• BMB Reports
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.201-205
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• 2001

Thionins are a family of low molecular weight cysteine-rich antimicrobial peptides. We isolated a cDNA encoding thionin gene from a flower bud cDNA library of Chinese cabbage (CFT). The gene contains 611 by nucleotides with 60 bp, and 150 by untranslated regions at its N- and C-terminal, respectively. The deduced amino acid sequence encoded 133 amino acids containing precursor polypeptide. The protein reveals that the precursor has a tripartite structure: a putative signal sequence at the N-terminus, followed by a mature thionin peptide, and a C-terminal acidic domain, which facilitates transport of the mature thionin through membrane. Genomic Southern blot analysis suggests that the CFT gene may be present as a single or two copy gene in the Chinese cabbage genome. Northern blot analysis shows that the gene is specifically expressed in flowers, but not in leaves, stems, or roots. When we analyzed the antifungal activity of the recombinant CFT protein, which was expressed in E. coli using the truncated cDNA region corresponding to the mature protein part, it was not active on fungal growth inhibition.

• 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 the Korean Magnetic Resonance Society
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.141-151
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• 1998

Human annexin I is a member of annexin family of calcium dependent phospholipid binding proteins, which have been implicated in various physiological roles including phospholipase A2(PLA2) inhibition, membrane fusion and calcium channel activity. In this work, the structure of N-terminally truncated human annexin I ({{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I) and its interactions with Ca2+, ATP and cAMP were studied at atomic level by using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The effect of Ca2+ binding on the structure of {{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I was investigated. The addition of Ca2+ to {{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I caused some changes in 13C NMR spectra. Carbonyl carbon resonances of some histidines were significantly broadened by Ca2+ binding. However, in the case of methionine, phenylalanine, and tyrosin, small changes could be observed. We found that ATP and cAMP bind {{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I, and the binding ratio of ATP to {{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I is 1. These results are well consistent with the report that cAMP and ATP interact with annexin I, and affect the calcium channels formed by annexin I. Because {{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I is a large protein with 35 kDa molecular weight, site-specific (carbonyl-13C) labeling technique was used to study the interaction sites of {{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I with Ca2+. NMR study was focused on the carbonyl carbon resonances of tyrosine, phenylalanine, methionine and histidine residues of {{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I because the number of these amino acids is small in the amino acid sequence of {{{{ DELTA }}-annexin I.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.249-257
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• 2009

This study is conducted to partially purify an antioxidative peptide in a two-step gelatin hydrolysate from Alaska pollock surimi refiner discharge, which was obtained by sequential treatment with Pronase E and Flavourzyme. The two-step gelatin hydrolysate was fractionated using chromatographic methods. Based on the same protein concentration of each fraction, the antioxidative activities (85.1-95.4%) of positive fractions fractionated by ion-exchange chromatography were higher than those (27.2-87.8%) from gel filtration. Then, further purification of the positive fractions was performed. Among them, the partially purified A1C1L2G1 and A1C1L2G2 fractions showed 96.2% and 85.1% inhibition, respectively, of linoleic acid peroxidation. The A1C1L2G1 fraction was composed of 15 kinds of amino acids and the predominant amino acids were proline, glycine and alanine. The results obtained in this study suggested that the fraction partially purified through chromatographic methods from the two-step gelatin hydrolysate of Alaska pollock surimi refiner discharge could be useful as a supplementary source for improving health functionality.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.575-581
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• 2009

Ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) is a rate-limiting enzyme in the biosynthesis of polyamines, which are essential for cell growth, differentiation, and proliferation. This report presents the characterization of an ODC-encoding cDNA (SlitODC) isolated from a moth species, the tobacco cutworm, Spodoptera litura (Lepidoptera); its expression in a polyamine-deficient strain of yeast, S. cerevisiae; and the recovery in polyamine levels and proliferation rate with the introduction of the insect enzyme. SlitODC encodes 448 amino acid residues, 4 amino acids longer than B. mori ODC that has 71% identity, and has a longer C-terminus, consistent with B. mori ODC, than the reported dipteran enzymes. The null mutant yeast strain in the ODC gene, SPE1, showed remarkably depleted polyamine levels; in putrescine, spermidine, and spermine, the levels were > 7, > 1, and > 4%, respectively, of the levels in the wild-type strain. This consequently caused a significant arrest in cell proliferation of > 4% of the wild-type strain in polyamine-free media. The transformed strain, with the substituted SlitODC for the deleted endogenous ODC, grew and proliferated rapidly at even a higher rate than the wild-type strain. Furthermore, its polyamine content was significantly higher than even that in the wild-type strain as well as the spe1-null mutant, particularly with a very continuously enhanced putrescine level, reflecting no inhibition mechanism operating in the putrescine synthesis step by any corresponding insect ODC antizymes to SlitODC in this yeast system.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.14 no.12
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• pp.1769-1774
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• 2001

Bacillus licheniformis strains L-25 and PWD-1 are two thermophilic feather-degrading bacteria. Despite isolated from different environmental conditions, they were both capable of breaking down chicken feathers and growing in a medium in which feather was the only source of carbon and nitrogen. A 1.46-kb keratinase gene (ker B) was isolated from strain L-25 by a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using L-25 genomic DNA as templates. Sequencing results reveal that ker B shares great sequence identity with a previously published keratinase gene of B. licheniformis PWD-1 (ker A). Only two amino acids differences were found in the deduced amino acid sequence between the keratinases from L-25 and PWD-1. However several nucleotide changes were found upstream of the putative promoter region. Protease inhibition studies indicated that neutral protease activity accounted for approximate 25 to 30% of total extracellular proteolytic activity produced by strain L-25 in the feather medium. In contrast, no measurable neutral protease activity was produced by strain PWD-1 in the feather medium. When glucose (1%), a common catabolic repressor, was added into the feather medium, L-25 was still able to grow and produce keratinase. Strain PWD-1 produced no neutral protease activity and its growth was severely inhibited in the feather medium containing glucose. L-25 produced an enhanced level of keratinase in the feather medium in comparison with PWD-1.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.22 no.11
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• pp.1451-1455
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• 2012

The study was conducted to investigate the effect of Maillard reaction products (MRPs) on enzymatic browning of crown daisy (Chrysanthmum coronarium var. spatiosum). The MRPs prepared by heating various amino acid and sugar at $90^{\circ}C$ caused a strong inhibitory effect on crown daisy polyphenol oxidase (PPO, ${\sigma}$-diphenol oxygen oxidoreductase, EC 1.10.3.1). As the reaction time of the solution containing glycine and glucose increased at $90^{\circ}C$, the production of MRPs was increased, whereas the amounts of glycine and glucose were decreased. Accordingly, the inhibitory effect of crown daisy PPO activity by MRPs was increased as the amounts of synthesized MRPs were increased. The MRPs synthesized from the various amino acids and sugars significantly reduced the PPO activity, particularly MRPs prepared by glutamine and xylose. The Michealis-Menten constant value ($K_m$) of crown daisy PPO with catechol as a substrate was 22.0 mM, and MRPs were a noncompetitive inhibitor against crown daisy PPO.

• Journal of Photoscience
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.1-9
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• 2005

The ubiquitin E3 ligase COP1 (Constitutive Photomorphogenesis 1) is a protein repressor of photomorphogenesis in Arabidopsisplants, and it found in various organisms, including animals. The COP1 protein regulates the stability of many of the light-signaling components that are involved in photomorphogenesis and in the developmental processes. To study the effect of COP1 on flowering in a short day plant, we have cloned a full-length of PnCOP1 (Pharbitis nil COP1) cDNA from Pharbitis nil Choisy cv. Violet, and we examined its transcript levels under various conditions. A full-length PnCOP1 cDNA consists of 2,280 bp nucleotidesthat contain 47 bp of 5'-UTR, 232 bp of 3'-UTR including the poly (A) tail, and 1,998 bp of the coding sequence. The deduced amino acid sequence contains 666 amino acids, giving it a theoretical molecular weight of 75 kD and a isolectric point of 6.2. The PnCOP1 contains three distinct domains, an N-terminal $Zn^2+$-binding RING-finger domain, a coiled-coil structure, and WD40 repeats at the C-terminal, implying that the protein plays a role in protein-protein interactions. The PnCOP1 transcript was detected in the cotyledon, hypocotyls and leaves, but not in root. The levels of the PnCOP1 transcript were reduced in leaves that were a farther distance away from the cotyledons. The expression level of the PnCOP1 gene was inhibited by light, while the expression was increased in the dark. During the floral inductive 16 hour-dark period for Pharbitis nil, the expression was increased and it reached its maximum at the 12th hour of the dark period. The levels of PnCOP1 mRNA were dramatically reduced upon light illumination. These results suggest that PnCOP1 may play an important function in the floral induction of Pharbitis nil.

• The Korean Journal of Food And Nutrition
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.853-859
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• 2017

This study was conducted in an effort to investigate the effect of Maillard reaction products (MRPs) on enzymatic browning of burdock and their anti-oxidant activity. The MRPs were prepared by heating glucose and amino acids at $90^{\circ}C$, which served to produce a strong inhibitory effect on burdock polyphenol oxidase. As the reaction time of the solution containing glucose and amino acid increased at $90^{\circ}C$, the production of MRPs increased and intensity of the brown color deepened. When MRPs were prepared by heating at $90^{\circ}C$ for five hours, the absorbance of MRPs from glucose and lysine was 6.44, while those of glucose and glycine was 1.95. The MRPs synthesized from the glucose and lysine also reduced the pH of MRPs from 5.60 to 4.51, but those from glucose and glycine decreased slightly from 5.57 to 5.33. The Michealis-Menten constant value ($K_m$) of burdock PPO with pyrocatechol as a substrate was 16.0 mM, and MRPs were a non-competitive inhibitor against burdock PPO. The anti-oxidant activity of MRPs was measured by evaluating its radical scavenging activities of DPPH radicals, ABTS radicals and reducing power. The color intensity of MRPs produced by lysine and glucose were deeper than that produced by glucose and glycine. It was also found that MRPs produced from glucose and lysine exhibited stronger anti-oxidant properties than those produced by glucose and glycine.

• BMB Reports
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• v.55 no.4
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• pp.192-197
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• 2022

Cell signals for growth factors depend on the mechanical properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM) surrounding the cells. Microtubule acetylation is involved in the transforming growth factor (TGF)-β-induced myofibroblast differentiation in the soft ECM. However, the mechanism of activation of α-tubulin acetyltransferase 1 (α-TAT1), a major α-tubulin acetyltransferase, in the soft ECM is not well defined. Here, we found that casein kinase 2 (CK2) is required for the TGF-β-induced activation of α-TAT1 that promotes microtubule acetylation in the soft matrix. Genetic mutation and pharmacological inhibition of CK2 catalytic activity specifically reduced microtubule acetylation in the cells cultured on a soft matrix rather than those cultured on a stiff matrix. Immunoprecipitation analysis showed that CK2α, a catalytic subunit of CK2, directly bound to the C-terminal domain of α-TAT1, and this interaction was more prominent in the cells cultured on the soft matrix. Moreover, the substitution of alanine with serine, the 236th amino acid located at the C-terminus, which contains the CK2-binding site of α-TAT1, significantly abrogated the TGF-β-induced microtubule acetylation in the soft matrix, indicating that the successful binding of CK2 and the C-terminus of α-TAT1 led to the phosphorylation of serine at the 236th position of amino acids in α-TAT1 and regulation of its catalytic activity. Taken together, our findings provide novel insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying the TGF-β-induced activation of α-TAT1 in a soft matrix.