• Korean Journal of Biological Psychiatry
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.14-22
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• 2008

Objectives : The authors purposed to present data for explaining gene-environmental interaction causing depressive disorder by examining the effects of genetic factors related to the serotonin system and environmental factors such as stressful life events in early adulthood. Methods : The subjects were 150 young adults(mean age 25.0${\pm}$0.54), a part of 534 freshmen who had completed the previous study of genotyping of TPH1 gene. We assessed characteristics of life events, depression and anxiety scale and checked if they had a depressive disorder with DSM-IV SCID interview. Along with TPH1 A218C genotype confirmed in previous study, TPH2 -1463G/A and 5HTR2A -1438A/G genes were genotyped using the SNaPshot$^{TM}$ method. Results : In comparison with the group without C allele of TPH1 gene, the number of life events had a significant effect on the probability of depressive disorder in the group with C allele. Other alleles or genotypes did not have a significant effect on the causality of life events and depressive disorder. Conclusion : The results of this study suggest that TPH1 C allele is a significant predictor of onset of depressive disorder following environmental stress. It means that the TPH1 gene may affect the gene-environmental interaction of depressive disorder.

• The Korean Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology
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• v.3 no.5
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• pp.501-505
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• 1999

Tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH), the rate-limiting enzyme in serotonin biosynthesis, is primarily expressed in serotonergic neurons of the raphe nuclei. Simple tandem repeat polymorphisms, typically one to four nucleotides long, are tandemly repeated several times and often characterized by many alleles. To identify the presence of polymorphic repeats, we sequenced the 5'-upstream region of the mouse TPH gene. For the detection of any allelic variants, polymerase chain reaction, nonisotopic single-strand conformation polymophism, and DNA sequencing analyses of the tandem repeat sequences were performed using genomic DNA extracted from 60 ICR mice. Two dinucleotide repeats, $5'-(AC/TG)_{22}-3'$ and $5'-(GT/CA)_{17}3',$ were identified at approximately - 5.7 kb and - 3.4 kb upstream from the transcriptional initiation site of the mouse TPH gene, respectively. Minor allelic variants, $5'-(AC/TG)_{21}-3'$ and $5'-(GT/CA)_{18}-3',$ were observed in heterozygous pairs from 3 of 60 and 1 of 60 ICR mice, respectively. The identification of these microsatellites in the mouse TPH promoter raises the possibility that identical and/or other polymorphic sequences might exist in the upstream region of the human TPH gene.

• Psychiatry investigation
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• v.15 no.12
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• pp.1174-1180
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• 2018

Objective Structural changes of brain areas have been reported in depressive disorder and suicidal behavior (SB), in which TPH1 also has been known as a promising candidate gene. We investigated gray matter volume (GMV) differences, TPH1 rs1800532 and rs1799913 polymorphisms previously found to be associated with depressive disorder and SB, and the relationship between the two markers. Methods Thirteen depressive disorder patients with suicidal attempts (SA) and twenty healthy controls were included. We examined GMV differences using a voxel-based morphometry and regions of interest analysis. Direct sequencing was used for genotyping. Results The patients showed significant GMV reduction in left cerebral region including middle frontal gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus, and anterior cingulate cortex; in right middle temporal gyrus; in left cerebellar tonsil; and in right cerebral region including precentral gyrus and postcentral gyrus (corrected p<0.005). The right precentral and postcentral gyri GMV values of AA and CA genotypes patients were significantly decreased compared to those of CC genotype subjects (corrected p=0.040). Conclusion These findings show the possibility that both GMV reductions and TPH1 rs1800532/rs1799913 A allele may be involved in the pathogenesis of depressive disorder patients with SA.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.47-51
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• 2015

Biocatalytic degradation of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs) in contaminated soil by hemoglobin and hydrogen peroxide is an effective soil remediation method. This study used a laboratory soil reactor experiment to evaluate the effectiveness of a nonspecific biocatalytic reaction with hemoglobin and H₂O₂ for treating TPH-contaminated soil. We also quantified changes in the soil microbial community using real-time PCR analysis during the experimental treatment. The results show that the measured rate constant for the reaction with added hemoglobin was 0.051/day, about 3.5 times higher than the constant for the reaction with only H₂O₂ (0.014/day). After four weeks of treatment, 76% of the initial soil TPH concentration was removed with hemoglobin and hydrogen peroxide treatment. The removal of initial soil TPH concentration was 26% when only hydrogen peroxide was used. The soil microbial community, based on 16S rRNA gene copy number, was higher (7.1 × 10⁶ copy number/g of bacteria, and 7.4 × 10⁵ copy number/g of Archaea, respectively) in the hemoglobin catalyzed treatment. Our results show that TPH treatment in contaminated soil using hemoglobin catalyzed oxidation led to the enhanced removal effectiveness and was non-toxic to the native soil microbial community in the initial soil.

• 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.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Soil and Groundwater Environment Conference
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• 2003.09a
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• pp.152-157
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• 2003

Diesel-contaminated soils were ozonated for different times (0 - 900 min) and incubated for 9 wk to monitor petroleum hydrocarbons (PH)-degradative potential of indigenous microorganisms in the soils. Increased ozonation time decreased not only concentration of PH but also number of microorganisms in the soils. Microorganisms in the ozonated soils increased during 9-wk incubation as monitored by culture- and nonculture-based methods. Higher (1-2 orders of magnitude) cell number was observed by quantitative analysis of soil DNA using probes detecting genes encoding 165 rRNA(rrn), naphthalene dioxygenase (nahA), toluene dioxygenase (todC), and alkane hydroxylase (alkB) than microbial abundance estimated by culture-based methods. Such PH-degraders were relatively a few or under detection limit in 900-min ozonated soil. Further PH-removal observed during the incubation period supported the presence of PH-degraders in ozonated soils. Highest reduction (25.4%) of total PH (TPH) was observed in 180-min ozonated soil white negligible reduction was shown in 900-min ozonated soil during the period, resulting in lowest TPH-concentration in 180-min ozonated soil among the ozonated soils. Microbial community composition in 9-wk incubated soils revealed slight difference between 900-min ozonated and unozonated soils as analyzed by whole cell hybridization using group-specific rRNA-targeted oligonucleotides. Results of this study suggest that appropriate ozonation and subsequent biodegradation by indigenous microorganisms may be a cost-effective and successful remediation strategy for PH-contaminated soils.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.23 no.11
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• pp.1325-1335
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• 2013

Working dogs, such as rescue dogs, military watch dogs, guide dogs, and search dogs, are selected by in-training examination of desired traits, including concentration, possessiveness, and boldness. In recent years, genetic information has been considered to be an important factor for the outstanding abilities of working dogs. To characterize the molecular features of the canine genes related to phenotypes for working dogs, we investigated the 24 previously reported genes (AR, BDNF, DAT, DBH, DGCR2, DRD4, MAOA, MAOB, SLC6A4, TH, TPH2, IFT88, KCNA3, TBR2, TRKB, ACE, GNB1, MSTN, PLCL1, SLC25A22, WFIKKN2, APOE, GRIN2B, and PIK3CG) that were categorized to personality, olfactory sense, and athletic/learning ability. We analyzed the chromosomal location, gene-gene interactions, Gene Ontology, and expression patterns of these genes using bioinformatic tools. In addition, variable numbers of tandem repeat (VNTR) or microsatellite (MS) polymorphism in the AR, MAOA, MAOB, TH, DAT, DBH, and DRD4 genes were reviewed. Taken together, we suggest that the genetic background of the canine genes associated with various working dog behaviors and skill performance attributes could be used for proper selection of superior working dogs.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.339-345
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• 2009

We evaluated the activity and abundance of the crude-oil-degrading bacterium Nocardia sp. H17-1 during bioremediation of oil-contaminated soil, using real-time PCR. The total petroleum hydrocarbon(TPH) degradation rate constants(k) of the soils treated with and without H17-1 were $0.103\;d^{-1}$ and $0.028\;d^{-1}$ respectively. The degradation rate constant was 3.6 times higher in the soil with H17-1 than in the soil without H17-1. In order to detect and quantify the Nocardia sp. H17-1 in soil samples, we quantified the genes encoding 16S ribosomal RNA(16S rRNA), alkane monooxygenase(alkB4), and catechol 2,3-dioxygenase(23CAT) with real-time PCR using SYBR green. The amounts of H17-1 16S rRNA and alkB4 detected increased rapidly up to 1,000-folds for the first 10 days, and then continued to increase only slightly or leveled off. However, the abundance of the 23CAT gene detected in H17-1-treated soil, where H17-1 had neither the 23CAT gene for the degradation of aromatic hydrocarbons nor the catechol 2,3-dioxygenase activity, did not differ significantly from that of the untreated soil($\alpha$=0.05,p>0.22). These results indicated that H17-1 is a potential candidate for the bioaugmentation of alkane-contaminated soil. Overall, we evaluated the abundance and metabolic activity of the bioremediation strain H17-1 using real-time PCR, independent of cultivation.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.67-73
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• 2007

The present study compared the microbial diversity and activity during the application of various bioremediation processes to crude oil-contaminated soil. Five different treatments, including natural attenuation (NA), biostimulation (BS), biosurfactant addition (BE), bioaugmentation (BA), and a combined treatment (CT) of biostimulation, biosurfactant addition, and bioaugmentation, were used to analyze the degradation rate and microbial communities. After 120 days, the level of remaining hydrocarbons after all the treatments was similar, however, the highest rate (k) of total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) degradation was observed with the CT treatment (P<0.05). The total bacterial counts increased during the first 2 weeks with all the treatments, and then remained stable. The bacterial communities and alkane monooxygenase gene fragment, alkB, were compared by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). The DGGE analyses of the BA and CT treatments, which included Nocardia sp. H17-1, revealed a simple dominant population structure, compared with the other treatments. The Shannon-Weaver diversity index (H') and Simpson dominance index (D), calculated from the DGGE profiles using 16S rDNA, showed considerable qualitative differences in the community structure before and after the bioremediation treatment as well as between treatment conditions.