• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• 제26권3호
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• pp.282-289
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• 2018

Melanin is a pigment produced from tyrosine in melanocytes. Although melanin has a protective role against UVB radiation-induced damage, it is also associated with the development of melanoma and darker skin tone. Tyrosinase is a key enzyme in melanin synthesis, which regulates the rate-limiting step during conversion of tyrosine into DOPA and dopaquinone. To develop effective RNA interference therapeutics, we designed a melanin siRNA pool by applying multiple prediction programs to reduce human tyrosinase levels. First, 272 siRNAs passed the target accessibility evaluation using the RNAxs program. Then we selected 34 siRNA sequences with ${\Delta}G{\geq}-34.6kcal/mol$, i-Score value ${\geq}65$, and siRNA scales score ${\leq}30$. siRNAs were designed as 19-bp RNA duplexes with an asymmetric 3' overhang at the 3' end of the antisense strand. We tested if these siRNAs effectively reduced tyrosinase gene expression using qRT-PCR and found that 17 siRNA sequences were more effective than commercially available siRNA. Three siRNAs further tested showed an effective visual color change in MNT-1 human cells without cytotoxic effects, indicating these sequences are anti-melanogenic. Our study revealed that human tyrosinase siRNAs could be efficiently designed using multiple prediction algorithms.

• 한국작물학회지
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• 제49권4호
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• pp.358-362
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• 2004

In order to develop molecular markers related to stay green phenotype, AFLP analysis was conducted using near-isogenic lines for either stay green or non stay green trait. Both lines have characteristics of multi-ear and tillers (MET). Two out of 64 primer combinations of selective amplification identified three reproducible polymorphic fragments in MET corn with stay green. Both of E+AGC/M+CAC and E+AAG/M+CAA primer combinations produced two and one specific polymorphic fragments linked to stay green trait, respectively. For the conversion of AFLPs to sequence tag sites (STSs), primers were designed form both end sequences of each two polymorphic fragments. One fragment, which was amplified with E+AAG/M+CAA primer combinations, possessed 298 bp long and showed a $91\%$ homology with maize retrotransposon Cinful-l. One out of two polymorphic fragments produced with E+AGC/M+CAC primer combination had 236 bp long and matched a $96\%$ homology with an intron region of 22kDa alpha zein gene cluster in Zea mays. One out of two PCR fragments amplified with MET2 primer set in the stay green MET was not produced in the non-stay green MET. The developed AFLP and STS marker could be used as an efficient tool for selection of the stay green trait in the MET inbred.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제23권12호
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• pp.1726-1736
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• 2013

Biosynthesis of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) via the indole-3-pyruvic acid pathway involves three kinds of enzymes; aminotransferase encoded by aspC, indole-3-pyruvic acid decarboxylase encoded by ipdC, and indole-3-acetic acid dehydrogenase encoded by iad1. The ipdC from Enterobacter cloacae ATCC 13047, aspC from Escherichia coli, and iad1 from Ustilago maydis were cloned and expressed under the control of the tac and sod promoters in E. coli. According to SDS-PAGE and enzyme activity, IpdC and Iad1 showed good expression under the control of $P_{tac}$, whereas AspC was efficiently expressed by $P_{sod}$ originating from Corynebacterium glutamicum. The activities of IpdC, AspC, and Iad1 from the crude extracts of recombinant E. coli Top 10 were 215.6, 5.7, and 272.1 nmol/min/mg-protein, respectively. The recombinant E. coli $DH5{\alpha}$ expressing IpdC, AspC, and Iad1 produced about 1.1 g/l of IAA and 0.13 g/l of tryptophol (TOL) after 48 h of cultivation in LB medium with 2 g/l tryptophan. To improve IAA production, a tnaA gene mediating indole formation from tryptophan was deleted. As a result, E. coli IAA68 with expression of the three genes produced 1.8 g/l of IAA, which is a 1.6-fold increase compared with wild-type $DH5{\alpha}$ harboring the same plasmids. Moreover, the complete conversion of tryptophan to IAA was achieved by E. coli IAA68. Finally, E. coli IAA68 produced 3.0 g/l of IAA after 24 h cultivation in LB medium supplemented with 4 g/l of tryptophan.

• Plant Biotechnology Reports
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• 제3권4호
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• pp.333-340
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• 2009

Developmental anomalies in the plumule meristem of peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) somatic embryos resulted in poor shoot differentiation and reduced plant recovery. Existing meristems with caulogenic potential have never been tested for embryogenesis in peanut. The present experiment was designed to test the mature zygotic embryo axis derived plumule with three meristems for somatic embryogenesis. Embryogenic masses and embryos developed from the caulogenic meristems in the axils. Exposure of 2 weeks in primary medium with $90.5{\mu}M$ 2,4-D suppressed the shoot tip differentiation temporarily which then regained the ability to form the shoot on withdrawal of 2,4-D. Exposure of 4 weeks in primary medium with $90.5{\mu}M$ 2,4-D suppressed the shoot tip differentiation irreversibly. No shoot formation was noted from the tips in any of the cultures which were in secondary medium with $13.6{\mu}M$ 2,4-D. Development of somatic embryos directly from axillary meristems was confirmed histologically. Conversion frequency of these embryos was 11%. Thus, in this report, we describe a method to obtain somatic embryos from the determined organogenic buds of the axillary meristem, by culturing the nodal explant vertically on embryo induction medium. It also displays the possibility of obtaining both embryogenic and organogenic potential in two parts of the same explant simultaneously. The possibility of extending this approach for genetic transformation in in vivo system through direct DNA delivery or Agrobacterium injection in meristems can also be explored. Using Agrobacterium rhizogenes, we have demonstrated the possibility of gene transfer in the axillary meristems of seed-derived plumule explant.

• 한국버섯학회지
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• 제11권4호
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• pp.187-193
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• 2013

A galactose fermentation bacterium producing lactose from red seaweed, which was known well to compromise the galactose as main reducing sugar, was isolated from button mushroom bed in Buyeo-Gun, Chungchugnamdo province. The lactic acid bacteria MONGB-2 was identified as Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. tolerans by analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequence. When the production of lactic acid and acetic acid by L. paracasei MONGB-2 was investigated by HPLC analysis with various carbohydrates, the strain MONGB-2 efficiently convert the glucose and galactose to lactic acid with the yield of 18.86 g/L and 18.23 g/L, respectively and the ratio of lactic acid to total organic acids was 1.0 and 0.91 g/g for both substrates. However, in the case of acetic acid fermentation, other carbohydrates besides galactose and red seaweed hydrolysate could not be totally utilized as carbon sources for acetic acid production by the strain. The lactic acid production from glucose and galactose in the fermentation time courses was gradually enhanced upto 60 h fermentation and the maximal concentration reached to be 16-18 g/L from both substrates after 48 h of fermentation. The initial concentration of glucose and galactose were completely consumed within 36 h of fermentation, of which the growth of cell also was maximum level. In addition, the bioconversion of lactic acid from the red seaweed hydrolysate by L. paracasei MONGB-2 appeared to be about 20% levels of the initial substrates concentration and this results were entirely lower than those of galactose and glucose showed about 60% of conversion. The apparent results showed that L. paracasei MONGB-2 could produce the lactic acid with glucose as well as galactose by the homofermentation through EMP pathway.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제26권3호
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• pp.236-242
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• 2008

Invertase (${\beta}$-D-fructofuranosidase; EC 3.2.1.26) catalyzes the conversion of sucrose into glucose and fructose and is involved in an array of important processes, including phloem unloading, carbon partitioning, the response to pathogens, and the control of cell differentiation and development. Its importance may have caused the invertases to evolve into a multigene family whose members are regulated by a variety of different mechanisms, such as pH, sucrose levels, and inhibitor proteins. Although putative invertase inhibitors in the Arabidopsis genome are easy to locate, few studies have been conducted to elucidate their individual functions in vivo in plant growth and development because of their high redundancy. In this study we assessed the functional role of the putative invertase inhibitors in Arabidopsis by generating transgenic plants harboring a putative invertase inhibitor gene under the control of the CaMV35S promoter. A transgenic plant that expressed high levels of the putative invertase inhibitor transcript when grown under normal conditions was chosen for the current study. To our surprise, the stability of the invertase inhibitor transcripts was shown to be down-regulated by the phytohormone ABA (abscisic acid). It is well established that ABA enhances invertase activity in vivo but the underlying mechanisms are still poorly understood. Our results thus suggest that one way ABA regulates invertase activity is by down-regulating its inhibitor.

• 한국물환경학회지
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• 제33권5호
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• pp.546-555
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• 2017

The Nutrient budget is one of the agricultural-environment indicators of OECD. A nutrient budget measures the surplus as the differential between the inputs and the outputs of within a certain boundary and within a specified period of time (i.e. one year). According to OECD, the annual nitrogen budget for Korea was $245kg\;N\;ha^{-1}$ in 2014, which corresponds to the first position among OECD countries. In Korea in 2014, about 90 % of livestock excreta was composted as solid and liquid manure, which are usually and customarily spread on agricultural land. The objectives of this study are intended to suggest methodology of the regional nitrogen budget as a nitrogen management tool, which considers conversion from raw excreta to composted manures based on the methodology of OECD/Eurostat, and application of the new method in an agricultural region of Korea. As a result, the calculated excess rate of hydrospheric nitrogen surplus was $251kg\;N\;ha^{-1}$ (in the region in 2014), which indicates the presence of potential risks emanating from excessive nitrogen, with regard to both export water and soil environments. The findings also assert that this was shown to be one of the most important elements in the nitrogen budget, which translates to the actual amounts of nitrogen lost during the solid composting process. To better understand the process and the reliability of the method, it is necessary to analyze the sensitivity of the relevant co-efficients used in the method in the near future.

• Molecules and Cells
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• 제19권1호
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• pp.16-22
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• 2005

A cDNA encoding ${\gamma}-tocopherol$ methyltransferase (${\gamma}-TMT$) from Arabidopsis thaliana was overexpressed in lettuce (Latuca sativa L.) to improve the tocopherol composition. Seven lines of lettuce ($T_0$) containing the ${\gamma}-TMT$ transgene were produced by Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. The inheritance and expression of the transgene were confirmed by DNA and RNA gel blot analyses as well as quantification of tocopherols and ${\gamma}-TMT$ activities. The ratio of ${\alpha}-/{\gamma}-tocopherol$ content (TR) varied from 0.6 to 1.2 in non-transformed plants, while the $T_0$ plants had ratios of 0.8 to 320. The ratio ranged from 0.4 to 544 in 41 $T_1$ progenies of the $T_0$ transgenic line gTM3, and the phenotypic segregation indicated monogenic inheritance of the transgene (i.e., 3:1 = dominant:wild-type classes). There was a tight relationship between the TR phenotype and ${\gamma}-TMT$ activity, and enzyme activities were affected by the copy number and transcript levels of the transgene. The TR phenotype was stably expressed in $T_2$ progenies of $T_1$ plants. The results from this study indicated that a stable inheritance and expression of Arabidopsis ${\gamma}-TMT$ transgene in lettuce results in a higher enzyme activity and the conversion of the ${\gamma}-tocopherol$ pool to ${\alpha}-tocopherol$ in transgenic lettuce.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• 제30권7호
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• pp.1547-1552
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• 2009

Sphingomonas chungbukensis DJ77 has the ability to produce large quantities of an extracellular polysaccharide that can be used as a gelling agent in the food and pharmaceutical industries. We identified, cloned and expressed the UDP-glucose dehydrogenase gene of S. chungbukensis DJ77, and characterized the resulting protein. The purified UDP-glucose dehydrogenase (UGDH), which catalyzes the reversible conversion of UDP-glucose to UDPglucuronic acid, formed a homodimer and the mass of the monomer was estimated to be 46 kDa. Kinetic analysis at the optimal pH of 8.5 indicated that the $K_m\;and\;V_{max}$ for UDP-glucose were 0.18 mM and 1.59 mM/min/mg, respectively. Inhibition assays showed that UDP-glucuronic acid strongly inhibits UGDH. Site-directed mutagenesis was performed on Gly9, Gly12 Thr127, Cys264, and Lys267. Substitutions of Cys264 with Ala and of Lys267 with Asp resulted in complete loss of enzymatic activity, suggesting that Cys264 and Lys267 are essential for the catalytic activity of UGDH.

• 생명과학회지
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• 제16권1호
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• pp.1-5
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• 2006

본 연구는 Penibacillus polymyxa 균주의 CFTase 유전자를 결손 변이시킨 고효율 효소 CFT108을 이용하여 cyclofructan (CF)의 대량생산 조건을 검토하고 생산된 CF의 순수 분리 정제 공정을 개발하였다. CF의 대량생산 조건은 $2\%$의 inulin 기질과 40 unit/g inulin의 기질에서 3시간 반응시켰을 때 최대 생산량 9.5 g/l의 수율을 달성할 수 있었으며, 이때의 in-ulin의 CF 전환율은 $47.5\%$였다. 생산된 CF를 순수 분리 정제하기 위해서 CFTase 반응액 을 exoinulinase 1 unit/ml로 6시간 처리하여 미 반응 inulin을 단당화시켰으며, 유리된 fructose는 $3\%$ CaO로 $CO_2$가스 하에서 $80^{\circ}C$, 10분간 3회 흡착제거 시킴으로써 순수 정제하였다. 정제된 CF를 HPLC로 확인한 결과 정제도는 $95\%$ 이상이였으며, $CF_6,\;CF_7,\;CF_8$ 비율이 72 : 27 : 1 이였다.