Bioscience, Biotechnology, and Biochemistry
Online ISSN : 1347-6947
Print ISSN : 0916-8451
Volume 60, Issue 9
Displaying 1-46 of 46 articles from this issue
  • Hideaki YAMADA, Michihiko KOBAYASHI
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1391-1400
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Nitrile hydratase (NHase) was discovered in our laboratory. This enzyme was purified and characterized from various microorganisms. NHases are roughly classified into two groups according to the metal involved: Fe-type and Co-type. NHases are expected to have great potential as catalysts in organic chemical processing because they can convert nitriles to the corresponding higher-value amides under mild conditions. We have used microbial enzymes for the production of useful compounds; NHase has been used for the industrial production (production capacity: 30, 000 tons/year) of acrylamide from acrylonitrile. This is the first successful example of a biotransformation process for the manufacture of a commodity chemical. This review summarizes the history of NHase studied not only from a basic standpoint but also from an applied point of view.
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  • Toshihiko SUZUKI, Emi SUGIMOTO, Yasutaka TAHARA, Yuzo YAMADA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1401-1405
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The ApaLI restriction-modification system from Acetobacter pasteurianus IFO l3753 recognizes the nucleotide sequence GTGCAC. The gene coding for the ApaLI methylase (M.ApaLI) was cloned into Escherichia coli DH5αMCR, and the nucleotide sequence of the gene was analyzed. The M.ApaLI gene coded for a protein of 429 amino acid residues (molecular mass, 46, 554 daltons). The ApaLI restriction endonuclease (R.ApaLI) gene was analyzed by inverse polymerase chain reaction. The R.ApaLI gene coded for a protein of 375 amino acid residues (molecular mass, 42, 143 daltons). The two genes had the same orientation separated by two base pairs. The deduced amino acid sequence of M.ApaLI shows significant similarities to the family of cytosine-5 methylases. However, the deduced amino acid sequence of R.ApaLI did not have as much relatedness in the nucleotide sequence, when compared with those of the other restriction endonucleases already reported.
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  • Hidefumi YOSHII, Takeshi FURUTA, Hirokazu MAEDA, Hiroyuki MORI
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1406-1409
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    As part of a study of reuse of waste okara, the kinetic mechanism of okara hydrolysis and the properties of the water-soluble polysaccharides (WSP) extracted were investigated. Okara was hydrolyzed by being autoclaved at pH 4.5 in two volume of water with or without a chelator such as hexametaphosphate. Okara hydrolysis proceeded by surface degradation mechanism without a chelator. Characterization of WSP suggested that the "egg-box regions" in okara were susceptible to degradation by a chelator and that the "non-egg-box regions" contained WSP linked with hydrophobic proteins. WSP with a molecular weight of more than 105 and the amount of protein bound to the polysaccharides seemed to govern their emulsifying characteristics.
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  • Kazuyoshi KAWAZU, Hong ZHANG, Hiroshi KANZAKI
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1410-1412
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The generation and accumulation of both benzoic acid (BA) and its conjugates were induced in suspension cultured cells of Pinus thunbergii by administering either phenylacetic acid (PA), a toxic metabolite of Bacillus cereus (strain HY-3) accompanying the pine wood nematode, or a lyophilized culture supernatant of this bacterium. BA conjugates reached their maximal levels in quantity two days after the administration and then decreased gradually until the 14th day, while BA increased significantly throughout this period. This pattern is similar to that in 3-year-old pine trees treated with PA, suggesting that the pathological reaction of pine tissues to the PA toxin might be involved in the pathogenesis mechanism for the pine wilt disease.
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  • Kazuyoshi KAWAZU, Hong ZHANG, Hideaki YAMASHITA, Hiroshi KANZAKI
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1413-1415
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Phenylacetic acid (PA), a toxin produced by three strains of bacteria accompanying the pine wood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, was found to be formed in a culture of the nematode. An animal nutrient, nutrient broth (NB) medium, was more suitable for PA production of the accompanying bacteria than a vegetable nutrient, potato sucrose malt extract (PSM) medium. It is presumed that dead nematodes in the PSM medium provided the bacteria with nutrient for PA production. In the culture of virulent isolate OKD-3, more PA was detected than in that of less-virulent isolate OKD-1. PA production of the accompanying bacteria can dominate the pathogenicity of the nematode.
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  • Seiichi ASAKAWA, Hiroshi ABE, Naoko NISHIKAWA, Masahiro NATSUME, Masaj ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1416-1420
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Typical brassinosteroid activity was found in the alkaline hydrolysate of the n-hexane fraction of lily pollen. Two acyl conjugates of teasterone were purified from the n-hexane fraction by HPLC and analyzed by GC-MS and/or LC-MS, resulting in the identification of teasterone esters with lauric acid and myristic acid. Syntheses of the teasterone esters are also reported. The acyl conjugates of typhasterol, castasterone, and brassinolide did not occur in lily pollen. This is the first time that acyl conjugates have ever been discovered among naturally occurring brassinosteroids.
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  • Takahiro TADA, Masato NOMURA, Kenji SHIMOMURA, Yoshihito FUJIWARA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1421-1424
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Fourteen amides condensing with aminophenols, anisidines, or aniline were synthesized from karahanaenone 1 as the starting material. The tyrosinase inhibitory activity and superoxide scavenging activity of these derivatives were examined in order to develop whitening agents for cosmetics. Of the compounds, N-p-hydroxyphenyl-1, 3, 3, 6-trimethyl-5-cyclohepten-2-on-1-carboxamide 9, 2-hydroxy-N-o-hydroxyphenyl-3, 3, 6-trimethyl-5-cyclohepten-1-carboxamide 13, and 2-hydroxy-N-p-hydroxyphenyl-3, 3, 6-trimethyl-5-cyclohepten-1-carboxamide 15 showed strong tyrosinase inhibitory activity. 13 and 5 possessed a hydroxy group in the karahana skeleton and on the aromatic ring, respectively. These inhibitory rates were higher than that of arbutin that is used for commercial cosmetics (77.4%, 73.6%, and 72.3% against 63.0% for arbutin). Furthermore, 13 indicated 51.0% for superoxide scavenging activity.
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  • Taiichi KATAYAMA, Chew-Chuang CHENG, Yukari EGASHIRA, Takeo OHTA, Hiro ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1425-1429
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The protective effect of dietary L-glutamine against the hepatotoxic action of D-galactosamine (GalN) was investigated by model experiments with rats. Rats fed with 20% casein diets containing 10% free amino acids were injected with GalN, and the serum aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase and lactate dehydrogenase activities and the hepatic glycogen content were assayed 20 hours after the injection. These enzyme activities in the group fed with the 10% L-glutamine diet for 8 days were lower than those in the groups fed with the control, 10% L-glutamic acid and 10% L-alanine diets for 8 days. The more prolonged the feeding period with the 10% L-glutamine diet was, the more the scrum activity levels of such enzymes were decreased. Although neomycin also lowered these enzyme activities, its simultaneous ingestion with neomycin did not show any additive or synergistic effect. The hepatic glycogen content in the 10% glutamine group still remained high after the GalN treatment. It is therefore assumed that the effectiveness of glutamine intake would have been mediated by glycogen metabolism rather than by uridine metabolism.
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  • Yukiko YAMAMOTO, Emiko KATO, Akiko ANDO
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1430-1433
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The effects of heat on the antioxidative activity of ovalbumin toward linoleic acid (LA) in an emulsion were studied. After ovalbumin had been heated at 80°C or more, both the antioxidative activity and superoxide radical scavenging activity were markedly elevated. Heating at this temperature rendered the sulfhydryl residues of ovalbumin more reactive to 5, 5-dithiobis-(2-nitrobenzoic acid) and more susceptible to oxidation during incubation with LA in an emulsion. Among the amino acids tested, methionine, histidine, and cysteine acted as antioxidants in an emulsion, and cysteine and histidine acted as superoxide radical scavengers. Both the hydrophobicity and fat-binding capacity were markedly increased after ovalbumin had been heated at 80°C or more. Heating ovalbumin might have increased its antioxidative activity by exposing antioxidative amino acid residues like cysteine and histidine and by enhanced masking of the surface of oil droplets, providing a suitable environment for the antioxidative activity of the amino acid residues.
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  • Noritoshi TAKAHASHI, Tadao SAITO, Shyuichi OHWADA, Hiroyoshi OTA, Hono ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1434-1438
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    A hemagglutination (HA) assay was done for the screening of lectin-like components in surface layer protein (SLP) from Lactobacillus (L.) acidophilus A group strains. The new screening method, using polystyrene beads coated with rat-colonic mucin (RCM), which combines sugar chains similar to those of human colonic mucin, was also done. The results showed that the HA assay was not a good indicator for selecting strains having high adhesion to the human intestinal tract. The SLPs from 3 strains that strongly bound to RCM also bound well to carbohydrate portions of Carnoy's-fixed human colonic mucous layer. These results suggest that this method is a new promising screening technique for the L. acidophilus strains having high adhesion to the human intestinal tract.
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  • Yasushi K. NAKAMURA, Tomoaki MATSUO, Kayoko SHIMOI, Yoshiyuki NAKAMURA ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1439-1443
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The isolation of a new type of bio-antimutagen, S-methyl methanethiosulfonate (MMTS), from cauliflower (Brassica oleracea var. botrytis) and the distribution and formation of MMTS in Cruciferae and Liliaceae vegetables are described. For the separation and purification, cauliflower curds were homogenized, extracted with acetone, and then purified by organic solvent extraction and by various processes of chromatographic separation. The chemical structure of an active principle was identified as MMTS by GC-MS and 1H-NMR analyses. MMTS was widely found in vegetable homogenates of the Cruciferae and Liliaceae species, and is formed from its precursor, S-methyl-L-cysteinesulfoxide (SMCS), by wounding the vegetables tissues. Wounding may induce C-S lyase, which converts SMCS to MMTS. The amount of MMTS formed was affected by the pH value for C-S lyase, but not by the SMCS content in a tissue homogenate.
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  • Kimiko ESAKI, Fumiko NINOMIYA, Kumiko HISAKI, Takahiko HIGASA, Katsumi ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1444-1449
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Treating bread dough by a high-voltage electric field (HVEF) during the first fermentation enabled the bread dough to retain water in the gluten fibers. The microstructure of the gluten fibers was still visible even with an HVEF treatment at 50 kV for 20 min, but could no longer be observed when the gluten was treated for more than 30 min. The crumb temperature of the HVEF treated bread during baking began to rise a few minutes sooner than that of the untreated bread, but the maximum temperature reached was the same in both cases: 99°C. The fact that the water activity of the HVEF-treated bread was 0.987±0.0056, being higher than that of the untreated bread by 0.011, is in good agreement with the growing tests of Rhizopus nigricans. Furthermore, a distinct decrease in the water loss of the baked gluten was observed after the HVEF treatment. These results suggest that the HVEF treatment increased the ability of the gluten fibers, rather than the starch granules, to absorb and retain water; the state of the remaining water is considered to have become immobile, so that migration of moisture to the starch granules in the bread could be minimized.
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  • Takami KAKUDA, Iwao SAKANE, Takanobu TAKIHARA, Shojiro TSUKAMOTO, Taka ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1450-1454
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The effects of a green tea (Camellia sinensis) extract on ethanol metabolism in ICR male mice were studied. A crude green tea extract (GTE) and the tea components as (-)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCg), (-)-epigallocatechin (EGC), and caffeine were administered before the tests. One hour later, the mice were orally given 2g/kg body weight (b.w.) of ethanol (20% ethanol w/v). The results show that the levels in the blood and liver of ethanol and acetaldehyde were lower, and that the levels of acetate and acetone were higher than in the controls orally given 500 mg/kg b.w. of GTE. After the administration of 75 mg/kg b.w. and 225mg/kg b.w. of EGCg, the acetate and acetone concentrations in the blood and liver were lower than in the controls. The mice given caffeine at the same dose as that in GTE showed almost the same effects as the group treated with GTE. This suggests that EGCg and caffeine, the principal components of GTE, both had an effect on ethanol metabolism.
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  • Katsumi SHIBATA, Takako KONDO, Miyuki MARUGAMI, Chisae UMEZAWA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1455-1459
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The effect of clofibrate, a hypolipidemic drug and also known as a peroxisomal proliferator, on the conversion ratio of tryptophan to niacin was investigated by using rats. The rats were fed with a nicotinic acid-free, 20% casein diet (control group) or the same diet +0.25% clofibrate (clofibrate group) for 19 days. The conversion ratio gradually increased with increasing number of days. Around day 8, the ratio was about 10-times higher in the clofibrate group than in the control group, and the value remained almost constant after that day. The content of liver total nicotinamide was higher in the clofibrate group than in the control group. Among the enzymes involved in the conversion of tryptophan to niacin, the aminocarboxymuconate-semialdehyde decarboxylase (ACMSDase) activity, which is critical in the conversion, was lower in the clofibrate group than in the control group. As the change in ACMSDase activity took several days, there is a possibility that clofibrate decreased the biosynthesis of ACMSDase protein and/or mRNA. To learn whether the increase in the conversion ratio by clofibrate would be nutritionally meaningful or not, the growth-promoting activity of clofibrate was determined by using weanling rats fed with a nicotinic acid-free, tryptophan-limiting diet (basal diet). As a result, the body weight gain was higher in the clofibrate group than in the basal group. This result shows that clofibrate enhanced the conversion ratio without any side-effects under the conditions used rind supports again the claim that the activity of ACMSDase exerts a critical influence on the tryptophan-NAD conversion.
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  • Manabu WATANABE, Yoshiki KONO, Yasuaki ESUMI, Tohru TERAOKA, Daijiro H ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1460-1463
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    A procedure for the quantitative analysis of oryzalides and oryzalic acids in leaves of rice cultivars was established by using GC-MS-selective ion monitoring (GC-SIM), 17-deuterated oryzalide B being used as an internal reference. The total contents of four compounds of oryzalides and oryzalic acids in the leaves at three different growth stages of Norin-27, i.e., seedling, tillering, and ripening, showed values of 5.3, 17.9, and 37.9 μg/g, respectively. The contents of oryzalides and oryzalic acids in each organ, i.e., leaf, stem, ear, and root, showed values of 35.0 and 1.7μg/g for the former two, respectively, and were not detectable for the latter two. A preliminary analysis of Norin-27 and Rantai emas leaves inoculated with an incompatible and compatible strain of Xanthomonas campestris pv. oryzae showed a greater accumulation of oryzalides and oryzalic acids, especially in the lesion area, than the figures for healthy leaves. Mechanical injury by a needle-bundle also increased the total amounts.
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  • Nobuyuki TAKAHASHI, Eizo TATSUMI, Takuya ORITA, Masaaki HIROSE
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1464-1468
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Disulfide-reduced and carboxymethylated ovalbumin was treated at pH 9.9 and 55°C for 24h as a specific condition for preparation of S-ovalbumin. The stability and conformation of the product were investigated. Such alkaline treatment converted native protein to S-ovalbumin, but this modified ovalbumin was not stabilized, according to results of calorimetric analysis. Instead, it had lost its native like conformation; the magnitude of CD spectra decreased. The conformation after alkaline treatment was not clear, but the possibility of aggregation was excluded by electrophoretic analysis. These observations showed that the transformation of native ovalbumin into S-ovalbumin requires the presence of the disulfide bond.
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  • Jun-ichi KURAMITSU, Shiroh IWANAGA, Nobuyuki YAMASAKI, Makoto KIMURA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1469-1473
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Synthetic oligonucleotides representing all possible sequences of the N-terminal and internal amino acid sequences of the chymotrypsin inhibitor ECI from Erythrina variegata seeds were used to generate a probe specific for ECI-related sequences by the polymerase chain reaction on the E. variegata genomic DNA. A lambda phage cDNA library constructed from poly(A+) RNA from maturing seeds was screened with the ECI gene thus obtained as a probe and characterized by DNA sequencing. The cloned ECI cDNA comprised 737 nucleotides and one open reading frame that encoded a polypeptide chain of 203 amino acids including a signal peptide composed of 24 amino acids. An expression plasmid was designed for export of the recombinant inhibitor into the periplasm. For this purpose, the cDNA fragment encoding matured ECI was ligated into the NcoI and BamHI sites following the pelB signal sequence in the expression vector pET-22b and expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3). However, this attempt failed as the recombinant inhibitor caused the formation of inclusion bodies in E. coli cells as a heterologous preprotein (SR-ECI), with the pelB upstream leader. SR-ECI was made soluble and renatured by refolding and reoxidation, and subsequently processed with pronase to give rise to recombinant ECI (R-ECI) that had an extra methionine residue attached to the N-terminal amino acid of ECI. Purified R-ECI inhibited chymotrypsin almost as strongly as authentic ECI.
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  • Hidehisa KAWAHARA, Hirokazu IKUGAWA, Hitoshi OBATA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1474-1478
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    A novel marine ice-nucleating bacterium, KUIN-5, was isolated from a marine algae, Monostroma latissum. Strain KUIN-5 was identified as a Pseudomonas sp. from its characteristics and taxonomics; the optimum temperature and pH for its growth were 25°C and 6.0, respectively. When strain KUIN-5 was aerobically cultured in Carlucci-Pramer medium (pH 6.0) for 50 h at 25°C, the highest ice-nucleating activity of the cells among the media for marine bacteria was obtained, and the ice-nucleating temperature, T50, was indicated to be -3.2°C. Also, the optimum concentration of NaCl for the growth in this medium, which was prepared with distilled water instead of seawater, was 2.0% (w/v) and then the ice-nucleating activity was inversely proportional to the NaCl concentration. Moreover, when strain KUIN-5 was cultured in Davis medium under optimum conditions, it produced insoluble polysaccharide (IPS) in the culture. The maximum amount of IPS production by strain KUIN-5 was 84.5 mg/ml of medium under optimum conditions. Therefore, this IPS was isolated and could be identified as cellulose, based on TLC or HPLC of the acid hydrolysate, and GC-MS of the acetylated polyalcohol prepared by periodate oxidation and Smith degradation of this polysaccharide. This is the first report of cellulose production by a marine ice-nucleating bacterium.
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  • Katsuaki ISHII, Tadashi YANAGISAWA, Hiromichi NAGASAWA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1479-1482
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    As a first step in understanding the calcification mechanism, a matrix protein in the gastrolith of the crayfish Procambarus clarkii was purified and sequenced. The protein was insoluble in acid, but after trypsin digestion, it dissolved in 6M urea. The trypsin-digested protein dissolved in urea solution was purified by reversed-phase HPLC and designated gastrolith matrix protein fragment. The fragment had a molecular weight of 9658 and a blocked amino terminus. It had tandemly repeated units not reported before at the central part of the sequence, with each unit being Gly-Ser-X1-X2-Phe as the most typical sequence. This peptide was found associated with chitin, a main component of the organic matrix.
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  • Kayo WATANABE, Masatake TOYODA, Hideaki HASHIMOTO, Kei-ichi NAKAGAWA, ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1483-1485
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. aizawai produces 130-kDa and 135-kDa (CryIA(a)) insecticidal proteins. When Saccharomyces cerevisiae was transformed by the vector carrying a cryIA(a) gene, the gene expression could not be observed. When the 5'-upstream region from the initiation codon was removed using a synthetic oligonucleotide, the CryIA(a) protein was successfully synthesized in yeast. The yeast extract containing CryIA(d) protein had insecticidal activity against Plutella xylostella larvae.
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  • Koji SAKAMOTO, Atsuhiko INOUE, Muneichi NAKATANI, Hiroshi KOZUKA, Hide ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1486-1487
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The S-methylmethionine sulfonium (MMS) concentrations in fruits of citrus hybrids were measured, and found to increase during ripening of the fruit. However, three of eleven hybrids of 'Seto unshiu' crossed with 'Morita ponkan' and four of 9 hybrids of 'Murcott' tangor crossed with 'Seto unshiu' had low MMS concentrations even at late harvest stage. Crossbreeding is useful in producing new citrus fruits that have juices with the desirable characteristics of their parents without formation of dimethyl sulfide which is an off-flavor.
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  • Ken KIM, Yoshihide IKEUCHI, Atsushi SUZUKI
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1488-1489
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Purified β-connectin solutions were treated with hydrostatic pressures of 300 and 600 MPa for 10 min, and irreversible changes in the proportions of the secondary structure of connectin were estimated from CD spectra. The CD spectra showed that pressure had little effect on the secondary structure.
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  • Yasuko KATO, Tsukasa MATSUDA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1490-1491
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The amino-carbonyl reactions of two glycoproteins, chicken ovomucoid and quail ovomucoid, which have similar amino acid sequences but different sugar chains, were compared. The free guanidino groups, but not amino groups, of chicken ovomucoid decreased more rapidly than those of quail ovomucoid during reaction with glucose. Protein polymerization and formation or brownish or fluorescent compounds also occurred more quickly in the chicken ovomucoid. These results suggested that the sugar chain moieties affect the amino-carbonyl reaction of glycoproteins with deducing sugars, especially at advanced stages of the reaction.
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  • Kan SHIDA, Kotaro TAKAMIZAWA, Toshiaki OSAWA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1492-1494
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The inhibition by lactose-α-lactalbumin amino carbonyl product of Escherichia coli heat-labile enterotoxin was studied by GM1-ELISA and by assay with CHO-K1 cells. The product dose-dependently inhibited the binding of the enterotoxin to GM1 gan-glioside and decreased the morphological change of CHO-K1 cells caused by this toxin. The results suggest that this product may be a receptor analogue in the intestine.
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  • Yu AIDA, Shigeru TAMOGAMI, Osamu KODAMA, Takao TSUKIBOSHI
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1495-1496
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    In the structure of sakuranetin, which was isolated as a phytoalexin from the rice plant, the methoxy group at C-7 has been shown to be important for its high activity. Apigeninidin was isolated as a phytoalexin from sorghum, but it had no methoxy group at C-7. We prepared 7-methoxyapigeninidin and compared its fungicidal activity with that of apigeninidin. The 7-methoxyapigeninidin showed higher activity against sorghum fungi than apigeninidin, suggesting that the methoxy group at C-7 was important for the high fungicidal activity.
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  • Renni R. SAMSOEDIN, Ichiro HONDA, Tadashi YANAGISAWA, Masatomo KOBAYAS ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1497-1499
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Gibberellin A8 (GA8); GA17, GA29, GA44, and GA53 were identified from the shoots of Phyllostachys edulis, together with previously identified GA1, GA19, and GA20, and the occurrence of a 2β-hydroxy-GA53-like compound was suggested. An experiment on shoots of the bamboo species confirmed the metabolism from GA12-aldehyde to GA12 and GA53 in P. bambusoides, and from GA12-aldehyde to GA12 and GA12 to GA53 in Sasa kurilensis. These findings strongly suggest the participation of the early-13-hydroxylation pathway for gibberellin biosynthesis in the shoots of Bambusoideae.
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  • Hino MOTOSUGI, Takaaki NISHIJIMA, Naofumi HIEHATA, Masaji KOSHIOKA, Ak ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1500-1502
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    In the xylem exudate extracted from the current-year stems of apple (Malus domestica Borkh.), gibberellins A15, A17, A18, A19, A23, A44, and A53 were identified, and 16, 17-dihydro-17-hydroxy GA19 was presumed from full-scan mass spectra and Kovats retention indices.
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  • Yoji TSUGE, Makoto SHIMOYAMADA, Kenji WATANABE
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1503-1504
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The binding of some egg white proteins to bovine rotavirus, hen newcastle disease virus (NDV), and human influenza virus (IV) was investigated by using the hemagglutination inhibition (HI) test and supplemented by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). In comparison with other egg white proteins, ovomucin showed the highest affinity for the three viruses, while ovomucoid showed only slight affinity for NDV in the HI test and ELISA.
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  • Yoji TSUGE, Makoto SHIMOYAMADA, Kenji WATANABE
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1505-1506
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The hemagglutination inhibition (HI) activity of ovomucin (OM) subunits, and the effects of alkylation before and after reduction and protease treatments on the HI activity of OM to bovine rotavirus (RV) and hen newcastle disease virus (NDV) were investigated. The appearance of the HI activity of OM against RV was accomplished by a macromolecule composed of α- and β-subunits, while that against NDV required the β-subunit moiety only.
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  • Yasujiro MORIMITSU, Akira HIROTA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1507-1509
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Ansamycin antibiotics (1-4) were isolated from the cultured broth of Streptomyces sp. USF-319 strain as a result of our screening for free radical scavengers. They inhibited the bactericidal effect of the Fenton reagent toward Bacillus subtilis by their radical scavenging activity. Some of them also showed inhibitory activity against lipid peroxidation and lipoxygenases.
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  • Nobuto MINOWA, Kei-ichi IMAMURA, Tomoya MACHINAMI, Seiji SHIBAHARA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1510-1512
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    4-Acetoxy-2-alkenylquinolines, the analogs of quinolinol antibiotic SF2420B (1), were synthesized and their insecticidal activities were evaluated.
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  • Masaharu ISHII, Yasufumi UEDA, Ki-Soek YOON, Yasuo IGARASHI, Tohru KOD ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1513-1515
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    Ferredoxin was purified from cells of Hydrogenobacter thermophilus strain TK-6. Purification was performed aerobically by the addition of octyl-β-glucoside to the buffers. The purified ferredoxin had a molecular mass of 13, 000 and contained a [4Fe-4S] cluster. The protein had a long stretch at the N-terminal region; however, the sequence was not similar to the sequences of ferredoxins with a long stretch from Archaebacteria.
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  • Hideki YANAI, Hisaaki TSUMUKI, Haruyoshi KONNO, Takanori MAEDA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1516-1518
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    The effects of culture conditions on the ice nucleus production of Fusarium moniliforme var. subglutinans isolated from the gut of larvae of the rice stem borer (Chilo suppressalis Walker) were examined. The ice nucleus production was only affected by cultivation temperature and pH: the optimum temperature and pH were 15°C to 20°C and 4.0 to 6.0, respectively.
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  • Michiko WATANABE, Shoko TESAKI, Soichi ARAI
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1519-1521
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    Soy sauce was frozen in the presence of ice nucleation-active Xanthomonas campestris cells at -25°C, and the resulting frozen soy sauce was filtered through a 22-mesh screen to remove the ice and eutectic crystals of salt and water. The product retained well its original aroma and taste substances.
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  • Inder Pal SINGH, Kaori TAKAHASHI, Hideo ETOH
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1522-1523
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    A highly potent repellent, sideroxylonal A, was isolated from the benzene extract of the leaves of Eucalyptus grandis. An attaching attractant identified as 16, 18-tritriacontandione was isolated from the leaf wax of E. globulus. Grandinol and 16, 18-tritriacontandione analogues were tested for attaching repellent and attractant activity in order to establish structure activity relationships.
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  • Hisataka TAGUCHI, Tohru HAMASAKI, Kazue MAEDA, Takashi AKAMATSU, Hiros ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1524-1525
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    Since the xylosidase of Bacillus pumilus hydrolyzed 1-naphthyl-β-D-xylopyranoside (naphthyl-X) to produce xylose and 1-naphthol and a chromogenic azo compound is produced by coupling 1-naphthol and Fast Blue Salt B, a simple method for detection of xylosidase activity in single colonies was studied. Escherichia coli JM109 carrying the xylosidase gene of B. pumilus was cultivated at 37°C for 18 h on an LB plate containing 0.5 mg/ml naphthyl-X, and then the plate was overlaid with 3 ml of a top layer containing 24 mg of agar and 6mg of Fast Blue Salt B. After incubation of the plate at 37°C for 1 h, each colony became reddish-brown. Even a small colony with the xylosidase on the plate was easily distinguished from colonies without the enzyme.
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  • Naoki TANIMIZU, Rikimaru HAYASHI
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1526-1527
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Enzymatic activities of proteinases A and B, carboxypeptidase Y, and aminopeptidase I, vacuolar enzymes in beer yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, were measured at different stages of growth in the synchronous culture. All enzymatic activities fluctuated synchronously during the cell growth in a periodical cycle. The maximum activities were observed before cytokinesis and the minimum activities were found just after completing cytokinesis.
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  • Kinji MIYASHITA, Junji OKUNISHI, Ryutaro UTSUMI, Shigeki TAGIRI, Kazus ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1528-1529
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Coxsackievirus 3C proteinase (3Cpro) cleaves between Gln and Gly, but additional amino acids are required to constitute a cleavage site. To investigate the additional sequence requirements, cleavages of the peptide substrate, and its derivatives were examined. Substitutions of each residue from the P2 to P5 positions showed the importance of the P2 Phe and P4 Ala for recognition by 3Cpro.
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  • Jun KAYASHITA, Hiromi NAGAI, Norihisa KATO
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1530-1531
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    Dietary fiber has an ameliorative effect on the toxicity of amaranth (Food Red No. 2). To test the possibility that a buckwheat protein extract (BWPE) has dietary fiber-like activity by virtue of its low digestibility, we examined the influence of BWPE on amaranth toxicity in rats. The results show that BWPE-containing diet suppressed the growth depression induced by the dietary addition of 5% amaranth.
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  • Tomoko SHIMOKAWA, Shigeki YOSHIDA, Toshio TAKEUCHI, Katsumi MURATA, Ta ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1532-1534
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
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    The objective of this study was to prepare two series of authentic oligo-guluronic acids from sodium alginate. Oligo-guluronic acids (DP=1-9) were prepared from an acid hydrolysate of poly-guluronic acid by successive chromatographies of Bio-Gel P-6 and Q Sepharose Fast Flow. Oligo-guluronic acids having 4-deoxy-L-erythro-hex-4-enopyranosyluronic acid residues at the non-reducing end (DP=2-7) were prepared from the enzymatic degradation products of the poly-guluronic acid in the same manner. Each of the isolated oligo-guluronic acids gave a single band on fluorophore-assisted carbohydrate electrophoresis. These results suggest that successive chromatographies used in this study are well suited for the preparation of alginate-derived oligouronic acids.
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  • Hiroshi KANZAKI, Toshitsune ICHIOKA, Akio KOBAYASHI, Kazuyoshi KAWAZU
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1535-1537
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    Curromycins A and B, antibiotics specific to Agrobacterium tumefaciens, inhibited crown gall formation on potato tubers. Their esters showed potent inhibitory activity against crown gall formation without any antibacterial activity. The change in biological activity of curromycins by simple esterification was similar to our previous observation in oxazolomycin. Curromycin esters are possible chemical probes to study the mechanism for plant transformation.
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  • Kohji ISHIHARA, Shin-ichi KONDO, Kaoru NAKAMURA, Nobuyoshi NAKAJIMA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1538-1539
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    We determined the amino acid sequences of two keto ester reductases (YKER-V and -VI) purified from a cell-free extract of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The N-terminal and internal amino acid sequences of YKER-VI (AcKR) were in agreement with the sequence of hypothetical 36.4-kDa protein (S. cerevisiae chromosome X reading frame ORF YJR105w) in yeast. The N-terminal amino acid sequence of YKER-V was also identical with that of the hypothetical protein coded by yeast chromosome XIV or II. These results suggested that two hypothetical proteins were expressed as keto ester reductases in yeast cells.
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  • Masahiro YOKOYAMA, Yuko NAKATSUKA, Takeshi SUGAI, Hiromichi OHTA
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1540-1542
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    The conversion of 2, 5-anhydro-D-allononitrile derivatives by a nitrile hydratase from Rhodococcus rhodochrous IFO 15564 was studied. The activity of the enzyme was strongly effected by the steric bulkiness of the substituents at the 3-position of the substrates, and the corresponding amides were obtained in high yields from the nitriles with free hydroxyl groups at the 3- and 41positions.
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  • Shin ONO, Sumie TANPA, Isao YAMAZAKI, Toshiaki YOSHIMURA, Toshihiko MA ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1543-1545
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    To investigate the relationships between enzyme inactivation and conformational change, the effects of heat and guanidine hydrochloride (GnHCl) on the STA1 gene glucoamylase (STA1GA) of Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. diastaticus were examined by circular dichroism and fluorescence spectroscopies. A conformational change was observed in the thermal denaturation of STA1GA, while extensive enzyme inactivation occurred in GnHCl denaturation before noticeable conformational change.
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  • Shuhei NAKAJIMA, Keiji SUGAWARA, Taro TAKEDA, Masaya TATEISHI, Aiko OK ...
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1546-1547
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    From a hexane extract of wheat flour infested by the sawtoothed grain beetle [Oryzaephilus surinamensis (L.); Coleoptera; Silvanidae], two compounds having arrestive activity were isolated and identified as 13-oxo-cis-9-octadecenoic acid and 15-oxo-cis-11-icosenoic acid.
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  • Mamoru YAMADA, Takuya KAWAI, Hanae IZU
    1996 Volume 60 Issue 9 Pages 1548-1550
    Published: September 23, 1996
    Released on J-STAGE: February 08, 2008
    JOURNAL FREE ACCESS
    The Escherichia coli gluconate permease genes, gntT ant gntU, were cloned and characterized. At least four homologues to GntT were found in E. coli by database searching. These proteins including GntT and GntU appear to have similar topological structures with 14 membrane-spanning segments, suggesting that they constitute a GntP family.
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