The ability of gallate and pyrogallol moieties of catechins to inhibit P-glycoprotein function

The role of structure–activity relationships in the ability of catechins to inhibit P-glycoprotein (P-gp) function was investigated with respect to gallate and pyrogallol moieties. Experiments using octyl derivatives of gallic acid indicated that the gallate moiety required the catechol group and a neighboring carbonyl group to inhibit P-gp. On the other hand, the pyrogallol moiety appeared to require three hydroxyl groups to inhibit P-gp, according to comparisons between (−)-epicatechin gallate (ECG) and (−)-epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). The difference in the number of hydroxyl groups that gallate or pyrogallol moieties required for P-gp inhibition, was due to the presence of a carbonyl group. The P-gp inhibition by catechins was restricted by their hydrophobicity. The pyrogallol moiety of EGC did not appear to inhibit P-gp because of its low hydrophobicity. The P-gp inhibitory activity of EGCG was speculated to be increased by the addition of long carbon chains to the C3″of gallate moieties.     

Significance of the detection of staphylococcal enterotoxin A gene in low fat milk which caused a serious outbreak of food poisoning

In June 2000, there was a large-scale outbreak of food poisoning after consumption of Snow Brand low fat milk. In the evening of a day the incident made public, some cartons of low fat milk were brought to our laboratory for examination. Next day, we detected only staphylococcal enterotoxin (SE) A gene among SE (A-E) genes by PCR in left-over milk samples or samples from the same lots that patients had consumed. We presumed that the outbreak was caused by the intake of SEA. We subsequently confirmed the presence of SEA in these samples. To investigate the existence of SE (A-E) genes in milk, we examined 100 samples of commercial low fat milk and milk by PCR, but none of the genes was detected. We estimated the detection limit of SEA gene in low fat milk by PCR. Four strains of SEA-producing Staphylococcus aureus cultures were serially diluted in low fat milk. The SEA gene was detected at levels of 5.5 x 10(2) to 1.6 x 10(4) cfu/mL of S. aureus. These amounts of S. aureus are higher than the values in raw milk reported previously. Therefore we consider that SE genes in low fat milk should usually be undetectable by our PCR. This study shows that quick detection of SE genes by PCR is very helpful to analyze outbreaks, especially if no significant bacterium can be cultured.     

Conjugated fatty acids in food and their health benefits

Conjugated fatty acids (CFAs) are a mixture of positional and geometric isomers of polyunsaturated fatty acids with conjugated double bonds. Reports indicate that CFAs have potent beneficial effects, including antitumor, antiobese, antiatherogenic and antidiabetic activities. The molecules have also been shown to prevent the onset of hypertension. Recent reports suggest that each CFA isomer has different functions, for example the 10trans,12cis isomer of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) has anticarcinogenic, antiobese and antidiabetic effects, whereas the 9cis,11trans-CLA isomer exerts an anticancer effect. Although it would be interesting to know the effects of CFAs on humans, there are only few reports concerning the anticancer and antiobese effects of CLA in humans. More detailed evaluations of the physiological bioactivities of CFA isomers on lifestyle-related diseases in humans and animals will be of great interest in future studies.     

Hypotensive effect of a sweetpotato protein digest in spontaneously hypertensive rats and purification of angiotensin I-converting enzyme inhibitory peptides

We have investigated angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity in an enzyme digest of sweetpotato protein, the antihypertensive effect of the digest in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), and the identification of an ACE inhibitory peptide. Protein was prepared from squeezed juice of sweetpotato by isoelectric focusing precipitation. Three kinds of proteases were selected for effective protein digestion. The digest, sweetpotato peptide (SPP), exhibited strong ACE inhibitory activity (IC₅₀: 18.2 μg/ml). SPP was orally administered by gavage to SHR at a dose of 100 mg/kg or 500 mg/kg. The systolic blood pressure and the diastolic blood pressure were measured at 0 (before administration), 2, 4, 8, and 24 h after administration. A dose-dependent decrease in systolic blood pressure in SHR was observed after oral administration of SPP. Significant differences between SPP-administered rats and control rats were observed 4 and 8 h after administration in the 500 mg/kg-administered group and 8 h after administration in the 100 mg/kg-administered group. Diastolic blood pressure also decreased in the SPP-administered groups, although the difference between SPP-administered rats and control rats was not significant. These results suggest that SPP may be useful in the prevention or treatment of hypertension. Peptides with ACE inhibitory activity were purified from SPP by absorption chromatography and preparative HPLC using an ODS column. The amino acid sequences of isolated peptides were I-T-P, I-I-P, G-Q-Y and S-T-Y-Q-T; their ACE inhibitory activities (IC₅₀) were 9.5 μM, 80.8 μM, 52.3 μM and 300.4 μM, respectively. In conclusion, I-T-P is a novel, strong ACE inhibitory peptide.     

125th Anniversary Review: Microbiological Instability of Beer Caused by Spoilage Bacteria

Beer has been generally recognized as a microbiologically stable beverage. However, microbiological incidents occasionally occur in the brewing industry. The microbiological instability of beer is often caused by bacteria consisting of four genera, Lactobacillus, Pediococcus, Pectinatus and Megasphaera. Lactobacillus and Pediococcus belong to the lactic acid bacteria (LAB), whereas Pectinatus and Megasphaera form a group of strict anaerobes that are known as intermediates between Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative bacteria. The frequencies of beer spoilage incidents caused by these four genera have been reported to exceed 90% in Europe and therefore Lactobacillus, Pediococcus, Pectinatus and Megasphaera are considered to be the principal spoilage agents in the brewing industry. Thus, this review consists of three parts involving these four genera. The first part describes spoilage LAB in alcoholic beverages with some emphasis on beer spoilage LAB. In this part, the emergence and evolution of these spoilage LAB is discussed, the insight of which is useful for developing quality control methods for these beverages. The second part is devoted to the hop resistance in beer spoilage LAB. This area of research is evolving rapidly and recent progress in this field is summarized. The third part concerns Pectinatus and Megasphaera. Although this group of beer spoilage bacteria has been described relatively recently, the incident reports in Europe increased in the early 1990s, reaching around 30% of spoilage incidents. Various aspects of Pectinatus and Megasphaera, ranging from their taxonomy and beer spoilage ability to detection and eradication methods are described.     

Amelioration of abdominal obesity by low-molecular-weight polyphenol (Oligonol) from lychee

The effect of low-molecular-weight polyphenols extracted from lychee (Oligonol) on metabolic syndrome characterized by abdominal obesity was examined. We performed a clinical trial for Oligonol conducted by randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Eighteen (male, 14; female, 4) adult volunteers with abdominal circumference over 85 cm were enrolled and divided into two groups, Oligonol and placebo groups. All subjects took two capsules of Oligonol (50 mg/capsule) or placebo twice a day for 10 weeks. Physical and haematological examinations as well as a CT scan of the abdomen were carried out, before (control) and 10 weeks after Oligonol intake. Clinical parameters of body weight, abdominal circumference and visceral fat volume were significantly decreased in the Oligonol group compared to the control. Insulin resistance was improved by Oligonol in conjunction with elevation of serum adiponectin. These results suggest that Oligonol ameliorates metabolic syndrome by reducing visceral fat obesity.     

Microbiological quality of fermented milk produced by repeated-batch culture

Using a starter culture containing Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris and Acetobacter orientalis, repeated-batch culture for fermented-milk production was carried out for 14 d. The pH decreased to approximately 4.3 and the milk solidified stably when the mixing ratio of fermented-milk to fresh milk was set at a level as high as 10%. The microbial population gradually changed as the culture progressed, and the cell densities of lactic and acetic acid bacteria finally leveled off to constant values. The quality of the fermented-milk became almost constant with respect to the changes in the cell densities of the lactic and acetic acid bacteria. Escherichia coli was then inoculated into the fermented-milk to simulate household contamination. E. coli was washed out with the progress of the repeated-batch culture, and thus showed no adverse effects on the fermented-milk production.     

Modeling of Nonlinear Magnetizing Characteristics of Pole Transformer for Analyzing Islanding Prevention of Photovoltaic System

With increasing penetration of distributed generators such as photovoltaic (PV) systems in distribution systems, it is very important to quickly detect islanding caused by power system faults in order to assure electrical safety. We have developed a nonlinear magnetizing characteristics model of pole transformers for use in analyzing islanding prevention in PV systems. Basic experiments on the islanding detection were performed for verification of the proposed model. Analytical results obtained by the proposed model agreed well with experimental results.     

Novel functional polymers: Poly(dimethylsiloxane)–polyamide multiblock copolymer. III. Synthesis and surface properties of disiloxane–aromatic polyamide multiblock copolymer

Disiloxane–aromatic polyamide(aramid) multiblock copolymers(2SiPASs) were synthesized using 1,3-bis(3-aminopropyl)-1,1,3,3-tetramethyldisiloxane(BATS) as an analog of aramidsilicone resin consisting of aromatic polyamide and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS). 2SiPASs afford a transparent and toughened plastic film. The surface properties of 2SiPAS were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (xps) and static contact angle measurement. The results of surface analysis suggested that BATS content of the 2SiPAS surface increased with increasing BATS content in bulk. The interaction between the platelets and the 2SiPAS surface was found to be very weak when the BATS content reached 26 wt % in bulk. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Crack-Healing Behavior of Si3N4/SiC Ceramics under Cyclic Stress and Resultant Fatigue Strength at the Healing Temperature

Si₃N₄/SiC composite ceramics were sintered and subjected to three-point bending. A semi-elliptical surface crack of 100 μm surface length was made on each specimen. The crack-healing behavior under cyclic stress of 5 Hz, and resultant cyclic fatigue strengths at healing temperatures of 1100° and 1200°C, were systematically investigated. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) Si₃N₄/SiC composite ceramics have an excellent ability to heal a crack at 1100° and 1200°C. (2) This sample could heal a crack even under cyclic stress at a frequency of 5 Hz. (3) The crack-healed sample exhibited quite high cyclic fatigue strength at each crack-healing temperature, 1100° and 1200°C.