• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.31 no.8
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• pp.2315-2321
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• 2010

Twenty spirodiclofen analogues have been designed and conveniently synthesized via three steps including esterification, one-pot heterocyclization, and acylation reactions. The target molecules have been identified on the basis of analytical spectra ($^1H$ NMR, $^{13}C$ NMR and ESI-MS) data. All newly synthesized compounds have been screened for their potential insecticidal and herbicidal activity by standard method. The preliminary assays indicated that some of analogues displayed moderate to good insecticidal activity against Plutella xylostella compared with spirodiclofen, and some compounds showed obvious activity against Brassica chinensis. Structure-activity relationship (SAR) is also discussed based on the experimental data.

• BMB Reports
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• v.43 no.9
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• pp.614-621
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• 2010

Propamidine, an aromatic diamidine compound, is widely used as an antimicrobial agent. To uncover its mechanism on pathogenetic fungi, Botrytis cinerea as an object was used to investigate effects of propamidine in this paper. The transmission electron microscope results showed that the mitochondrial membranes were collapsed after propamidine treatment, followed that mitochondria were disrupted. Inhibition of whole-cell and mitochondrial respiration by propamidine suggested that Propamidine is most likely an inhibitor of electron transport within Botrytis cinerea mitochondria. Furthermore, the mitochondrial complex III activity were inhibited by propamidine.

• The Korean Journal of Pesticide Science
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.197-202
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• 2016

The stabilities of bioactive compounds in cinnamon or derris extract were investigated in commercial agricultural organic materials (biopesticide) during storage on different temperature conditions ($0^{\circ}C$, $23^{\circ}C$, $35^{\circ}C$, $45^{\circ}C$, and $54^{\circ}C$). The selected bioactive compounds were cinnamaldehyde, and cinnamyl alchol in cinnamon extract and deguelin, and rotenone in derris extract. Half-lives of the total cinnamyl derivatives in biopesticide (A, B, C, and D) ranged from 15.1 to 46.2 days on the different temperature and cinnamaldehyde was more stable than cinnamyl alcohol in the biopesticide. The half-lives of total rotenoid ranged from 1.7 to 173 days on the different temperature in the tested biopesticide (E, F, and G) containing derris extract. The stabilities of deguelin, and rotenon in the biopesticide showed similar values in the same condition.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.10
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• pp.1774-1780
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• 2016

Vegetative insecticidal proteins (Vips) are insecticidal proteins synthesized by Bacillus thuringiensis during the vegetative stage of growth. In this study, Vip3Aa protein, obtained by in vitro expression of the vip3Aa gene from B. thuringiensis WB5, displayed high insecticidal activity against Spodoptera litura aside from Spodoptera exigua and Helicoverpa armigera. Bioassay results showed that the toxicity of Vip3Aa protein against S. litura larvae statistically decreased along with the increase of the age of the larvae, with LC₅₀ = 2.609 ng/cm² for neonatal larvae, LC₅₀ = 28.778 ng/cm² for first instar larvae, LC₅₀ = 70.460 ng/cm² for second instar larvae, and LC₅₀ = 200.627 ng/cm² for third instar larvae. The accumulative mortality of 100% larvae appeared at 72 h for all instars of S. litura larvae, when feeding respectively with 83.22, 213.04, 341.40, and 613.20 ng/cm² of Vip3Aa toxin to the neonatal and first to third instar larvae. The histopathological effects of Vip3Aa toxin on the midgut epithelial cells of S. litura larvae was also investigated. The TEM observations showed wide damage of the epithelial cell in the midgut of S. litura larvae fed with Vip3Aa toxin.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.92-100
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• 2017

Acetoin (AC) is a volatile platform compound with various potential industrial applications. AC contains two stereoisomeric forms: (3S)-AC and (3R)-AC. Optically pure AC is an important potential intermediate and widely used as a precursor to synthesize novel optically active materials. In this study, chiral (3R)-AC production from meso-2,3-butanediol (meso-2,3-BD) was obtained using recombinant Escherichia coli cells co-expressing meso-2,3-butanediol dehydrogenase (meso-2,3-BDH), NADH oxidase (NOX), and hemoglobin protein (VHB) from Serratia sp. T241, Lactobacillus brevis, and Vitreoscilla, respectively. The new biocatalyst of E. coli/pET-mbdh-nox-vgb was developed and the bioconversion conditions were optimized. Under the optimal conditions, 86.74 g/l of (3R)-AC with the productivity of 3.61 g/l/h and the stereoisomeric purity of 97.89% was achieved from 93.73 g/l meso-2,3-BD using the whole-cell biocatalyst. The yield and productivity were new records for (3R)-AC production. The results exhibit the industrial potential for (3R)-AC production via whole-cell biocatalysis.

• Mycobiology
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.435-443
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• 2015

Sixty-one endophytic fungus strains with different colony morphologies were isolated from the leaves, stems and roots of Tephrosia purpurea with colonization rates of 66.95%, 37.50%, and 26.92%, respectively. Based on internal transcribed spacer sequence analysis, 61 isolates were classified into 16 genera belonging to 3 classes under the phylum Ascomycota. Of the 61 isolates, 6 (9.84%) exhibited antifungal activity against one or more indicator plant pathogenic fungi according to the dual culture test. Isolate TPL25 had the broadest antifungal spectrum of activity, and isolate TPL35 was active against 5 plant pathogenic fungi. Furthermore, culture filtrates of TPL25 and TPL35 exhibited greater than 80% growth inhibition against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. We conclude that the endophytic fungal strains TPL25 and TPL35 are promising sources of bioactive compounds.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.8-15
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• 2016

To identify a novel biopesticide controlling rice blast disease caused by Magnaporthe oryzae, 700 plant extracts were evaluated for their inhibitory effects on mycelial growth of M. oryzae. The L. foenum-graecum Herba extract showed the lowest inhibition concentration ($IC_{50}$) of $39.28{\mu}g/ml$, which is lower than the $IC_{50}$ of blasticidin S ($63.06{\mu}g/ml$), a conventional fungicide for rice blast disease. When treatments were combined, the $IC_{50}$ of blasticidin S was dramatically reduced to $10.67{\mu}g/ml$. Since ABC transporter genes are involved in fungicide resistance of many organisms, we performed RT-PCR to investigate the transcriptional changes of 40 ABC transporter family genes of M. oryzae treated with the plant extract, blasticidin S, and tetrandrine, a recognized ABC transporter inhibitor. Four ABC transporter genes were prominently activated by blasticidin S treatment, but were suppressed by combinational treatment of blasticidin S with the plant extract, or with tetrandrine that didn't show cellular toxicity by itself in this study. Mycelial death was detected via confocal microscopy at 24 h after plant extract treatment. Finally, subsequent rice field study revealed that the plant extract had high control efficacy of 63.3% and should be considered a biopesticide for rice blast disease. These results showed that extract of L. foenum graecum Herba suppresses M. oryzae ABC transporter genes inducing mycelial death and therefore may be a potent novel biopesticide.

• Korean Journal of Plant Resources
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.695-703
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• 2018

Previously, we have reported a plant extract isolated from Lysimachia foenum gracum Herba as a new environment friendly biopesticide that has the mycelial growth inhibition effect on Magnaporthe oryzae, the pathogenic fungus of the rice blast disease. For the finding of additional biopesticide candidate, we tested the mycelial growth inhibitory effects about 700 species of plant extracts on PDA media. Among them, the extract of Anemarrhena asphodeloides showed prominent inhibitory effect of which $IC_{50}$ was $139.7{\mu}g/ml$. Mycelial radii of M. oryzae were measured on PDA medium containing the four organic solvent fractions isolated from total extract from A. asphodeloides. Ethyl acetate fraction showed the impressive inhibitory effect of $IC_{50}$, $54.12{\mu}g/ml$. In the subsequent rice field test for the total extract of A. asphodeloides, we obtained encouraging 62.0% control rate of rice blast disease without any phytotoxicity. It is almost equivalent to that of chemical pesticides implying the applicability of the extract as a new biopesticide. In further study, the analysis of active ingredients of the extract would be necessary for the development of a new biopesticide and for the verification of cellular mechanism by which the mycelial growth of M. oryzae inhibited.

• The Korean Journal of Pesticide Science
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.88-92
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• 2015

This study investigated the thermal stabilities of the four limonoidal active compounds like azadirachtin A, azadirachtin B, deacetylsalannin and salannin and of the two alkaloidal active compounds like matrine and oxymatrine in commercial biopesticides at incubated conditions ($30^{\circ}C$, $35^{\circ}C$, $40^{\circ}C$, $45^{\circ}C$, and $54^{\circ}C$). Half-lives of the limonoidal compounds in biopesticide ranged from 25.6 to 220 days. And the total limonoid contents changed over 15% after 14 days at all the conditions in the tested biopesticide containing neem extract. On the contrary, half-lives of the alkaloidal compounds in biopesticide showed the ranges from 231 to 346 days. And total alkaloidal compounds in all the tested biopesticides containing Sophora flavescens extracts decomposed below 15% after 14 days incubation at $54^{\circ}C$.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.144-153
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• 2013

Diverse bacteria are known to colonize plants. However, only a small fraction of that diversity has been evaluated for their biopesticide potential. To date, the criteria for sampling and selection in such bioprospecting endeavors have not been systematically evaluated in terms of the relative amount of diversity they provide for analysis. The present study aimed to enhance the success of bioprospecting efforts by increasing the diversity while removing the genotypic redundancy often present in large collections of bacteria. We developed a multivariate sampling and marker-based selection strategy that significantly increase the diversity of bacteria recovered from plants. In doing so, we quantified the effects of varying sampling intensity, media composition, incubation conditions, plant species, and soil source on the diversity of recovered isolates. Subsequent sequencing and high-throughput phenotypic analyses of a small fraction of the collected isolates revealed that this approach led to the recovery of over a dozen rare and, to date, poorly characterized genera of plant-associated bacteria with significant biopesticide activities. Overall, the sampling and selection approach described led to an approximately 5-fold improvement in efficiency and the recovery of several novel strains of bacteria with significant biopesticide potential.