• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.112-123
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• 2022

Photosynthetic bacteria (PSB) play an important role in water purification, and their application is beneficial for sustainable aquaculture. However, maintaining the microbial stability of PSB from subculturing to preservation is a challenging task. Since improvement in the microbial stability of PSB is a crucial parameter, optimized conditions for cell immobilization and lyophilization were investigated. In PSB immobilization, 0.1-M CaCl₂ was found to be the most effective divalent metal ion solution in terms of cost-effectiveness, resulting in beads with a 4-mm diameter and high loading (1.91×10⁹ CFU/mL) of viable cells. Maintenance of cell viability, external appearance, and color of PSB beads was best in 3.5% NaCl during storage. In lyophilization, the addition of skim milk (9%) and dextrose (2%) as cryoprotective additives allowed the highest cell viability. Over an 18-week shrimp breeding period, when optimally manufactured beads and lyophilized powder of PSB were applied to shrimp aquaculture water, NH⁴⁺, NO₃^-, and NO₂^- were more effectively removed by 55%, 100%, and 100%, respectively, compared to controls. Thus, microbial stability of PSB through optimized cell immobilization and lyophilization was successfully enhanced, enabling a wide application.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.195-200
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• 1982

Rhizobium japonicum was isolated from the nodule of soybean root grown at the reclaimed tidal land in Kang-Wha island. The effect of pH and salt concentration to the viability of the isolated strain were examined in relationship between microbial growth and accumulation of PHB. Optimal pH value for the good viability of the isolated strain was 7.0 and also, at 5.0 and 6.0 viability was favorable to large extent, but 9.0 was unfavorable. Examined the effect of salt concentration treated two times as of the salinity in the reclaimed tidal land, viability of the isolated strain showed about 30 to 40%. And also in treatment with NaCl(40g/l) whatever the pH value adopted, viability was mostly less than 10%. The amount of accumulated PHB was relatively high at low pH value(5-6) and at high salt concentrration, respectively.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.673-679
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• 2004

A microbial cryoprotectant formulation using a W/O/W multiple emulsion system was developed. The psychrotolerant microorganism, B4, isolated from soil in South Korea, was observed by the drop freezing method, in which the microorganism sample inhibited ice nucleation activity. The antifreeze activity was eliminated when the microorganism sample was treated with protease, indicating that the antifreeze activity was due to the presence of antifreeze protein. The result of the l6S rDNA sequencing indicated the B4 strain was most closely related to a species of the genus Bacillus. Culture broth of B4 strain (Bacillus sp.) and rapeseed oil containing 1 % polyglycerine polyricinolate (PGPR) were used as core and wall material, respectively. The most stable W/O emulsion was prepared at a core/oil ratio of 1:2. The highest W/O/W emulsion stability was achieved when the primary emulsion to external aqueous phase containing 0.5% caster oil polyoxyethylene ether $(COG25^{TM})$ ratio was 1:1. Microcrystalline cellulose showed better W/O/W emulsion stability than other polymer types. The viability of cells in a W/O/W emulsion was higher than free cells during storage at $37^\circ{C}$. An acidic pH and UV exposure decreased the viability of free cells, but cells in W/O/W emulsion were more stable under these conditions.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.97-105
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• 2014

Quorum quenching (QQ) with a microbial vessel has recently been reported as an economically feasible biofouling control platform in a membrane bioreactor (MBR) for wastewater treatment. In this study, a quorum quenching MBR with a ceramic microbial vessel (CMV) was designed to overcome the extremely low F/M ratio inside a microbial vessel. The CMV was prepared with a monolithic ceramic microporous membrane and AHL-degrading QQ bacteria, Pseudomonas sp. 1A1. The "inner flow feeding mode" was introduced, under which fresh feed was supplied to the MBR only through the center lumen in the CMV. The inner flow feeding mode facilitated nutrient transport to QQ bacteria in the CMV and thus enabled relatively long-term maintenance of cell viability. The quorum quenching effect of the CMV on controlling membrane biofouling in the MBR was more pronounced with the inner flow feeding mode, which was identified by the slower increase in the transmembrane pressure as well as by the visual observation of a biocake that formed on the used membrane surface. In the QQ MBR with the CMV, the concentrations of extracellular polymeric substances were substantially decreased in the biocake on the membrane surface compared with those in the conventional MBR. The CMV also showed its potential with effective biofouling control over long-term operation of the QQ MBR.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.29-35
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• 2020

The aim of this study was to estimate the microbial metabolic activity of indigenous soil microbes under the radon exposure with different intensity and times in the secured laboratory radon chamber. For this purpose, the soil microbes were collected from radon-contaminated site located in the G county, Korea. Thereafter, their metabolic activity was determined after the radon exposure of varying radon concentrations of 185, 1,400 and 14,000 Bq/㎥. The average depth variable concentrations of soil radon in the radon-contaminated site were 707, 860 and 1,185 Bq/㎥ from 0, 15, and 30 cm in deep, respectively. Simultaneously, the soil microbial culture was mainly composed of Bacillus sp., Brevibacillus sp., Lysinibacillus sp., and Paenibacillus sp. From the radon exposure test, higher or lower radiation intensities compared to the threshold level attributed the metabolic activity of mixed microbial consortium to be reduced, whereas the moderate radiation intensity (i.e. threshold level) induced it to the pinnacle point. It was decided that radon radiation could instigate the microbial metabolic activity depending on the radon levels while they were exposed, which could consequently address that the certain extent of threshold concentration present in the ecosystem relevant to microbial diversity and population density to be more proliferated.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.40 no.3
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• pp.194-202
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• 2021

BACKGROUND: Towards achievement of sustainable agriculture, using microbial inoculants may present promising alternatives without adverse environmental effects; however, there are challenging issues that should be addressed in terms of effectiveness and ecology. Viability and stability of the bacterial inoculants would be one of the major issues in effectiveness of microbial pesticide uses, and the changes within the indigenous microbial communities by the inoculants would be an important factor influencing soil ecology. Here we investigated the stability of the introduced bacterial strains in the soils planted with barley and its effect on the diversity shifts of the rhizosphere soil bacteria. METHODS AND RESULTS: Two different types of bacterial strains of Bacillus thuringiensis and Shewanella oneidensis MR-1 were inoculated to the soils planted with barley. To monitor the stability of the inoculated bacterial strains, genes specific to the strains (XRE and mtrA) were quantified by qPCR. In addition, bacterial community analyses were performed using v3-v4 regions of 16S rRNA gene sequences from the barley rhizosphere soils, which were analyzed using Illumina MiSeq system and Mothur. Alpha- and beta-diversity analyses indicated that the inoculated rhizosphere soils were grouped apart from the uninoculated soil, and plant growth also may have affected the soil bacterial diversity. CONCLUSION: Regardless of the survival of the introduced non-native microbes, non-indigenous bacteria may influence the soil microbial community and diversity.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.32 no.12
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• pp.1599-1604
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• 2022

Storage stability of freeze-dried lactic acid bacteria is a critical factor for their cost-effectiveness. Long-term storage of lactic acid bacteria enables microbial industry to reduce distribution costs. Herein, we investigated the effect of cold adaptation under supercooling conditions at -5℃ on the viability of Leuconostoc mesenteroides WiKim32 during the freeze-drying process and subsequent storage. Cold adaptation increased the thickness of exopolysaccharides (EPS) and improved the viability of freeze-dried Leu. mesenteroides WiKim32. Compared to non-adapted cells, cold-adapted cells showed a 35.4% increase in EPS thickness under supercooling conditions. The viability of EPS-hydrolyzed cells was lower than that of untreated cells, implying that EPS plays a role in protection during the freeze-drying process. Cold adaptation increased the storage stability of freeze-dried Leu. mesenteroides WiKim32. Fifty-six days after storage, the highest viability (71.3%) was achieved with cold adaptation at -5℃. When EPS-containing broth was added prior to the freeze-drying process, the viability further increased to 82.7%. These results imply that cold adaptation by supercooling pretreatment would be a good strategy for the long-term storage of Leu. mesenteroides WiKim32.

• Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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• v.16 no.7
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• pp.1011-1014
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• 2003

The objective of this work was to evaluate a thermotolerant yeast Issatchenkia orientalis DY252 as a microbial feed additive for ruminants. In the present study, the influence of volatile fatty acids (VFA) and temperature on oxygen uptake rate by I. orientalis DY 252 was investigated. It was evident that the oxygen uptake rate was decreased gradually as the VFA concentrations increased in a range of 30 to 120 mM. Although the oxygen uptake rate was not greatly affected by temperature in the range 37 to $43^{\circ}C$, a maximum value of $0.45mg\;O_2/g$ cell/ min was obtained at $39^{\circ}C$. With regard to the oxygen uptake rate by yeast, viability was found to be less important than the metabolic activity of yeast.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.35-41
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• 2014

Microbes have been used extensively in various fields of researches and industries but has not been used widely for microfluidic biosensor applications because it is difficult to immobilize properly to a small space. Therefore, we developed a microbial immobilization method for microfluidic devices using single-walled nanotubes and dielectrophoretic force. Single-walled nanotubes and Escherichia coli were aligned between two cantilever electrodes by a positive dielectrophoretic force resulting in a film of single-walled nanotubes with attached Escherichia coli. The optimal condition of film formation without a cell lysis was investigated. Diameter of single-walled nanotubes and electric field (intensity and duration of application) had an effect on the cell viability. On the other hand, the cell concentration of the suspension did not affect the cell viability. Paraoxon was detected using single-walled nanotubes film with attached Escherichia coli that expressed organophosphorus hydrolase. This film which is suspended from the substrate showed faster response time than sensors that are not suspended from the substrate.

• Clean Technology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.29-34
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• 2016

Field cultivation of corn and microbial cell viability tests using Pseudomonas putida K-5 were performed to assess the toxic effect of kelp seaweed biochar (KBC) and fir wood biochar (FBC) produced by pyrolysis. After 63 days growth, FBC increased corn growth by 4.9% without fertilizer and by 7.6% with fertilizer, while KBC decreased it by 20.2% without fertilizer and by 27.9% with fertilizer. Physico-chemical characterization of the biochars such as ICP, CHON, and proximate analyses showed that KBC contained large amount of metals and ashes which could be responsible for its inhibition to corn growth. Upon exposure of K-5 cells for 1 h to biochar extracts, the cell viability in KBC extracts was 48.2% and quite lower than that (78.6%) in FBC. Washed KBC biochar with water at 1:10 w/v % increased the cell viability to 54.0%. The results indicated that seaweed biochar may be careful to be used for plant growing additives due to its high concentrations of metals and ashes. This toxic effect could be reduced by proper washing method with water.