Glucofructans were isolated and purified from the endosperm of naked barley and their structural significances were discussed. Four unknown glucofructans (unknown 1_??_4) and the mixture of higher glucofructans were obtained. The results on methylated glucofructans showed that D-glucose unit in the glucofructans was present as the end group and main chain consisted of 1, 2-linked D-fructofuranose residues and that each glucofructan except unknown 1 had the branching structure comprising of 2, 6-linked D-fructofuranose residues.

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Using the adenine auxotroph of hydrocarbonoclastic microorganism, Corynebacterium petrophilum, the effects of glucose on the inosine productivity were investigated. The mutant did not produce inosine from glucose as the sole source of carbon. Production of inosine in n-C₁₆ medium was found to be inhibited by the addition of glucose. To obtain information on such effect of glucose, several characters were compared between the cells grown in glucose medium and those grown in n-C₁₆ medium. Intracellular content of UV-absorbing materials of the glucose-cells was higher than that of hydrocarbon-cells. The glucose-celle could not grow in media containing adenosine or 5'-AMP. On the other hand, hydrocarbon-cells were able to achieve growth, with adenine, adenosine and 5'-AMP contained in the hydrocarbon medium, but, in the case of glucose medium, the cells could grow only in the presence of adenine. Furthermore, the growth of this mutant in n-C₁₆ medium was found to be inhibited by a larger amount of adenine than that required for the maximum growth, and this inhibition was overcome by the addition of guanine. The significance of the effect of guanine was discussed.

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A procedure for obtaining crystalline preparations of tyramine oxidase of Sarcina lutea has been developed. The procedure included fractionation with ammonium sulfate, treat-ment with protamine sulfate and separation by column chromatographies on DEAE-cellulose, hydroxylapatite and sephadex G-150. The specific activity of enzyme was increased 5, 700_??_6, 000-fold through the procedure, over the crude cell extract. Crystals were prepared from solutions of the purified enzyme by adding solid ammonium sulfate. The crystals appeared as minute, highly refractive needles, with a bright yellow color.

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With the use of crystalline preparations of tyramine oxidase of Sarcina lutea, substrate and inhibitor specificities of the enzyme were investigated. The enzyme oxidized tyramine and dopamine at almost the same rates. Other monoamines, diamines, polyamines and amino acids were not oxidized at all. The oxidation of tyramine proceeded as follows: Tyramine+O₂+H₂O→p-Hydroxyphenylacetaldehyde+NH₃+H₂O₂. Ammonia and hydrogen peroxide were formed in stoichiometric amounts.
The enzyme was not inhibited by carbonyl reagents, such as hydroxylamine, hydrazine, semicarbazide and isoniazid, but was inhibited by p-CMB and iproniazid.

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Propagation of Streptomyces phaeochromogenus by both shaking and submerged cultivations is described. The addition of Co⁺⁺ to medium remarkably improved the activity of the cell to convert glucose into fructose. The cell grown with Co⁺⁺ isomerized glucose at pH 9.0 and 7.5 similarly, whereas the cells grown without Co⁺⁺ reacted with glucose at pH 9.3 as the optimum. In submerged cultivation, the mode of pH change during cultivation period varied depending on the kind of strain, carbon source and the presence of Co⁺⁺.
In the propagation of the strain SK, carbon and nitrogen sources were rather rapidly consumed resulting in cell growth, when pH value of the medium was falling. On the other hand, however, growth hardly developed at the pH values lower than 6.0.
Therefore, it was necessary to adjust pH with alkali in order to get active cell yield.

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Dehydration and preservation of the cell of Streptomyces phaeochromogenus were investigated. Cell activity was changed differently during dehydration and preservation, depending on the cultivation method and on the dehydration method. The cell dehydrated on clay plate at room temperature showed the best result and did not lose its activity during dehydration and preservation even after 8 weeks.

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The effect of 3-nitropropionate (3-NPA) on oxidative phosphorylation by using mitochondria prepared from both rat liver and brain were investigated in connection with the toxicity of this material. It was found that 3-NPA inhibited oxidative phosphorylation. In this inhibition, the uptake of inorganic phosphate was blocked but the oxygen uptake was not influenced at all. Furthermore, increase in ATPase activity of intact mitochondria was shown by the addition of 3-NPA. Results showed that 3-NPA disturbed oxidative phosphorylation as an uncoupler. However, the degree of inhibition by 3-NPA was not so high in comparison with other well-known uncouplers.
Thus the toxicity of 3-NPA is not due to the inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation. 3-NPA also does not affect on cytochrome oxidase activity.

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Electrophoretically homogeneous preparation of yeast 5'-nucleotidase, one of NAD metabolizing system, was obtained from yeast autolysate by ammonium sulfate fractionation, chromatography, gel filtration and zone electrophoresis. The preparation had strong NAD-splitting activity, namely nucleotide pyrophosphatase activity.
Throughout purification steps, the ratio of the two activities were kept constant and they could not be separated even by treatments with EDTA, urea, thioglycol and alkaline buffer. These seem to suggest that both activities of 5'-nucleotidase and nucleotide pyrophosphatase localize on a single protein.

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About 2000 strains of microorganisms were examined for lipoprotein lipase producibilities and some microorganisms were found to produce lipases similar to animal lipoprotein lipases.
Microorganisms were cultured on solid media containing a serum-activated olive oil emulsion, and strains which formed a clear zone around the colony were collected. The collected microorganisms were cultured on liquid media containing 0.5% of olive oil by shaking and the culture filtrates were tested for lipoprotein lipase activity by a turbidity method. The superior lipoprotein lipase producers obtained belonged to genera of Serratia, Pseudomonas, Mucor, and Streptomyces.

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Effectiveness of 7-irradiation as a protective means against post-harvest decay in ‘Donner’ strawberries produced in Gumma Pref., Japan, was investigated. In case when strawberries were kept at 23°C, 10-% infection due to saprophytic fungi, such as Botrytis cinerea, Rhizopus and Penicillium, was found 3 days after zero-kiloroentgen (kR) irradiation, 4 days after 100-kR irradiation, and 5 to 6 days after 200-kR irradiation. For the purpose of wrapfilm, ordinary cellophane was found to be more favorable than water-proof cellophane at room temperature.
Main saprophytic fungus of ‘Donner’ berries was isolated and identified to be Botrytis cinerea Persoon. Lethal dose of B. cinerea was determined from its survival curve.

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The volatile compounds from cooked potato irradiated with the doses of about 10000 and 100000 rad were determined quantitatively immediately after irradiation and after the storage for fifty days following irradiation. In both cases, no significant differences were observed between the volatile compounds from 10000 rad irradiated and non-irradiated potato. Irradiation of 100000 rad resulted in increase of volatile compounds, especially that of carbonyl compounds.
The effects of gamma irradiation and storage on ascorbic acid content of potato were also studied. Ascorbic acid content of raw potato decreased approximately 10 % and 30 than that of control by irradiation of 10000 and 100000 rad, respectively.

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The process of the denaturation of “myosin B” solution was studied by the measurement of ATPase activity, SH groups, sedimentation behaviour and flow birefringence. When “myosin B” solution was stored at lower temperature, lower pH or higher ionic strength, the interaction between myosin A and actin became less strong, and further storage brought about an irreversible dissociation.
The condition for measuring Mg-modified ATPase activity of “myosin B” at low ionic strength was explained in the relation with superprecipitation.

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Anacystis nidulans cells were fractionated, and characterized. The Hill reaction activity of the lamellar fractions depended at a considerable degree on the media used in cell fractionations and on the freshness of the cells. Analytical results suggest that two types of lamellae are present in the cells. One existing in the cell in a large amount, showed higher content of chlorophyll and lower carotenoids. The other which seems to be located near cell membrane, had carotenoids in relatively higher concentration, and contained probably a chlorophyll absorbing far-red light in addition to a common chlorophyll a.

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Changes in the nonprotein nitrogenous compounds produced from rabbit skeletal muscle (L. dorsi) by proteolysis were investigated.
The value of trichloroacetic acid soluble nitrogen, ninhydrin positive materials and phenol reagent positive materials increased during storage at low and high temperature. Changes in bound and free amino acid contents produced by proteolysis during storage were assayed by amino acid analyzer. Most of free amino acids except taurine increased remarkably. Amounts of asparatic acid, glutamic acid, glycine, β-alanine and histidine were increased after hydrolysis as compared with those before hydrolysis.
By using five kinds of Dowex 50 columns, changes in the distributive patterns of the nonprotein nitrogenous compounds were also studied.

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The activities of all urea cycle enzymes (carbamyl phosphate synthetase, ornithine transcarbamylase, argininosuccinate synthetase, argininosuccinase and arginase) have been determined in the liver of rats forcibly fed diets lacking in individual essential amino acids from amino acid mixture simulating to a casein. In general, these enzyme activities (units/g liver and total units/body wt) in rats fed the single essential amino acid-devoid diet decreased as compared with those activities in animals fed complete diet, but their decreases were not as large as those observed in group of all amino acid-devoid diet. The degree of decrease in these enzyme activities differed somewhat from each other in individual enzymes and each essential amino acie-devoid groups. In contrast, in rats fed the arginine devoid diet, the activities (total units/body wt) of all enzymes expect the case of arginase increased more than those in the group of complete diet.

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2-Methyl-4, 6-cyclohexadienaldehyde and n-butyraldehyde were treated with sodium in p-xylene to yield the aromatized “leaf alcohol reaction” product, 2-methyl-benzylalcohol, in a better yield than that with the cyclohexadienaldehyde alone. n-Butyric acid isolated from the reaction mixture unequivocally showed the operation of the “crossed Cannizzaro disproportionation” in this reaction, aliphatic aldehyde serving as the hydride donor. 2-Propyl-5-ethyl-4, 6-cyclohexadienaldehyde was obtained by the NaOH/H₂O-EtOH Michael-Aldol condensation of leaf aldehyde, gave 2-propyl-5-ethyl-benzylalcohol along with caproic acid.

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On the basis of “leaf alcohol-reaction” mechanism, it was obtained following benzylalkohols; 2-methyl-, 2-propyl-, 2-methyl-5-ethyl-, 2-propyl-5-ethyl-benzylalcohol, from leaf alcohol and crotylalcohol.

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A natural precursor (L) of streptomycin which had no antibiotic potency was obtained from mycelium suspension of Streptomyces griseus in glucose solution and was transformed to streptomycin by H enzyme obtained from mycelium of the organism. This transforming reaction was carried out most effectively at slightly alkaline pH and inhibited by inorganic phosphate and ethylenediaminetetraacetate. L component was considered to be a phosphorylated compound and liberation of the phosphoric acid was essential for L component to be transformed to streptomycin. This transformation was performed not only by H enzyme but also by intestinal alkaline phosphatase, although some difference in the reaction mechanism was supposed to be between those two enzymes.

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The reactions of kojic acid and its related γ-pyrones with anhydrous hydrazine have been investigated. Kojic acid and hydrazine gave 3, 6-dihydroxymethyl-4-oxo-l, 4-dihydro-pyridazine and 3-hydroxymethyl-pyrazolyl-(5)-glycoloyl-hydrazone, respectively, in 65% and 21% yields. The same reaction occured in the case of allomaltol and pyromeconic acid and gave the analogous results. On the other hand, 5-methoxykojic acid was allowed to react with hydrazine and afforded 1-amino-2-hydroxymethyl-5-methoxy-γ-pyridone and α[3-hydroxymethyl-pyrazolyl-(5)]-α-methoxy-acetaldehyde-hydrazone, respectively. The structural elucidation of these products could be fully substantiated by chemical evidences and spectroscopic data. The mechanisms for the reactions are also discussed.

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