Shin-Yae Choi, Dahae Hong, Jin Seok Moon, O-Hyun Ban, Hee-Won Bae, Tae-Yoon Kim, You-Hee Cho
{"title":"Genotoxicity, acute and subchronic oral toxicity assessments of postbiotics of Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus IDCC 3201.","authors":"Shin-Yae Choi, Dahae Hong, Jin Seok Moon, O-Hyun Ban, Hee-Won Bae, Tae-Yoon Kim, You-Hee Cho","doi":"10.71150/jm.2605002","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2605002","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Postbiotics derived from lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have attracted growing interest as stable and potentially safer alternatives to probiotics for use in foods and health-related products. Comprehensive safety evaluation remains essential before their broader application. In this study, we assessed the safety profiles of RHT3201, a postbiotic preparation derived from Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus IDCC 3201, through genomic, genotoxic, acute oral, and subchronic oral toxicity studies. Whole-genome analysis showed that IDCC 3201 lacks antimicrobial resistance genes and exhibits no hemolytic activity, supporting the genomic safety of the source strain. RHT3201 showed no genotoxic potential in either in vitro or in vivo assays, as evidenced by no structural or numerical chromosomal aberrations at concentrations up to 5,000 μg/ml in CHL/IU cells and no increase in micronucleated polychromatic erythrocytes, with no suppression of bone marrow erythropoiesis by oral administration of RHT3201 at doses up to 15,000 mg/kg/day using a mouse model. In rats, single oral doses of up to 15,000 mg/kg caused no mortality, treatment-related clinical signs, or gross pathological abnormalities, indicating an approximate lethal dose greater than 15,000 mg/kg. In a 90-day repeated-dose oral toxicity study, no adverse treatment-related effects were observed at doses up to 5,000 mg/kg/day. Mild liver and thyroid histopathological findings were considered adaptive and reversible. Accordingly, the no-observed-adverse-effect level was determined to be 5,000 mg/kg/day. Taken together, these findings support the safety of RHT3201 as a LAB-derived postbiotic ingredient.</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":"64 6","pages":"e2605002"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13577071/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148391024","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"From contiguity to accuracy: Validation-centered perspectives on bacterial genome assembly.","authors":"Minkyung Kim, Yong-Joon Cho, Ok-Sun Kim","doi":"10.71150/jm.2604004","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2604004","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Recent advances in sequencing technologies, particularly long-read platforms, have substantially improved contiguity of bacterial genome assemblies and enabled the routine generation of near-complete or circular genomes. However, achieving a contiguous assembly does not necessarily guarantee accuracy. Assembly errors, including structural misassemblies, collapsed repeats, incorrect circularization, plasmid reconstruction errors, and nucleotide-level inaccuracies, remain prevalent and may lead to misleading biological interpretations if not properly identified. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of bacterial genome assembly from a validation-centered perspective and examine the underlying causes of draft genome formation and assembly uncertainty, highlighting the roles of repetitive genomic structures, platform-specific error profiles, and algorithmic limitations. We further emphasize that the central challenge in contemporary bacterial genomics is no longer simply to maximize assembly contiguity, but to determine whether apparently complete genomes are truly correct and sufficiently reliable for their intended downstream applications. We propose a practical decision-making framework that links sequencing strategy, assembly workflow, polishing, and validation rigor, and introduce a tiered confidence classification to guide the interpretation of genome assembly reliability. As bacterial genome sequencing becomes increasingly routine and large-scale, future efforts should prioritize accuracy, reproducibility, transparent reporting, and evidence-supported validation over completeness alone.</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":"64 6","pages":"e2604004"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13577107/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148391040","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"16S-Pipeline: A comprehensive web-based platform for end-to-end 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing analysis.","authors":"Tatsuya Unno","doi":"10.71150/jm.2603014","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2603014","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing is the most widely used approach for characterizing microbial communities, yet analyzing such data requires navigating a fragmented landscape of bioinformatics tools with distinct installation requirements, parameter settings, and data formats. Here we present 16S-Pipeline, an open-source, web-based platform that provides a complete workflow from raw FASTQ files to publication-ready statistical analyses. 16S-Pipeline automatically detects sequencing type (paired-end, single-end, long-read), variable region, and sequencing platform (Illumina, PacBio HiFi, Nanopore), then performs quality filtering, primer trimming, amplicon sequence variant (ASV) inference via DADA2, taxonomy assignment against SILVA v138.1, phylogenetic tree construction, and optional functional prediction via PICRUSt2. Downstream analyses include alpha and beta diversity, taxonomic composition visualization, differential abundance testing using five complementary methods (ALDEx2, DESeq2, ANCOM-BC2, LinDA, MaAsLin2) with consensus reporting, and KEGG pathway mapping. Built-in NCBI SRA integration enables downloading public datasets for re-analysis and generates submission metadata spreadsheets for data deposition. The interactive web interface built on FastAPI and Plotly Dash enables researchers to perform complex microbiome analyses without command-line expertise. 16S-Pipeline is freely available at https://github.com/tatsu1207/16S-Pipeline under the MIT License.</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":"64 5","pages":"e2603014"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13577063/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148199019","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ke Liang, Shuang Wu, Sihang Dong, Tao Xu, Hongtao Wang
{"title":"I53-50: Engineered icosahedral protein cage for modular vaccine nanoplatform.","authors":"Ke Liang, Shuang Wu, Sihang Dong, Tao Xu, Hongtao Wang","doi":"10.71150/jm.2511020","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2511020","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>I53-50 is a computationally designed, self-assembling protein nanoparticle (NP) that forms a stable icosahedral structure composed of 120 protein subunits coordinated through precise interfacial interactions. Through unique intelligent regulation, I53-50 exhibits sensitivity to environmental signals and display multimodal \"nano-smart\" properties. I53-50 has a variety of modifiable surface-active sites, which facilitates precise chemical modification, gene fusion, tag coupling, and other functionalizations, thereby promoting effective lymphatic uptake and optimizing the immune response. I53-50 NPs show great potential in vaccine development, drug delivery, and biomaterials, representing a model fusion of computational biology and nanomedicine and offering a versatile tool for precision medicine.</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"e2511020"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13576991/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147623184","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dahwan Lim, So Hyeon Park, Joon Sig Choi, Ho-Chul Shin, Seung Jun Kim, Bonsu Ku
{"title":"Crystal structure of Bcl-2 from lymphocystis disease virus 2 in complex with the BH3 domain of zebrafish BaxA.","authors":"Dahwan Lim, So Hyeon Park, Joon Sig Choi, Ho-Chul Shin, Seung Jun Kim, Bonsu Ku","doi":"10.71150/jm.2512006","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2512006","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Lymphocystis disease viruses (LCDVs), members of the Lymphocystivirus genus of the Iridoviridae family, infect various freshwater and marine fish species. They cause the chronic disease lymphocystis, which is non-fatal, but substantially reduces the commercial value of the infected fish. To date, four genotypes of LCDV (LCDV1-4) have been identified, all of which encode the viral homologue of B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), a key inhibitor of apoptosis. In this study, we performed biochemical and structural analyses of LCDV2 Bcl-2. Binding assays revealed that LCDV2 Bcl-2 exhibits binding selectivity toward BH3 domain-containing zebrafish proteins. It interacted with zBaxA and zNoxa, but not with zBaxB, zBid, or zBeclin 1, distinguishing it from mammalian and herpesviral Bcl-2 proteins. Subsequent structural determination of LCDV2 Bcl-2 in complex with the BH3 domain of zBaxA demonstrated that they interact in a canonical manner, primarily mediated by the BH3 consensus motif residues of zBaxA. In addition, a subpocket formed by two phenylalanine residues in LCDV2 Bcl-2 plays a key role in determining binding selectivity.</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":"64 5","pages":"e2512006"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13577099/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148199077","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Eun-Seo Lee, Su Min Kyung, Jun Ho Lee, Xi-Rui Xiang, Han Sang Yoo
{"title":"Revealing genetic variation of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae Korean isolates using whole genome sequence analysis.","authors":"Eun-Seo Lee, Su Min Kyung, Jun Ho Lee, Xi-Rui Xiang, Han Sang Yoo","doi":"10.71150/jm.2512010","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2512010","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae (APP) is the etiological agent of porcine pleuropneumoniae (PP), a high contagious respiratory disease with significant impact on the swine industry in both clinically and economically. Despite of the several attempts to control APP, the emergence of novel serotypes and antimicrobial resistance (AMR) strains highlights the importance of monitoring the genetic characteristics of APP at single nucleotide level. Despite the importance of genomic surveillance of APP to develop effective control strategies, genetic information on the recent Korean isolates of APP is not available at whole genome level. Therefore, in this study, six APP strains were isolated from porcine lungs with characteristic lesions of PP from 2022 to 2024. And their whole genomic sequences, serotypes, virulence factors, and AMR traits were investigated using combined short- and long-read sequencing methods. In silico PCR serotyping identified the isolates as serotype 1, 7, and 15, while one isolate was non-typeable. Multiple AMR genes including Hinf_PBP3_BLA, Ecol_EFTu_PLV, tet(B), tet(O), tetR, sul2, aph(3'')-Ib, aph(6)-Id, and aph(3')-Ia were detected. Also, these genes were located with adjacent to mobile genetic elements, suggesting the possibility of horizontal gene transfer. Phylogenetic comparison with 40 global APP complete genomes, presented that Korean isolates were closely related with China and Switzerland strains. This study provides the whole genome sequences based genetic characterization on the recent Korean isolates of APP, and this study emphasizes that continuous monitoring of APP genomic variation to support effective control of porcine pleuropneumoniae.</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":"64 5","pages":"e2512010"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13577021/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148199213","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Il-Rae Cho, Patcharporn Budluang, Yeon Ha Kim, Haan Park, Namuk Kim, Kon Ho Lee, Jin-Hyun Ahn, Ho Young Kang, Young-Hwa Chung
{"title":"Delineated domain of VP2 capsid protein in H-1 parvovirus that determines susceptibility to human cancer cells.","authors":"Il-Rae Cho, Patcharporn Budluang, Yeon Ha Kim, Haan Park, Namuk Kim, Kon Ho Lee, Jin-Hyun Ahn, Ho Young Kang, Young-Hwa Chung","doi":"10.71150/jm.2601003","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2601003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Despite the application of H-1 parvovirus as an anticancer drug, the relationship between its specific tropism and oncolytic activity has been unknown. H-1 viral infection induced cytopathic effects in HeLa cells, whereas Kilham rat virus (KRV), similar to H-1 virus, did not. To explore which segments of the viral protein 2 (VP2) capsid protein in the H-1 virus determine susceptibility to human cancer cells, chimeric H-1 viruses with specific gene segments of H-1 VP2 were constructed. Delineation of the VP2 capsid protein revealed a minimum domain (K208-L435 in the H-1 VP2 protein) to determine infectivity in human cancer cells; however, this domain was not sufficient to maintain infectivity. To solve this problem, further construction of chimeric H-1 viruses illustrated the necessity of segments covering both M1-N87 and D104-P206 in the H-1 VP2 protein, based on chimeric H-1 viruses designated as YCH44, YCH45, and YCH46. Both the variable region 4b (VR4b) domains from KRV VP2 and VR8 from H-1 VP2 were required for the same purpose, based on chimeric H-1 viruses designated as YCH-HK8, YCH16, YCH17, YCH18, and YCH19. We confirmed that chimeric viruses carrying these segments infected human lung adenocarcinoma A549 and pancreatic cancer Panc-1 cells, whereas the parental KRV did not. Taken together, these findings indicate that specific domains of the H-1 virus VP2 capsid protein determine infectivity toward human cancer cells.</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":"64 5","pages":"e2601003"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13577013/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148199241","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Seungyeop Oh, Yeonjung Lim, Meora Rajeev, Jang-Cheon Cho
{"title":"Aliikangiella litoralis sp. nov. and Aliikangiella aequoris sp. nov., isolated from coastal seawaters of the Yellow Sea.","authors":"Seungyeop Oh, Yeonjung Lim, Meora Rajeev, Jang-Cheon Cho","doi":"10.71150/jm.2602008","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2602008","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Three Gram-stain-negative, strictly aerobic, motile bacterial strains, designated IMCC44359T, IMCC44632T, and IMCC44653, were isolated from coastal surface seawater collected near Jangbong Island in the Yellow Sea. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene and whole-genome sequences assigned the isolates to the genus Aliikangiella. Strains IMCC44632T and IMCC44653 shared identical 16S rRNA gene sequences and exhibited high genomic relatedness (99.0% average nucleotide identity and 92.0% digital DNA-DNA hybridization), indicating that they represent a single species. In contrast, strain IMCC44359T showed low genomic relatedness to these strains and to previously validly published Aliikangiella species, supporting its recognition as a distinct species. The genome of IMCC44359T (5.95 Mbp; 36.5 mol% G + C) is substantially larger than those of IMCC44632T and IMCC44653 (~3.75 Mbp; 40.1-40.2 mol% G + C), and all genomes encode aerobic chemoorganotrophic metabolism and biochemical capacities consistent with adaptation to marine environments. The isolates grew under mesophilic and moderately halophilic conditions typical of coastal seawater bacteria, with growth occurring at ranges at 10-40℃, pH 6.0-9.0, and 0.5-7.5% NaCl (optimum, 30℃, pH 7.0-8.0, and 2.0-3.0% NaCl). All strains contained ubiquinone-8 (Q-8) as the sole respiratory quinone, and phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, and diphosphatidylglycerol were the major polar lipids. The dominant cellular fatty acids were iso-C15:0 and summed feature 9 (iso-C17:1 ω9c and/or C16:0 10-methyl). Integrated phylogenetic, genomic, phenotypic evidence supported the recognition of two novel species within the genus Aliikangiella, for which the names Aliikangiella litoralis sp. nov. (type strain IMCC44359T = KCTC 18089T = JCM 37879T = HNIBRBA19635T) and Aliikangiella aequoris sp. nov. (type strain IMCC44632T = KCTC 18090T = JCM 37880T = HNIBRBA19636T) are proposed.</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":"64 5","pages":"e2602008"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-05-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13576998/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148199011","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Gracia Pradnya Lolita, Do-Hoon Lee, Yong-Seok Kim, Chang-Jun Cha
{"title":"Paramicrobacterium salitolerans sp. nov. isolated from the agricultural soil and Microbacterium fluminis sp. nov. isolated from the Han River, South Korea.","authors":"Gracia Pradnya Lolita, Do-Hoon Lee, Yong-Seok Kim, Chang-Jun Cha","doi":"10.71150/jm.2512014","DOIUrl":"10.71150/jm.2512014","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Two novel bacterial species, designated as CJ85T and CJ88T, were isolated from the agricultural soil and the Han River, South Korea, respectively. Cells of both strains were Gram-staining-positive, short rod-shaped, non-motile, and yellow-pigmented. Strain CJ85T exhibited optimal growth in tryptic soy broth at 37°C and pH 7.0 in the absence of NaCl. Strain CJ88T showed optimal growth in lysogeny broth at 30°C and pH 7.0 in the absence of NaCl. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain CJ85T belonged to the genus Paramicrobacterium, showing the highest sequence similarity to Paramicrobacterium fandaimingii HY82T (97.6%). Strain CJ88T was assigned to the genus Microbacterium, with the highest sequence similarity to Microbacterium azadirachtae DSM 23848T (98.5%). The DNA G + C content was 64.8% for strain CJ85T and 70.5% for strain CJ88T. The genome-based analyses, including phylogenomic tree, digital DNA-DNA hybridization, and average nucleotide identity, clearly indicated that these strains represent novel species within their respective genera. The major fatty acids of both strains were anteiso-C15:0, anteiso-C17:0, and iso-C16:0. Based on the polyphasic taxonomy study, strains CJ85T and CJ88T represent novel species of the genera Paramicrobacterium and Microbacterium, respectively, for which names Paramicrobacterium salitolerans sp. nov. and Microbacterium fluminis sp. nov. are proposed. The type strains CJ85T (= KACC 23064T = JCM 36217T) and CJ88T (= KACC 24080T = JCM 38050T).</p>","PeriodicalId":16546,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Microbiology","volume":" ","pages":"e2512014"},"PeriodicalIF":3.8,"publicationDate":"2026-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13577007/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147355602","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}