Aging of whiskey increases 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity

1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity of Japanese whiskey after various aging periods in oak barrels was measured to evaluate the antioxidative effects of whiskey. The activity of the whiskey increased with the aging period with high correlation. The activity of various types of whiskey was measured and shown to be correlated to the potentiation of the GABAA receptor response measured in a previous paper. However, the fragrant compounds in the whiskey which potentiated the GABAA receptor response had low DPPH radical scavenging activity, while phenol derivatives had high radical scavenging activity. The whiskey was extracted by pentane. The aqueous part showed the scavenging activity, whereas the pentane part did not. Thus, both the DPPH radical scavenging activity and the potentiation of the GABAA receptor response increased during whiskey aging in oak barrels, but were due to different components. The whiskey protected the H2O2-induced death of E. coli more than ethanol at the same concentration as that of the whiskey. The changes that occurred in the whiskey during aging may be the reason aged whiskies are so highly valued.     

Suppressive effects of ethanolic extracts from propolis and its main botanical origin on dioxin toxicity

Suppressive effects of ethanolic extracts prepared from propolis group 12 and its main botanical origin (leaf bud of Baccharis dracunculifolia) on transformation of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), the initial action of dioxin toxicity, were investigated. It was found that suppressive effects of propolis on AhR transformation were relatively higher than those of resins of its botanical origin in cell-free system and in Hepa-1c1c7 cells. When the composition of chemical ingredients was measured, propolis contained slightly higher amounts of flavonoid aglycones as compared with its botanical origin with the same characteristics. Moreover, antiradical activity, one of the typical biological activities of flavonoids, in propolis was also slightly higher than that in its botanical origin. These results indicate that not only propolis but also its botanical origin contains high amounts of flavonoid aglycones and that both of them are useful dietary sources for flavonoids with a potency to prevent dioxin toxicity.     

Black Acidic Rime Ice in the Remote Island of Yakushima, a World Natural Heritage Area

In order to clarify the long-range transport of atmospheric pollutants in the East Asian regions, we have studied the components in rime ice on Yakushima Island, located in southwestern Japan near the China continent. The presence of a large number of particles has been found in the rime ice. Very small particles whose diameters are around 1 µm were identified as coal fly ash. The air mass at an altitude between 1500 m to 2000 m was probably long-range transported in association with a stable atmospheric layer in which the particles were efficiently scavenged by supercooled droplets. A back trajectory analysis also indicated the predominance of a north wind in the winter and in the other seasons as well. Such transport and deposition mechanisms may produce the greater pollutant deposition sometimes observed in mountain areas. Similar events may not be rare and could make an important contribution to the annual pollutants.     

Study of the role of the carbohydrate and protein moieties of soy soluble polysaccharides in their emulsifying properties

The objective of this work was to investigate the role played by the protein fraction of soy soluble polysaccharide (SSPS) during its adsorption at oil/water interfaces. SSPS was separated in a high (HMF; 310 kDa) and low (LMF; 20 kDa) molecular weight fraction by gel filtration. SSPS/HMF consisted of 91.6% carbohydrate and 2.2% protein and showed better emulsifying properties than those of the whole SSPS, whereas SSPS/LMF seemed to affect negatively the adsorption behavior of SSPS. SDS-PAGE of the protein fraction obtained from SSPS/HMF showed a molecular mass of 50 kDa, was composed predominantly of proline (23.1%) and glutamic acid (15.2%), and still contained 8.8% of neutral sugar and 5.3% of uronic acid. Results indicated that not all of the protein material present in SSPS contributes to SSPS functionality but that only the material associated with HMF aids in the adsorption of SSPS onto oil/water interfaces.     

Effects of dry pellets containing astaxanthin and squid meal on the spawning performance of striped jack Pseudocaranx dentex

ABSTRACT: This study was conducted to investigate the effect of squid meal and astaxanthin in dry pellets on the spawning performance of striped jack. Two groups of 8-year-old fish with an average bodyweight of 3.5 ± 0.4 kg were used. The control group was fed a raw fish mix (RF) and the experimental group was fed steam dry pellets (as-DP) containing 10 p.p.m. astaxanthin and squid meal, the latter replacing half the fish meal. Each group was fed once a day, three times a week in floating net cages for a period of 5 months. Seven females and seven males were selected from each group and transferred to 65 m³ indoor concrete tanks for spawning, where they were kept at optimum spawning conditions (22°C) for 1 month. The average bodyweights of selected fish were 3.8 ± 0.5 kg and 3.8 ± 0.6 kg for the RF and as-DP groups, respectively. Both groups spawned a total of 18 times and the mean total egg production and egg quality, measured in terms of buoyancy, fertilization and hatching rates, showed no significant differences ( P > 0.05) between groups. Total larval production was 679.9 × 10³ and 678.1 × 10³ larvae/kg-female for the RF and as-DP groups, respectively. These results show that the combination of astaxanthin and squid meal in dry pellets for striped jack broodstock improved the overall spawning performance to a level similar to that of fish fed on RF.     

Epigenetically immature oocytes lead to loss of imprinting during embryogenesis

Loss of imprinting (LOI) is occasionally observed in human imprinting disorders. However, the process behind the LOI is not fully understood. To gain a better understanding, we produced embryos and pups from mouse oocytes that lacked a complete methylation imprint using a method that involved transferring the nuclei of growing oocytes into the cytoplasm of enucleated fully grown oocytes following in vitro fertilization (IVF). We then analyzed the imprinting statuses. Our findings show that the incomplete methylation imprint derived from growing oocytes results in epigenetic mosaicism or a loss of methylation imprint (LOM) at maternal alleles in embryos. In some embryos, both hypo- and hypermethylated maternal Kcnq1ot1 alleles were detected, whereas either hypo- or hypermethylated maternal Kcnq1ot1 alleles were detected in others. Such tendencies were also observed at the Igf2r and Mest loci. Gene expression levels of imprinted genes were linked with their methylation statuses in some but not all embryos. Possible explanations of the inconsistency between the data from DNA methylation and gene expression include epigenetic mosaicism in embryos. Pups were successfully produced from growing oocytes at a quite low frequency. They exhibited an obese phenotype and LOI with respect to Igf2r, Snrpn and Mest. Our finding suggests the possibility that LOI/LOM at maternal alleles in human concepti could be derived from epigenetically immature/mutated oocytes.     

Insulin responses to administrations of amino acids and fatty acids in healthy cats

In order to compare the stimulation ability of insulin secretion, we determined changes in plasma glucose and insulin concentrations after intravenous administration of various amino acids and essential fatty acids in clinically healthy adult cats. Plasma glucose concentrations were within the normal ranges after injection of amino acids and fatty acids. Plasma insulin concentrations increased rapidly 2 to 4 min after injection of arginine, then decreased to the basal levels at 20 min in all five cats. Insulin peak responses were significantly greater in arginine injections than in normal saline (P<0.01). Areas under the curve (AUC) of plasma insulin concentrations from 0 to 10 min after injection of arginine were significantly larger than after injection of normal saline (P<0.01) and glucose (P<0.05). Increases in AUC of plasma insulin concentration from 0 to 60 min were observed after injection of arginine, leucine, alanine, and fat emulsion. Arginine had a strong insulinotropic effect, and leucine, alanine, and fatty acids had weak ones. Besides, valine, methionine, taurine and glutamine had no stimulant activity of insulin. Given the risk of glucose toxication and required time for testing, the intravenous arginine tolerance test may be useful for estimation of insulin responses in cats.     

Distribution of photoperiod-insensitive alleles Ppd-B1a and Ppd-D1a and their effect on heading time in Japanese wheat cultivars

The genotypes of photoperiod response genes Ppd-B1 and Ppd-D1 in Japanese wheat cultivars were determined by a PCR-based method, and heading times were compared among genotypes. Most of the Japanese wheat cultivars, except those from the Hokkaido region, carried the photoperiod-insensitive allele Ppd-D1a, and heading was accelerated 10.3 days compared with the Ppd-D1b genotype. Early cultivars with Ppd-D1a may have been selected to avoid damage from preharvest rain. In the Hokkaido region, Ppd-D1a frequency was lower and heading date was late regardless of Ppd-D1 genotype, suggesting another genetic mechanism for late heading in Hokkaido cultivars. In this study, only 11 cultivars proved to carry Ppd-B1a, and all of them carried another photoperiod-insensitive allele, Ppd-D1a. The Ppd-B1a/Ppd-D1a genotype headed 6.7 days earlier than the Ppd-B1b/Ppd-D1a genotype, indicating a significant effect of Ppd-B1a in the genetic background with Ppd-D1a. Early-maturity breeding in Japan is believed to be accelerated by the introduction of the Ppd-B1a allele into medium-heading cultivars carrying Ppd-D1a. Pedigree analysis showed that Ppd-B1a in three extra-early commercial cultivars was inherited from ‘Shiroboro 21’ by early-heading Chugoku lines bred at the Chugoku Agriculture Experimental Station.