodynaminc injection. At 24 h post-injection, RT-PCR, biodistribution, fluorescence imaging, nuclear imaging and digital wholebody autoradiography (DWBA) were performed to confirm transferred gene expression. Results: In RT-PCR assay using mRNA from the mouse liver, specific bands of HSV1-tk and EGFP gene were observed in HSV1-tk and EGFP expressing plasmid injected mouse, respectively. Higher uptake of radiolabeled IVDU was exhibited in liver of HSV1-tk gene transferred mouse by biodistribution study. In fluorescence imaging, the liver showed specific fluorescence signal in EGFP gene transferred mouse. Gamma-camera image and DWBA results showed that radiolabeled IVDU was accumulated in the liver of HSV1-tk gene transferred mouse. Conclusion: In this study, hydrodynamic-based procedure was effective in liver-specific gene delivery and it could be quantified with molecular imaging methods. Therefore, co-expression of HSV1-tk reporter gene and target gene by hydrodynamic-based procedure is expected to be a useful method for the evaluation of the target gene expression level with radiolabeled IVDU.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.49 no.3
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• pp.298-309
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• 2000

Background : The antitumor effects of herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSV-tk) and ganciclovir (GCV) strategies for cancer gene therapy have a the following advantages : 1) a direct cytotoxicity to HSV-tk modified cancer cells by GCV 2) a cell death by the local transfer of toxic metabolites from the HSV-tk modified cells to nearby unmodified tumor cells (bystander effect), and 3) in vivo bystander effect such as antitumor-immunity. Retroviral and adenoviral sequences can silence transgene expression in cells and mice. In this study, we investigated the above described advantages of HSV-tk/GCV strategy in Lewis lung cell and mouse lung cancer model using retroviral vector and adenoviral vector. Also, we observed whether the expression of a silenced gene can be reactivated by treating cells with butyrate. Methods : Retrovirus-HSV-tk and adenovirus-HSV-tk vectors were used for the transduction of Lewis lung carcinoma (LLC) cells. The change of HSV-tk expression by butyrate was measured by Western blol The antitumor activities containing bystander effect were observed in vivo (by MTT assay) and in vivo tumor models of various combinations of LLC and LLC-tk. Results : 1. Butyrate induced the enhancement of HSV-tk expression from adenovirally transduced cells but not from retrovirally transduced cells. 2. Both retrovirus-HSV-tk and adenovirus-HSV-tk vectors with GCV treatment were effective for killing of tumor cell in vitro and suppression of LLC tumorigenicity. Bystander effect was responsible for killing of mixture of LLC-tk and LLC in vitro and in vivo-tumorigenicity model. Conclusion : Butyrate could augment adenovirus-mediated HSV -tk gene expression. Cancer gene therapy with HSV-tk suicide gene by retroviral and adenoviral vector seems to be an effective approach for lung cancer therapy.