• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• 제23권4호
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• pp.579-585
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• 2013

Streptococcus equi ssp. zooepidemicus (Streptococcus zooepidemicus, SEZ) is an important pathogen associated with opportunistic infections of a wide range of species, including pigs and humans. The absence of a suitable vaccine makes it difficult to control SEZ infection. Glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) has been previously identified as an immunogenic protein using immunoproteomic techniques. In the present study, we confirmed that the sequence of GAPDH was highly conserved with other Streptococcus spp. The purified recombinant GAPDH could elicit a significant humoral antibody response in mice and confer significant protection against challenge with a lethal dose of SEZ. GAPDH could adhere to the Hep-2 cells, confirmed by flow cytometry, and inhibit adherence of SEZ to Hep-2 cells in an adherence inhibition assay. In addition, real-time PCR demonstrated that GAPDH was induced in vivo following infection of mice with SEZ. These suggest that GAPDH could play an important role in the pathogenesis of SEZ infection and could be a target for vaccination against SEZ.

• BMB Reports
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• 제40권2호
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• pp.226-231
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• 2007

Housekeeping genes are widely used as internal controls in a variety of study types, including real time RT-PCR, microarrays, Northern analysis and RNase protection assays. However, even commonly used housekeeping genes may vary in stability depending on the cell type or disease being studied. Thus, it is necessary to identify additional housekeeping-type genes that show sample-independent stability. Here, we used statistical analysis to examine a large human microarray database, seeking genes that were stably expressed in various tissues, disease states and cell lines. We further selected genes that were expressed at different levels, because reference and target genes should be present in similar copy numbers to achieve reliable quantitative results. Real time RT-PCR amplification of three newly identified reference genes, CGI-119, CTBP1 and GOLGAl, alongside three well-known housekeeping genes, B2M, GAPD, and TUBB, confirmed that the newly identified genes were more stably expressed in individual samples with similar ranges. These results collectively suggest that statistical analysis of microarray data can be used to identify new candidate housekeeping genes showing consistent expression across tissues and diseases. Our analysis identified three novel candidate housekeeping genes (CGI-119, GOLGA1, and CTBP1) that could prove useful for normalization across a variety of RNA-based techniques.

• 방사성폐기물학회지
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• 제20권2호
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• pp.171-183
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• 2022

The parent and daughter nuclides in a radioactive decay chain arrive at secular equilibrium once they have a large half-life difference. The characteristics of this equilibrium state can be used to estimate the production time of nuclear materials. In this study, a mathematical model and algorithm that can be applied to radio-chronometry using the radioactive equilibrium relationship were investigated, reviewed, and implemented. A Bateman equation that can analyze the decay of radioactive materials over time was used for the mathematical model. To obtain a differential-based solution of the Bateman equation, an algebraic numerical solution approach and two different matrix exponential functions (Moral and Levy) were implemented. The obtained result was compared with those of commonly used algorithms, such as the Chebyshev rational approximation method and WISE Uranium. The experimental analysis confirmed the similarity of the results. However, the Moral method led to an increasing calculation uncertainty once there was a branching decay, so this aspect must be improved. The time period corresponding to the production of nuclear materials or nuclear activity can be estimated using the proposed algorithm when uranium or its daughter nuclides are included in the target materials for nuclear forensics.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제42권3호
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• pp.343-351
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• 2018

Background: Red ginseng is a popularly used traditional medicine with antiaging effects in Asian countries. The present study aimed to explore the changes in protein expression underlying the mechanisms of life span extension and antiaging caused by red ginseng extract (RGE) in Drosophila melanogaster. Methods: A proteomic approach of two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2-DE) was used to identify the differential abundance of possible target proteins of RGE in D. melanogaster. The reliability of the 2-DE results was confirmed via Western blotting to measure the expression levels of selected proteins. Proteins altered at the expression level after RGE treatment (1 mg/mL) were identified by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-time of flight tandem mass spectrometry and by searching against the National Center for Biotechnology nonredundant and Uniprot protein databases. The differentially expressed proteins were analyzed using bioinformatics methods. Results: The average survival life span of D. melanogaster was significantly extended by 12.60% with RGE treatment (1 mg/mL) compared to untreated flies. This followed increased superoxide dismutase level and decreased methane dicarboxylic aldehyde content. Based on the searching strategy, 23 differentially expressed proteins were identified (16 up-regulated and 7 down-regulated) in the RGE-treated D. melanogaster. Transduction pathways were identified using the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes database, and included the hippo and oxidative phosphorylation pathways that play important roles in life span extension and antiaging process of D. melanogaster. Conclusion: Treatment with RGE in D. melanogaster demonstrated that mechanisms of life span extension and antiaging are regulated by multiple factors and complicated signal pathways.

• Journal of Ginseng Research
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• 제43권3호
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• pp.452-459
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• 2019

Background: Ginsenoside compound K(C-K), a major metabolite of ginsenoside, exhibits anticancer activity in various cancer cells and animal models. A cell signaling study has shown that C-K inhibited nuclear factor-kappa B ($NF-{\kappa}B$) pathway in human astroglial cells and liver cancer cells. However, the molecular targets of C-K and the initiating events were not elucidated. Methods: Interaction between C-K and Annexin A2 was determined by molecular docking and thermal shift assay. HepG2 cells were treated with C-K, followed by a luciferase reporter assay for $NF-{\kappa}B$, immunofluorescence imaging for the subcellular localization of Annexin A2 and $NF-{\kappa}B$ p50 subunit, coimmunoprecipitation of Annexin A2 and $NF-{\kappa}B$ p50 subunit, and both cell viability assay and plate clone formation assay to determine the cell viability. Results: Both molecular docking and thermal shift assay positively confirmed the interaction between Annexin A2 and C-K. This interaction prevented the interaction between Annexin A2 and $NF-{\kappa}B$ p50 subunit and their nuclear colocalization, which attenuated the activation of $NF-{\kappa}B$ and the expression of its downstream genes, followed by the activation of caspase 9 and 3. In addition, the overexpression of Annexin A2-K320A, a C-K binding-deficient mutant of Annexin A2, rendered cells to resist C-K treatment, indicating that C-K exerts its cytotoxic activity mainly by targeting Annexin A2. Conclusion: This study for the first time revealed a cellular target of C-K and the molecular mechanism for its anticancer activity.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• 제26권3호
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• pp.188-203
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• 2023

Lysozymes are well-known antibacterial enzymes that mainly target the peptidoglycan layer of the bacterial cell wall. Animal lysozymes are mainly categorized as g-type, c-type, and i-type based on protein sequence and structural differences. In this study, c-type (AcLysC) and g-like-type (AcLysG-like) lysozymes from Amphiprion clarkii were characterized in silico via expressional and functional approaches. According to in silico analysis, open reading frames of AcLysC and AcLysG-like were 429 bp and 570 bp, respectively, encoding the corresponding polypeptide chains with 142 and 189 amino acids. Elevated expression levels of AcLysC and AcLysG-like were observed in the liver and the heart tissues, respectively, as evidenced by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction assays. AcLysC and AcLysG-like transcript levels were upregulated in gills, head kidney, and blood cells following experimental immune stimulation. Recombinant AcLysC exhibited potent lytic activity against Vibrio anguillarum, whereas recombinant AcLysG-like showed remarkable antibacterial activity against Vibrio harveyi and Streptococcus parauberis, which was further evidenced by scanning electron microscopic imaging of destructed bacterial cell walls. The findings of this study collectively suggest the potential roles of AcLysC and AcLysG-like in host immune defense.

• 디지털융복합연구
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• 제9권1호
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• pp.189-200
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• 2011

소셜미디어(Social media) 환경이 세계적으로 '정치권력전환(power shift)'에 큰 영향을 미치고 있다. 이런 변화가 스마트한 국민의 선택(the people's choice)이다. 따라서 시대적 변화의 추세에 정치인, 정당도 시대에 걸맞는 스마트($S^6M^2AR^3T^4$)한 정치PR전략 트렌드를 구상해야 한다. 이제 정치인이나 정당은 소셜네트워크 서비스(Social Network Service, SNS)를 통하여 국민에게 모든 정책이 보다 구체적(Specific)이고, 간결(Simplicity)하게 하여, 다 같이 강한(Strong) 시너지(Synergy)의 효과를 공유(Sharing)할 수 있어야 한다. 또한 올바른 정책이 목표를 향해 힘(Mighty)있게 추진하되, 그 정책이 평가 할 수(Measurable)있도록 성취(Achievable)되어야 한다. 그리고 그 정책은 국가의 모든 분야와 관련(Relevance)된 통합적인 차원에서 국민의 신뢰(Reliability)와 현실적(Realistic)바탕에서 각 계층(Target segmentation), 국민 모두(Together)의 소외됨 없이 비전과 목표(Target)를 가지고 누구나 동등한 기회(Time)로 저 마다 행복한 삶이 추구되어야 한다. 이런 정책 바탕에서 스마트시민정당의 발전 방향과 그 대안에 대한 12가지 키워드(key words)를 제안하고 있다. 이런 스마트시민정당의 정치PR전략만이 '강한나라, 힘 있는 대한민국 건설(mighty and powerful Korea)'을 실행시킬 수 있고 국민의 선택(the people's choice)을 받게 될 것이다.

• 한국해양학회지:바다
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• 제22권1호
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• pp.31-44
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• 2017

Pfiesteria piscicida는 유독 종속영양 와편모조류로서, 크기가 작고 형태학적으로 유사한 Pfiesteria-like dinoflagellate (PLD) 종들로 인해, 광학 현미경 관찰만으로 정확하게 동정하는 것이 불가능하다. 따라서, 본 연구에서는 이러한 한계점을 극복하기 위해 EvaGreen 기반의 정량적 real-time PCR기법을 개발하였으며, 한국 근해에서 P. piscicida의 분포와 시화호에서 개체군 변동 조사를 통해 현장에서 유용성을 검증하였다. 이를 위해, internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS 1) 영역을 대상으로 종 특이적 프라이머를 제작하였으며, P. piscicida와 진화적 유연관계에 있는 다양한 미세조류에 대해 PCR을 수행하여 프라이머의 특이성을 검증하였다. 개발된 프라이머를 real-time PCR 기법에 적용한 결과, P. piscicida의 세포수와 $C_T$값 간의 유의한 표준 곡선($r^2{\geq}0.999$)과 하나의 융해곡선 피크($88^{\circ}C$)가 관찰되었다. 이는 본 연구에서 개발된 기법이 대상생물인 P. piscicida를 정확하게 정성 및 정량분석이 가능함을 의미한다. 개발된 real-time PCR 기법의 현장적용 결과, 광학 현미경상에서는 탐지할 수 없었던 P. piscicida를 서해(김제, 목포)와 동해(강릉) 시료에서 검출하였다. 또한, 시화호 시료를 이용한 P. piscicida개체군 동태 조사에서 다른 정점에 비해 염분도가 상대적으로 낮았던(${\leq}15psu$), St. 1에서 2007년 6, 7, 8월에 세포밀도의 피크가 관찰되었다. 본 연구에서 개발된 EvaGreen 기반 real-time PCR 기법은 현장에서 P. piscicida를 탐지 및 정량 분석 하는데 성공하였으며, 이는 향후 이들 종에 대한 다양한 생태학적 연구에 활용될 것으로 사료된다.

• Journal of Computing Science and Engineering
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• 제3권2호
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• pp.127-141
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• 2009

In this paper, we describe our vision of a "Just-in-time" initiative to solve the Data Interoperability Problem (a.k.a. INTEROP.) We provide an architectural overview of our initiative which draws upon existing technologies to develop an immersive and collaborative approach which aims at empowering data stakeholders (e.g., data producers and data consumers) with integrated tools to interact and collaborate with each other while directly manipulating visual representations of their data in an immersive environment (e.g., implemented via Second Life.) The semantics of these visual representations and the operations associated with the data are supported by ontologies defined using the Common Logic Framework (CL). Data operations gestured by the stakeholders, through their avatars, are translated to a variety of generated resources such as multi-language source code, visualizations, web pages, and web services. The generality of the approach is supported by a plug-in architecture which allows expert users to customize tasks such as data admission, data manipulation in the immersive world, and automatic generation of resources. This approach is designed with a mindset aimed at enabling stakeholders from diverse domains to exchange data and generate new knowledge.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• 제33권6호
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• pp.529-542
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• 2017

Control of plant diseases is largely dependent on use of agrochemicals. However, there are widening gaps between our knowledge on plant diseases gained from genetic/mechanistic studies and rapid translation of the knowledge into target-oriented development of effective agrochemicals. Here we propose that the time is ripe for computer-aided drug discovery/design (CADD) in molecular plant pathology. CADD has played a pivotal role in development of medically important molecules over the last three decades. Now, explosive increase in information on genome sequences and three dimensional structures of biological molecules, in combination with advances in computational and informational technologies, opens up exciting possibilities for application of CADD in discovery and development of agrochemicals. In this review, we outline two categories of the drug discovery strategies: structure- and ligand-based CADD, and relevant computational approaches that are being employed in modern drug discovery. In order to help readers to dive into CADD, we explain concepts of homology modelling, molecular docking, virtual screening, and de novo ligand design in structure-based CADD, and pharmacophore modelling, ligand-based virtual screening, quantitative structure activity relationship modelling and de novo ligand design for ligand-based CADD. We also provide the important resources available to carry out CADD. Finally, we present a case study showing how CADD approach can be implemented in reality for identification of potent chemical compounds against the important plant pathogens, Pseudomonas syringae and Colletotrichum gloeosporioides.