Influences of pH and temperature on infrared spectroscopic features of brewed coffee

AbstractWe developed an infrared spectroscopic evaluation method of brewed coffee, whose quality and taste highly depend on the chemical contents, the interactions between the components, the pH value and the temperature, using a Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrometer equipped with an attenuated total reflection (ATR) accessory. The objective of this study is to understand the influences of the pH values and temperature on the spectral features of brewed coffee and the main components, since the component balances of the organic acids originating from coffee beans and being produced during processes such as roasting and extraction could closely relate to the brewed coffee characteristics. The absorption peak sifts of the ATR spectra of brewed coffee were observed as the influences of the pH and temperatures. Therefore, by analyzing the spectra of the coffee components under the various pH and temperature conditions based on the ionic dissociation equilibrium theory, the spectral behavior of the brewed coffee model due to the pH and temperature changes could mainly result from those of the organic acids as the main components. Consequently, the infrared spectral information analysis would be acceptable as a new method to evaluate a profile of brewed coffee for the quality evaluation relating to the taste and the non-intensive on-line monitoring of the coffee process

On the Contamination of Sea Water with Salmonella and Fecal Indicator Organisms : II. Changes of Salmonella in Natural and Aseptic Sea Water

海域に流入したサルモネラが,どのような挙動を示すか,その動態を追究する目的で自然海水および無菌海水中でのモデル実験を行なった。 1: 自然海水中では接種したサルモネラは10℃>20℃>30℃の順に生残性を示した。 2: 無菌海水中ではサルモネラの生残性は自然海水中におけるよりも低く,しかもはっきりとした温度依存性を示さなかった。 3: 少量(<10/mlのサルモネラを接種した場合には,菌接種後,一度菌数が減少し,その後次第に増加した。 4: その場合,20℃および30℃に保持するとS.thompson単独例よりもE.coliとの混合例の方がS.thompsonの増殖する割合は低かった。 5: 海水中でのサルモネラの生残性は水温にかなり影響されることが示唆された。For the observation of behavior of Salmonella in sea water, the survivability of Salmonella inoculated in natural or aseptic sea water was examined. 1. In natural sea water, both S. anatum and S. thompson survived at the rate of 10C, 20C and 30C. 2. In sea water filtrated by a millipore filter, the temperature dependences of Salmonella were indefinite, and their survival periods were shorter than in natural sea water. 3. When some S. thompson (less 10 cells per ml.) has been inoculated into autoclaved sea water, their number decreased first and then increased gradually. 4. At this time, when the sea water was kept at 20C and 30C, the rate of multiplication of S. thompson mixed with E. coli was lower than that in the case of S. thompson alone. 5. The survivability of Salmonella in sea water depended considerably on the temperature.本研究の一部は昭和50～51年度文部省科学研究費(特定研究1「瀬戸内海の汚染と指標生物の動態に関する研究－代表者,藤山虎也教授」)によるものである

Notices about using elementary statistics in psychology

Improper uses of elementary statistics that were often observed in beginners' manuscripts and papers were collected and better ways were suggested. This paper consists of three parts: About descriptive statistics, multivariate analyses, and statistical tests

市販茶系飲料の抗変異原性と抗変異原性成分の定量

Sep-pak C18 extracts of nineteen commercially available tea drinks were examined for inhibitory effects on the mutagenicity for three nitroarenes using umu-test. Antimutagenic activity of tea drinks increased in the following order: blend tea drinks < green tea drinks < oolong tea drinks. Furthermore, anti-mutagens (EGC, C, EGCG, EC, ECG, ascorbic acid, gallic acid and caffeine) concentrations of nineteen commercially available tea drinks were determined by HPLC combined with UV detector and electro-chemical detector. Higher concentrations of EGCG and EGC were detected in green tea drinks than oolong tea drinks. Total mean concentration of five catechins in oolong tea drinks was less than half of one in green tea drinks. These results suggest that there is no correlation between antimutagenicity for nitroarenes and catechin concentrations in commercially available tea drinks

Fluorescence virus-guided capturing system of human colorectal circulating tumour cells for non-invasive companion diagnostics

Background Molecular-based companion diagnostic tests are being used with increasing frequency to predict their clinical response to various drugs, particularly for molecularly targeted drugs. However, invasive procedures are typically required to obtain tissues for this analysis. Circulating tumour cells (CTCs) are novel biomarkers that can be used for the prediction of disease progression and are also important surrogate sources of cancer cells. Because current CTC detection strategies mainly depend on epithelial cell-surface markers, the presence of heterogeneous populations of CTCs with epithelial and/or mesenchymal characteristics may pose obstacles to the detection of CTCs. Methods We developed a new approach to capture live CTCs among millions of peripheral blood leukocytes using a green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expressing attenuated adenovirus, in which the telomerase promoter regulates viral replication (OBP-401, TelomeScan). Results Our biological capturing system can image epithelial and mesenchymal tumour cells with telomerase activities as GFP-positive cells. After sorting, direct sequencing or mutation-specific PCR can precisely detect different mutations in KRAS, BRAF and KIT genes in epithelial, mesenchymal or epithelial–mesenchymal transition-induced CTCs, and in clinical blood samples from patients with colorectal cancer. Conclusions This fluorescence virus-guided viable CTC capturing method provides a non-invasive alternative to tissue biopsy or surgical resection of primary tumours for companion diagnostics

Results of Proton Beam Therapy without Concurrent Chemotherapy for Patients with Unresectable Stage III Non-small Cell Lung Cancer

Introduction:This study was performed retrospectively to evaluate the outcome of patients with stage III non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) after proton beam therapy (PBT) alone.Methods:The subjects were 57 patients with histologically confirmed NSCLC (stage IIIA/IIIB: 24/33) who received PBT without concurrent chemotherapy. The cohort included 32 cases of squamous cell carcinoma, 18 adenocarcinoma, and 7 non-small cell carcinoma. Lymph node metastases were N0 7, N1 5, N2 30, and N3 15. Planned total doses ranged from 50 to 84.5 GyE (median, 74 GyE).Results:Planned treatment was completed in 51 patients (89%). At the time of analysis, 20 patients were alive, and the median follow-up periods were 16.2 months for all patients and 22.2 months for survivors. The median overall survival period was 21.3 months (95% confidence interval: 14.2–28.4 months), and the 1- and 2-year overall survival rates were 65.5% (52.9–78.0%) and 39.4% (25.3–53.5%), respectively. Disease progression occurred in 38 patients, and the 1- and 2-year progression-free survival rates were 36.2% (23.1–49.4%) and 24.9% (12.7–37.2%), respectively. Local recurrence was observed in 13 patients, and the 1- and 2-year local control rates were 79.1% (66.8–91.3%) and 64.1% (47.5–80.7%), respectively. Grade ≥3 lung toxicity was seen in six patients, esophageal toxicity occurred at grade ⩽2, and there was no cardiac toxicity.Conclusion:The prognosis of patients with unresectable stage III NSCLC is poor without chemotherapy. Our data suggest that high-dose PBT is beneficial and tolerable for these patients

Characterization and validation of Entamoeba histolytica pantothenate kinase as a novel anti-amebic drug target

The Coenzyme A (CoA), as a cofactor involved in >100 metabolic reactions, is essential to the basic biochemistry of life. Here, we investigated the CoA biosynthetic pathway of Entamoeba histolytica (E. histolytica), an enteric protozoan parasite responsible for human amebiasis. We identified four key enzymes involved in the CoA pathway: pantothenate kinase (PanK, EC 2.7.1.33), bifunctional phosphopantothenate-cysteine ligase/decarboxylase (PPCS-PPCDC), phosphopantetheine adenylyltransferase (PPAT) and dephospho-CoA kinase (DPCK). Cytosolic enzyme PanK, was selected for further biochemical, genetic, and phylogenetic characterization. Since E. histolytica PanK (EhPanK) is physiologically important and sufficiently divergent from its human orthologs, this enzyme represents an attractive target for the development of novel anti-amebic chemotherapies. Epigenetic gene silencing of PanK resulted in a significant reduction of PanK activity, intracellular CoA concentrations, and growth retardation in vitro, reinforcing the importance of this gene in E. histolytica. Furthermore, we screened the Kitasato Natural Products Library for inhibitors of recombinant EhPanK, and identified 14 such compounds. One compound demonstrated moderate inhibition of PanK activity and cell growth at a low concentration, as well as differential toxicity towards E. histolytica and human cells

Active learning in junior high school social studies (I): Reading of the history in the daily life of the student

本研究の目的は，歴史に対する学びを深めるアクティブ・ラーニングを実践するために，歴史の取り扱いをどのように変化させることができるのかを解明することである。 このため、科学的・実証的とされる歴史だけでなく，生徒の日常にある歴史を歴史学習では取り上げることができること，そして，生徒と生徒，生徒と教師が協力して歴史に対する学びの資質を向上できることを示し，実際に、単元「藤原道長に返歌を送ろう」を開発・実践したことを説明した。 この結果，本研究の意義として、中学社会科歴史的分野におけるアクティブ・ラーニングは，歴史認識の在り方を変革し，教科書や歴史学者の歴史を客観的なものから主観的なものへ転換する。そして，生徒自らが歴史を語れるように，学びの資質を向上させる活動となることを示すことができた。A purpose of this study is to elucidate it how you can change the handling of the history to practice active learning to deepen learning for the history. Therefore, what can take up the history in the daily life of the student by the history learning as well as the history told to be like scientific proof, and ,I show that a student, a student and a teacher cooperate with a student and can improve nature of the learning for the history,and ,I really practiced a class. As a result, as significance of this study, the active learning in the junior high school social studies historic field revolutionizes attitude of history recognition,and I switch the history of a textbook and the historian from an objective thing to a subjective thing,and I was able to show that it became the activity to improve nature of the learning so that student oneself could recite the history