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Environmental DNA (eDNA) method used by many ecologists as effective investigation tool can detect endangered species, rare species, and invasive species. In case of invasive species, eDNA method help to monitor the target species when the species was hard to detect through the traditional survey such as the early stage of invasion, low abundance, and larva or juvenile stage. The bryozoan, Bugulina californica, was known as a marine fouling invasive species in Korea since its first reported in 1978. This species expanded nationwide, and damages to ascidian aquaculture through attached on the ship hulls and artificial facilities. To monitor the distribution and biomass of invasive bryozoan, B. californica, the qPCR analysis of environmental DNA was performed on seawater samples from 12 harbors. In this study, we designed species-specific markers which can calculate the detected DNA copies of B. californica, and the presence and monitoring of this species can be more accurately estimated by environmental DNA analysis than by traditional survey, in which it is difficult to identify the species. Real-time PCR analysis using environmental DNA is an effective monitoring method that can determine both the distribution and the monthly change in biomass of B. californica in Korea.

Populations of Gymnopleurus mopsus (family Scarabaeidae), a dung beetle that displays dung-rolling behavior (i.e., a telecoprid), have recently experienced sharp declines, and many populations are now at high risk of local extinction. However, Mongolia, which constitutes a major portion of the species’ distribution, still sustains a relatively large population. Here, we used mitochondrial COI sequences to investigate the within-population genetic diversity and both the genetic and phylogeographic structures of 24  G . mopsus populations across the species’ main distribution in Mongolia. Several lines of evidence indicated that the phylogeographic structure of G . mopsus had been influenced by a recent and sudden demographic expansion. Interestingly, the expansion of Mongolia’s G . mopsus population corresponded to the advent of livestock domestication in the region, and the species’ genetic structure coincided with road networks, which presumably serve as migration routes for livestock that might mediate the beetle’s dispersal. In addition, we also found that G . mopsus possesses high levels of haplotype diversity, which is generally indicative of large effective population sizes ( N e ). Overall, the present study contributes to the current understanding of G . mopsus ’ demographic history and dispersal patterns and also provides valuable information for the species’ conservation and management.

Human lactoferrin (hLF) is an iron-binding glycoprotein with a variety of functions. hLF undergoes proteolytic cleavage to smaller peptides in the stomach following ingestion. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of hLF and its proteolytic product, human lactoferrin peptide (hLFP), on the proliferation of two epithelial cells, HEK293 normal cells and KATO III gastric carcinoma cells, using an MTT assay and expression of proliferative nuclear cell antigen (PCNA), a notable proliferation marker. When the two epithelial cells were stimulated with hLF and hLFP in the presence of fetal bovine serum (FBS), hLFP stimulated proliferation of both cell types at lower concentrations than hLF by two orders of magnitude. The cancer cells exhibited proliferative responses to both hLF and hLFP at lower concentrations by 2∼3 orders of magnitude than the normal cells. Either hLF or hLFP alone did not support appreciable proliferation of these cell lines in the absence or low concentrations of FBS. Bovine serum albumin or its proteolytic product failed to promote cellular proliferation even in the presence of 10 % FBS, indicating the specificity of the proliferative activity of hLF and hLFP. These data highlight feasibility of hLF and its peptide for adjuvants for tissue culture medium.

In marine environments, environmental DNA (eDNA) can be effectively detected and possibly quantified when combined with molecular techniques, as demonstrated by several recent studies. In this study, we developed a species-specific primer set and a probe to detect the distribution and biomass of an invasive hydrozoan in South Korea, Ectopleura crocea. These molecular markers were designed to amplify a 187 bp region based on mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) of E. crocea and were tested on seawater samples from 35 Korean harbors in 2017. Of the 35 sites we investigated, only nine harbors returned positive detections when using traditional survey methods, while surveys based on the use of eDNA techniques detected E. crocea DNA in all seawater samples. These results suggest that eDNA surveys based on molecular techniques are more effective at identifying species distribution and estimating biomass than traditional surveys based on visual assessment of morphology.

A fluorescent triple staining method was developed to stain the cytoplasm of neurons red, the nuclei of all kinds of cells, including neurons, blue and the nuclei of apoptotic neurons in cyan in the twelve ventral ganglia (VG) of the Bombyx mori ventral nerve cord. This differential staining method was used to distinguish between apoptotic and normal neurons in the suboesophageal ganglion (SOG), thoracic ganglia (TG)1 to TG3 and abdominal ganglia (AG)1 to AG8 and also determine the changes in the numbers of apoptotic neurons that occur during postembryonic development. In most of the VG tested, neuronal apoptosis was most marked during the period from the end of larval life to the mid pupal stage. The greatest number of apoptotic neurons was found in SOG of day-5 pupae, TG1 to TG3 and AG1 to AG4 of day-1 pupae, and AG5 to AG8 of day-4 pupae. In vivo injection of 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) into day-8 5th instar larvae resulted in both a considerable increase in the number of apoptotic neurons and cleavage of procaspase-3 into caspase-3, which induced neuronal apoptosis in SOG and AG6 to AG8 in day-1 pupae, and a slight increase in the number of apoptotic neurons in TG1. In TG3 and AG4, however, it had little effect on the number of apoptotic neurons or cleavage of procaspase-3. Treatment of the VG of both day-8 5th instar larvae and day-2 pupae with protein synthesis inhibitors by in vivo injection triggered a significant inhibition of neuronal apoptosis and procaspase-3 cleavage in most of these ganglia in day-1 pupae and day-4 pupae, but not TG3 and AG4, in which there was little procaspase-3 and caspase-3. In vivo injection of caspase-8 and -3 inhibitors into day-8 5th instar larvae and day-2 pupae led to a substantial inhibition of neuronal apoptosis and of procaspase-3 cleavage in SOG, AG6 and TAG, but not in TG3 or AG4 of day-1 pupae and day-4 pupae. These findings suggest that neurons that die in SOG, TG1 and AG6 to AG8 in day-1 and -4 pupae may undergo apoptosis induced by the synthesis of a new protein and caspase-8- and -3-implicated signal transduction by the increase in titre of 20E in the haemolymph but not the neuronal aopotosis in TG3 and AG4. This study provides neurobiologists with valuable information and a means of studying neuronal apoptosis in the nervous system of insects. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

We investigated the effects of road deicer runoff on benthic macroinvertebrate communities in Korean freshwaters focusing on the effects of CaCl₂ deicer. Quantitative field sampling was conducted at eight sites (lakes and streams) in South Korea, and toxicity tests were conducted on 48-h lethal and effective concentrations (LC₅₀ and EC₅₀) of road deicer (CaCl₂ 74 %) and high-grade CaCl₂ (96 %) on five selected macroinvertebrate species (Gammarus sobaegensis, Caridina denticulata denticulata, Glyptotendipes tokunagai, Cloeon dipterum, and Ecdyonurus levis). Although Cl⁻ concentrations were significantly different between the seasons (before and after snowfall) at most of the study sites, community values (species richness, density, dominance index, and diversity index) were not significantly different between the seasons. In the bioassay, 2.85 g L⁻¹ CaCl₂ elicited abnormal swimming behavior of test organisms based on EC₅₀ values. The LC₅₀ values of the five test species ranged from 3.54 to 20.73 g L⁻¹. For all tested species, the LC₅₀ of road deicer was higher than that of high-grade CaCl₂. This study shows that despite the heavy application of road deicers during the snowy season, the deicer may not directly affect benthic macroinvertebrate communities over short time periods because Cl⁻ concentrations in the field sites (<0.025 g L⁻¹) were much lower than the LC₅₀ values. Because the quantity of deicers used in this region continues to increase, long-term research into the effects of deicers on benthic macroinvertebrates is needed.

Although the concurrent use of a chemotherapeutic agent and radiotherapy improves survival in patients with locally advanced or recurrent cervical cancer, severe side effects related to chemotherapy are frequent and may result in a low quality of life for the patients. In this study, we investigated the effects of a combination of Wee1 inhibitor (AZD1775) and irradiation in cervical cancer . In vitro effects of AZD1775 with irradiation in human cervical cancer cells were assessed by clonogenic survival and apoptosis assays. The effects on DNA damage response signaling and the cell cycle were also explored. Tumor growth delay was evaluated to investigate the in vivo effects of AZD1775 with irradiation in cervical cancer mouse models, including xenografts and patient-derived xenografts (PDXs). The co-treatment of AZD1775 and irradiation significantly decreased clonogenic survival and increased apoptosis in cervical cancer cells. These effects were associated with G2 checkpoint abrogation which resulted in persistent DNA damage. Both in the xenografts and the PDXs, the co-treatment significantly decreased tumor growth compared tothe irradiation alone ( p  < 0.05). These results demonstrate that the Wee1 inhibitor (AZD1775) can be considered as a potential alternative as a radiosensitizer in cervical cancer instead of a chemotherapeutic agent such as cisplatin.

Because Broca＇s area and Wernicke＇s area in the brain are connected by the arcuate fasciculus, understanding the anatomical location and morphometry of the arcuate fasciculus can help in the treatment of patients with aphasia. We measured the horizontal and vertical curvature ranges of the arcuate fasciculus in both hemispheres in 12 healthy subjects using diffusion tensor tractography. In the right hemisphere, the direct curvature range and indirect curvature range values of the arcuate fasciculus horizontal part were 121.13 ± 5.89 and 25.99 ± 3.01 degrees, respectively, and in the left hemisphere, the values were 121.83 ± 5.33 and 27.40 ± 2.96 degrees, respectively. In the right hemisphere, the direct curvature range and indirect curvature range values of the arcuate fasciculus vertical part were 43.97 ± 7.98 and 30.15 ± 3.82 degrees, respectively, and in the left hemisphere, the values were 39.39 ± 4.42 and 24.08 ± 4.34 degrees, respectively. We believe that the measured curvature ranges are important data for localization and quantitative assessment of specific neuronal pathways in patients presenting with arcuate fasciculus abnormalities.

We assessed the anti-proliferative activity of itraconazole using an EOC cell line (SKOV3ip1) and endothelial cell lines (HUVEC & SVEC4-10). We also examined angiogenesis (VEGFR2, p-ERK, p-PLCr1/2), hedgehog (Gli1, Ptch1, SMO), and mTOR (pS6K1) signaling pathways to determine the mechanism of action of itraconazole. Furthermore, we evaluated the synergistic effects of itraconazole and paclitaxel using orthotopic mouse models with established EOC cells (SKOV3ip1 or HeyA8) as well as patient-derived xenografts (PDXs). Itraconazole treatment inhibited proliferation of endothelial cells in a dose-dependent manner, but had no effect on EOC cells. The endothelial cell antiproliferative effect was associated with inhibition of hedgehog, and mTOR pathways and angiogenesis. In xenograft models of EOC using SKOV3ip1 or HeyA8, mice treated with the combination of itraconazole and paclitaxel had significantly decreased tumor weight than the control, paclitaxel-alone, or itraconazole-alone groups. Tissue derived from these tumors had significantly lower microvessel density than tissue from the other groups as well as hedgehog and mTOR pathway inhibition. We confirmed those effects in two EOC PDX models. These results suggest that itraconazole selectively inhibits endothelial cells rather than cancer cells by targeting multiple pathways including hedgehog, and mTOR pathways and angiogenesis.

Background Gynecologic malignancy is one of the leading causes of mortality in female adults worldwide. Comprehensive genomic analysis has revealed a list of molecular aberrations that are essential to tumorigenesis, progression, and metastasis of gynecologic tumors. However, targeting such alterations has frequently led to treatment failures due to underlying genomic complexity and simultaneous activation of various tumor cell survival pathway molecules. A compilation of molecular characterization of tumors with pharmacological drug response is the next step toward clinical application of patient-tailored treatment regimens. Results Toward this goal, we establish a library of 139 gynecologic tumors including epithelial ovarian cancers (EOCs), cervical, endometrial tumors, and uterine sarcomas that are genomically and/or pharmacologically annotated and explore dynamic pharmacogenomic associations against 37 molecularly targeted drugs. We discover lineage-specific drug sensitivities based on subcategorization of gynecologic tumors and identify TP53 mutation as a molecular determinant that elicits therapeutic response to poly (ADP-Ribose) polymerase (PARP) inhibitor. We further identify transcriptome expression of inhibitor of DNA biding 2 (ID2) as a potential predictive biomarker for treatment response to olaparib. Conclusions Together, our results demonstrate the potential utility of rapid drug screening combined with genomic profiling for precision treatment of gynecologic cancers.