Ajinomoto (United States)

Powder compression molding is widely utilized as a food processing technology, and ensuring product strength is an essential issue for improving quality. The Drucker–Prager Cap (DPC) model is known as an analytical model for powder compression and can represent deformation behavior during the compression process. In this study, material properties (DPC parameters) of four types of food powders were derived using a tablet data acquisition device capable of simultaneously measuring compressive loads in both axial and radial directions. Furthermore, the DPC parameters were input into the CAE software Ansys, and compression analysis was conducted on a cuboid-shaped model. The strain characteristics obtained from the analysis were then compared with experimental data from friability test. The findings indicated that the higher the proportion of elastic strain to total strain at maximum compression, the lower the abrasion level tended to be. This study clarified the importance of the elastic properties of powder layers in determining product strength during the compression molding of food powders.

Abstract People with Parkinson’s Disease (PwPDs) experience difficulties with gross motor skills, like walking, and fine motor processes. These functions may interact, but evidence of causal links between them is scarce. We tested the effect of a fine motor skills training delivered using serious games on tablet on walking capacities in PwPDs. Thirty PwPDs played a video game on tablet (rhythm game or Tetris ) four times a week for six weeks. Gait was evaluated before and after the training. Gait speed, stride length and cadence improved for spontaneous and dual-task conditions in comparison with a Control group (n = 12) of PwPDs who did not receive any training. These findings suggest that fine motor training administered via serious games can improve gross motor skills, opening promising perspectives for affordable, engaging telerehabilitation methods. This study was registered as a clinical trial (ClinicalTrials.gov, registration NCT02855710 )

New admixtures have been developed for high-fluidity, super-low shrinkage concretes. The properties of fresh and hardened high-fluidity, super-low shrinkage concretes using these admixtures were examined in laboratory experiments. It was found that the concretes using these admixtures have the effect of improving carbonation resistance by the experiments. Furthermore, the cause or mechanism was examined, and it was found that the amount of pores larger than 400 or 500 Å was reduced. It is expected that the concretes will have high durability not only in terms of improving crack resistance by reducing shrinkage, but also in terms of improving carbonation resistance.

Background with Objective: Inadequate nutrition is often linked to an increased risk of getting TB and it also plays a role in the worse progression of the disease. Both undernutrition and TB are closely related and significantly affect public health. The aim of this study was to assess the nutritional status among tuberculosis patients at the end of initial phase of treatment. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 199 adult TB patients taking antitubercular drugs at the end of initial phase in DOTS centres, Dhaka, Bangladesh from 1st January to 31st December, 2023. Data were collected following a convenient sampling technique through face-to-face interviews and record review using a semi-structured questionnaire and check list. Nutritional status was measured by body mass index. Ethical clearance was taken from the Institutional review board of National Institute of Preventive and Social Medicine (NIPSOM). Statistical analyses of the results were obtained by using window based computer software devised with Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS-20.1). Results: More than half (56.3%) of undernutrition among TB patients was at the registration and newly two third patients (64.8%) of undernutrition was at the end of initial phase of treatment. Male and PTB patients were found significantly more undernourished. The median BMI difference between registration and end of initial phase was found significant (p<0.001). Conclusion: The study revealed high proportion of undernutrition patients after initial phase which worsened from the onset of initial phase.

Amino acids, including asparagine, aspartate, glutamine, and glutamate, play important roles in purine and pyrimidine biosynthesis as well as serve as anaplerotic sources fueling the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle for mitochondrial energy generation. Despite extensive studies on glutamine and glutamate in CHO cell cultures, the roles of asparagine and aspartate, especially in feed media, remain underexplored. In this study, we utilized a CHO genome scale model to first deeply characterize the intracellular metabolic states of CHO cells cultured in different combinations of basal and feed media to understand the traits of asparagine/aspartate-dependent and glutamate-dependent feeds. Subsequently, we identified the critical role of asparagine and aspartate in the feed media as anaplerotic sources and conducted in silico simulations to ascertain their optimal ratios to improve cell culture performance. Finally, based on the model simulations, we reformulated the feed media by tailoring the concentrations of asparagine and aspartate. Our experimental data reveal a CHO cell preference for asparagine compared with aspartate, and thus maintaining an optimal ratio of these amino acids is a key factor for achieving optimal CHO cell culture performance in biopharmaceutical production.

アミノ酸は生物学的プロセスにおいて重要な役割を果たしており，その精密な分析は，生化学，医学，食品科学といった多様な分野で極めて重要とされている．これまでのアミノ酸分析技術は，複数のアミノ酸を同時にかつ高精度に定量できる一方で，専門的な知識と高度な機器が必要となるため，技術の習得と費用の面で課題が存在していた．また，分析に用いる機器が大型であるため，採取サンプルに対する即時分析には制約があった．近年，オンサイト分析の需要が増大していることを背景に，著者らは特別な専門知識が無くても実行可能で，手軽かつ迅速，そして精確なアミノ酸分析手法の提供を目指し研究開発を行ってきた．この目標の達成のためにアミノ酸代謝酵素を利用する手法が知られており，すでにいくつかの研究開発が行われている．しかしながら，天然由来の酵素には安定性などの観点から課題が多く，課題を解決するためにプロテインエンジニアリングの活用が必要とされることが多い．本総合論文では，アミノ酸代謝酵素を活用したオンサイトアミノ酸分析法の開発とその応用に焦点を当て，さらに酵素利用の利点と課題を示し，課題解決のために著者らが行ってきた研究成果を示す．