The molecuar prossing of upsteam regulation of Pi response genes during Pi starvation remains inadequately understood. R2R3 MYB transcription factors play regulatory roles in plant responses to various environmental stresses and nutrient deficiency. In this study, we isolated and designated OsMYB4P, an R2R3 MYB transcription factor, from rice under low-phosphate conditions. OsMYB4P was localized in the nucleus and acted as a transcriptional activator. Transcriptional levels of OsMYB4P in cell suspension, shoots, and roots of rice increased under low phosphate conditions. To investigate the function of OsMYB4P in Pi-starvation signaling, we developed transgenic rice plants overexpressing OsMYB4P for analysis of Pi signaling and uptake. Shoots and roots of OsMYB4P overexpressing plants grew well in high and low phosphate conditions. In addition, root system architecture was altered considerably as a result of OsMYB4P overexpression. Under both phosphate sufficient and deficient conditions, more Pi accumulated in shoots and roots of OsMYB4P overexpressing plants than in the wild type. Overexpression of OsMYB4P led to greater expression of Pi transporter-family proteins OsPT1, OsPT2, OsPT4, OsPT7, and OsPT8 in shoots, and to decreased or unchanged expression of these proteins in roots, with the exception of OsPT8. These results demonstrate that OsMYB4P lead to Pi accumulation and acts as a Pi-dependent regulator in controlling the expression of Pi transporters.

We used an efficient system to create rice mutant by Ac/Ds transposon insertion mutagenesis, such as selected homozygous mutant in dwarf phenotypes. We reported here the identification of function of dwarf OsGASD gene(Oryza sativa Gibberellin Acid Sensitive Dwarf). OsGASD gene encodes a 344 amino acid polypeptide and no homology proteins in GeneBank. The osgasd mutnat was sensitive to exogenous GA level. We performed experiment to controlled expression the OsGASD gene, its role in plant development, a quantitative analysis of endogenous GA content and sensitivity to GA. The osgasd mutant includes smaller amount of active GAs than wild-type. osgasd mutant plant of GA biosynthesis pathway causes GA deficiency and dwarf plants, and endogenous GA suppliance can restore the wild type phenotype in this mutant. There sult indicated that OsGASD gene regulated the elongation of shoot, stem and plant height. The increased expression of OsGASD gene dramatically induces expression of the factors associated with GA biosynthesis such as CPS, KO, KAO, GA 20 ox and GA 2 ox, whereas osgasd mutant suppression of the factors associated with GA biosynthesis, loading to dwarf phenotypes. That applied GA3 at the plant development stage to survey the response of OsGASD gene to GA3. These results indicated that OsGASD gene is involved in GA biosynthesis factors, not only in the internodes, but also leaf length at the developing stage.

In this study, we generated and characterized the transgenic rice plant expressing a spider silk protein. Spider silks have great potential as biomaterials with extraordinary properties. We report the cloning and characterization of the major ampullate silk protein gene from the spider Araneus ventricosus. A cDNA encoding the partial major ampullate silk protein (AvMaSp) was cloned from A. ventricosus. An analysis of the cDNA sequence shows that AvMaSp consists of a 240 amino acid repetitive region and a 99 amino acid C-terminal non-repetitive domain. The peptide motifs that were found in the spider major ampullate silk proteins, (A)n, (GA)n, and (GGX)n, were conserved in the repetitive region of AvMaSp. Phylogenetic analysis further confirmed that AvMaSp belongs to the spider major ampullate spidroin family of proteins. The AvMaSp-R cDNA, which encodes the 240 amino acid repetitive domain, was expressed as a soluble 22 kDa polypeptide in baculovirus-infected insect cells. To produce transgenic rice plant with high contents of glycine and alanine, the prolamin promoter-driven AvDrag was introduced into rice plant via agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated gene transformation. The introduction and copy number of the AvDrag gene in transgenic rice plants were determined by PCR and Southern blot analysis. AvDrag expression in transgenic rice seeds was examined by Northern blot and Western blot analysis. Immunofluorescence staining with the AvDrag antiserum revealed that the recombinant AvDrag protein were localized in transgenic rice seed. Furthermore, the amino acid content analysis showed that transgenic rice seeds were greatly increased in glycine and alanine as compared to controls

sy-2 (Seychelles-2) is a temperature sensitive mutant of Capsicum chinense and native to Seychelles Island in Africa. Previously we showed that sy-2 leaves were irregularly shaped and defective in chlorophyll development at temperatures lower than 24℃. A segregation test revealed that the sy-2 gene is controlled by a single recessive gene. To identify the sy-2 gene, we performed a map-based cloning approach using a total of 1,010 F2 plants derived from crossing sy-2 and the wild type C. chinense ‘No.3341’. sy-2 gene is located on chromosome 1, 0.3 cM and 0.1cM away from cosII markers C2_At4g29120 and C2_At1g09070, respectively. The tomato genome sequence between those two markers was compared with pepper genome sequence. We found three of pepper scaffold sequences in this region. We developed seven ingle nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers on the pepper scaffold sequences, among which five SNP markers were co-segregated with sy-2. To fill the gap between the scaffolds which contains co-segregating markers, we screened a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) library, and end-sequences of total of 22 AC clones were i. We found that five clones were overlapped to cover the gap. We fully sequenced four AC clones and found that the physical distance between C2_At4g29120 and C2_At1g09070 is 343kb. This region contains 70 putative genes such as HSP90-like ATPase family proteins, lipid-transfer proteins, calmodulin-domain protein kinases, and zinc finger proteins (ZFPs). To identify the sy-2 gene, we performed RT-PCR and found that a ZFP-like gene is differentially expressed between WT and sy-2 leaves. This result suggests that the ZFP-like gene is a strong candidate for the sy-2 gene. We are currently characterizing this candidate gene.

The fruit shape is an important character in tomato. OVATE is one of genes controlling fruit elongation in tomato. Two loci suppress the ovate mutation, sov1 and sov2, on chromosome 10 and chromosome 11 respectively. sov1 appears to control neck constriction in the fruits (Rodriguez et al, 2013). We sequenced the genomes of Gold Ball Livingston and Yellow Pear using the Illumina Hiseq 2000 generating 101 PE reads and developed molecular markers tightly linked to sov1. The locus was confirmed by fruit shape index analysis, marker genotyping and progeny testing of recombinants. We find mapped sov1 to a 145 kb interval corresponding to a region comprising two candidate genes. One of the candidate genes for sov1 is SlOFP20 another member of the Ovate Family Protein class. Although there is no difference expression of SlOFP20 in the parents at anthesis, when the gene is expressed very high, the mutation appears to be a 34 kb promoter deletion of SlOFP20 in Yellow Pear, conferring a pear shaped and neck-constricted fruit.

It is well known that Dharial (Bangladesh origin and weedy rice line) has longer seed longevity than indica and japonica rice varieties. To study the genetic basis of seed longevity of Dharial, we developed 240 BC3F7 backcross recombinant inbred lines derived from the crosses between Dharial (a donor parent) and two korea rice accessions (recurrent parents) including Ilmi and Gopum, respectively. Among these lines, we selected two introgression lines with longer seed longevity and named them Ilmi-NIL and Gopum-NIL. Also, we developed an EMS-induced mutant line from Dharial which has shortened seed longevity, and named it Dharial-EMS. We performed re-sequencing of four rice accessions that are Dharial, Dharial-EMS, Ilmi-NIL, and Gopum-NIL. A total of 706×106 raw reads were generated which provided sequence data over 46x rice genome coverage per each accession. We did genome-wide variation analysis comparing produced re-sequencing data and the re-sequencing data of Ilmi from NABIC database with the Nipponbare reference sequence. By graphical analysis of SNP distribution in rice genome of the five accessions, we could select candidate chromosomal segments introgressed from Dharial in Ilmi-NIL and Gopum-NIL. The introgressed chromosomal segments were in seven regions in Ilmi-NIL and eight regions in Gopum-NIL, and four common introgressed regions between Ilmi-NIL and Gopum-NIL were identified. 2,758 SNPs between Dharial and Dharial-EMS were found in the introgressed regions. Also, we detected 450 genes including at least one SNP among these SNPs. This result will facilitate identification of genes and development of molecular markers for improvement of seed longevity.

Capsinoids, low-pungent compounds, have the same biological effects as capsaicinoids such as anticancer and anti-obesity. A precursor of capsinoids, vanillyl alcohol, is known to be produced by mutations in the p-aminotransferase (p-AMT) gene. In the previous study, SNU11-001 (C. chinense) containing high levels of capsinoids was found in germplasm collections of Seoul National University. We found that this collection has a unique mutation in the p-AMT gene. In order to develop a cultivar containing high capsinoids contents, marker-assisted foreground and background selection were performed in this study. Backcrossing is an effective breeding method for introducing useful traits to an elite cultivar. Compared to conventional backcrossing, marker-assisted backcrossing (MABC) is extremely useful for recovery of a recurrent parent’s genetic background. To obtain background selection markers, a total of 412 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers was screened to obtain polymorphic SNP markers between ‘Takanotsume (C. annuum)’ and ‘SNU11-001’. Of the 412 SNP markers, 96 polymorphic SNP markers evenly distributed in pepper genome were finally selected. Plants carrying the pAmt/pamt genotype were selected from a BC1F1 population using SCAR markers derived from the unique p-AMT mutation of SNU11-001. BC1F1 plants carrying the pAmt/pamt genotype were subjected to background selection. Multiple genotype analysis was done using Fluidigm platform (BioMark). Once we obtain plants carrying most similar genetic background to recurrent parent, capsinoids contents will be measured and another round of MABC be done to obtain plants containing high levels of capsinoids

A new peanut(Arachis hypogaea ssp. fastigiata L.) variety “Danwon(Milyang51)” with short stem length and lodging resistance was developed at the Department of Functional Crop, NICS, in Miryang in 2013. This variety was developed from the crossing line between cultivar “YG 75” with large grain and fewer branch number and “SP9617” with short stem length. “Danwon” which is Shinpung plant type has 32cm of main stem length and 13 branch number per plant. Each pod has two grains with long ellipse shape of brown testa and yield components is composed of 40 mature pods of per plant, 91g of 100-seed weight, 77% of pod shelling ratio in the regional yield trials(RYT). Seed quality show 48.7% of crude oil and 26.9% of protein content. “Danwon” has resistance to lodging in even double dense planting without yield reduction. This is more resistant to early and late leaf spot, web blotch and stem rot, compared with check variety “Daekwang”. In the regional yield trials “Danwon” outyielded check variety by 6% with 4.52 MT/ha for kernel.

Using a series of BC8F4 nearly isogenic lines(IL-20) derived from a cross between Hwaseongbyeo, as the recurrent parent, and wild rice Oryza minuta (IRGC Acc. No. 101144) as the donor parent we constructed a high-resolution physical map for the days to heading (dth9)-QTL. dth9 QTL was mapped to the long arm of chromosome 9 across a 34.74-kb region containing 8 predicted genes. Heading date of Japonica rice variety Hwaseongbyeo was one week earlier than a near-isogenic line (NILs) IL-20 under natural field (NF) conditions and 3-4 days under short-day (SD) conditions implying that the dth9-QTL is involved in photoperiod sensitivity in rice. Of the 8 predicted genes three were protein-coding genes in dth9-QTL region. According to RiceXpro published data, micro-array analysis of different leaf developmental stages of Nipponbare showed a higher level of LOC_Os09g36700 mRNA expression during panicle initiation stage. This data further supported our prediction that dth9 locus is responsible for delayed heading in IL-20. Previous studies showed that RNase T2 family proteins are involved in photoperiod sensitivity. Based on these findings we sequenced two candidate genes, which encoded for RNase T2 family proteins. Interestingly, we found the existence of a missense mutation in LOC_Os09g36700 gene suggesting that dth9-QTL might control difference in days to heading between Hwaseongbyeo and IL-20. The QTL for days to heading had not been detected in previous QTL studies between Oryza cultivars, indicating the existence of potentially novel allele from O. mimuta.

Trees are extraordinary long living, sessile organisms that are faced quite variable environmental conditions and biotic stress factors during their life. They have a high level of genetic diversity to ensure adaptation and adaptability. With the massive advance in next generation DNA-sequencing, our abilities to screen this genetic variation have increased drastically. I will give an overview on the different genomic approaches, main target tree species and examples for application in the area of population genetics. Examples will show how high throughput SNP genotyping clarifies our views on taxonomy, phylogeography and provide us with useful data for different diagnostic applications such as species identification, tracking geographic origin and screening the level of pre-disposition to abiotic and biotic stress factors. Since a few years next generation sequencing and advanced molecular marker development have also been used in genetic association studies and transcriptome sequencing (RNASeq) in order to discover genes that are coding economical and ecological important phenotypic traits of trees. I will present examples on target phenotypic traits and the use in tree breeding programs

Most eukaryotic organisms, including plants, display specialized cellular and behavioral rhythms with a period of approximately 24 hours. The circadian clock generates this rhythm to convey daily or seasonal basis of temporal information, coordinating the proper phasing of many important cellular processes. Temperature compensation (TC) is one of the defining features of the clock mechanism. Under this function, the speed of the clock or period remains relatively constant over physiologically relevant temperatures, unlike the biochemical reactions. Thus, TC allows organisms to sustain their life ordinarily in various thermal environments by providing an accurate measure of the passage of time regardless of surrounding temperatures. Previously, Edward and his colleagues performed a quantitative trait loci (QTL) study to find TC related natural variations in the recombinant inbred line (RIL) population from two Arabidopsis ecotypes, which are adapted to different thermal environments; one parent is Cvi accession (Cvi) which originates from the warm climate, Cape Verde Island, and the other is Ler accession (Ler) from Northern Europe. For the two most significant QTLs, the core clock components in Arabidopsis clock, GIGANTEA (GI) and ZEITLUPE (ZTL) are proposed as strong candidates. Moreover, the amino acid substitution leading to GICvi and ZTLCvi (Ler to Cvi) are suggested to be the causal factors for the TC QTLs respectively. However, precise molecular mechanisms of these natural variations on TC are still not understood well. Here, we elucidate the molecular impact of the natural variation shaping GICvi and ZTLCvi on TC function. GICvi and ZTLCvi post-translationally regulate ZTL stability in antagonistic way, resulting in the opposite period/clock effects mediated by ZTL protein abundance. However, if both GICvi and ZTLCvi are present, they mutually balance their own effect on ZTL, which in turn supports TC capacity of Cvi especially at high temperatures. Considering the amino acid residues in GI and ZTL, where the natural variations arise, are highly conserved across many important crop species including rice, corn, cabbage and etc., this research will give valuable insights into the TC related thermal adaptive processes in Arabidopsis as well as those important crop plants.

We are currently developing a high-throughput single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) genotyping service at IRRI to accelerate progress in rice breeding by providing rapid and cost-effective marker services. SNP marker development and validation is being performed based on cloned genes and QTLs, GWAS hits, and whole genome sequence data to identify predictive SNP markers at important genes for key traits for the breeding programs. Trait-based and targeted SNPs are being deployed in sets of 24 and 96 SNPs on a Fluidigm EP1 system. At the same time, 384 SNP sets and a 6K SNP chip developed by Susan McCouch at Cornell University are being used for higher density genome scans on an Illumina system. Genotyping by sequencing (GBS) approaches with 96 and 384 barcoded samples per sequence lane are also being evaluated in comparison to SNP array technology based on the number of loci, call rates, turnaround times, and cost per sample. An efficient sample processing workflow with an integrated LIMS is also being optimized to enable high throughput genotyping with sample tracking to minimize errors. Moreover, web-based SNP data analysis tools have been deployed through the IRRI Galaxy workbench to speed up SNP data analysis. Future efforts will focus on large-scale deployment of GBS across breeding materials to enable QC genotyping, tracking of donor introgressions, and integration of genome-wide prediction into the variety development pipelines. The large-scale application of high-density markers will help transform IRRI’s rice breeding programs and increase the rate of genetic gain towards developing high-yielding, stress-tolerant varieties for target environments and market segments

The management of household hazardous waste (HHW), a component of municipal solid waste (MSW) has become a major of concern partly due to their potential toxicity upon disposal. Improper management of such waste can deteriorate the environment and cause serious damage to the human health. This paper discusses the current fundamental management practices, which include the generation rate, collection systems and treatment using the survey reviews of households and interviews held with experts in the Daejeon metropolitan city. Surveys of more than 378 people in Daejeon Metropolitan City were conducted to investigate the characteristics, generation rate, social behavior and awareness regarding disposal of HHW. The target items used in this study includes used lamps, used batteries, pharmaceuticals, and household pesticide chemicals. According to the survey conducted, the generation rates of HHW varied depending upon the dwelling type, collection system, and waste type. Apartment complex residents participated actively in source separation, using the established collection system with limited items (e.g., fluorescent lamps and batteries), while single family housing residents tend to store HHW at households. There is still a need for public awareness, detailed policies and legislation requiring source segregation at households, and better collection systems for HHW. The results of this study can be used for developing better management of HHW in municipal solid waste streams to prevent potential environmental impacts and human health risks.

Purpose - The study aimed to evaluate the market opportunities and constraints confronting resource-poor pig farmers in South Africa. Research design, data, and methodology - Information was collected from 292 households in three municipalities through interviews with key informants. The data collected included socio- economic characteristics, major market channels, prices for different pig classes, average weight of the pigs on sale, number of pigs sold annually, and preferred meat quality attributes. Results - In Ngqushwa, 96% of respondents sold pigs as compared to Elundini (81%) and Ntabankulu (65%). Less resource- poor households and those with market-oriented production had large herdsizes (P < 0.05) when compared to more resource-poor farmers. The probability of selling pigs was high for the backyard production system and educated farmers. For all farmers, opportunities included high pork demand, good prices, employment creation, and a niche market for organically produced indigenous pork. Constraints include disease, feed shortages for large herds, distances to formal markets, lack of training, and drugs. Conclusions - Constraints outnumbered opportunities for the resource-poor pig farmers

초등학교 수학교과시간에 원예활동을 도입한 원예-수학통합교육을 실시한 결과, 아동의 수학성적이 즉각적, 직접적으로 향상되지는 않았지만, 장기적 관점에서 아동이 수학에 흥미를 가지도록 도왔다. 원예-수학통합교육프로그램에 대한 선호도 조사에서, 아동은 수학 학습에 대한 재미가 증가하였고 과목에 더 관심을 가지게 된 원인이 되었다고 하였다. 본 연구를 통해서 볼 때, 원예-수학통합교육 프로그램은 초등학교 교육현장에서 적용 가능성이 매우 높으며 수학에 대한 흥미를 높이고 학교생활의 활력을 높이는데 매우 효과적이라고 판단된다.

The objective of this study is to analyse the dynamic stable and unstable behaviours of a space truss using an accurate solution obtained by the high-order Taylor method. Because numerical solutions can lead to incorrect analyses in the case of a space truss model due to the being parameters large, we analyse the solution’s behaviour using essentially an analytical solution obtained by the multi-step high-order Taylor method. In detail, the dynamic instability and buckling characteristics of the SDOF model under step, sinusoidal and beating excitations are investigated.

Large span roof structures require an analysis of their static and dynamic behavior depending on the physical parameters defining the structures. Therefore, it is highly desirable to estimate the parameters from observations of the system. However, the study of the behavior of such structures shows the existence of critical parameters. A small change in such parameters causes a significant change in the motion behavior. In this paper we study the parameter identification problem for shallow sinusoidal arches considering damping effect.

The NISS onboard NEXTSat-1 is being developed by Korea astronomy and space science institute (KASI). For the study of the cosmic star formation history, the NISS performs the imaging spectroscopic observation in the near-infrared range for nearby galaxies, low background regions, star-forming regions and so on. It is designed to cover a wide field of view (2 × 2 deg) and a wide wavelength range from 0.95 to 3.8 μm by using linear variable filters. In order to reduce the thermal noise, the telescope and the infrared sensor are cooled down to 200 K and 80 K, respectively. Evading a stray light outside the field of view and making the most use of limited space, the NISS adopts the off-axis reflective optical system. The primary and the secondary mirrors, the opto-mechanical part and the mechanical structure are designed to be made of aluminum material. It reduces the degradation of optical performance due to a thermal variation. This paper presents the study on the conceptual design of the NISS.

We present preliminary observations of the field-aligned-irregularities (FAIs) in the E and F regions during the solar minimum (2009 - 2010) using the 40.8 MHz coherent backscatter radar at Daejeon (36.18°N, 127.14°E, 26.7°N dip latitude) in South Korea. The radar, which consists of 24 Yagi antennas, observes the FAIs using a single beam with a peak power of 24 kW. The radar has been continuously operated since December 2009. Depending on the manner of occurrence of the backscatter echoes, the E-region echoes are largely divided into two types: quasi-periodic (QP) and continuous echoes. Our observations show that the QP echoes occur frequently above an altitude of 105 km in the post-sunset period and continuous echoes occur preferentially around an altitude of 105 km in the post-sunrise period. QP echoes appear as striated discrete echoes for a period of about 10 - 20 min. The QP-type echoes occur more frequently than the continuoustype echoes do and the echo intensity of the QP type is stronger than that of the continuous type. In the F region, the FAIs occur at night at an altitude interval of 250 - 450 km. As time proceeds, the occurrence height of the FAIs gradually increases until early in the morning and then decreases. The duration of the F-region FAIs is typically a few hours at night, although, in rare cases, FAIs persist throughout the night or appear even after sunrise. We discuss the similarities and differences of the FAIs observed by the Daejeon radar in comparison with other radar observations.