Properties of the peptides liberated from rice protein in sokujo-moto

In the supernatant of sokujo-moto, a high level of acid carboxypeptidase (ACP) activity and a large amount of peptides were observed, however, the amount of free amino acids liberated was small. In order to determine why these peptides were not hydrolyzed to any significant degree by the ACP, the properties of the peptides in sokujo-moto were investigated in this study. Peptides were fractionated from sokujo-moto by ion exchange column chromatography. ACP purified from rice-koji (rice overgrown with Aspergillus oryzae) was allowed to react with the peptides, and it was found that they were not hydrolyzed to any significant degree by the enzyme. Gel filtration chromatography was performed to ascertain the molecular size distribution of the peptides in sokujo-moto, and it was revealed that they were of low molecular sizes; molecular size: mainly in the range of 200-400, and chain length: 2-3. ACP purified from rice-koji was also allowed to react with various synthetic peptides, and it was found that ACP of rice-koji could not rapidly hydrolyze low-molecular-size peptides, such as dipeptides or tripeptides. Acid protease (AP) purified from rice-koji released peptides of molecular sizes mainly in the range of 300-600 or above from rice protein under acidic conditions (pH 3.6; the pH of sokujomoto). When AP and ACP were allowed to act at the same time on rice protein, mainly low-molecular-size peptides (molecular sizes mainly in the range of 200-400) were produced. From these results, it was estimated that AP released peptides with molecular sizes mainly in the range of 300-600 or above from rice protein and ACP degraded the relatively higher molecular size peptides among them to lower molecular size peptides; consequently only low-molecular-size peptides with molecular sizes mainly in the range of 200-400 were released in the supernatant of sokujo-moto.     

Classification and identification of strains of Lactobacillus brevis based on electrophoretic characterization of D-lactate dehydrogenase: relationship between D-lactate dehydrogenase and beer-spoilage ability

The cell-free extracts of 60 strains which were identified phenotypically as being those of Lactobacillus brevis, including 48 isolates from the environment and 12 reference strains, were applied to polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis for extracting their NAD-dependent D- and L-lactate dehydrogenases (LDH). These strains were divided into 5 groups, i.e., Groups A, B, C, D, and E, on the basis of the electrophoretic mobilities of their D-LDH. The strains showed variations in their carbohydrate fermentation patterns. No relationship between the profile of D-LDH and the carbohydrate fermentation pattern was recognized. However, there appeared to be a relationship between the D-LDH profile and the beer-spoilage ability, because 40 out of 44 beer-spoilage strains identified as L. brevis were classified to Group B. We purified D-LDHs from the so-called complete beer-spoilage strain SBC 8002 of LDH Group B and from the non beer-spoilage strains JCM 1059T of LDH Group A and AHU 1508 of LDH Group C. Although the purified D-LDHs had the same molecular weight (84 kDa), each possessed a different optimum pH, optimum temperature, and isoelectric point. The aforementioned parameter values for the enzyme from the so-called complete beer-spoilage strain SBC 8002 of LDH Group B were 10.0, 50 degrees C, and 4.1, respectively; this strain was discriminated from the D-LDHs of the other two non beer-spoilage strains especially by its optimum temperature (50 degrees C).     

Polarization-, Wavelength-, and Filter-Free All-Optical Clock Recovery in a Passively Mode-Locked Laser Diode With Orthogonally Pumped Polarization-Diversity Configuration

We proposed and demonstrated all-optical clock recovery system using a monolithic mode-locked laser diode (MLLD) that operated with less sensitivity to the polarization and the wavelength of the input data signals also with no bandpass filter to eliminate the input signal-components. The keys to this new technique are the MLLD integrated with a tensile-strained quantum-well saturable absorber and a new polarization-diversity setup by signal input orthogonally polarized to the lasing polarization of the MLLD. This approach was experimentally validated in the 40 Gbps clock recovery experiments. The results exhibited excellent performance of the clock recovery with low timing jitters (<0.3 ps) remaining small dependence on the wavelength and the polarization of the input data signals and input-signal suppression less than -30 dB with no use of the bandpass filter. We also succeeded in the stable clock recovery for the input of polarization-scrambled data signals.     

Light modulator using piezoelectric films with waveguides

A light modulator using piezoelectric films based on optical interference of the Mach-Zehnder type has been proposed and demonstrated. The modulator is constructed with two optical waveguides joined to each other at both ends to divide the incident light and to recombine them, and each waveguide is fabricated on a polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) film to serve as a voltage-driven phase-shifter.     

Lithium Phenolate Complexes with a Pyridine‐Containing Polymer for Solution‐Processable Electron Injection Layers in PLEDs

A series of (vinylphenyl)pyridine‐based polymer binders, PVPh2Py, PVPh3Py, and PVPh4Py, are designed and synthesized and it is found that mixtures of Liq and the polymers exhibit superior electron injection characteristics as ultrathin (1.6 nm) electron injection layer (EIL) films. They are comparable to those of EILs composed only of Liq. The addition of the polymers does not deteriorate the performance of Liq EILs. Additionally, when the EIL thickness is increased from 1.6 nm to 16 nm, the driving voltages increase and the external quantum efficiencies decrease. The increase in the voltage and decrease in the EQE are suppressed in the device with mixed EILs compared to those observed for the device composed of 100 wt% Liq. Furthermore, the position of the nitrogen in the pyridine ring is considered to influence the electron transport properties of the EILs. The mixing PVPh4Py with Liq improves the driving voltage of the fabricated devices, even with a thick mixed EIL. This reduced dependence of the performance of EILs on their thickness will be advantageous for the coating of large areas using solution processes.     

a-SiC:H/SiO2 Laminated Polarization Splitter for the Wavelength Region Longer Than 1.3 μm Prepared by Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition

A laminated polarization splitter for the wavelength region longer than 1.3 μm is fabricated for the first time. It is composed of a-SiC:H/SiO₂ alternative multilayers prepared by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. Splitting behavior is also verified experimentally. It has low absorption loss even for the wavelength region around λ = 1.3 μm because the band-gap energy of a-Sic is larger than that of a-Si. The measured splitting angle is 13.8°, which is 2.4 times larger than the 5.7° splitting angle of rutile. The absorption loss of the multilayer is reduced to 1 × 10^-3 dB/μm at λ = 1.3 μm. The magnitude of the residual stress is 9.45 × 10⁸ dyn/cm², which is about one-third of that prepared by the rf bias sputtering equipment which is used for another project of our group. The deposition rate of SiO₂, is increased to 135 nm/min, which is 27 times larger than that prepared by the sputtering equipment.     

Dual-band circularly polarized equilateral triangular-patch array antenna for mobile satellite communications

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency will launch the Engineering Test Satellite VIII (ETS-VIII) in 2006 to support the next generation of mobile satellite communications covering the area of Japan (beam coverage El=38/spl deg/ to 58/spl deg/). In this paper, a satellite-tracking left-handed circularly polarized triangular-patch array antenna is developed for ground applications. The targeted minimum gain of the antenna is set to 5 dBic at the central elevation angle (El=48/spl deg/), in the Tokyo area, for applications using data transfer of around a hundred kbps. The antenna is composed of three equilateral triangular patches for both reception and transmission units operating at 2.50 and 2.65 GHz frequency bands, respectively. The antenna was simulated by method of moments (MoM) analysis, and measurement of the fabricated antenna was performed to confirm the simulation results. The measurement results show that the frequency characteristics and the 5-dBic gain coverage in the conical-cut plane of the fabricated antenna satisfy the specifications for ETS-VIII. A prototype of the proposed antenna system is employed in outdoor experiments using a pseudosatellite and shows good performance from El=38/spl deg/ to 58/spl deg/.     

All-optical discrimination based on nonlinear transmittance of MQWsemiconductor optical gates

This paper proposes an all-optical regenerator utilizing a novel all-optical discriminator. The impacts of nonlinearity of optical gates on discrimination performance are estimated. The evaluation of discrimination performance shows that amplified spontaneous emission noise and wave form distortion in optical signals can be effectively suppressed. We experimentally demonstrate the suppression using a low-temperature-grown optical switch up to 10 Gb/s     

Submicrometer Comb-Drive Actuators Fabricated on Thin Single Crystalline Silicon Layer

Electrostatic comb-drive microactuators were fabricated by electron beam lithography on a 260-nm-thick silicon layer of a silicon-on-insulator wafer. The actuators consisted of comb electrodes, springs, and a frame. Two kinds of microactuators with doubly clamped and double-folded springs were designed and fabricated. The comb electrode was as small as 2.5 mum wide and 8 mum long and was composed of 250-nm-wide, 260-nm-thick, and 2-mum-long fingers. The air gap between the fingers was 350 nm. The spring was 250 nm wide, 260 nm thick, and 17.5 mum long, and the spring constant was 0.11 N/m. The force and displacement generated by the microactuator were 2.3 x 10^-7N and 1.0 mum, respectively. Applying an ac voltage, the oscillation amplitude became maximum at a frequency of 132 kHz. The mechanical and electrical characteristics of the fabricated actuators were investigated quantitatively.     

Fabrication method for IC-oriented Si single-electron transistors

A new fabrication method for Si single-electron transistors (SETs) is proposed. The method applies thermal oxidation to a Si wire with a fine trench across it on a silicon-on-insulator substrate. During the oxidation, the Si wire with the fine trench is converted, in a self-organized manner, into a twin SET structure with two single-electron islands, one along each edge of the trench, due to position-dependent oxidation-rate modulation caused by stress accumulation. Test devices demonstrated, at 40 K, that the twin SET structure can operate as two individual SET's. Since the present method produces two SET's at the same time in a tiny area, it is suitable for integrating logic circuits based on pass-transistor type logic and CMOS-type logic, which promises to lead to the fabrication of single-electron logic LSIs