Chul-Won Lee

Evaluation of the genetic diversity and population structure of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.) using microsatellite markers

Sixteen polymorphic microsatellite (SSR) markers, developed from an SSR-enriched genomic DNA library of sesame (Sesamum indicum L.), were used to assess genetic diversity, phylogenetic relationships, and population structure among 150 sesame accessions collected from 22 countries. A total of 121 alleles were detected among the sesame accessions. The number of detected alleles varied from 2 to 18, with an average of 7.6 alleles per locus. Polymorphism information content values ranged from 0.03 to 0.79, with an average of 0.42. These values indicated an excess of heterozygous individuals at 16 loci and an excess of homozygous individuals at three loci. Of these, 32 genotype-specific alleles were identified at 11 of 16 polymorphic SSR markers. Cluster analyses were performed by accession and population, revealing a complex accession distribution pattern with mean genetic similarity coefficient of 0.45 by accession and 0.52 by population. The wide variation in genetic similarity among the accessions revealed by SSRs reflected a high level of polymorphism at the DNA level. Model-based structure analysis revealed the presence of three groups that were basically consistent with the clustering results based on genetic distance. These findings may be used to augment the sesame germplasm and to increase the effectiveness of sesame breeding.

Single-electron-based flexible multivalued logic gates

Single-electron transistor (SET)-based multivalued (MV) not-AND (NAND) and not-OR (NOR) logic cells were implemented on a silicon-on-insulator chip. Depending on the ways of connecting two SETs with a field-effect transistor, the voltage transfer characteristics show typical NAND or NOR gate functions for various input voltages, which are binary, MV, and binary-MV mixed. Moreover, the switching functionality of our NAND (NOR) can convert to OR (AND) operation by simply adjusting their initial input voltages. These flexible two-input logic gates are expected to provide four basic arithmetic cells for the SET MV logic gate family.

Assessment of molecular genetic diversity and population structure of sesame ( Sesamum indicum L.) core collection accessions using simple sequence repeat markers

Sesame ( Sesamum indicum L.) is one of the oldest oil crops and is widely cultivated in Asia and Africa. The aim of this study was to assess the genetic diversity, phylogenetic relationships and population structure of 277 sesame core collection accessions collected from 15 countries in four different continents. A total of 158 alleles were detected among the sesame accessions, with the number varying from 3 to 25 alleles per locus and an average of 11.3. Polymorphism information content values ranged from 0.34 to 0.84, with an average of 0.568. These values indicated a high genetic diversity at 14 loci both among and within the populations. Of these, 44 genotype-specific alleles were identified in 12 of the 14 polymorphic simple sequence repeat markers. The core collection preserved a much higher level of genetic variation. Therefore, 10.1% was selected as the best sampling percentage from the whole collection when constructing the core collection. The 277 core collection accessions formed four robust clusters in the unweighted pair group method and the arithmetic averages (UPGMA) dendrogram, although the clustering did not indicate any clear division among the sesame accessions based on their geographical locations. Similar patterns were obtained using model-based structure analysis and country-based dendrograms, as some accessions situated geographically far apart were grouped together in the same cluster. The results of these analyses will increase our understanding of the genotype-specific alleles, genetic diversity and population structure of core collections, and the information can be used for the development of a future breeding strategy to improve sesame yield.

Allelopathic Effects of Common Ragweed (Ambrosia artemisifolia var. elatior) on the Germination and Seedling Growth of Crops and Weeds

Competitive ability, allelopathy, made the common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia var. elatior ) one of the most dangerous weeds in Korea. The aim of this research was to evaluate the role of common ragweed as test species under laboratory bioassay and glasshouse conditions. Inhibition effect of the leaf extract was higher than that of stem and root parts extracts on germination and seedling growth of weeds. The 5% concentration of leaf extract of common ragweed inhibited the germination rate of Echinochloa crus-galli, Digitaria sanguinalis and Cyperus microiria by 68.3, 74.6 and 87.3%, respectively, as compared to the control. Generally, increasing incorporation concentration inhibited seedling growth of weeds. Incorporation of 5% common ragweed residue significantly reduced the plant length of E. crus-galli, D. sanguinalis and C. microiria by 48, 63 and 68%, respectively, as compared to the control. Also, the values of dry weight were 72, 78 and 71%, respectively. Contrarily, the emergence rate of soybean and corn was not affected by the incorporation of 5% concentration of common ragweed residue. However, the dry weight was inhibited by 37 and 28%, respectively. These results suggest that common ragweed had the ability to control some weed species using toxic compounds like natural herbicide.

Effect of Growth Restraint of White Clover (Trifolium repens) as Affected by Prohexadione-calcium Application

This experiment was carried out to investigate the growth responses of white clover (Trifolium repens L.) as affected by prohexadione-calcium foliar application for the growth restraint in the lawn yard, field and golf course etc. The leaf length and leaf weight of white clover were significantly retarded compared to the untreated plot with foliar application of prohexadione-calcium after mowing within 1 day, and the effect was continued up to 50 days. The leaf area of clover with prohexadione-calcium treatment was to be narrowed as compared to untreated plot. The SPAD value of the leaf colour was increased in the treated plots and was to be continued for 40 days more. The coverage rate of clover was decreased with prohexadione-calcium foliar application after mowing in the lawn ground.

Growth of Zoysiagrass (Zoysia japonica Steud.) as Affected by Prohexadione-calcium Application

This experiment was carried out to investigate the growth responses of zoysiagrass (Zoysia japonica Steud.) as affected by prohexadione-calcium foliar application for the effective labour saving and cost down management in the lawn yard, field and golf course etc. The leaf growth of zoysiagrass treated with prohexadione-calcium one day after mowing was significantly slow compared to the untreated plot. And the effect was continued up to 50 days. The growth inhibition rate at the treated plot was 46 to 50% compared to untreated plot and the leaf widths treated with prohexadione-calcium were narrower than control plot. The change of leaf dry weight 10 days after prohexadione-calcium treated was significantly shown less speedy than untrated plot and the results were continued up to 40 days after application. The SPAD values of the leaf colour were increased in the treated plots and continued for 40 days more.

Common Ragweed-Derived Phenolic Compounds and Their Effects on Germination and Seedling Growth of Weed Species

Phenolic compounds, which are products of secondary metabolism, have been demonstrated to be widespread growth substances in plants. The objectives of this study were to identify the phenolic compounds in common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia var. elatior) by HPLC and to evaluate their effects on germination and seedling growth of three weed species. Under controlled conditions in Petri dishes at 25℃, 10 -3 and 10 -4 M solutions of phenolic compounds were evaluated in seed germination tests. Four phenolic compounds (caffeic acid, ο-coumaric acid, ρ -coumaric acid and ferulic acid) in common ragweed plant were identified and their concentration was increased from the stage before flowering through full flowering stage. Treatment of ο- and ρ-coumaric acids delayed the seed germination of Digitalia ciliaris, while the treatment of caffeic acid delayed the seed germination of Echinochloa crus-galli. In time to 50% germination (T50), phenolic compounds at 10 -4 M promoted in Cyperus microiria and E. crus-galli but the level of 10 -3 M delayed the T50 of those weeds. The ο-coumaric acid inhibited seed germination and seedling growth of the tested weeds and especially it perfectly inhibited the root growth of E. crus-galli.

Comprehensive proteome analysis using quantitative proteomic technologies

With the completion of genome sequencing of several organisms, attention has been focused to determine the function and functional network of proteins by proteome analysis. The recent techniques of proteomics have been advanced quickly so that the high-throughput and systematic analyses of cellular proteins are enabled in combination with bioinformatics tools. Furthermore, the development of proteomic techniques helps to elucidate the functions of proteins under stress or diseased condition, resulting in the discovery of biomarkers responsible for the biological sti- muli. Ultimate goal of proteomics orients toward the entire proteome of life, subcellular localization, biochemical acti- vities, and their regulation. Comprehensive analysis strate- gies of proteomics can be classified as three categories: (i) protein separation by 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2- DE) or liquid chromatography (LC), (ii) protein identifica- tion by either Edman sequencing or mass spectrometry (MS), and (iii) quanitation of proteome. Currently MS-based pro- teomics turns shiftly from qualitative proteome analysis by 2-DE or 2D-LC coupled with off-line matrix assisted laser desorption ionization (MALDI) and on-line electrospray ionization (ESI) MS, respectively, to quantitative proteome analysis. Some new techniques which include top-down mass spectrometry and tandem affinity purification have emerged. The in vitro quantitative proteomic techniques include differential gel electrophoresis with fluorescence dyes, protein-labeling tagging with isotope-coded affinity tag, and peptide-labeling tagging with isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation. In addition, stable isotope labeled amino acid can be in vivo labeled into live culture cells through metabolic incorporation. MS-based proteo- mics extends to detect the phosphopeptide mapping of biolo- gically crucial protein known as one of post-translational modification. These complementary proteomic techniques contribute to not only the understanding of basic biological function but also the application to the applied sciences for industry.