A lectin was isolated from rapidly boiled cauliflower, Brassica oleracea var. botrys, and partially purified by DEAE-cellulose column chromatography. The boiled cauliflower had higher hemagglutinating activity than the fresh vegetable.
The cauliflower lectin was intraperitoneally injected to mice weighing approximately 20 g. The injection of this lectin resulted in growth retardation and a decline in the intestinal enzyme activity. A decrease in plasma lipids was also observed, together with the promotion of lipid peroxidation in various tissues.
These results indicate that, when the heat-stable cauliflower lectin was administered by injection, growth inhibition, a decline in villus enzyme activity and increased catabolic breakdown of body lipids occured in mice. The mechanism for the toxicity of this cauliflower lectin resembles that of a bean lectin ingested orally.

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Galactooligosaccharides syrup (GO-S) contains 38.2% of galactooligosaccharides and is widely used as a sweetening material. GO-S was studied in terms of the gassing power of Toluraspora delbrueckii and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and the effects of adding GO-S or of replacing it on breadmaking properties were assessed. Neither type of yeast in a liquid medium resulted in fermentation when using transgalactosylated oligosaccharides, but both yeasts produced gas with the fermentative sugar in the GO-S. The addition of up to 5.0% of GO-S based on the flour weight had no effect on the gassing power of the dough when using T. delbrueckii during the second fermentation. GO-S replacement above 2.5% decreased the gassing power. The replacement or addition of GO-S had no effect on the rheological properties of non-frozen and frozen dough. In the case of S. cerevisiae, GO-S had no improving effect on the gassing power of frozen dough. In an amylographic study, GO-S had an effect on the pasting properties, the peak height being higher than that of the control with increasing concentration of GO-S. A sensory evaluation indicated an addition range from 0.5% to 2.5% of GO-S to be adequate.

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Dietary fibers were evaluated for their hydration ability by the pulsed NMR method. Each dietary fiber was classified by the shape of the relaxation curve, the correlation coefficient of a linear expression for the natural logarithm of signal amplitude vs. delay time, the spin-spin relaxation time (T₂), the ratio of the proton population of relaxing components, and the root mean square (RMS) value. Each dietary fiber was examined to ascribe its hydration behavior to the related polar groups.
Water-soluble dietary fibers (SDFs) had a greater correlation coefficient for any range of delay time and higher ratio for the slowest-relaxing component than water-insoluble fibers (IDFs). The relaxation curve tended to change at 30°C after one day for SDFs only, and the longest relaxation time for SDFs was less than for IDFs. The relaxation curves appeared to be monophase for most types of SDF, and multiphase for IDF. Judging from the common position of the polar groups involved in the molecule, the 6-carboxylate group seemed to contribute most to the hydration behavior of the polysaccharides. In addition, the Na form of the dissociable group tended to give more hydration ability to the polysaccharides than did the corresponding H form.

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The effect of granular size on the physical properties and sensory distinction of samples was examined by perparing patties from three kinds of ground meat, i. e., beef, pork, and chicken, which had been passed through one of five plates with orifice diameters of 2.4, 3.4, 4.8, 6.8 and 9.6 mm.
Measurements of the granular size of the raw meat grains and those of the meat grains after cooking indicated a contraction ratio due to cooking in the order of beef>pork>chicken. In addition, it was easiest with beef to distinguish the granular size of patties prepared from meat passed through different orifice diameters, and chicken was found to be the most adhesive.
The juice in thawed meat patties with a large granular size was retained to a greater extent in cooked meat patties than that with a small granular size. There was also a difference in juice retention among the kinds of meat, that is, this being greater in the order of chicken>pork>beef. The shearing-breaking strain and cohesiveness of the cooked meat patties was significantly increased with increasing orifice diameter, beef showing the greatest changes in values from different orifice diameters. This suggests that the physical properties of beef ground through different orifice diameters are easier to distinguish than those of pork and chicken.
The results of the sensory evaluation show that the coarseness of the meat, hardness, elasticity, and nikuryukan (size and amount of meat-like granules) were distinguishable to some extent with each kind of meat patties prepared by using different orifice diameters. It is also shown that there was difference in distinguishability according to the kind of meat, i. e., beef≥pork≥chicken. We thus verified the distinguishability by size measurements of the meat grains and physical measurements of the cooked meat patties.
Nikuryukan, which is a sensory index of meat granular size, is shown to be 98% predictable by two physical properties, namely the ratio of dripping of a meat patty before and after cooking, and the water-holding capacity of a thawed meat patty. The granular size was distinguishable when the volume ratio of the meat grains was larger than 1.2-1.5.

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The bitterness of citrus fruits increases when they are used to prepare marmalade. To study this problem, the effect on bitterness was studied by objective methods with marmalade prepared from a 1 : 1 mixture of two kinds of citrus peel. The limonoid and flavonoid levels were determined by HPLC, and taste was evaluated by a sensory test. The amount of flavonoids was decreased markedly by heating, indicating that they were not responsible for the bitterness. While limonin was also decreased by boiling, the amount of nomilin increased, suggesting that it was responsible for the bitterness. Fruit containing naringin was rated as tasting good (5% singnificance level), but fresh fruit containing a large amount of limonin was not judged favorably. Mixing two different kinds of citrus fruits is suggested as a way for improving the flavor of marmalade.

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[in Japanese]

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Is there any need for a definition of the family? In the broad sense of the term, a family means a group of individuals, persons, whether or not related by blood ties, living together under the same roof, or sharing the same space, exchanging mutual services, and with powerful underlying emotional bonds. This definition incorporates a large number of variables, and could correspond to the more restricted concept of “household.” Claude Lévi-Strauss, in 1956, defined the French family as “the union, more or less durable, and socially approved, of a man, a woman and their children”. As the basic cell of the human social fabric, the family provides the conditions needed for life and reproduction, and the transfer of knowledge, skills and values. The family is a universal phenomenon, although its forms vary considerably from one society to another. France, as an outward-looking, liberal country, has accepted a broad range of population groups from other cultures, and a wide variety of family models are to be found within its borders. But diversity also comes from changes in attitudes, and the over-riding concern with individual freedom.

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