A REVIEW THE ENZYMES OF TEA AND THEIR ROLE IN TEA MAKING1

A comprehensive review giving a bird's eye view of all the known tea enzymes is made. It is an observed fact that the enzymes play an important role in tea making. The enzymes are broadly categorized into four important groups. In light of recent work, methods of their isolation, their properties and their interactions with some of the commonly used chemicals in the tea industry, are discussed at length. Emphasis is placed on the specific role of each enzyme in relation to the quality of tea. The future lines and trends of research methodology have been evaluated in the light of previous work in the field.     

Knoop Hardness Anisotropy and Plastic Deformation in Mn-Zn Ferrite Single Crystals

The Knoop hardness anisotropy and plastic deformation markings around the DPH indentation were investigated for an Mn-Zn ferrite single crystal. Knoop hardness values, which depended primarily on the crystallographic direction, were represented on a standard stereographic triangle. The hardness was maximum in the <001> direction and minimum in the <111> and <011> directions. The patterns of the plastic deformation markings show that the ferrite deforms plastically at room temperature by {110} <110> and {111} <110> slip.     

Semi-continuous Hydrolysis of Sweet Potato Raw Starch by Chalara paradoxa Glucoamylase

Effect of preservatives was investigated on semi-continuous digestion of sweet potato raw starch by Chalara paradoxa glucoamylase which digests both raw and gelatinized starch. Potassium metabisulfite strongly inhibited raw starch digesting activity (RDA) although gelatinized starch digesting activity was only slightly inhibited. Potassium sorbate, among the preservatives examined, showed the weakest inhibition (below 10%) on RDA. In the presence of potassium sorbate, semi-continuous digestion of sweet potato raw starch in a 20L scale hollow fiber UF membrane pilot reactor proceeded efficiently at 30% (w/v) initial concentration of raw starch at pH 5.0 and 40°C. Glucose production was 5.7 to 6.0 g/hr/L.     

ESTIMATION OF THE RATE OF SHEAR ENCOUNTERED IN TOPICAL APPLICATION OF COSMETICS

Abstract The rates of shear encountered in topical application of cosmetic creams and lipstick were obtained by dividing the application velocities, at which the samples are being sheared, by the applied thicknesses of the layer. The application velocity was measured by means of a high-speed camera. Beauty artists, formulating chemists of cosmetics and women employees were used as the sensory panel. For topical application of creams in make-up, the maximum rates of shear were found to be between 10⁴ and 10⁵ S^-1, though the rate of shear differed from one kind of cream to another. The maximum rates of shear for lipstick in make-up were smaller than those for creams and were between 10³ and 10⁴ s^-1.     

Solubility of KUO3 in BaUO3

The formation of a solid solution between cubic perovskne-type KUO₃ and pseudocubic BaUO₃ was investigated. The reaction begins at 550°C, and the solubility of KUO₃ reaches more than 30 mol% KUO₃ in BaUO₃ at 750°C. The region in which a single-phase solid solution exists was determined. The variation of the lattice parameter of the reacted samples was caused by solid solution formation and by oxygen absorption. The electrical conductivities of the samples varied with composition and showed a distinct maximum. The activation energy for electric conduction was very low compared to that for UO_z+x, or U₃O₈.     

EFFECTS OF LONG-TERM ORAL ADMINISTRATION OF GREEN TEA CULTIVATED IN DIFFERENT DISTRICTS IN JAPAN ON BODY WEIGHT, BLOOD LIPID AND GLUCOSE LEVELS ON db/db MICE

Previous research using short‐term animal experiments has indicated that oral administration of green tea can suppress elevation of blood sugar. However, few data are available on the antihyperglycemia effect of green tea in long‐term experiments. In this study, effects of long‐term (up to 16 weeks) administration of green tea preparations on body weight, blood sugar and lipid content of db/db and db/+m mice were examined. Preparations were prepared by the same procedure from tea leaves cultivated in different districts in Japan. Significant differences (P < 0.05) were observed in the blood parameters and body weight between control and green tea groups of db/db mice. In the case of normal mice, however, no significant difference was observed. In addition, the response to the administration of green tea depended on the source and composition of tea leaves.     

A resource allocation problem on timed marked graphs: a decomposition approach

In complex man-made environments discrete event dynamic systems are frequently encountered, and a timed marked graph is widely accepted as a convenient tool to describe systems of this kind. We consider trade-offs of cost and performance on such a system. First we formulate an optimization problem and transform it into a mixed integer linear programming problem. To improve computational efficiency, we decompose the problem into two phases. In phase one we determine the optimal number of each resource to be adopted in the system, and in phase two we optimize the distribution of these resources over the system. Phase one is solved very quickly and approximately by the dominance relaxation through a binary search procedure. This also gives the estimate of error bounds. An illustrative example shows an application to a jobshop optimization problem, and numerical experiments are carried out for some sample problems.     

Future perspectives on cell therapy for autism spectrum disorder

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a complex neurodevelopmental condition characterized by impairments in social communication, abnormal to absent verbal communication, the presence of repetitive stereotypic verbal and non-verbal behaviors and restricted interests, with onset early in life. We showed cognitive and behavioral characteristics of ASD by impairment of communication, cognition, perception, motor skills, executive function, theory of mind and emotion control. Recently, pathogenesis of immune pathology in the brains of individuals with ASD has been focused. New therapeutic approaches in the viewpoints of immune modulation and microglial function are logical for novel treatments for individuals with ASD. Cell therapies such as umbilical cord blood cells and mesenchymal stromal cells for ASD will be a challenging and encouraging field in the future clinical study with progress of biotechnological science.