|
Aspergillus Oryzae
''Aspergillus oryzae'', also known as , is a filamentous fungus (a mold) used in East Asia to saccharify rice, sweet potato, and barley in the making of alcoholic beverages such as ''sake'' and '' shōchū'', and also to ferment soybeans for making soy sauce and ''miso''. However, in the production of fermented foods of soybeans such as soy sauce and ''miso'', '' Aspergillus sojae'' is sometimes used instead of ''A. oryzae''. Incidentally, in China and Korea, the fungi used for fermented foods for a long time in the production of traditional alcoholic beverages were not ''A. oryzae'' but fungi belonging to ''Rhizopus'' and ''Mucor''. '' A. oryzae'' is also used for the production of rice vinegars. Barley ''kōji'' (麦麹) or rice ''kōji'' (米麹) are made by fermenting the grains with ''A. oryzae'' hyphae. Genomic analysis has led some scholars to believe that the Japanese domesticated the ''Aspergillus flavus'' that had mutated and ceased to produce toxic aflatoxins, givi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hypha
A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium. Structure A hypha consists of one or more cells surrounded by a tubular cell wall. In most fungi, hyphae are divided into cells by internal cross-walls called "septa" (singular septum). Septa are usually perforated by pores large enough for ribosomes, mitochondria, and sometimes nuclei to flow between cells. The major structural polymer in fungal cell walls is typically chitin, in contrast to plants and oomycetes that have cellulosic cell walls. Some fungi have aseptate hyphae, meaning their hyphae are not partitioned by septa. Hyphae have an average diameter of 4–6 µm. Growth Hyphae grow at their tips. During tip growth, cell walls are extended by the external assembly and polymerization of cell wall components, and the internal production of new cell membrane. The S ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mucor
''Mucor'' is a microbial genus of approximately 40 species of molds in the family Mucoraceae. Species are commonly found in soil, digestive systems, plant surfaces, some cheeses like Tomme de Savoie, rotten vegetable matter and iron oxide residue in the biosorption process. Description Colonies of this fungal genus are typically white to beige or grey and fast-growing. Colonies on culture medium may grow to several centimeters in height. Older colonies become grey to brown in color due to the development of spores. The species 'Mucor' belongs to the microbial kingdom: Fungi. ''Mucor'' spores or sporangiospores can be simple or branched and form apical, globular sporangia that are supported and elevated by a column-shaped columella. ''Mucor'' species can be differentiated from molds of the genera ''Absidia'', ''Rhizomucor'', and ''Rhizopus'' by the shape and insertion of the columella, and the lack of stolons and rhizoids. Some ''Mucor'' species produce chlamydospores. They fo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flavin Group
Flavins (from Latin ''flavus'', "yellow") are organic compounds, like their base, pteridine. They are formed by the tricyclic heterocycle isoalloxazine. The biochemical source is the vitamin riboflavin. The flavin moiety is often attached with an adenosine diphosphate to form flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD), and, in other circumstances, is found as flavin mononucleotide (or FMN), a phosphorylated form of riboflavin. It is in one or the other of these forms that flavin is present as a prosthetic group in flavoproteins. The flavin group is capable of undergoing oxidation-reduction reactions, and can accept either one electron in a two-step process or two electrons at once. Reduction is made with the addition of hydrogen atoms to specific nitrogen atoms on the isoalloxazine ring system: In aqueous solution, flavins are yellow-coloured when oxidized, taking a red colour in the semi-reduced anionic state or blue in the neutral (semiquinone) state, and colourless when totally red ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Siderophore
Siderophores (Greek: "iron carrier") are small, high-affinity iron-chelating compounds that are secreted by microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi. They help the organism accumulate iron. Although a widening range of siderophore functions is now being appreciated. Siderophores are among the strongest (highest affinity) Fe3+ binding agents known. Phytosiderophores are siderophores produced by plants. Scarcity of soluble iron Despite being one of the most abundant elements in the Earth's crust, iron is not readily bioavailable. In most aerobic environments, such as the soil or sea, iron exists in the ferric (Fe3+) state, which tends to form insoluble rust-like solids. To be effective, nutrients must not only be available, they must be soluble. Microbes release siderophores to scavenge iron from these mineral phases by formation of soluble Fe3+ complexes that can be taken up by active transport mechanisms. Many siderophores are nonribosomal peptides, although several are biosynthes ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tyrosinase
Tyrosinase is an oxidase that is the rate-limiting enzyme for controlling the production of melanin. The enzyme is mainly involved in two distinct reactions of melanin synthesis otherwise known as the Raper Mason pathway. Firstly, the hydroxylation of a monophenol and secondly, the conversion of an o-diphenol to the corresponding o-quinone. o-Quinone undergoes several reactions to eventually form melanin. Tyrosinase is a copper-containing enzyme present in plant and animal tissues that catalyzes the production of melanin and other pigments from tyrosine by oxidation. It is found inside melanosomes which are synthesized in the skin melanocytes. In humans, the tyrosinase enzyme is encoded by the ''TYR'' gene. Catalyzed reaction Tyrosinase carries out the oxidation of phenols such as tyrosine and dopamine using dioxygen (O2). In the presence of catechol, benzoquinone is formed (see reaction below). Hydrogens removed from catechol combine with oxygen to form water. The substrate ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carboxypeptidase
A carboxypeptidase ( EC number 3.4.16 - 3.4.18) is a protease enzyme that hydrolyzes (cleaves) a peptide bond at the carboxy-terminal (C-terminal) end of a protein or peptide. This is in contrast to an aminopeptidases, which cleave peptide bonds at the N-terminus of proteins. Humans, animals, bacteria and plants contain several types of carboxypeptidases that have diverse functions ranging from catabolism to protein maturation. At least two mechanisms have been discussed. Functions Initial studies on carboxypeptidases focused on pancreatic carboxypeptidases A1, A2, and B in the digestion of food. Most carboxypeptidases are not, however, involved in catabolism. Instead they help to mature proteins, for example Post-translational modification. They also regulate biological processes, such as the biosynthesis of neuroendocrine peptides such as insulin requires a carboxypeptidase. Carboxypeptidases also function in blood clotting, growth factor production, wound healing, reproduction, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alpha-Amylase
α-Amylase is an enzyme (EC 3.2.1.1; systematic name 4-α-D-glucan glucanohydrolase) that hydrolyses α bonds of large, α-linked polysaccharides, such as starch and glycogen, yielding shorter chains thereof, dextrins, and maltose: :Endohydrolysis of (1→4)-α-D-glucosidic linkages in polysaccharides containing three or more (1→4)-α-linked D-glucose units It is the major form of amylase found in humans and other mammals. It is also present in seeds containing starch as a food reserve, and is secreted by many fungi. It is a member of glycoside hydrolase family 13. In human biology Although found in many tissues, amylase is most prominent in pancreatic juice and saliva, each of which has its own isoform of human α-amylase. They behave differently on isoelectric focusing, and can also be separated in testing by using specific monoclonal antibodies. In humans, all amylase isoforms link to chromosome 1p21 (see AMY1A). Salivary amylase (ptyalin) Amylase is found in saliv ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amylase
An amylase () is an enzyme that catalyses the hydrolysis of starch (Latin ') into sugars. Amylase is present in the saliva of humans and some other mammals, where it begins the chemical process of digestion. Foods that contain large amounts of starch but little sugar, such as rice and potatoes, may acquire a slightly sweet taste as they are chewed because amylase degrades some of their starch into sugar. The pancreas and salivary gland make amylase (alpha amylase) to hydrolyse dietary starch into disaccharides and trisaccharides which are converted by other enzymes to glucose to supply the body with energy. Plants and some bacteria also produce amylase. Specific amylase proteins are designated by different Greek letters. All amylases are glycoside hydrolases and act on α-1,4-glycosidic bonds. Classification α-Amylase The α-amylases () ( CAS 9014-71-5) (alternative names: 1,4-α-D-glucan glucanohydrolase; glycogenase) are calcium metalloenzymes. By acting at random loca ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mycelium
Mycelium (plural mycelia) is a root-like structure of a fungus consisting of a mass of branching, thread-like hyphae. Fungal colonies composed of mycelium are found in and on soil and many other substrate (biology), substrates. A typical single spore germinates into a Monokaryon, monokaryotic mycelium, which cannot reproduce sexually; when two compatible monokaryotic mycelia join and form a dikaryotic mycelium, that mycelium may form sporocarp (fungi), fruiting bodies such as mushrooms. A mycelium may be minute, forming a colony that is too small to see, or may grow to span thousands of acres as in ''Armillaria''. Through the mycelium, a fungus absorbs nutrients from its environment. It does this in a two-stage process. First, the hyphae secrete enzymes onto or into the food source, which break down biopolymers, biological polymers into smaller units such as monomers. These monomers are then absorbed into the mycelium by facilitated diffusion and active transport. Mycelia are v ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Monascus Purpureus
''Monascus purpureus'' (syn. ''M. albidus'', ''M. anka'', ''M. araneosus'', ''M. major'', ''M. rubiginosus'', and ''M. vini''; , lit. "red yeast") is a species of mold that is purplish-red in color. It is also known by the names ang-khak rice mold, corn silage mold, maize silage mold, and rice kernel discoloration. Taxonomy and morphology The sexual state of ''M. purpureus'' is a cleistothecium with a two-layered wall enclosing round, evanescent 8-spored asci, lifted above the substrate on a multihyphal stalk. Ascospores can be heat resistant. The asexual state forms chains of hyaline or brownish chlamydospore-like cells. Physiology and metabolites During growth, ''Monascus'' spp. break down starch substrate into several metabolites, including pigments produced as secondary metabolites. The structure of pigments depends on type of substrate and other specific factors during culture, such as pH, temperature, and moisture content. However, discoveries of cholesterol-lowering stat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tohoku University
, or is a Japanese national university located in Sendai, Miyagi in the Tōhoku Region, Japan. It is informally referred to as . Established in 1907, it was the third Imperial University in Japan and among the first three Designated National Universities, along with the University of Tokyo and Kyoto University. Tohoku University is a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project, and since 2020 has been ranked the best university in Japan by Times Higher Education. In 2016, Tohoku University had 10 faculties, 16 graduate schools and 6 research institutes, with a total enrollment of 17,885 students. The university's three core values are "Research First (研究第一主義)," "Open-Doors (門戸開放)," and "Practice-Oriented Research and Education (実学尊重)." History On June 22, 1907(明治40年,''Mēji yonjyunen''), the university was established under the name by the Meiji government as the third Imperial University of Japan, following the Tokyo Imperi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aflatoxins
Aflatoxins are various toxicity, poisonous carcinogens and mutagens that are produced by certain Mold (fungus), molds, particularly ''Aspergillus'' species. The fungi grow in soil, decaying vegetation and various staple food, staple foodstuffs and commodities such as hay, maize, sweetcorn, wheat, millet, sorghum, cassava, rice, chili peppers, cottonseed, peanuts, tree nuts, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, and various spices. In short, the relevant fungi grow on almost any crop or food. When such contaminated food is processed or consumed, the aflatoxins enter the general food supply. They have been found in both pet and human foods, as well as in feedstocks for agricultural animals. Animals fed contaminated food can pass aflatoxin transformation products into eggs, milk products, and meat. For example, contaminated poultry feed is the suspected source of aflatoxin-contaminated chicken meat and eggs in Pakistan. Children are particularly affected by aflatoxin exposure, which is as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
-Aflatoxin_B1_Structural_Formulae_V.1.svg "Click for more on -> Aflatoxins")