• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.25-30
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• 1979

A bacterial strain which showed a remarkable tolerance against cadmium was isolated from waste water and identified as a member of Staphylococcus aureus. Heavy metal ions, at the concentration of 10 ppm and other than cadmium, inhibited at least by 30 per cent of turbidometric growth of the organism. The organism exhibited a normal pattern of growth with increasing concentration of cadmium up to 50 ppm. However, they were unable to grow in the concomitant presence of cadmium higher than 500 ppm. In spite of the drastic growth inhibition of cadmium, the organism was able to grow even in the concomitant presence of 500 ppm cadmium when it was previously cultivated for 15 hours with exposing to 10 ppm cadmium or lead.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.431-435
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• 2019

Chlorine dioxide is an effective chemical to inhibit the growth of bacteria and viruses or to disinfect infected areas. In this study, the effects of chlorine dioxide on several bacteria in hospitals were analyzed. Alloiococcus otitis, Kocuria rosea, Leuconostoc mesenteroides spp. and Staphylococcus lentus as gram-positive bacteria and Acinetobacter lwoffii, Aeromonas salmonicida, Brucella melitensis, Oligella ureolytica as gram-negative bacteria were done for the inhibitory analysis. The growth and morphology of the bacteria were analyzed by placing a plastic stick which was called "FarmeTok (medistick/Puristic)" provided by Purgofarm, co, Ltd. to release ClO₂ (13 ppmv/hr) next to the plate where the bacteria were incubated for 24 hours. Less than 10 bacterial colonies were evaluated as having 99% inhibitory effect. The initial bacterial culture concentration of 0.5 McFaland turbidity was good for analyzing the chlorine dioxide inhibitory effect. All bacteria could be easily counted post 24 hr co-incubation with ClO₂, but A. otitis and A. lwoffii without ClO₂ gas were not countable due to very dispersed colony types which were not affected for result analysis. As shown in this study, the FarmeTok plastic stick, which discharges chlorine dioxide at 13 ppmv / hour, was evaluated to be sufficient to suppress the above bacteria in the hospital. Bacteria existing in the clinic such as this hospital will be used as a data to inhibit the growth of bacteria by using ClO₂, and molecular biology analysis using the gene of bacteria will be possible in the future rather than inhibiting the growth of bacteria itself.

• Animal cells and systems
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.29-36
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• 2011

Insect lysozymes are basic, cationic proteins synthesized in fat body and hemocytes in response to bacterial infections and depolymerize the bacterial cell wall. The c-type lysozyme of the insect Spodoptera litura (SLLyz) is a single polypeptide chain of 121 residues with four disulfide bridges and 17 rare codons and is approximately 15 kDa. The full-length SLLyz cDNA is 1039 bp long with a poly(A) tail, and contains an open reading frame of 426 bp long (including the termination codon), flanked by a 54 bp long 5' UTR and a 559 bp long 3' UTR. As a host for the production of high-level recombinant proteins, E. coli is used most commonly because of its low cost and short generation time. However, the soluble expression of heterologous proteins in E. coli is not trivial, especially for disulfide-bonded proteins. In order to prevent inclusion body formation, GST was selected as a fusion partner to enhance the solubility of recombinant protein, and fused to the amplified products encoding mature SLLyz. The expression vector pGEX-4T-1/rSLLyz was then transformed into E. coli BL21(DE3)pLysS for soluble expression of rSLLyz, and the soluble fusion protein was purified successfully. Inhibition zone assay demonstrated that rSLLyz showed antibacterial activity against B. megaterium. These results demonstrate that the GST fusion expression system in E. coli described in this study is efficient and inexpensive in producing a disulfide-bonded rSLLyz in soluble, active form, and suggest that the insect lysozyme is an interesting system for future structural and functional studies.

• Preventive Nutrition and Food Science
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.23-29
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• 1996

This study was conducted to investigate the changes in chemical, microbial and sensory characteristics, and antimutagenicity of buchu(leek, Allium odorum) kimchi during fermentation at 15$^{\circ}C$. Reducing sugar contents and pH of buchu kimchi were decreased during the fermentation. The reduction rate of reducing sugar of glutinous rice paste and shrimp added buvhu kimchi(GSBK) was faster than those of control buchu kimchi(CBK) and glutious rice paste added bucku kimchi(GBK). Acidity increased rapidly until 4 days,a nd optimum acidity (0.6%) of bucku kimchi was reached within 2 day. Also total bacterial and lactic acid bacterial counts greatly increased after 4 days of the fermentation. The numbers of lactic acid bacteria after 8 day- fermentation in CBK and GSBK, and 10 day-fermentation in GBK were the highest values, 4.5$\times${TEX}$10^{8}${/TEX} CFU/ml, 4.8$\times${TEX}$10^{8}${/TEX} CFU/ml and 6.1$\times${TEX}$10^{8}${/TEX} CFU/ml, respectively. In the sensory evaluation, appearance of sample was good at 0 day, taste from overall quality of buchu kimchi were asquired the highest values at 6th day. The methanol extracts from buchu kimchi(GBK) showed antimutagenicity against aflatoxin {TEX}$B_{1}${/TEX}({TEX}$AFB_{1}${/TEX})in Salmonella typhimurium TA100. The inhibition ration were 58~69% with treatment of the 5% methanol extracts, and when the adding concentration increased the effect increased.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.222-230
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• 2019

Intestinal barrier dysfunction always accompanies cirrhosis in patients with advanced liver disease and is an important contributor facilitating bacterial translocation (BT), which has been involved in the pathogenesis of cirrhosis and its complications. Several studies have demonstrated the protective effect of Vitamin D on intestinal barrier function. However, severe cholestasis leads to vitamin D depletion. This study was designed to test whether vitamin D therapy improves intestinal dysfunction in cirrhosis. Rats were subcutaneously injected with 50% sterile $CCl_4$ (a mixture of pure $CCl_4$ and olive oil, 0.3 mL/100 g) twice a week for 6 weeks. Next, $1,25(OH)_2D_3$ ($0.5{\mu}g/100g$) and the vehicle were administered simultaneously with $CCl_4$ to compare the extent of intestinal histologic damage, tight junction protein expression, intestinal barrier function, BT, intestinal proliferation, apoptosis, and enterocyte turnover. Intestinal heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) expression and oxidative stress were also assessed. We found that vitamin D could maintain intestinal epithelial proliferation and turnover, inhibit intestinal epithelial apoptosis, alleviate structural damage, and prevent BT and intestinal barrier dysfunction. These were achieved partly through restoration of HO-1 and inhibition of oxidative stress. Taken together, our results suggest that vitamin D ameliorated intestinal epithelial turnover and improved the integrity and function of intestinal barrier in $CCl_4$-induced liver cirrhotic rats. HO-1 signaling activation was involved in these above beneficial effects.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.263-267
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• 2022

The aim of this study was to determine whether the antibacterial activity of chitosan-modified Fe₃O₄ (CS@Fe₃O₄) nanomaterials against Acinetobacter baumannii (A. baumannii) is mediated through changes in biofilm formation and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. For this purpose, the broth dilution method was used to examine the effect of CS@Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles on bacterial growth. The effects of CS@Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles on biofilm formation were measured using a semi-quantitative crystal violet staining assay. In addition, a bacterial ROS detection kit was used to detect the production of ROS in bacteria. The results showed that CS@Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles had a significant inhibitory effect on the colony growth and biofilm formation of drug-resistant A. baumannii (p < 0.05). The ROS stress assay revealed significantly higher ROS levels in A. baumannii subjected to CS@Fe₃O₄ nanoparticle treatment than the control group (p < 0.05). Thus, we demonstrated for the first time that CS@Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles had an inhibitory effect on A. baumannii in vitro, and that the antibacterial effect of CS@Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles on drug-resistant A. baumannii was more significant than on drug-sensitive bacteria. Our findings suggest that the antibacterial mechanism of CS@Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles is mediated through inhibition of biofilm formation in drug-resistant bacteria, as well as stimulation of A. baumannii to produce ROS. In summary, our data indicate that CS@Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles could be used to treat infections caused by drug-resistant A. baumannii.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.152-161
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• 2022

Several types of chemical bactericides have been used to control fire blight. However, their excessive usage leads to environmental deterioration. Therefore, several researchers have analyzed antagonistic microorganisms as promising, effective, and safe biological control agents (BCAs). The primary aim of this study was to screen for potential antagonistic bacteria that suppress Erwinia amylovora. Among the 45 isolates studied, 5 strains showed the largest inhibition zone against E. amylovora. 16S rRNA gene sequencing identified them as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens (KPB 15), B. stratosphericus (KPB 21), B. altitudinis (KPB 25), B. safensis (KPB 31), and B. subtilis (KPB 39). KPB 25 and 31 reduced the lesion size of fire blight by 50% in immature apple fruits, and did not show antagonism against each other. Therefore, KPB 25 and 31 were selected to develop an antagonistic mixture against fire blight. Although the mixture with KPB 25 and 31 showed a slightly increased ability to reduce lesion size on immature fruits, they did not exhibit a synergistic effect in reducing E. amylovora population compared to each strain alone. Nevertheless, we have identified these two strains as useful and novel BCAs against fire blight with additional benefits safety and potential in developing a mixture without loss of their activity, owing to the absence of antagonism against each other.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.38 no.5
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• pp.449-460
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• 2022

This study was performed to reveal phenotypic characters and identity of symbiont bacteria of Nasutitermes as well as investigate their potential as antagonist of plant pathogenic fungi. Isolation of the symbiont bacteria was carried out from inside the heads and the bodies of soldier and worker termite which were collected from 3 locations of nests. Identification was performed using phenotypic test and sequence of 16S ribosomal DNA (16S rDNA). Antagonistic capability was investigated in the laboratory against 3 phytopathogenic fungi i.e., Phytophthora capsici, Ganoderma boninense, and Rigidoporus microporus. Totally, 39 bacterial isolates were obtained from inside the heads and the bodies of Nasutitermes. All the isolates showed capability to inhibit growth of P. capsici, however, 34 isolates showed capability to inhibit growth of G. boninense and 32 isolates showed capability to inhibit growth of R. microporus. Two bacterial strains (IK3.1P and 1B1.2P) which showed the highest percentage of inhibition were further identified based on their sequence of 16S rDNA. The result showed that 1K3.1P strain was placed in the group of type strain and reference strains of Lysinibacillus fusiformis meanwhile 1B1.2P strain was grouped within type strain and reference strains Paenibacillus alvei. The result of this study supply valuable information on the role of symbiont bacteria of Nasutitermes, which may support the development of the control method of the three above-mentioned phytopathogenic fungi.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.7
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• pp.911-917
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• 2022

As valuable antibiotics, microbial natural products have been in use for decades in various fields. Among them are polyene compounds including nystatin, amphotericin, and nystatin-like Pseudonocardia polyenes (NPPs). Polyene macrolides are known to possess various biological effects, such as antifungal and antiviral activities. NPP A1, which is produced by Pseudonocardia autotrophica, contains a unique disaccharide moiety in the tetraene macrolide backbone. NPP B1, with a heptane structure and improved antifungal activity, was then developed via genetic manipulation of the NPP A1 biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC). Here, we generated a Streptomyces artificial chromosomal DNA library to isolate a large-sized NPP B1 BGC. The NPP B1 BGC was successfully isolated from P. autotrophica chromosome through the construction and screening of a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) library, even though the isolated 140-kb BAC clone (named pNPPB1s) lacked approximately 8 kb of the right-end portion of the NPP B1 BGC. The additional introduction of the pNPPB1s as well as co-expression of the 32-kb portion including the missing 8 kb led to a 7.3-fold increase in the production level of NPP B1 in P. autotrophica. The qRT-PCR confirmed that the transcription level of NPP B1 BGC was significantly increased in the P. autotrophica strain containing two copies of the NPP B1 BGCs. Interestingly, the NPP B1 exhibited a previously unidentified SARS-CoV-2 RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) inhibition activity in vitro. These results suggest that the Streptomyces BAC cloning of a large-sized, natural product BGC is a valuable approach for titer improvement and biological activity screening of natural products in actinomycetes.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.51 no.4
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• pp.416-424
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• 2023

Replacing synthetic additives to preserve food products with natural antimicrobial compounds needs to be considered due to public health. In the present study, the phenolic extract from mango seed kernel (MSK) with the total phenolic content (TPC) value of 5300 ± 380 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/L was used for evaluating the antimicrobial properties against five types of bacterial strains, including Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella typhimurium in vitro. This extract was also used for in situ method on the storage of Pangasianodon hypophthalmus fish fillets. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values for all tested strains were determined at an average concentration of 1325 mg GAE/L. Furthermore, the minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values of E. coli, S. aureus, and S. typhimurium were seen at 5300 mg GAE/L, while the extract did not show eliminations in the growth of the remaining strains. The bacterial inhibition speed of the extract illustrated that the concentration equal MIC value eliminated S. typhimurium growth after 24 h, the 4 times MIC value had remarkable effects on S. aureus growth after the 9 h of incubation, and 24 h of incubation for E. coli, L. monocytogenes, P. aeruginosa. Additionally, the MSK extract could inhibit the growth of P. aeruginosa on fish fillets in 4 days of storage. These results provide important evidence for the utilization of MSK as a natural source of antimicrobial agents in food products.