Glial cells are receiving much attention since they have been recognized as important regulators of many aspects of brain function and disease. Recent evidence has revealed that two different glial cells, astrocytes and microglia, control synapse elimination under normal and pathological conditions via phagocytosis. Astrocytes use the MEGF10 and MERTK phagocytic pathways, and microglia use the classical complement pathway to recognize and eliminate unwanted synapses. Notably, glial phagocytosis also contributes to the clearance of disease-specific protein aggregates, such as β-amyloid, huntingtin, and α-synuclein. Here we reivew recent findings showing that glial cells are active regulators in brain functions through phagocytosis and that changes in glial phagocytosis contribute to the pathogenesis of various neurodegenerative diseases. A better understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms of glial phagocytosis in healthy and diseased brains will greatly improve our current approach in treating these diseases.

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A novel xylan-degrading bacterium, designated XDB9 T , was isolated from forest humus collected from Gyeryong Mountain in Korea. Cells were Gram-positive, aerobic, motile and endosporeforming rods. A neighbour-joining phylogenetic tree based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain XDB9 T was most closely related to members of the genus Lysinibacillus. 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities between strain XDB9 T and the type strains of species of the genus Lysinibacillus ranged from 98.0 to 98.5 %. The cell-wall peptidoglycan type of strain XDB9 T was A4a, which is based on L-Lys-D-Asp. Strain XDB9 T contained iso-C 15 : 0 and C 16 : 1 v7c alcohol as the major fatty acids and MK-7 as the predominant menaquinone. The major polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylethanolamine. The DNA G+C content was 37.2 mol%. The DNA-DNA hybridization results and differential phenotypic properties showed that strain XDB9 T could be distinguished from recognized species of the genus Lysinibacillus. It was concluded that strain XDB9 T represents a new taxon for which the name Lysinibacillus xylanilyticus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is XDB9 T (5KCTC 13423 T 5CCUG 57438 T ).The genus Lysinibacillus was proposed by Ahmed et al. (2007) by the description of one novel species and the reclassification of two Bacillus species on the basis of a polyphasic taxonomic study, and especially with regard to characteristics such as cell-wall peptidoglycan structure. At the time of writing, the genus Lysinibacillus was composed of four species with validly published names: Lysinibacillus boronitolerans, Lysinibacillus fusiformis and Lysinibacillus sphaericus (Ahmed et al., 2007) and Lysinibacillus parviboronicapiens (Miwa et al., 2009).During the course of a study on the diversity of xylandegrading bacteria from natural environments, a novel bacterial strain, XDB9 T , was isolated from forest humus. Xylan, a polymer of b-1,4-D-xylopyranosyl units, is one of the most ubiquitous polysaccharides in nature and a main constituent of hemicellulose, which is found in the cell walls of plants (Timmell, 1967). Xylan-degrading bacteria have been isolated in order to screen for xylanases, such as b-1,4-D-xylan xylanohydrolase and b-1,4-D-xylan xylohydrolase, which are useful in the food and pulp industries (Coughlan & Hazlewood, 1993).For the screening of xylan-degrading bacteria, forest humus was collected from Gyeryong Mountain, Taejon, Korea. The samples were serially diluted in 0.85 % (w/v) saline solution and then aliquots of each serial dilution were spread onto solid medium containing 0.5 % (w/v) birch wood xylan (Sigma) and 1.5 % (w/v) Noble agar (Difco). The medium was incubated for 7 days at 25 u C under aerobic conditions. One of the isolates, XDB9 T , was selected and subcultivated on trypticase soy agar (TSA; Difco) at 30 u C for further study. L. boronitolerans JCM 21713 T , L. fusiformis KACC 10903 T and L. sphaericus KCTC 3346 T were used as reference strains for phenotypic characterization,...

A Gram-negative, non-motile, rod-shaped bacterial strain, designated DPG-5 T , was isolated from seawater of the South Sea, Korea and subjected to a study using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. Strain DPG-5 T grew optimally at pH 7.0-8.0, at 30 6C and in the presence of 2 % (w/ v) NaCl. Neighbour-joining phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain DPG-5 T fell within the clade comprising members of the genus Loktanella, and formed a cluster with the type strains of Loktanella rosea, Loktanella maricola, Loktanella koreensis and Loktanella tamlensis, with which it exhibited highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values of 96.7, 96.5, 96.2 and 96.7 %, respectively. The 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values between strain DPG-5 T and the type strains of the other species of the genus Loktanella were in the range of 94.4-96.0 %. The DNA G+C content of strain DPG-5 T was 57.6 mol%. Strain DPG-5 T contained Q-10 as the predominant ubiquinone and C 18 : 1 v7c and 11-methyl C 18 : 1 v7c as the major fatty acids. The major polar lipids found in strain DPG-5 T were phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylglycerol. Differential phenotypic properties, together with the phylogenetic distinctiveness, showed that strain DPG-5 T is differentiated from other species of the genus Loktanella. On the basis of the data presented, strain DPG-5 T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Loktanella, for which the name Loktanella litorea sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is DPG-5 T (5KCTC 23883 T 5CCUG 62113 T ).

The development of epilepsy is often associated with marked changes in central nervous system cell structure and function. Along these lines, reactive gliosis and granule cell axonal sprouting within the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus are commonly observed in individuals with temporal lobe epilepsy. Here we used the pilocarpine model of temporal lobe epilepsy in mice to screen the proteome and phosphoproteome of the dentate gyrus to identify molecular events that are altered as part of the pathogenic process. Using a two-dimensional gel electrophoresis-based approach, followed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, 24 differentially expressed proteins, including 9 phosphoproteins, were identified. Functionally, these proteins were organized into several classes, including synaptic physiology, cell structure, cell stress, metabolism and energetics. The altered expression of three proteins involved in synaptic physiology, actin, profilin 1 and α-synuclein, was validated by secondary methods. Interestingly, marked changes in protein expression were detected in the supragranular cell region, an area where robust mossy fibers sprouting occurs. Together, these data provide new molecular insights into the altered protein profile of the epileptogenic dentate gyrus and point to potential pathophysiologic mechanisms underlying epileptogenesis.

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A Gram-negative, motile, pale-yellow-pigmented, oval-shaped bacterial strain, DF-42 T , was isolated from a tidal flat sediment in Korea. Strain T grew optimally at 25-30 6C and in the presence of 2-3 % (w/v) NaCl. It contained Q-8 as the predominant ubiquinone and C 16 : 0 , C 18 : 1 v7c and summed feature 3 (C 16 : 1 v7c and/or iso-C 15 : 0 2-OH) as the major fatty acids.