Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha

Takahiro Kusumegi

Yusaku Onochi

Noriko Kono

Tatsuhiro Sugimoto

Noriko Hayashi

Toshiya Kawaguchi

According to the present invention, the enzyme activity of an immobilized enzyme is improved regardless of enzyme type. A bioreactor, comprising an immobilized enzyme and a heterocyclic compound containing nitrogen and carbon atoms and having 5- or 6-membered ring, which form a reaction field, wherein the immobilized enzyme is allowed to cause an enzymatic reaction in the reaction field is, provided.

Bioreactor comprising immobilized enzyme, method for improving activity of immobilized enzyme, and biofuel cell

A fuel cell capable of achieving excellent power output, which comprises a non-catalytic anode electrode and in which a reductant is used as a fuel, is provided. The fuel cell of the present invention comprises an anode electrode, a cathode electrode, and a membrane having ion conductivity that is disposed between the anode electrode and the cathode electrode, in which a reducing fuel in the anode electrode is oxidized in the presence of a heterocyclic compound containing nitrogen and carbon atoms and having 5- or 6-membered ring.

Fuel cell

An enzyme electrode having an electroconductive base member, an oxidoreductase and an electron mediator has at least a portion (a) in which the oxidoreductase is immobilized on the electroconductive base member, and a portion (b) in which the electron mediator is immobilized on the electroconductive base member but the oxidoreductase is not immobilized on the electroconductive base member. A bio fuel cell having the enzyme electrode as at least one of an anode and a cathode allows optimization of a reaction condition of each one of a plurality of reaction steps, including an 'enzymatic reaction', an 'electron transfer reaction', etc. Thus, the bio fuel cell provides high output.

Enzyme electrode, and bio fuel cell equipped therewith

This invention enables synthesis of proteins that were difficult to synthesize via a conventional cell-free protein synthesis system and increases the amount of proteins synthesized. Cell-free protein synthesis is carried out in a solution for cell-free protein synthesis containing a certain compound, such as trimethylglycine, L-carnitine, or sarcosine.

Solution for cell-free protein synthesis, kit for cell-free protein synthesis, and method of protein synthesis

Durability of formate dehydrogenase is improved with the use of formate dehydrogenase exhibiting high specific activity that is unpredictable from conventional findings. A specific amino acid substitution is introduced into-derived formate dehydrogenase. Mutant formate dehydrogenase exhibits durability that is extremely superior to that of wild-type formate dehydrogenase. Thus, the productivity of NADH that is produced using the mutant formate dehydrogenase can be improved.

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Toyota, Japan

Takahiro Kusumegi