Apolipophorin III (apoLp-III) is a well-known hemolymph protein having a functional role in lipid transport and immune response of insects. We cloned full-length cDNA encoding putative apoLp-III from larvae of the coleopteran beetle, Tenebrio molitor (TmapoLp-III), by identification of clones corresponding to the partial sequence of TmapoLp-III, subsequently followed with full length sequencing by a clone-by-clone primer walking method. The complete cDNA consists of 890 nucleotides, including an ORF encoding 196 amino acid residues. Excluding a putative signal peptide of the first 20 amino acid residues, the 176-residue mature apoLp-III has a calculated molecular mass of 19,146 Da. Genomic sequence analysis with respect to its cDNA showed that TmapoLp-III was organized into four exons interrupted by three introns. Several immune-related transcription factor binding sites were discovered in the putative 5’-flanking region. BLAST and phylogenetic analysis reveals that TmapoLp-III has high sequence identity (88%) with Tribolium castaneum apoLp-III but shares little sequence homologies (<26%) with other apoLp-IIIs. Homology modeling of Tm apoLp-III shows a bundle of five amphipathic helices, including a short helix 3’. The ‘helix-short helix-helix’ motif was predicted to be implicated in lipid binding interactions, through reversible conformational changes and accommodating the hydrophobic residues to the exterior for stability. Highest level of TmapoLp-III mRNA was detected at late pupal stages, albeit it is expressed in the larval and adult stages at lower levels. The tissue specific expression of the transcripts showed significantly higher numbers in larval fat body and adult integument. In addition, TmapoLp-III mRNA was found to be highly up-regulated in late stages of L. monocytogenes or E. coli challenge. These results indicate that TmapoLp-III may play an important role in innate immune responses against bacterial pathogens in T. molitor.

We have identified novel ricin-type (R-type) lectin by sequencing of random clones from cDNA library of the coleopteran beetle, T.molitor. The cDNA sequence is comprised of 495 bp encoding a protein of 164 amino acid residues and shows 49% identity with galectin of Tribolium castaneum. Bioinformatics analysis shows that the amino acid residues from 35 to 162 belong to ricin-type β-trefoil structure. The transcript was significantly upregulated after early hours of injection with peptidoglycans derived from Gram (+) and Gram (-) bacteria, beta-1, 3 glucan from fungi and an intracellular pathogen, L. monocytogenes suggesting putative function in innate immunity.

Rice stripe virus disease (RSVD), one of the most serious disease of rice is mediated through the sucking by small brown planthopper, Laodalphax striatellus. So far, the studies have been mainly focused on the interaction between the host plant and the virus. In this study, for better comprehension of the interactions among the host plant, vector insect and plant-pathogenic virus, we investigated transcriptome of the vector insect and the differences between viruliferous and naïve L.striatellus. For this, naïve L. striatellus were collected from non-infected rice field and 50 L.striatellus of them were fed RSV-infected rice for 5 days. With the RSV-viruliferous and the naïve insects, we conducted Illumina RNA sequencing (Hiseq 2000) and obtained 175,243,488 and 146,031,348 reads from viruliferous and naïve L.striatellus, respectively. These reads were assembled into contigs and two transcriptome databases were generated. The transcriptome of naïve and RSV-viruliferous L. striatellus were campared to figure out up-regulated or down-regulated genes. These RSV-dependently regulated genes may have important function in the behavior of planthoppers or the transmission of RSV.

본 연구는 국내 일반 사양환경에서 ROSS 육용계의 성장능력을 조사․분석하고, 사료효율을 고려한 도계의 적정시기를 산출하며, 도체성적을 분석하여 ROSS종 육계의 국내 활용 가능성을 검증하고, 성장관련 유용유전자를 발굴하여 조기선발을 위한 육종 전략을 수립하는데 목적으로 실시하였다. ROSS308 육계는 부분육 생산에 탁월한 능력을 지닌 품종으로 국외에서는 일반적으로 42일령에 도계를 실시하지만 국내에서는 55일령까지는 도계시기를 연장해도 좋지만 그 이후에는 사료효율이 저하되기 때문에 55일령을 도계시기로 선정하는 것이 바람직하다. 일반성장능력은 일당증체량이 83.4±10.4g, 사료섭취량은 4.5±1.4g, 출하체중은 4,833.2±570.7g, 정강이 길이는 9.36±5.4㎜, 가슴중량은 1,088.6± 125.0g, 넓적다리 중량은 864.8±86.9g으로 조사되었다. 초기 성장에서 능력이 저하되는 개체들은 조기 도태를 유도하여 계군 전체의 성장 능력 및 도체 성적을 개선할 수 있을 것으로 사료되며 이를 위하여 4개의 후보유전자인 TGFBR1, TGFBR1, IGF2, POUF1 등을 활용하여 조기선발을 유도하는 것이 유용할 것으로 사료된다.

Uncovering enzyme (UCE), encoded by the human NAGPA, is a trans-Golgi enzyme that adds the mannose-6- phosphate recognition tag on lysosomal enzymes destined for the lysosome. Mutations in NAGPA are known to cause stuttering, a common speech disorder with unknown etiology. The human NAGPA gene is transcribed into two different forms, probably due to alternative splicing. One of them, known as a brain isoform, is lacking exon 8 (102-bp). We performed quantitative real-time PCR for the NAGPA brain and non-brain isoforms in a cDNA panel originating from 16 human tissues and 24 sub-brain regions. According to our findings, the relative quantity of the NAGPA brain isoform in the brain was 4.7 times more than that in the control cDNA, a pooled mixture of equal amounts of cDNAs from the 16 different tissues. Further analysis using the cDNA panel originating from 24 different sub-brain regions revealed that the cerebral cortex contained the largest amount of NAGPA brain isoform. Relative quantity in the cerebral cortex was 8.6 times more than that in the control cDNA (P=0.00004). The lowest quantity of this isoform was detected in cDNA from the pituitary gland. In conclusion, findings of the current study suggest that the cerebral cortex, expressing the highest quantity of the NAGPA brain isoform, might be the region associated with speech function.

본 리뷰의 목적은 벼 종자 저장단백질 구조분석 및 발현특성분석 결과 종합화를 통하여 종자형질 개선 등의 실용화연구를 위한 기반구축을 모색하는데 있다. 최근 벼 염색체염기서열완전해독 연구 결과를 이용한 유용형질 유전자 분리 및 실용화 연구가 많이 진행되고 있다. 특히 벼 종자 저장단백질은 인류에게는 주요 영양원으로 사용되어지며 종자 발아시에는 식물체 성장을 위한 질소원으로 사용되어진다. 벼 종자 저장단백질의 분류는 용매에서의 용해도에 따라 약산성 및 알카리 용해성의 glutelin, 알코올 용해성의 prolamin, 염 용해성의 globulin으로 나눈다. 벼 염색체 상에는 11개의 glutelin 유전자와 33개의 prolamin 유전자가 존재하며 prolamin 유전자의 경우 5번 염색체 15 Mb 부위에 15개의 유전자가 위치하였다. 이와 같이 종자저장단백질 유전자들이 동일 염색체 부위에 위치하고 있는 것은 진화학적으로 동일 염색체에서 유래하였거나 유사한 유전자발현 조절영역을 가지고 있음을 의미한다. Globulin 유전자는 5번 염색체에 단일 유전자로 존재하였다. 마이크로어레이를 이용한 종자저장 단백질 관련 유전자의 조직 특이 발현 양상을 분석한 결과 glutelin과 대다수의 prolamin 합성 유전자는 종자배유에서만 발현을 하였으며 소수의 prolamin과 globulin 합성 유전자는 종자배유와 발아종자에서도 발현을 나타내었다. 종자 저장단백질의 프로모터부위를 분리한 후 종자에서의 발현 양상을 분석한 결과 glutelin type C1 프로모터가 종자의 전체 부위에서 발현을 나타내었으며 glutelin type B5와 α-globulin 프로모터가 많은 양의 발현을 나타내었다. 본 리뷰를 통하여 벼 종자 저장단백질의 구조및 발현특성 연구 진행사항을 살펴보았다. 이러한 연구 동향분석은 종자형질 개선 및 물질생산 등의 실용화 연구를 수행하는 연구자들에게 최근의 연구 현황을 제공할 수 있을 것으로 생각된다.

Ceriporiopsis subvermispora is a unique white rot fungus degrading plant cell wall lignin without severe loss of cellulose. Recombinant plasmids containing homologous gene expression signals fused to the coding sequence of Escherichia coli hph which encodes for hygromycin phosphotransferase were introduced in protoplasts of wild type C. subvermispora using PEG/CaCl2 protocol. A number of hygromycin B resistant strains were isolated on a screening plate containing 100㎍/ml of hygromycin B: whereas, no colonies were observed when protoplasts were treated with no DNA as a negative control. It was demonstrated that most of the isolates lost their drug resistance during successive cultivations in the presence of the same concentration of hygromycin B, but some of the isolates showed stable drug resistance after five times repeated screening. They did not lose the drug resistance even after the cultivation in the absence of hygromycin B and incorporation of the hph sequence was confirmed by specific amplification of the target sequence in PCR experiments and Southern hybridization analysis. The stable transformation system will make it possible to do molecular genetic analysis, as well as breeding of genetically modified strains, in C. subvermispora. Moreover, it was demonstrated that recombinant constructs with truncated promoter showed reduced number of the drug resistant isolates on the first screening plate, in response with the length of the remaining promoter sequence. These findings indicated that unstable drug resistance observed in these isolates should originate from transient expression of the introducing marker genes, and that a promoter assay system has been developed for the first time in basidiomycete. This system is practically not affected by the positional effect of the integrated recombinant gene in the host chromosome.

Decorin (DCN) is a member of small leucine‐grich proteoglycans which are ubiquitous components of the extracellular matrix. It regulates many physiological processes, such as matrix formation, collagen fibrillogenesis, angiogenesis, cancer growth, and cardiovascular diseases. It has been shown that DCN is expressed in the uterus during pregnancy and modulates implantation and decidualization for the establishment and maintenance of pregnancy in mice and humans. Expression of DCN in the uterine endometrium during pregnancy has not been investigated in pigs. Thus, this study investigated expression of DCN in the uterine endometrium during the estrous cycle and pregnancy in pigs. Uterine endometrial tissues were from day (D) 12 and 15 of the estrous cycle and D12, D15, D30, D60, D90, and D114 of pregnancy. Northern blot and real‐gtime RT‐gPCR analyses showed that expression of DCN mRNA was detected throughout the estrous cycle and pregnancy with the highest levels during mid pregnancy. In situ hybridization analysis showed that DCN mRNA was localized to both luminal and glandular epithelia during the estrous cycle and pregnancy and also to chorionic membrane during mid pregnancy in pigs. To determine whether endometrial expression of DCN was affected by the somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) procedure, DCN mRNA levels in the uterine endometrium from gilts with SCNT embryos on D30 of pregnancy were compared with those from gilts with normal embryos using real‐gtime RT‐gPCR analysis. The result showed that DCN mRNA levels in the uterine endometrium were not significantly different between gilts with normal embryos and SCNT embryos. These results suggest that DCN may play an important role for endometrial tissue remodeling during mid pregnancy, and DCN expression is not affected by the SCNT procedure at the early stage of pregnancy in pigs.

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) play important roles in extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling during ovarian follicular development, oocytes development and ovulation. In an attempt to investigate the effect of MMP activation in development cumulus-oocytes complexes, we examined the localization and expression of MMP, and monitored MMP expression profile. Cumulus-oocytes complexes were collected and matured in vitro for 24 hr, 36 hr and 48 hr. A mRNA expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, TIMP-2 and TIMP-3 was detected in all culture medium regardless of CC, OC and COCs. Activity of MMP-2 in the OC progressively was increased from 24 hr to 48 hr. But MMP-9 was not detected in all culture medium. The localization of MMP-2 was also measured by immunohistochemistry analysis. The MMP-2 and TIMP-2 was detected in cumulus cell and oocyte zone pellucida. Expression of MMP-2 protein in the COCs was progressively increased from 24 hr to 48 hr. However, MMP-9 protein was progressively decreased from 24 hr to 48 hr. And TIMP-2 protein was most highly expressed in the COCs 36 hr. Expression of TIMP-3 protein in the COCs was progressively increased from 24 hr to 48 hr. In conclusion, these results suggest that MMP-2 plays a role in maintaining normal maturation and development by controlling the ECM inhibitor concentration on cumulus cell and oocytes.