Hee-Jong Yang

A screening method for β-glucan hydrolase employing Trypan Blue-coupled β-glucan agar plate and β-glucan zymography

A new screening method for β-(1,3–1,6) glucan hydrolase was developed using a pure β-glucan from Aureobaisidum pullulans by zymography and an LB-agar plate. Paenibacillus sp. was screened as a producer a β-glucan hydrolase on the Trypan Blue-coupled β-glucan LB-agar plate and the activity of the enzyme was analyzed by SDS-β-glucan zymography. The β-glucan was not hydrolyzed by Bacillus spp. strains, which exhibit cellulolytic activity on CMC zymography. The gene, obtaining by shotgun cloning and encoding the β-glucan hydrolase of Paenibacillus sp. was sequenced.

Optimization of Production Yield for Neohesperidin by Response Surface Methodology

Neohesperidin is a natural new nutrition sweetener, widely existing in plants of dry citrus peel, which can be derived from extraction. Since the sweetness is 1,300-1,500 times greater than that of sugar, neohesperidin are widely used in fruit juices, wines, beverages, bakeries and pharmaceutical formulations, and are particularly suitable for consumption by diabetic patients. However, the yield of extraction from citrus peel waste is very low. In this study optimal yield conditions were determinedusing response surface methodology (RSM) in order to increase the neohesperidin extraction yield. The critical factors for maximum extraction yield were selected extraction pressure (), extraction time (), and concentration of ethanol (). As a result, the extraction yield was improved when the extracting pressure increased. The extraction yield also increased in a time-dependent manner. When adding ethanol as an assistance solvent to the supercritical carbon dioxide, extraction yield was increased as more ethanol concentration was added. Finally, the extraction yield of neohesperidin was improved to about 162.22% compared to ethanol extraction as a conventional method.

Activity assay for nisin-like acidic bacteriocins using an optimal pH-conditioned gel matrix.

A new zymography for detecting nisin-like acidic bacteriocins was developed using a tricine-sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) gel and an acidic gel matrix (pH 4.0). After electrophoresis, proteins in the tricine gel were electrotransferred to an optimal pH-conditioned gel matrix (OP-CGM). The OP-CGM was overlaid with indicator cells (Bacillus cereus) embedded in nutrient broth soft agar (0.8%, w/v). Antibacterial activity shown as a growth inhibition using B. cereus was detected at approximately 3.8kDa. Because nisin is unstable in buffers at pH values over 6.0, the common electrophoretic systems, SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and tricine gel, are not suitable for detection of nisin-like acidic bacteriocins.

Screening of Antagonistic Bacteria having Antifungal Activity against Various Phytopathogens

The aim of this study was to isolate a potential multifunctional biocontrol agent from bacteria for control of multiple plant diseases as an alternative to fungicides. A total of 201 strains were isolated from soil undamaged by repeated cultivation in Sunchang and their ability to produce antibiotics, siderophores and extracellular enzymes such as protease, cellulase and amylase was investigated. Selected strain SCS3 produced cellulose, protease and amylase. This strain also produced siderophores and showed excellent antifungal activity against various phytopathogens. SCS3 was identified as Bacillus subtilis using 16S rRNA sequencing, and named Bacillus subtilis SCS3. Finally, physiological and biochemical characteristics of B. subtilis SCS3 were examined. From the results, B. subtilis SCS3 was found to be a useful multifunctional biocontrol agent against various phytopathogens.

Characterization of Lactobacillus brevis SCML 432 isolated from Meju in Sunchang and optimization of its culture conditions by statistical methods

When used as a starter in the manufacture of Meju, it is expected that the quality of the soup products can be improved. In this study, we isolated Lactobacillus strain having possible safety and food-industrial benefits as a starter. Four hundred and seven isolates were screened from Meju, and chemically characterized for their antibacterial activity against Bacillus cereus, non-productivity of biogenic amine, and hemolysis. Eight of the isolates were selected upon chemical characterization, and their antioxidant and β-glucosidase activity was measured. Finally, we selected, and measured its enzyme activity and antibiotic resistance. Next, we investigated its cell growth, showed maximum biomass of 3.5 g/L after 28 h of culture. The ingredients of the medium to improve biomass were selected using the Plackett-Burman design (PBD) and central composite design (CCD). The results obtained using PBD revealed molasses, yeast extract, and maltose to be significant factors determining the biomass of the L. brevis SCML 432 strain. The CCD was then applied with three variables found from PBD and the optimum values were predicted to be 5.5% molasses, 1.5% yeast extract, and 2.0% maltose, and the maximum biomass was predicted to be 11.2 g/L. Through model verification, we confirmed that the predicted and actual results were similar, with about 3.2-fold improvement in the biomass from 3.5 g/L to 11.3 g/L when compared to that obtained in basal medium. These results suggest that SCML 432 has high potential in the food industry as a starter.

Screening of Non-Biogenic-Amine-Producing Bacillus subtilis and Medium Optimization for Improving Biomass by the Response Surface Methodology

Biogenic amines are produced primarily by microorganisms found in fermented foods and are often implicated in poisoning incidents in humans. In this study, 620 strains of microorganisms were isolated from traditional Korean fermented food in Sunchang in order to screen for non-biogenicamine- producing microorganisms present in these foods. One strain was identified and named Bacillus subtilis SCJ1, by using 16S rRNA sequencing and biochemical characterization. We investigated the cell growth of this organism in order to understand its potential for industrial application. To this end, we optimized the culture medium constituents by using the response surface methodology. The Plackett-Burman experimental design was used for screening of the medium constituents, such as molasses, yeast extract and peptone, for improving cell growth. In order to determine the optimal concentration of each constituent, we used a central composite design. Consequently, the optimized concentrations of molasses, yeast extract and peptone were predicted to be 27.5 g/l, 7.5 g/l and 17.5 g/l, respectively. By model verification, we confirmed that a 1.49-fold increase in dry cell weight compared to the basal medium-from 1.32 g/l, to 1.9722 g/l-was achieved.

Optimization of a Medium for the Production of Cellulase by Bacillus subtilis NC1 Using Response Surface Methodology

Hee-Jong Yang 1 , Chang-Su Park 2 , Ho-Yeon Yang 3 , Su-Ji Jeong 1 , Seong-Yeop Jeong 1 , Do-Youn Jeong 1 , Dae-Ook Kang, Ja-Young Moon and Nack-Shick Choi* Microbial Institute for Fermentation Industry (MIFI), Sunchang 595-804, Korea 2 Department of Food Science and Technology, Catholic University of Daegu, Hayang 712-702, Korea RealBioTech Co., Ltd., Gongju-si, Chungnam 314-853, Korea Department of Biochemistry and Health Science, Changwon National University, Changwon 641-773, Korea