[in Japanese]

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Since old days, many cases of poisoning due to eating liver of “Ishinagi” fish have been reported in this country, which can be featured by early onset of severe headache followed by peeling of skin. In addition, the liver of “Ishinagi” has been well recognized for its surprisingly high vitamin A potency.
1) Vitamin A potency and varieties of fatty acid were examined for several lot of liver oil extracted from three different livers of “Ishinagi” (Fig. 1 and Tables 1 and 2).
2) In the feeding tests for the first two samples of liver, there was found no toxic effect for rat and even for human subject by those such as cooked liver, oil fraction, and residual portion from oil, so far the amount shown in Table 3.
3) In a test conducted for No. III liver, which contained 261×10³ I. U. of vitamin A in 1g of the tissue, toxic effect except by hypervitaminosis could be observed for neither oil nor extraction residue, by feeding those two separately for rat and the residue for man.
4) The four male volunteers who had eaten each 8g of cooked liver of No. III, equivalent to 1, 500×10³ I. U. of vitamin A, suffered from headache and a slight peeling of skin which lasted for about one month. (Fig. 3 to 5).
According to the present examination, liver of young “Ishinagi” (I and II) contained vitamin A less in the quantity and would be scarcely toxic. However, as to the adult liver of No. III fish, it indicated high amount of vitamin A, and furthermore, it seemed to contain any other poison, which supposedly developed peeling of skin as an after- effect of the intoxication.

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A method detecting and identifying the variety of antibiotics in milk was completed by T. T. C. test. After the cultivation of resistant strains to various antibiotics (penicillin, streptomycin, chloramphenicol and tetracycline) of Streptococcus thermophilus antibiotics in milk were identified by the crossed T. T. C. test using those in comparison with the sensitive normal strain.
Results of basic experiments carried out are as follows:
1) Each resistant strain to penicillin, streptomycin, chloromycetin, achromycin or terramycin respectively was obtained by means of raising streptococcus thermophilus in succession in each of skim milk culture substrates which were added severally with the gradually increasing amount of antibiotics. These resistant strains gave a coloration at the higher levels of antibiotics content compared with the normal strain.
2) Streptcoccus thermophilus showed different resistances according to the kind of antibiotics, but the resistant strain to terramycin and the one to achromycin showed crossed resistance each other.
3) The differences of resistance caused by the variety of antibiotics were stabilized by making use of the limiting dilution method.
4) When samples were heated at 85°C for 5 minutes in the T. T. C. test, no antibiotics were affected.
Judging from the results of our basic experiments as mentioned above, we think this method is practically applicable to the identification of antibiotics in milk.

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The contents of histamine in beef, pork and chicken were determined during spoilage and investigated whether they could be applied to the inspection of the freshness of meat or not. Determinations of histamine were carried out by means of an improved McIntire's method modified by Kawabata using ion exchange resin which was applied to estimate histamine content in fish. Some chemical tests for inspecting freshness of meat were performed at the same time.
The results showed no clear relation between histamine contents and the values of the other chemical tests. Although organoleptic test and the other chemical tests on the meat showed obviously spoilage, only a little histamine was detected as compared with that of fish.
Therefore it is considered to be difficult to judge freshness of meat by the determination of histamine in it. It is assumed that this is due to the difference of the constituents between fish and meat and to the existence or absence of bacteria producing histamine

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Quantitative analysis of sorbic acid permitted as a food additive was completed by gas chromatography.
Both of sorbic acid methylated with diazomethane and anisole, the internal standard substance, were diluted to 10ml with ethyl acetate.
The calibration curves were obtained by plotting the relative peak heights according to the content of sorbic acid through polyvinyl acetate column and silicone grease column.
When Ps/Pa was a value from only one experiment, the error of calibration curve was larger than the mean value of results from three experiments, the error of which was not more than 3% in the case of more than 50mg Sorbic acid in 10ml.
In the case of determining sorbic acid in food by gas chromatography with the thermal conductivity cell, we need a large amount of sample (about 100g). But as the previously reported methods (the distillation method) were not efficient in extracting the acid from a large quantity of food, it is necessary to study a new measure for recovering the acid from foods.

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F. Kurtz and R. B. Kurtz reported that luminol was used as a chemiluminescent indicatorin acid-dase titration. The authors tested the accuracy of the titric method using luminol as an indicator, and the same results were obtained as they obtained. Moreover, the indicator was found to emit light at a pH above 6.90. In this experiment, KMnO₄ or K₃Fe(CN)₆ was successfully used instead of hemoglobin.
Furthermore, this indicator was applied in determination of acid contained in some colored beverages. Satifactory results were obtained in the case of using orange juice and red wine as sample, while it was unable to determine accurately the amount of acid contained in soy by using luminol as an indicator.

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[in Japanese]

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[in Japanese]

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The rapid and simple procedure modified from A. O. A. C. method was studied for the determination of total solids in milk for rutin work. The special dish was made of 0.02mm thin alminium foil and it was 35mm in diameter and 8mm in depth. To obtain 1.00g of sample, we made specified Ostward's pipettes which was enable to deriver 0.98ml of water per ca. 20 seconds at 20°C. Add 1.00g of well mixed milk sample (25°C) to the taxed dish, and dried the dish over a boiling water bath about 15min., and then at 98-100°C for 3 hours in a steam or an electric oven. There was no significant difference between the A. O. A. C. method and this modified method.

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We have as yet little information as to what is involved in characteristic coliform organisms on fish.
In the examination for tuna, marlin etc. captured on the Pacific Ocean, the author has isolated halophilic coliform organisms which can not grow at 37°C incubation (BGLB).
The organisms have biochemical characteristics similar to closely Aerobacter cloacae and liquefy gelatin strongly. These organisms has been isolated from fishes captured at scarecly contamination area of the ocean, and on the fact of their optimum temperature, halophilic character, it is considered that the organisms are socalled fish type coliform.
In the case of sanitary analysis, it is inclined to emphasize the significance of such coligroup in relation their distribution at fish markets.

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167 Samples of Kamaboko (fish jelly product) and related products were collected in 1958 season, from the places of production covering areas; Sendai, Niigata, Takaoka, Okayama, Hiroshima, Yamaguchi, Yahatahama, Kochi, and Kannonji, and examined as to the illegal use of boric acid as food preservative. The addition of boric acid was positively proved for 22 samples processed in three different districts including Yamaguchi, Kochi and Kannonji and not for the rest of places. A strikingly large amount of boric acid, more than 3g per 100g of the product was observed in a Kamaboko, purchased from a place of Yamaguchi.
This might be caused by a difficulty to make even distribution of the compound in raw fish jelly. Though the area of illegal use of boric acid seems to be confined within three prefectures, more strict control should be intensified, in order to establish wholesomeness of the product, which posesses the most important part in the fisheries products.

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