Long-matured hard cheese called mountain cheese is processed in the cold Alps, and it has been made at least before 2,000 BC. It is extremely important to analyze the relationship between fresh cheese and matured hard cheese to recreate the history of cheese processing in Europe. From case studies in the Dolomite Mountains in Northern Italy, this paper aimed to examine how fresh cheese developed into long-matured hard cheese from a dairy science and anthropogeography standpoint. Fresh cheese is processed by rennet addition, cutting, draining and salting. The fresh cheese was then matured in brine for several weeks to improve the taste. When the matured fresh cheese was taken out of the brine and air–dried, it became the matured hard cheeses such as Dolomiti cheese processed in the Dolomite Mountains. Leaving it out in air dries out the surface, forming a rind to protect the cheese on the inside. In the mountain regions, the processing of matured hard cheese developed further to make long aging process possible. Skim milk was used for more favorable maturation. The curds were heated to 42℃ to remove more whey. These steps allowed the cheese to be preserved for about a year. This gave rise to long-matured hard cheese such as the mountain cheese processed in the Dolomite Mountains. The cold and semi-humid climate appears to be the biggest factor that channeled such development, and this change in cheese development could only have taken place in such environments as European mountains.

　　Casein formed a gel on cooling after being heated to a temperature of 70-85℃ at pH ≤3.60 and protein concentration of ≥6%. The gel hardness was dependent on pH, protein concentration, and temperature, which decreased by heating at ≥90℃. The addition of NaCl to the whole casein suspension suppressed the formation of heat-induced gel. The viscoelastic moduli measurement by low-amplitude dynamic oscillation revealed that irreversible changes of casein constituents may occur by heating under certain acidic conditions. Unheated 8% casein at pH 2.8 was dominated by the elastic component rather than by the viscous component. The storage modulus (G′) and the loss modulus (G″) decreased with increasing temperature at 3-40℃ and shifted from decrease to increase at 40℃. During heat processing, both G′ and G″ had the maximum value at 70℃. However, when the heated casein was cooled from 80℃ to 3℃, the maximum of G′ and G″ at 70℃ was not observed. G′ and G″ markedly increased linearly with decreasing temperature during cool processing. G′ and G″ of the gel formed by heating and cooling were linearly decreased with increasing temperature. The property of the acidic heat-induced gel was different from that of the acid-induced and rennet gels and was thermoplastic.

　Over 50% of milk productions in Japan have been performed in Hokkaido region, where there are larger grassland area than in other region of Japan. The purpose of the study is to evaluate the sensory characteristics of twelve milks, produced by four farmers, three of whom performed the grazing fed, while one performed non-grazing fed. These milks were processed by each of three kinds of the treatments; ultra-high temperature treatment (UHT: 120℃, 2 s) with homogenization (U+H), high temperature short time treatment (HTST: 72℃, 15 s) with homogenization (H+H), and HTST treatment without homogenization (H+N). Sensory evaluation was conducted by 60 consumer panelists. The panelists were divided into four groups by 6×6 Latin square design. The evaluation was conducted four times per a day, or three times per a day in these experiments. Twelve milk samples (four farmer's bulk milk treated by either of the above processing method) were scored for seven items, i. e. the taste of koku, sweetness, aroma strength with −5 (weak) to 5 (strong), aftertaste feeling, as well as aroma preference with favorability at −5 (unfavorable) to 5 (favorable) at each ±5 scoring stages, compared with those of a commercial UHT milk as base (zero). The evaluation scores of 12 milk samples, analyzed by the principle component analysis, could be differentiated among three processing treatments and also between the milk from grazing cows or non-grazing cows. In preference map, it was suggested that the homogenized milk of grazing cows was rather favorable than that of non-homogenized milk.

　We previously reported that MHN-02, an enteral formula containing whey-hydrolyzed anti-inflammatory peptides, fermented milk, and isomaltulose, suppressed hyperpermeability of intestinal mucosa and bacterial translocation (BT) into mesenteric lymph nodes and liver in a rat bowel disorder model. To elucidate this mechanism, we examined the influence of MHN-02 ingestion on intestinal tissue structure and microflora in rats.

　In the small intestinal mucosa, the heights of villi, depths of crypts, and numbers of dividing epithelial cells of the MHN-02 group were significantly greater than those of the standard formula (control) group. In addition to these intestinal tissue changes, the numbers of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus in the cecum of the MHN-02 group were significantly greater than those of the control group.

　From these results, it was suggested that ingestion of MHN-02 promotes the growth of villi in the intestinal mucosa and improves intestinal flora.