Sugar cane-fermented lactic acid beverage including functional nutritional components, such as γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), was developed from the perspective of the development of sugar cane as a resource for fermented lactic acid beverages. Based on a screening of lactic acid bacteria, Lactococcus lactis was selected for GABA productivity to an index in skim milk medium containing sugar cane juice. The optimum conditions for GABA productivity were as follows : sugar cane juice content, 30% ; skim milk content, 10% ; fermentation temperature, higher than 30°C ; and fermentation time, 48 to 72hrs. The quantity of the starter culture of Lc. lactis did not influence GABA content in lactic fermentation beverage. GABA increased with increased sugar cane juice content, and decreased with lowered skim milk content. GABA productivity was not shown for fermentation at temperatures less than 20°C. The GABA content of the sugar cane differed with breed or crop season. However, these differences did not influence GABA content of the lactic fermentation beverage. Sugar cane fermented lactic acid beverage included a high level of minerals, such as potassium and magnesium, and polyphenolics. DPPH-radical scavenging activity increased in reflection of the high content of polyphenolics. In addition, antimutagenic activity of lactic fermentation beverage was increased by using sugar cane.

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An attempt was made to measure thermal conduction in a series of O/W- and W/O-emulsions prepared by using edible-type emulsifiers such as deca-glyceryl mono-fatty acid ester for the O/W samples and sorbitan mono-fatty acid ester for the W/O samples. The size distribution of dispersed globules in prepared emulsions could be characterized as being negatively skewed with the highest frequency diameter being 2.5μm in O/W systems and 3.6μm in W/O systems. The emulsions were also characterized as being a plastic body with Casson's yield values in a range of higher concentrations of the dispersed phases. Thermal conductivity of all the emulsions heated in a cylindrical metal vessel was detected along a one-dimensional axis from the heating plane in the sample within a range of 10mm. The increasing temperature vs. heating time curve for all the emulsions tested conformed to an exponential equation as did other foodstuffs based on the assumption that retardation phenomenon plays a significant role in thermal conduction. A power relationship was also found in a double logarithmic plot of the reciprocal of the retardation time in the exponential equation vs. thermal diffusivity of each emulsion sample.

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The textural properties of baked products, such as cookies, were studied by using the modified wheat starches with differing gelatinized characteristics. (1) The baked products containing gelatinized starches were hard, and became harder when absorbed moisture was increased. (2) Based on a high positive correlation between the breaking properties and the starch gelatinization values, a paste material was suggested to be a principal factor for hardening. (3) After moisture absorption, the hardening point of gelatinized samples was shifted to higher humidity and the hardening region was widened. (4) Water activity of hardened samples was clearly lower. Increasing of starch-gel and restricting water are assumed to be the important factors leading to hardening of baked products.

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Radical scavenging activity of canola oil decreases in purification steps because Canolol, which has high radical scavenging activity and is contained in crude canola oil, is removed in the purification. Therefore, we investigated the development of a production process for canola oil that retains radical scavenging activity. Steam distillation at 150°C is most efficient for the recovery of Canolol and for the removal of phospholipids. We tried to produce canola oil retaining radical scavenging activity based on the addition of Canolol that was recovered from roasted virgin canola oil by steam distillation at 150°C. The produced canola oil showed tolerance to oxidation and heating, however, it had lower light-stability compared to roasted virgin canola oil. There were no problems with taste and flavor of the oil, although it had a roasted flavor smell. The newly produced canola oil will be used as a healthy dressing oil with high radical scavenging activity, as well as a deep-frying oil.

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Major anthocyanins in 13 sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) cultivars that were grown on a farm of the Yamagata General Agricultural Research Center were identified and quantified to determine the relationship between anthocyanin and flavonoid (rutin) content with identical sugar moiety. The anthocyanins in sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.)cv Benisayaka fruit with deep red skin and flesh were characterized. Anthocyanins were purified from the 5% acetic acid soluble fraction of fruit purified by Diaion HP-20 and Sephadex LH-20 column chromatography and HPLC, followed by determination of the chemical structure of anthocyanin content by HPLC and ESI-MS spectrometry, and by ¹H, ¹³CNMR analysis. Five types of anthocyanins were identified ; cyanidin-3-rutinoside and cyanidin-3-glucoside were the major anthocyanins of the fruit. Peonidin and pelargonidin-3-rutinoside were minor anthocyanins. Cyanidin-3-sophoroside also was present. Concentrations of cyanidin-3-rutinoside in Japanese sweet cherries (7 cultivars) ranged from not detected (n.d.) to 73.8 mg per 100g of fresh weight (FW), with the highest content observed in cv Benisayaka. As the flavonoid of fruit, rutin also was detected in 13 cultivars, with content ranging from 0.7-8.7mg per 100g FW and showed higher correlation (R²=0.97) with content of cyanidin-3-rutinoside, a major anthocyanin in sweet-type cherry.

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Arabinoxylan, the main component of hemicellulose in plant cell walls, is known to be not only a dietary fiber but also an immunomodulator. Here, we investigated the immunostimulating activity and the molecular weight dependence of an arabinoxylan derived from wheat bran. Wheat bran mixed with water was treated by autoclaving under 1.8 atm at 120°C for 15min followed by treatment with hemicellulase at 50°C for 20min. Distilled water was added, followed by centrifuging and lyophilizing. We used phagocytic activity of macrophage-like cells as an indicator of immune function activation. The immunostimulating activity of arabinoxylan from wheat bran was higher than that arabinoxylan from corn husk and rice bran and its activity was attributable to the fraction with a molecular weight of over 5kDa.

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Despite numerous problems with mislabeling of geographical origin of rice, scientific methods for tracing the origin of production are still lacking. In this study, we report that stable isotope analysis utilizing carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen is useful for tracing the geographical origin for rice grown in Japan, Australia, and the USA. Our results show that the average stable isotope ratios of Japanese rice were lower than those of Australia and the USA for carbon and nitrogen, respectively, and lowest among the three countries for oxygen. Stable isotope analysis will be a powerful tool for tracing the geographical origin of rice among countries when complemented with DNA and multi-element analyses.

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Soybean is known to inhibit activity of angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE). The inhibitory substance is nicotianamine. However, little research has been conducted on beans aside from soybeans. We studied the inhibition of ACE and nicotianamine content of 41 different beans.
Among these beans, particularly effective ACE inhibitory activity was found in Kinusaya (fresh), Gokushousuzumamedaizu, and Greenpeace (fresh) beans. The amount of nicotianamine for every 100g dry powder was the highest in Kinusaya fresh), followed by Benishibori and Green soybean bean (fresh). For comparison of the genera with nicotianamine content, nicotianamine content in Vigna was significantly less than that in Pisum (p<0.05), and Phaseolus and Glycine (p<0.001).
The strength of ACE inhibition of beans was correlated to the amount of nicotianamine content. This shows that ACE inhibition of beans is attributable to nicotianamine content.

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[in Japanese]

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