• Journal of the Korean Wood Science and Technology
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.72-79
• /
• 1999

The ability of several wood rotting fungi for decolorization of two anthracene derivatives, Carminic acid (CA) and Remazol brilliant blue R (RBBR), and hardwood KP bleaching liquor (BL) as well as laccase activities in these fungi were studied. The enzyme activity appeared exclusively in fungi destaining RBBR and CA, but in the case of BL, such relationship was not observed. The laccase enzyme was released into the decolorization media and its inducible (but not constitutive) forms shown destaining activity. The purified inducible forms of Kuehneromyces mutabilis and Pleurotus ostreatus laccase destained CA. Thus the possible differentiation between specificity of particular LAC forms was confirmed. In addition the nitrogen starvation induced both laccase and CA destaining activities, but the increase was higher for decolorization of CA than LAC activity. Probably LAC would be only partly responsible for decolorization of this dye. This results suggested that purified LACs decolorize CA, however its destaining activities were considerably lower than the activities on syringaldazine.

• Journal of Microbiology
• /
• v.41 no.4
• /
• pp.295-299
• /
• 2003

Adenovirus (Ad) precursor to the terminal protein (pTP) plays an essential roles in the viral DNA replication. Ad pTP serves as a primer for the synthesis of a new DNA strand during the initiation step of replication. In addition, Ad pTP forms organized spherical replication foci on the nuclear matrix (NM) and anchors the viral genome to the NM. Here we identified the interferon inducible gene product 1-8D (Inid) as a pTP binding protein by using a two-hybrid screen of a HeLa cDNA library. Of the clones obtained in this assay, nine were identical to the Inid, a 13-kDa polypeptide that shares homology with genes 1-8U and Leu-13/9-27, most of which have little known functions. The entire open reading frame (ORF) of Inid was cloned into the tetracycline inducible expression vector in order to determine the biological functions related with adenoviral infection. When Inid was introduced to the cells along with adenoviruses, fifty to sixty percent of Ad-infected cells expressing Inid had rounded morphology, which was suggestive of apoptosis. Results from the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT) and DNA fragmentation assays confirmed that Inid induces apoptosis in Ad-infected or in uninfected cells. The Inid binding to pTP may target the cell for apoptotic destruction as a host defense mechanism against the viral infection.

• Journal of Mushroom
• /
• v.2 no.3
• /
• pp.127-139
• /
• 2004

Laccases are multicopper-containing enzymes which catalyze the oxidation of phenolic and nonphenolic compounds with the concomitant reduction of molecular oxygen. They often occur as isoenzymes, either constitutive or inducible, that oligomerize to multilateral complexes, what allow for penetration to the woody cell wall structure. White rot basidiomycete fungi may produce a number of laccase isoenzymes, some constitutively and others after induction. Fungal laccase is commonly induced by many ions, such as $Cu^{2+}$, $Cd^{2+}$ $Ca^{2+}$, $Li^+$, $Mn^{2+}$, $Ag^+$, $Hg^{2+}$, Mn and $Fe^{3+}$, phenolic compounds, some organic compounds, such as ethanol, isopropanol, cAMP, caffeine, p-anisidine, viscosinamide and paraquat, and nitrogens and even heat shock. A combination of Cu and pHB (p-hydroxybenzoic acid) made it possible to extend the inducible laccase activities over 30-fold. But the most effective inducer of laccase in the basidiomycete and other higher fungi is 2,5-xylidine, over 160-fold stimulation of laccase activity. The laccases are frequently encoded by gene families, as e.g. in Pycnoporus cinnabarinus, from which the lcc3-1 or the allelic form lac1 and lac3-2 have been cloned and sequenced. In the case of inducible forms the post-inductional laccase formation depends upon the synthesis of mRNA and the induction is due to the synthesis of a new protein.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.17 no.12
• /
• pp.1949-1954
• /
• 2007

A simple way to prevent protein hyperglycosylation in Hansenula polymorpha was found. When glucose oxidase from Aspergillus niger and carboxymethyl cellulase from Bacillus subtilis were expressed under the control of an inducible methanol oxidase (MOX) promoter using methanol as a carbon source, hyperglycosylated forms occurred. In contrast, MOX-repressing carbon sources (e.g., glucose, sorbitol, and glycerol) greatly reduced the extent of hyperglycosylation. Carbon source starvation of the cells also reduced the level of glycosylation, which was reversed to hyperglycosylation by the resumption of cell growth. It was concluded that the proteins expressed under actively growing conditions are produced as hyperglycosylated forms, whereas those under slow or nongrowing conditions are as short-glycosylated forms. The prevention of hyperglycosylation in the Hansenula polymorpha expression system constitutes an additional advantage over the traditional Saccharomyces cerevisiae system in recombinant production of glycosylated proteins.

• 한국생물공학회:학술대회논문집
• /
• 2001.11a
• /
• pp.719-722
• /
• 2001

Silk proteins from Nephila clavipes are fibrous proteins containing repetitive sequences with both crystalline and amorphous domains. In order to obtain high-level production of silk protein, the synthetic genes had 16 contiguous units of the consensus repeat sequence of the silk protein were expressed in Escherichia coli BL21(DE3) under the strong inducible T7 promoter. For production of recombinant silk protein in large amounts, pH-stat fed-batch cultures were carried out. The recombinant silk protein was produced as soluble forms in E. coli, and the recombinant silk protein content was as high as 11% of the total protein. When cells were induced at $OD_{600}$ of 60, the amount of silk protein produced was 6.49 g/L. After simple purification steps, 9.2 mg of silk protein that was more than 80% pure was obtained from a 50 mL culture, and the recovery yield was 26.3%.

• IMMUNE NETWORK
• /
• v.9 no.1
• /
• pp.12-19
• /
• 2009

Heme oxygenase (HO)-1 is an inducible enzyme that catalyzes the first and rate-limiting step in the oxidative degradation of free heme into ferrous iron, carbon monoxide (CO), and biliverdin (BV), the latter being subsequently converted into bilirubin (BR). HO-1, once expressed during inflammation, forms high concentrations of its enzymatic by-products that can influence various biological events, and this expression is proven to be associated with the resolution of inflammation. The degradation of heme by HO-1 itself, the signaling actions of CO, the antioxidant properties of BV/BR, and the sequestration of ferrous iron by ferritin all concertedly contribute to the anti-inflammatory effects of HO-1. This review focuses on the anti-inflammatory mechanisms of HO-1 actions and its roles in inflammatory diseases.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
• /
• v.24 no.3
• /
• pp.290-298
• /
• 1996

In an effort to understand the role of the conserved domain and of the heterologous one-third part of the carboxy terminal domain of transglutaminase C (TGase II), attempts were made to express TGase II cDNA of human origin in yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae as in a full-length form as well as in a form of C-terminal truncation. The 2$\mu$-based expression plasmids which contained the TGase II cDNA under the gal inducible promoter were introduced into yeast and the maintenance of the full-length and truncated form of the TGase II gene plasmids were confirmed by Southern blot. The expression of the TGase II gene was analysed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and western blot analyses. As assayed by [1,4$^{14}$C]-putrescine incorporation into succinylated casein, the full-lenth as well as the truncated forms of recombinant TGase II showed some catalytic activity. These results indicate that the N-terminal homologous domain of human TGase II retains a catalytically active domain. The level of TGase II expressed in yeast, however, was far lower than satisfactory and other expression system should be sought further chracterization of the enzyme. The negative effect of TGase II on the growth of yeast is interesting with respect to the physiological effect of TGase II in cornification of epidermal keratinocytes.

• Archives of Pharmacal Research
• /
• v.25 no.2
• /
• pp.170-177
• /
• 2002

The herb, Chrysanthemum zawadskii var, latilobum commonly known as Gu-Jul-Cho in Korea, used in traditional medicine to treat pneumonia, bronchitis, cough, common cold, pharyngitis, bladder-related disorders, gastroenteric disorders, and hypertension. Linarin is the main active compound and the biological mechanisms of its activity are unclear. It is believed that effects of this herb may be exerted through the pluripotent effectors of linarin due to its ability to treat a variety of afflictions. In this study, the effects of linarin on the mouse macrophages cell line, RAW 264.7, were investigated. It was found that linarin could activate macrophages by producing cytokines. Monocytes and tissue macrophages produce at least two groups of protein mediators of inflammation, interleukin 1 (IL-1 ) and the tumor necrosis factor (TNF). Recent studies have shown that TNF and IL-1 modulate the inflammatory function of endothelial cells, leukocytes, and fibroblasts. $TNF-{\alpha}$ production by macrophages treated with linarin occured in a dose dependent manner However, IL-1 production was largely unaffected by this natural product. This study demonstrated the ability of linarin to activate macrophages both directly and indirectly. Linarin also affect both cytosine production and nitric oxide inhibition, in addition to the expression of some surface molecules. Nitric oxide (NO), derived from L-argin-ine, is produced by two forms(constitutive and inducible) of nitric oxide synthase (NOS). The NO produced in large amounts by inducible NOS is known to be responsible for the vasodilation and hypotension observed in septic shock. Linarin was found to inhibit NO production in the LPS-activated RAW 264.7 cells. Linarin may be a useful candidate as a new drug for treating endotoxemia and the inflammation accompanied by NO overproduction. The linarin-treated total Iymphocytes exhibited cytotoxicity in a dose dependent manner between $20{\;}{\mu}g/ml{\;}and{\;}40{\;}{\mu}g/ml$. These results suggest that linarin may function through macrophage activation.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.8 no.6
• /
• pp.553-559
• /
• 1998

cDNA of human thrombopoietin (hTPO) amplified by polymerase chain reaction from a cDNA library of human fetal liver was cloned. EPO-like domains ($hTPO_{153} \;or\; hTPO_{l63})\; of\; hTPO(hTPO_{332}$) were expressed in Escherichin coli using several kinds of expression systems, such as ompA secretion, thioredoxin fusion, and the $P_L$ and T7 expression systems. To obtain $hTPO_{153}$ in soluble form, $hTPO_{153}$ cDNA was fused in-frame behind the gene encoding ompA signal sequence and thioredoxin protein. When fused with either of the genes, $hTPO_{153}$ was not expressed to the detectable level. However, a high level expression of the EPO-like domain of hTPO was obtained using the PL and T7 expression system. $hTPO_{153} \;or\; hTPO_{l63} cDNA were subcloned into the pLex and pET-28a(＋) vectors under the control of the inducible$ P_L\;T_7$ promoter, respectively. Proteins expressed using pl.ex vector and pET-28a(＋) detected in insoluble forms with an expression level of about 14% and 9% of total cellular proteins, respectively, and the level of expression was rapidly diminished in 2 h after the maximum level of expression was reached.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.24 no.6
• /
• pp.854-861
• /
• 2014

The diagnosis of Brucella abortus is mainly based on serological methods using antibody against LPS, which has diagnostic problems. Therefore, to solve this problem, we evaluated two proteins of B. abortus, Cu/Zn superoxide dismutase (SodC) and outer membrane proteins 2b porin (Omp2b). The genes were cloned and expressed in a pMAL system, and the recombinant proteins, rOmp2b and rSodC, were purified as fusion forms with maltose-binding protein. The identity of the proteins was confirmed by SDS-PAGE and Western blot analysis with sera of mice infected with B. abortus. Production of cytokines and nitric oxide (NO) was investigated in RAW 264.7 cells and mouse splenocytes after stimulation with the proteins. Moreover, cellular and humoral immune responses were investigated in BALB/c mice after immunization with the proteins. TNF-${\alpha}$, IL-6, and NO were significantly inducible in RAW 264.7 cells. Splenocytes of naive mice produced IFN-${\gamma}$ and IL-4 significantly by stimulation. Moreover, number of IgG, IFN-${\gamma}$, and IL-4 producing cells were increased in immunized mice with the two proteins. Production of IgG and IgM with rOmp2b was higher than those with rSodC in immunized mice. These results suggest that the two recombinant proteins of B. abortus may be potential LPS-free proteins for diagnosis.