• Experimental and Molecular Medicine
• /
• v.50 no.11
• /
• pp.7.1-7.12
• /
• 2018

Recent findings from The Cancer Genome Atlas project have provided a comprehensive map of genomic alterations that occur in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), including unexpected mutations in apolipoprotein B (APOB). We aimed to determine the clinical significance of this non-oncogenetic mutation in HCC. An Apob gene signature was derived from genes that differed between control mice and mice treated with siRNA specific for Apob (1.5-fold difference; P < 0.005). Human gene expression data were collected from four independent HCC cohorts (n = 941). A prediction model was constructed using Bayesian compound covariate prediction, and the robustness of the APOB gene signature was validated in HCC cohorts. The correlation of the APOB signature with previously validated gene signatures was performed, and network analysis was conducted using ingenuity pathway analysis. APOB inactivation was associated with poor prognosis when the APOB gene signature was applied in all human HCC cohorts. Poor prognosis with APOB inactivation was consistently observed through cross-validation with previously reported gene signatures (NCIP A, HS, high-recurrence SNUR, and high RS subtypes). Knowledge-based gene network analysis using genes that differed between low-APOB and high-APOB groups in all four cohorts revealed that low-APOB activity was associated with upregulation of oncogenic and metastatic regulators, such as HGF, MTIF, ERBB2, FOXM1, and CD44, and inhibition of tumor suppressors, such as TP53 and PTEN. In conclusion, APOB inactivation is associated with poor outcome in patients with HCC, and APOB may play a role in regulating multiple genes involved in HCC development.

• Journal of Animal Reproduction and Biotechnology
• /
• v.36 no.3
• /
• pp.154-161
• /
• 2021

A number of Korean Chicken breeds were registered in Domestic Animal Diversity Information System (DAD-IS, http://dad.fao.org/) of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Evaluation of genetic diversity and relationship of local breeds is an important factor towards the identification of unique and valuable genetic resources. Therefore, this study aimed to analysis the genetic diversity and relationship of 22 Korean Chicken breeds using 12 microsatellite (MS) markers. The mean number of alleles for each variety was 5.52, ranging from a 3.75 (Leghorn F; NF) to a 7.0 (Ross). The most diverse breed was the Hanhyup3 (HCC), which had the highest expected heterozygosity (H_Exp) (0.754) and polymorphic information content (PIC) (0.711). The NF was the least diverse population, having the lowest H_Exp (0.467) and PIC (0.413). As a result of the principal coordinates analysis (PCoA) and factorial correspondence analysis (FCA) confirmed that Hy-line Brown (HL) and Lohmann Brown (LO) are very close to each other and that Leghorn and Rhode Island Red (RIR) are clearly distinguished from other groups. Thus, the reliability and power of identification using 12 types of MS markers were improved, and the genetic diversity and probability of individual discrimination were confirmed through statistical analysis. This study is expected to be used as basic data for the identification of Korean chicken breeds, and our results indicated that these multiplex PCR marker sets will have considerable applications in population genetic structure analysis.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.29 no.6
• /
• pp.962-972
• /
• 2019

Non-typhoidal Salmonella (NTS) is one of the most frequent causes of bacterial foodborne illnesses. Considering that the main reservoir of NTS is the intestinal tract of livestock, foods of animal origin are regarded as the main vehicles of Salmonella infection. In particular, poultry colonized with Salmonella Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium), a dominant serotype responsible for human infections, do not exhibit overt signs and symptoms, thereby posing a potential health risk to humans. In this study, comparative genomics approaches were applied to two S. Typhimurium strains, ST1539 and ST1120, isolated from a duck slaughterhouse and a pig farm, respectively, to characterize their virulence and antimicrobial resistance-associated genomic determinants. ST1539 containing a chromosome (4,905,039 bp; 4,403 CDSs) and a plasmid (93,876 bp; 96 CDSs) was phylogenetically distinct from other S. Typhimurium strains such as ST1120 and LT2. Compared to the ST1120 genome (previously deposited in GenBank; CP021909.1 and CP021910.1), ST1539 possesses more virulence determinants, including ST64B prophage, plasmid spv operon encoding virulence factors, genes encoding SseJ effector, Rck invasin, and biofilm-forming factors (bcf operon and pefAB). In accordance with the in silico prediction, ST1539 exhibited higher cytotoxicity against epithelial cells, better survival inside macrophage cells, and faster mice-killing activity than ST1120. However, ST1539 showed less resistance against antibiotics than ST1120, which may be attributed to the multiple resistanceassociated genes in the ST1120 chromosome. The accumulation of comparative genomics data on S. Typhimurium isolates from livestock would enrich our understanding of strategies Salmonella employs to adapt to diverse host animals.

• Journal of Animal Science and Technology
• /
• v.60 no.12
• /
• pp.31.1-31.10
• /
• 2018

Background: Research on loci influencing milk production traits of dairy cattle is one of the main topics of investigation in livestock. Many genomic regions and polymorphisms associated with dairy production have been reported worldwide. In this context, the purpose of this study was to identify candidate loci associated with milk yield in Argentinean dairy cattle. A database of candidate genes and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for milk production and composition was developed. Thirty-nine SNPs belonging to 22 candidate genes were genotyped on 1643 animals (Holstein and Holstein x Jersey). The genotypes obtained were subjected to association studies considering the whole population and discriminating the population by Holstein breed percentage. Phenotypic data consisted of milk production values recorded during the first lactation of 1156 Holstein and 462 Holstein ${\times}$ Jersey cows from 18 dairy farms located in the central dairy area of Argentina. From these records, 305-day cumulative milk production values were predicted. Results: Eight SNPs (rs43375517, rs29004488, rs132812135, rs137651874, rs109191047, rs135164815, rs43706485, and rs41255693), located on six Bos taurus autosomes (BTA4, BTA6, BTA19, BTA20, BTA22, and BTA26), showed suggestive associations with 305-day cumulative milk production (under Benjamini-Hochberg procedure with a false discovery rate of 0.1). Two of those SNPs (rs43375517 and rs135164815) were significantly associated with milk production (Bonferroni adjusted p-values < 0.05) when considering the Holstein population. Conclusions: The results obtained are consistent with previously reported associations in other Holstein populations. Furthermore, the SNPs found to influence bovine milk production in this study may be used as possible candidate SNPs for marker-assisted selection programs in Argentinean dairy cattle.

• Genes and Genomics
• /
• v.40 no.12
• /
• pp.1279-1285
• /
• 2018

Interdigitating dendritic cell sarcoma (IDCS) is an aggressive neoplasm and is an extremely rare disease, with a challenging diagnosis. Etiology of IDCS is also unknown and most studies with only case reports. In our case, immunohistochemistry showed that the tumor cells were positive for S100, CD45, and CD68, but negative for CD1a and CD21. This study aimed to investigate the causative factors of IDCS by sequencing the protein-coding regions of IDCS. We performed whole-exome sequencing with genomic DNA from blood and sarcoma tissue of the IDCS patient using the Illumina Hiseq 2500 platform. After that, we conducted Sanger sequencing for validation of sarcoma-specific variants and gene ontology analysis using DAVID bioinformatics resources. Through comparing sequencing data of sarcoma with normal blood, we obtained 15 nonsynonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) as sarcoma-specific variants. Although the 15 SNPs were not validated by Sanger sequencing due to tumor heterogeneity and low sensitivity of Sanger sequencing, we examined the function of the genes in which each SNP is located. Based on previous studies and gene ontology database, we found that POLQ encoding DNA polymerase theta enzyme and FNIP1 encoding tumor suppressor folliculin-interacting protein might have contributed to the IDCS. Our study provides potential causative genetic factors of IDCS and plays a role in advancing the understanding of IDCS pathogenesis.

• Plant Breeding and Biotechnology
• /
• v.6 no.4
• /
• pp.413-425
• /
• 2018

A previous work developed and identified a new omega-5 gliadin deficient wheat line named O-free by crossing Keumkang and Olgeuru, which is nutritionally quite meaningful in that omega-5 gliadin is one of the known wheat allergens. To verify the characteristics of the O-free, we performed RNA sequencing (RNAseq) analysis of the O-free and the two parent lines (Keumkang and Olgeuru). The results of the similarity analysis with the ESTs for gliadins and glutenins showed that the O-free ESTs had no similarity with the omega-5 gliadin sequences but had similarity to other gliadins and glutenins. Furthermore, mapping results between the raw RNAseq data from the O-free and the omega-5 gliadin sequence showed a clear deletion of the N-terminal sequences which are an important signature of omega-5 gliadin. We also designed specific PCR primers that could identify omega-5 gliadin in the genomic DNA. The results showed that no omega-5 gliadin fragments were detected in the O-free. According to these results, we confirmed that the deficiency of omega-5 gliadin in the O-free is not caused by post-transcriptional or post-translational regulations such as epigenetic phenomena but by a simple deletion in the chromosome. Furthermore, we showed that the low-molecular weight glutenin subunit (LMW-GS) gene in the O-free had a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) causing a premature stop codon, resulting in a truncated polypeptide. We expect that the O-free line may serve as an excellent source of wheat that could prevail in the hypo-allergen wheat market, which has recently gained interest world-wide.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
• /
• v.31 no.12
• /
• pp.1843-1851
• /
• 2018

Objective: We aimed to characterize linkage disequilibrium (LD) and effective population size ($N_e$) in a Korean Yorkshire population using genomic data from thousands of individuals. Methods: We genotyped 2,470 Yorkshire individuals from four major Grand-Grand-Parent farms in Korea using the Illumina PorcineSNP60 version2 BeadChip, which covers >61,565 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) located across all chromosomes and mitochondria. We estimated the expected LD and inferred current $N_e$ as well as ancestral $N_e$. Results: We identified 61,565 SNP from autosomes, mitochondria, and sex chromosomes and characterized the LD of the Yorkshire population, which was relatively high between closely linked markers (>0.55 at 50 kb) and declined with increasing genetic distance. The current $N_e$ of this Korean Yorkshire population was 122.87 (106.90; 138.84), while the historical $N_e$ of Yorkshire pigs suggests that the ancestor $N_e$ has decreased by 99.6% over the last 10,000 generations. Conclusion: To maintain genetic diversity of a domesticated animal population, we must carefully consider appropriate breed management methods to avoid inbreeding. Although attenuated selection can affect short-term genetic gain, it is essential for maintaining the long-term genetic variability of the Korean Yorkshire population. Continuous and long-term monitoring would also be needed to maintain the pig population to avoid an unintended reduction of $N_e$. The best way to preserve a sustainable population is to maintain a sufficient $N_e$.

• Journal of Veterinary Clinics
• /
• v.36 no.4
• /
• pp.190-195
• /
• 2019

We aimed to identify genomic variations as well as the marker genes related with chronic mitral valve disease (CMVD) in Canis lupus familiaris using whole genome resequencing, which provides valuable resources for further study. Two ten-year old female Canis lupus familiaris English cocker spaniels were used for this study, one control and one who had been diagnosed as CMVD. For the whole genome resequencing, muscles from the left ventricular wall were collected from each dog. With the HiSeq DNA Shotgun library and $HiSeq^{TM}$ 2000 platform, whole genome resequencing was performed. From the results, we identified 5 million and 6 million variants in gene expression in the control and CMVD-diagnosed subject, respectively. We then selected the top 1,000 genes from the SNP, INS, and DEL mutation and 675 genes among them were overlapped for every mutation between the control and CMVD-diagnosed patient. Interestingly, in both groups, the intron variant (91.16 and 91.18%) and upstream variant (3.10 and 3.08%) are most highly related. Among the overlapped 675 genes, gene ontology for intracellular signal transduction is highly counted in INS, and DEL, and SNPs (35, 33, 31, respectively). In this study, we found that the COL and CDH gene families could be key molecules in identifying the difference in gene expression between control and CMVD-diagnosed dogs. We believe further studies will prove the importance of variants in key molecule expression and that these data will serve as a valuable foundation stone the study of canine CMVD.

• Biomedical Science Letters
• /
• v.25 no.3
• /
• pp.237-246
• /
• 2019

Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) refers to the expansion and the enlarged myocardium due to the increased resistance to ejection from the left ventricle to the aorta and/or the periphery, or the long-term burden imposed by the blood increase. Hypertension is a major risk factor that accounts for more than 50% of the causes of cardiovascular disease. If hypertension endure in the long term, the myocardium responds to abnormal heartbeat in the heart. Therefore, the prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy also increases. As a result of genome-wide association study (GWAS) analysis for European people, PDGFC, MARK3, and BCL2 were related to blood pressures. In this study, the genetic polymorphisms of PDGFC, MARK3, and BCL2 were extracted and selected based on Korean genomic and epidemiologic data, and then logistic regression analysis was performed on LVH. As a result, one SNP (rs9307953) in PDGFC gene, four SNPs (rs6575983, rs17679475, rs2273703 and rs10141388) in MARK3 gene and two SNPs (rs17756073 and rs17070739) in BCL2 gene were statistically significant. The rs6575983 of the MARK3 gene showed the highest significance level ($P=7.2{\times}10^{-3}$) among the SNPs and the relative risk of 1.08 (95% confidence interval: 1.06 to 1.45). These results suggest that the polymorphisms of PDGFC, MARK3, and BCL2 not only affect European blood pressures but also correlate with LVH in Korean. These results suggest that increased understanding of the genetic correlations of the pathogenesis of LVH.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
• /
• v.40 no.3
• /
• pp.186-193
• /
• 2021

BACKGROUND: Before generating transgenic plant using the CRISPR-Cas9 system, the efficiency test of sgRNAs is recommended to reduce the time and effort for plant transformation and regeneration process. The efficiency of the sgRNA can be measured through the transient expression of sgRNA and Cas9 gene in tomato cotyledon; however, we found that the calculated efficiency showed a large variation. It is necessary to increase the precision of the experiment to obtain reliable sgRNA efficiency data from transient expression. METHODS AND RESULTS: The cotyledon of 11^th, 15^th, 19^th, and 23^rd-day-old tomato (Solanum lycopersicum cv. Micro-Tom) were used for expressing CRISPR-Cas9 transiently. The agrobacterium harboring sgRNA for targeting ALS2 gene of tomato was injected through the stomata of leaf adaxial side and the genomic DNA was extracted in 5 days after injection. The target gene edition was identified by amplifying DNA fragment of target region and analyzing with Illumina sequencing method. The target gene editing efficiency was calculated by counting base deletion and insertion events from total target sequence read. CONCLUSION: The CRISPR-Cas9 editing efficiency varied with tomato cotyledon age. The highest efficiency was observed at the 19-day-old cotyledons. Both the median and mean were the highest at this stage and the sample variability was also minimized. We found that the transgene of CRISPR-Cas9 system was strongly correlated with plant leaf development and suggested the optimum cotyledon leaf age for Agrobacterium-mediated transfection in tomato.