• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.473-482
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• 2013

The desulfurization ability of Sphingomonas subarctica T7b was evaluated using resting and immobilized cells with dibenzothiophene (DBT), alkyl DBTs, and commercial light gas oil (LGO) as the substrates. The resting cells of S. subarctica T7b degraded 239.2 mg of the initial 250 mg of DBT/l (1.36 mM) within 24 h at $27^{\circ}C$, while 127.5 mg of 2-hydroxybiphenyl (2-HBP)/l (0.75 mM) was formed, representing a 55% conversion of the DBT. The DBT desulfurization activity was significantly affected by the aqueous-to-oil phase ratio. In addition, the resting cells of S. subarctica T7b were able to desulfurize alkyl DBTs with long alkyl chains, although the desulfurization rate decreased with an increase in the total carbon number of the alkylated DBTs. LGO with a total sulfur content of 280 mg/l was desulfurized to 152 mg/l after 24 h of reaction. Cells immobilized by entrapment with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) exhibited a high DBT desulfurization activity, including repeated use for more than 8 batch cycles without loss of biodesulfurization activity. The stability of the immobilized cells was better than that of the resting cells at different initial pHs, higher temperatures, and for DBT biodesulfurization in successive degradation cycles. The immobilized cells were also easily separated from the oil and water phases, giving this method great potential for oil biodesulfurization.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.7 no.5
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• pp.345-351
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• 1997

An aqueous/organic two-phase reaction system was applied to the production of catechol using immobilized resting cells of Pseudomonas putida CY 400. Water/ethyl ether system was used because of high partition coefficient of catechol and thus to reduce the product inhibition and degradation. Among the tested immobilization carriers, polyacrylamide gel gave the highest catechol productivity. The immobilization seemed to protect the cells against solvent toxicity. From the simulation of reaction conditions based on two-phase models, it was found that there was an optimum acetate concentration at fixed benzoate and cell concentrations for the catechol productivity. A lower phase volume ratio (lower fraction of organic phase) gave a higher productivity. However, the substrate conversion was low at low phase volume ratio.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.1-6
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• 1995

An optimal condition for the continuous production of ${\delta}-aminolevulinate$(ALA) was investigated using high concentrated resting cells of Rhodocyclus gelatinosus KUP-74. The increase of the amount of extracellular ALA versus the concentration of resting cells showed rectangular hyperbolic pattern until 20 mg cells/ml, but no further increase in the ALA amount by increasing its concentration was occurred. The highest yield of the extracellular ALA was observed after 3 hr of incubation of 1 ml reaction system containing 20 mg cells, 4 mM levulinate and 5 mM L-glutamate. On the other hand, the immobilized cells prepared by Ca-alginate inclusive method needed to incubate for 6 hr with 6 mM levulinate and 10 mM L-glutamate to give maximal yield of the extracellular ALA. In addition, under these conditions the resulted continuous productivities of the ALA by immobilized cells and highly concentrated resting cells were appeared 50 percent decreases after incubations for 185 hr and 100 hr, respectively, and the method of the cells to be immobilized was more efficient to recover the extracellular ALA produced.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.68-74
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• 1997

The conversion of D-sorbitol to L-sorbose by Gluconobater suboxydans was analyzed, and continuous production of L-sorbose was carried out in immobilized cell reactors. L-Sorbose production by high densities of resting cells was more effective than by conventional batch fermentations. Sorbitol dehydrogenase, an enzyme converting D-sorbitol to L-sorbose, did not suffer from substrate inhibition, but from product inhibition. When L-sorbose production was carried out with Ca-alginate-immobilized cells, about 60 g/l of L-sorbose was obtained. On the other hand, when the corn steep liquor (CSL) concentration of medium was reduced to 0.08%, 80 g/l of L-sorbose was obtained. Outgrowth inside the immobilized carriers was thought to block the pores of the carriers so that substrate could not easily diffuse through the carriers. Continuous production of L-sorbose was well accomplished in a bubble column reactor, and 6. 5 g/l.h of productivity and 81.2% of yield were obtained at a substrate feeding rate of 0.08h$^{-1}$ under the optimum conditions with carrier volume of 55% and aeration rate of 3 vvm.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.687-691
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• 2003

Whole-cell immobilization of the hydrocarbon rich microalgae, Botryococcus braunii and B. protuberans, in alginate beads under air-lift batch cultures resulted in a significant increase in chlorophyll, carotenoid, dry weight, and 1ipid contents at stationary and resting growth phases, as compared to free cells. Photosynthetic activity in both the species, of Botryococcus was enhanced, relative to free cells, at any growth phase of cultures. Immobilization exerted a protective influence on ageing of the cultures as reflected by higher chlorophyll and dry weight contents. Entrapment also stabilized the chlorophyll and carotenoid contents even at stationary and resting phases as compared to free cells in both the species.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.17 no.12
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• pp.1641-1648
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• 2007

Yippee-like proteins, which have been identified as the homolog of Drosophila yippee protein containing a zinc-finger domain, are known to be highly conserved among eukaryotes. However, their functional roles are still poorly understood. Recently we initiated ordered differential display (ODD)-polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to isolate genes of which expressions are altered following activation of human T cells. On the ODD-PCR image, one PCR-product detected in unstimulated T cells was not detectable at the time when the activated T cells traversed near $G_1/S$ boundary following activation by immobilized anti-CD3. Cloning and nucleotide sequence analysis revealed that the PCR-product was yippee-like 5 (YPEL5) gene, which was known as a human homolog of the Drosophila yippee gene. Northern blot analysis confirmed the amount of ${\sim}2.2$ kb YPEL5 mRNA expression detectable in unstimulated T cells was sustained until 1.5 hr after activation and then rapidly declined to undetectable level by 5 hr. Ectopic expression of YPEL5 gene in human cervix epitheloid carcinoma HeLa cells caused a significant reduction in cell proliferation to the level of 47% of the control. Expression of GFP-YPEL5 fusion protein in HeLa cells showed its nuclear localization. These results demonstrated that the expression level of human YPEL5 mRNA was negatively regulated in the early stage of T cell activation, and suggested that YPEL5 might exert an inhibitory effect on the cell proliferation as a nuclear protein.