Olympus Optical Company, Ltd.

Olympus Corporation

Micro Biopharm Japan Co., Ltd.

B Food Science Co., Ltd.

Keisuke Tamura

Tadashi Fujii

Katsuyuki Abe

Takumi Tochio

Saki Nakamura

Atsuhiro Tsuchiya

Kazuhiro Hasegawa

Kenji Karaki

Chikara Abe

Naomi Ito

Yoshiro Kawano

Susumu Honda

Tetsuya Shirota

Takashi Nagano

Hideaki Endo

Minoru Sukekawa

Masayoshi Karasawa

Tsuyoshi Mochizuki

Misa Yahara

Yoshimi Fukatani

Miwa Kojima

Kazuhiko Osa

To provide an improved &#x3b2;-fructofuranosidase which is capable of efficiently producing kestose while inhibiting the production of nystose. This improved &#x3b2;-fructofuranosidase comprises either: an amino acid sequence (a) obtained by introducing, into the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 2, an amino acid mutation i) in which the 85th glycine (G) from the N-terminal is substituted for a protein-constituting amino acid other than glycine (G), and/or an amino acid mutation ii) in which the 310th histidine (H) from the N-terminal is substituted for lysine (K), arginine (R), or tyrosine (Y); or an amino acid sequence (b) which exhibits &#x3b2;-fructofuranosidase activity, and which comprises an amino acid sequence obtained by deleting, substituting, inserting, or adding one or more amino acids in (a) other than the amino acid into which the amino acid mutation has been introduced.

&#x3b2;-fructofuranosidase

An improved &#x3b2;-fructofuranosidase is provided. The improved &#x3b2;-fructofuranosidase may comprise an amino acid sequence having 60% or higher identity to the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, and may contain an amino acid mutation that replaces histidine (H) corresponding to position 395 counted from the N terminus of SEQ ID NO: 2 with arginine (R) or lysine (K), an amino acid mutation that replaces leucine (L) at position 123 counted from the N terminus of SEQ ID NO: 2 with cysteine (C), and/or an amino acid mutation that replaces phenylalanine (F) at position 473 counted from the N terminus of SEQ ID NO: 2 with tyrosine (Y).

[Problem] To provide a production method capable of simply and efficiently producing a fructose-added carbohydrate using &#x3b2;-fructofuranosidase. [Solution] A method for producing a fructose-added carbohydrate, said method having a step in which a receptor substrate and a hydrate containing terminal fructose residue are brought into contact with:

Method for producing fructose-added carbohydrate

A method for producing cis-5-hydroxy-L-pipecolic acid is described. A gene recombinant microorganism enabling direct production of cis-5-hydroxy-L-pipecolic acid can be used in the method. Also described is a gene recombinant microorganism. In particular, it is described that a gene recombinant microorganism having DNAs encoding proteins involved in the biosynthesis of L-pipecolic acid and a DNA encoding a protein having the L-pipecolic acid cis-5-hydroxylase activity is cultured in a medium, and cis-5-hydroxy-L-pipecolic acid is collected from the medium.

Biological method for producing cis-5-hydroxy-L-pipecolic acid

A microscope includes a microscope main unit including a stage on which a specimen is to be placed; and a light source provided on the microscope main unit and emitting illumination light for illuminating the specimen. The microscope also includes a main power supply operable to be turned on and off; a sensor that senses the presence or absence of a subject in a front or side area of the microscope main unit; a determining unit that determines based on a result of the sensing whether the subject moves; and a control unit that turns on the light source when the main power supply is turned on, maintains the light source in an ON state when the determining unit determines that the subject moves, and turns off the light source when the determining unit determines that the subject does not move and a predetermined period of time passes.

Microscope with motion sensor for control of power supply and light source

A microscope includes a main body, a transmitted light source, and a transmitted-light illumination optical system. The main body has a substantially C-shape when viewed from side, and is composed of a lower horizontal portion, an upper horizontal portion, and a brace portion. The brace portion connects between the lower horizontal portion and the upper horizontal portion on their rear side. The transmitted-light illumination optical system brings an illumination light from the transmitted light source to a specimen supported by the main body, and illuminates the specimen with the illumination light transmitted therethrough. The transmitted-light illumination optical system and the transmitted light source are removably attached to the lower horizontal portion of the main body.

Microscope

A microscope is provided which includes a frame main body having a base portion, an objective lens switching mechanism, a stage, and an ocular lens for observing a specimen image obtained with one of the objective lenses. A rough/fine motion focusing mechanism is disposed rearward of the stage, for moving the objective lens switching mechanism along the observation optical axis in rough motion and fine motion. A first rough motion handle and a first fine motion handle are provided near the rough/fine motion focusing mechanism, for operating the rough/fine motion focusing mechanism. A rough/fine motion focusing operation portion is provided for operating the rough/fine motion focusing mechanism and includes a second rough motion handle and a second fine motion handle provided near a front end of the base portion. And a linkage mechanism is provided for linking the rough/fine motion focusing mechanism with the rough/fine motion focusing operation portion.

Microscope provided with an objective lens focusing apparatus and an objective lens switching apparatus

A microscope of the present invention causes laser light emanating from a light source to enter an optical fiber via a laser light introducing mechanism. The exit end of the optical fiber is connected with an adapter having a fiber position adjustment knob. The back focal position of an objective lens and the exit end position of the optical fiber are made conjugate by a condenser lens provided inside a reflecting illumination projecting tube. By shifting the exit end position of the optical fiber, conventional reflecting illumination and evanescent illumination are available.

Illuminating optical system and microscope provided with the same

The inverted microscope comprises a microscope main body, a stage configured to place a specimen thereon, a stage fixing part arranged between the stage and the microscope main body and configured to fix the stage to the microscope main body, an objective lens configured to observe the specimen from below the stage, an observation optical system configured to observe a specimen image taken by the objective lens with an eyepiece, and a reflection member configured to reflect an image in vicinity of the objective lens from vicinity of the eyepiece, the reflection member being arranged below the stage fixing part of the microscope main body and arranged on an axis which is almost parallel to an optical axis of the observation optical system passing the eyepiece and passes vicinity of the eyepiece.

Inverted microscope

A rough motion shaftand a fine motion shaftare provided on a front side of a stagewith respect to an optical axis of an observation optical system of a microscope. Further, a rough motion shaftand a fine motion shaftare provided on a rear side with respect to the optical axis. The rough motion shaftand the fine motion shaftare linked with the rough motion shaftand the fine motion shaftso as to move objective lensesselectively in rough motion or fine motion. Objective lensesA,B are arranged in a circular shape on a fixing memberand a rotating memberrotates objective lensesA,B along the direction of the arrangement. The rotating memberincludes a weightthat applies a rotation force in an inverse direction.

A microscope for use in total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy (TIRFM) is provided. The microscope includes a first white-light source for directing light along a first optical path; an annular slit member disposed in the first optical path, the annular slit member having an annular slit for blocking all but an annulus of light corresponding to the annular slit; and an objective lens for directing the annulus of light to a specimen such that TIRFM of the specimen is achieved. Also provided are various ways for converting the microscope to and from a TIRFM microscope and a conventional microscope.

Total internal reflection fluorescence microscope having a conventional white-light source

A microscope illuminating apparatus includes a light-shielding tube surrounding an objective lens, detachably mounted on a revolver of a system microscope in order to guide illumination light to irradiate an observation field, thus separating an illumination optical path and an observation optical path. An annular illuminating section serving as a light source of the illumination light is provided at a position to oppose an end portion aperture of the illumination optical path in the revolver.

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Tokyo, Japan

Keisuke Tamura