Plant growth-promoting effects of a novel sp. JS-SCA-14 and comparative genome analysis.

Bacteria associated with plants play crucial roles in promoting plant growth and health by aiding in nutrient acquisition, including phosphorus. This study presents the isolation and genomic characterization of a potentially new bacterial strain, sp. JS-SCA-14, which exhibits significant plant growth-promoting effects through phosphorus solubilization.

Osteogenic Effects of the L. Leaf Extract on MC3T3-E1 Pre-Osteoblasts and Ovariectomized Mice via BMP2/4 and TGF β Pathways.

Osteoporosis, a disease defined by the primary bone strength due to a low bone mineral density, is a bone disorder associated with increased mortality in the older adult population. Osteoporosis is mainly treated via hormone replacement therapy, bisphosphates, and anti-bone resorption agents. However, these agents exert severe side effects, necessitating the development of novel therapeutic agents.

A peptide encoded by a highly conserved gene belonging to the genus shows antimicrobial activity against plant pathogens.

The genus has been unceasingly highlighted for the versatility and diversity of the antimicrobial agents they produce. Moreover, it is a heavily sequenced taxon in the phylum Actinobacteria. In this study, 47 sequence profiles were identified as proteins highly conserved within the genus Significant hits to the 38 profiles were found in more than 2000 genomes, 11 of which were further conserved in more than 90% of Actinobacterial genomes analyzed.

A Hyperspectral Data 3D Convolutional Neural Network Classification Model for Diagnosis of Gray Mold Disease in Strawberry Leaves.

Gray mold disease is one of the most frequently occurring diseases in strawberries. Given that it spreads rapidly, rapid countermeasures are necessary through the development of early diagnosis technology. In this study, hyperspectral images of strawberry leaves that were inoculated with gray mold fungus to cause disease were taken; these images were classified into healthy and infected areas as seen by the naked eye.

Disease control efficacy of 32,33-didehydroroflamycoin produced by Streptomyces rectiviolaceus strain DY46 against gray mold of tomato fruit.

Despite the efficacy of synthetic fungicides in controlling postharvest diseases, public concerns regarding chemical residues in food and an increase in drug-resistant strains of pathogens have led to a need for new agents to control postharvest diseases. The current study was performed to find control agents of microbial origin that are effective on gray mold of tomato fruits. We recently isolated Streptomyces rectiviolaceus DY46, which has antagonistic activity against various plant pathogenic fungi.

Fusion of Spectroscopy and Cobalt Electrochemistry Data for Estimating Phosphate Concentration in Hydroponic Solution.

Phosphate is a key element affecting plant growth. Therefore, the accurate determination of phosphate concentration in hydroponic nutrient solutions is essential for providing a balanced set of nutrients to plants within a suitable range. This study aimed to develop a data fusion approach for determining phosphate concentrations in a paprika nutrient solution.

Crystal structure of heart 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase (PFKFB2) and the inhibitory influence of citrate on substrate binding.

The heart-specific isoform of 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase (PFKFB2) is an important regulator of glycolytic flux in cardiac cells. Here, we present the crystal structures of two PFKFB2 orthologues, human and bovine, at resolutions of 2.0 and 1.

Evaluation of the endophytic nature of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens strain GYL4 and its efficacy in the control of anthracnose.

Background: Endophytic bacteria are viewed as a potential new source of biofungicides because they have beneficial characteristics as control agents for plant disease. This study was performed to examine the endophytic feature and disease control efficacy of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens strain GYL4 and to identify the antifungal compounds produced by this strain.

Results: B.

The antioxidant properties of solid-culture extracts of basidiomycetous fungi.

Current studies of the antioxidant activity of fungal resources are mainly focused on the fruiting bodies of edible mushrooms. To access the potential of basidiomycetes in culture-state applications, extracts of solid cultures of 83 basidiomycetous fungi newly isolated from woody materials were prepared at the same concentration (10 mg/ml), and their antioxidant activities were measured using ABTS (2,2'-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) and DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) radical-scavenging assays. Among the basidiomycetes tested, Cryptoporus volvatus, Daedalea dickinsii, Gloeophyllum abietinum, G.

Identification of antifungal niphimycin from Streptomyces sp. KP6107 by screening based on adenylate kinase assay.

Microbial culture extracts are used for natural product screening to find antifungal lead compounds. A microbial culture extract library was constructed using 343 actinomycete isolates to examine the value of the adenylate kinase (AK) assay for screening to identify antifungal metabolites that disrupt cell integrity in plant pathogenic fungi. A culture extract of Streptomyces sp.

Identification and biocontrol efficacy of Streptomyces miharaensis producing filipin III against Fusarium wilt.

A number of bacterial strains were isolated from the internal tissue of Trapa japonica. Of these, strain KPE62302H, which had a 16S rDNA sequence identical to that of Streptomyces miharaensis showed antifungal activity against several plant pathogens. Treatment of seeds with strain KPE62302H induced a significant reduction in the incidence of Fusarium wilt in tomato plants compared with untreated controls.

Structure-based development of small molecule PFKFB3 inhibitors: a framework for potential cancer therapeutic agents targeting the Warburg effect.

Cancer cells adopt glycolysis as the major source of metabolic energy production for fast cell growth. The HIF-1-induced PFKFB3 plays a key role in this adaptation by elevating the concentration of Fru-2,6-BP, the most potent glycolysis stimulator. As this metabolic conversion has been suggested to be a hallmark of cancer, PFKFB3 has emerged as a novel target for cancer chemotherapy.

Investigating combinatorial approaches in virtual screening on human inducible 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase (PFKFB3): a case study for small molecule kinases.

Efforts toward improving the predictiveness in tier-based approaches to virtual screening (VS) have mainly focused on protein kinases. Despite their significance as drug targets, small molecule kinases have been rarely tested with these approaches. In this paper, we investigate the efficacy of a pharmacophore screening-combined structure-based docking approach on the human inducible 6-phosphofructo-2-kinase/fructose-2,6-bisphosphatase, an emerging target for cancer chemotherapy.

Root treatment with rhizobacteria antagonistic to Phytophthora blight affects anthracnose occurrence, ripening, and yield of pepper fruit in the plastic house and field.

We previously selected rhizobacterial strains CCR04, CCR80, GSE09, ISE13, and ISE14, which were antagonistic to Phytophthora blight of pepper. In this study, we investigated the effects of root treatment of rhizobacteria on anthracnose occurrence, ripening, and yield of pepper fruit in the plastic house and field in 2008 and 2009. We also examined the effects of volatiles produced by the strains on fruit ripening and on mycelial growth and spore development of Colletotrichum acutatum and Phytophthora capsici in the laboratory, identifying the volatile compounds by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS).

Disease control effect of strevertenes produced by Streptomyces psammoticus against tomato fusarium wilt.

During screening of microorganisms producing antifungal metabolites, Streptomyces psammoticus strain KP1404 was isolated. The culture extract of this strain showed potent disease control efficacy against Fusarium wilt on tomato plants. The antifungal metabolites ST-1 and ST-2 were isolated from the culture extract using a variety of chromatographic procedures.

Rex1/Zfp42 as an epigenetic regulator for genomic imprinting.

Zfp42/Rex1 (reduced expression gene 1) is a well-known stem-cell marker that has been duplicated from YY1 in the eutherian lineage. In the current study, we characterized the in vivo roles of Rex1 using a mutant mouse line disrupting its transcription. In contrast to the ubiquitous expression of YY1, Rex1 is expressed only during spermatogenesis and early embryogenesis and also in a very limited area of the placenta.

Characterization of a multifunctional feather-degrading Bacillus subtilis isolated from forest soil.

In this study, we isolated and characterized a novel feather-degrading bacterium that shows keratinolytic, antifungal and plant growth-promoting activities. A bacterium S8 was isolated from forest soil and confirmed to belong to Bacillus subtilis by BIOLOG system and 16S rRNA gene analysis. The improved culture conditions for the production of keratinolytic protease were 0.

YY1 is autoregulated through its own DNA-binding sites.

Background: The transcription factor Yin Yang 1 (YY1) is a ubiquitously expressed, multifunctional protein that controls a large number of genes and biological processes in vertebrates. As a general transcription factor, the proper levels of YY1 protein need to be maintained for the normal function of cells and organisms. However, the mechanism for the YY1 homeostasis is currently unknown.

YY1's role in DNA methylation of Peg3 and Xist.

Unusual clusters of YY1 binding sites are located within several differentially methylated regions (DMRs), including Xist, Nespas and Peg3, which all become methylated during oogenesis. In this study, we performed conditional YY1 knockdown (KD) to investigate YY1's roles in DNA methylation of these DMRs. Reduced levels of YY1 during spermatogenesis did not cause any major change in these DMRs although the same YY1 KD caused hypermethylation in these DMRs among a subset of aged mice.

Dynamic properties of an omni-directional piezoelectric motor for precision position control.

A piezoelectric motor capable of omni-directional movements has been developed to apply for robot joints, eyes, and precision positioning stage. The piezoelectric actuator has a simple structure of a cone type consisting of two piezoelectric ring-typed ceramics with electrodes divided into four segments and stainless steel elastic bodies. Before manufacturing the piezoelectric motor, the admittance characteristics and displacements of the actuator as a function of frequency were simulated.

Two evolutionarily conserved sequence elements for Peg3/Usp29 transcription.

Background: Two evolutionarily Conserved Sequence Elements, CSE1 and CSE2 (YY1 binding sites), are found within the 3.8-kb CpG island surrounding the bidirectional promoter of two imprinted genes, Peg3 (Paternally expressed gene 3) and Usp29 (Ubiquitin-specific protease 29). This CpG island is a likely ICR (Imprinting Control Region) that controls transcription of the 500-kb genomic region of the Peg3 imprinted domain.

A simple taste analyzing system design for visual and quantitative analysis of different tastes using multi-array chemical sensors and pattern recognition techniques.

In this paper, we describe design of a simple taste analyzing system using sensory system based on a multi-array chemical sensor (MACS) and personal digital assistant (PDA) for visual and quantitative analysis of different tastes using pattern recognition techniques. The sensory system is communicated with PDA, which has several interesting benefits for data analysis and display, via wireless using the Bluetooth. A various pattern recognition techniques are adapted including spider map, principal component analysis (PCA) and fuzzy C-means (FCM) algorithm to classify visually data patterns detected by the sensory system.

YY1's longer DNA-binding motifs.

The DNA-binding sites of YY1 located within two newly identified downstream genes of YY1, Peg3 (GGCGCCATnTT) and Xist (CCGCCATnTT), are longer than the known motif of YY1 (CGCCATnTT). Gel shift assays indicated that these DNA-binding sites are previously unnoticed, longer motifs of YY1. Independent DNA-binding motif studies further confirmed that YY1 recognizes a longer sequence (GCCGCCATTTTG) as its consensus motif.

Imprinting of an evolutionarily conserved antisense transcript gene APeg3.

APeg3 is an antisense transcript gene of Peg3, which has been recently identified from rat brain. Careful analyses of EST databases indicated that a homologous transcript also exists in other mammalian species, including mouse, cow and human. 5'-and 3'-RACE experiments have subsequently identified a 900-bp cDNA sequence of APeg3 from mouse brain.