Abstract: An objective of the present invention is to provide a measuring chip for a surface plasmon resonance sensor that can detect a small amount of target substances in high sensitivity. The present invention provides a measuring chip for a surface plasmon resonance sensor comprising a metal layer, one or more plasma polymerization layers formed on said metal layer, and a biologically active substance immobilized on the surface of said plasma polymerization layer.

Abstract: Microorganism sensors used in environment assessment technologies and the like, instead of being used to detect environmental components and determine their concentrations, were used as tools to evaluate the ability of target soil microorganisms to adapt to various field soil environments, and comparative studies were performed. As a result, the present inventors found that by using the microorganism sensors to examine the growth potential of general soil microorganisms and pathogenic microorganisms in ecosystems, the balance in the soil ecosystems could be monitored, and further, the risk of disease occurrence and the bio-controlling effect of general soil microorganisms could also be determined.

Abstract: A video coding device for encoding video images comprises a block matching processing unit which executes a block matching process for each of a plurality of blocks obtained by partitioning each of the video images and a characteristic detecting unit which detects a characteristic of each block. Pixels corresponding to the characteristic detected by the characteristic detecting unit are selected from each block as pixels to be used for the block matching process, and the block matching process is executed using the selected pixels. The video coding device realizes the reduction of the number of calculations and processing time of the coding process.

Abstract: <Problem to be Solved>To provide a method for effectively and simply separating and condensing 8-OHdG which is present by a trace amount in body fluid, particularly in urine, and is frequently mingled with foreign substances with their peaks appearing around the peak thereof, a simple measurement method of 8-OHdG, and an apparatus for the measurement. [Solution]The present invention provides a method for effectively and simply separating and condensing 8-OHdG by an optimum combination of chromatographies. Specifically, the present invention comprises a method for separating and condensing 8-hydroxy-2?-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) from a body fluid, wherein a urine sample is contacted with a hydrophobic adsorbent which has, as the functional group, a straight chain hydrocarbon group having a carbon number of 6-30 and has a C % of 18% or less to capture the 8-OHdG.

Abstract: The present invention is to provide a sample separation instrument used in a sample separation apparatus which includes: holding means for holding a first medium supporter which supports a first medium; and driving means for moving fixing means or the holding means in a direction parallel or perpendicular to a plane whose sides extend in the first direction and in the second directions. The sample separation instrument includes an insulator for storing a second medium which allows a sample separated in the first medium in the first direction to be further separated in the second direction different from the first direction, wherein: the insulator includes a first opening and a second opening each of which defines the second direction in which the second medium is electrified, and the second opening has a shape which allows the first medium containing the separated sample to be attached to the second medium along the first direction.

Abstract: A downsized biosensor in which an electrode is formed on one sheet of electrically-insulated substrate, and a sheet of flat substrate is worked three-dimensionally so as to dispose the electrode on the inner side of the substrate to provide a two-dimensional or three-dimensional electrode disposition, whereby a sample introduced by capillary phenomenon can be measured quantitatively in a small space. A production method of a biosensor comprising the steps of bending a plate member so as to position an electrode formed on the surface of the electrically-insulated plane member on the inner side, and disposing the electrode in a space surrounded by a substrate and a cover to thereby form the substrate and the cover from one sheet of plate member.

Abstract: The binding reaction between an affinity substance to be measured and a binding partner having binding affinity for the affinity substance is measured based on agglutination reactions. Carrier particles bound to the binding partner are allowed to bind to the affinity substance in an electric field. Evaluation is achieved by counting the level of agglutinated carrier particles using three-dimensional particle information of the particles as an indicator. The use of three-dimensional information as an indicator enables the presence of a biologically specific reactive substance to be detected or measured in a manner that is more convenient and rapid, and has a higher sensitivity than the conventional measurement methods.

Abstract: The present invention provides an image coding apparatus and an image coding program that execute quantization control so that a generating bit is made close to a target bit. The image coding apparatus according to the present invention includes a generated bit measurement unit, a target bit setting unit, a residual bit computing unit for computing a residual value between the generated bit and the target bit, a remaining video buffer capacity measurement unit, and a quantization parameter computing unit for computing a quantization parameter to set the same to the quantization unit. The quantization parameter computing unit computes a quantization parameter for next image data to be encoded on the basis of at least one of the residual value computed and the remaining video buffer capacity measured.

Abstract: In the motion search in the inter-frame prediction coding, parameters necessary for the motion search, such as sample-point spacing and sample-point number in the step search, are controlled using a unit for calculating the complexity of an image and a unit for estimating the movement amount of the image. This configuration makes it possible to provide the scheme for searching for the high-speed and high-accuracy motion vector, and the image coding device for performing this motion search.

Abstract: A novel biosensor was accomplished using a plasma-polymerized membrane. The biosensor of the present invention is a high-performance biosensor produced by a simpler method and applicable to a wide range of fields.

Abstract: Transfer of fluid substances, and/or substances comprised in fluid substances, is controlled by introducing a separation medium, which prevents transfer of the fluid substances, and/or the substances comprised in the fluid substances, to an intermediate cavity connecting a first cavity and a second cavity; and introducing a connection medium to replace the separation medium and thereby start substance transfer to the second cavity. Substance transfer may be readily controlled without relying on mechanical means. Based on the present invention, two-dimensional electrophoretic analysis can be readily implemented on a chip.

Abstract: An objective of the present invention is to provide electrophoretic separation methods and devices that enable the various features of a substrate surface that comes in contact with an electrophoresis medium to be controlled. The present invention provides methods for electrophoresing substances, which comprises the steps of: (a) adding a substance to be analyzed to an electrophoresis medium retained in a substrate, whose surface that has come in contact with the electrophoresis medium has been coated with a polymer membrane; and (b) adding electrophoretic pressure to the electrophoresis medium. For example, the use of a plasma-polymerized membrane allows the formation of a membrane with homogeneous quality and thickness on the surface of an arbitrary shape. In addition, desired characteristics can be conferred on the surface through selection of monomeric substances. Protein adsorption onto micro-chips can be effectively prevented as well.

Abstract: A is a video encoder includes a data storage for storing a prediction residual, the number of bits of the prediction residual, and a motion vector in each encoded picture, as well as a motion compensator for selecting a motion predict mode from an output of the data storage. The video encoder of the present is intended to solve the conventional problem in which the number of bits in estimation of the number of bits used to select a motion predict mode of the video encoder increases, since the conventional residual bits estimating function is not determined uniquely and the number of bits that depends on the congeniality of each input picture is not always obtained accurately.

Abstract: The biosensors of the present invention comprise an electrically insulating substrate, an electrically insulating cover connected to the substrate via a spacer layer, a reaction-detecting section formed on the substrate at a region sandwiched between the substrate and cover, and comprising at least one set of electrodes, and an external terminal to be connected to the reaction-detecting section, and a sealed sample-feeding path defined between the substrate and cover by the spacer layer, where the sample-feeding path has a portion intersecting the electrodes, as well as a cutting plane line provided at an outermost surface of the substrate or cover, which is a boundary between a sensor portion comprising electrodes and a sealed cap portion which does not comprise electrodes, and the cutting plane line is present at a position where, when the sealed cap portion is cut along the cutting plane line, the cut surface does not cross the electrodes and does cross the sample-feeding path, so that a sample-inlet port

Abstract: A technique for controlling membrane denaturation reactions other than physical shear force was developed. For example, the present invention provides, a method for causing membrane disruption at a specific site by reacting a stimulus such as light with a compound that is activated by the stimulus, where the reaction occurs on a membrane such as a biomembrane. It also provides a membrane structure such as cells in which a specific site has been disrupted, which are obtained by the present method. Introduction of substances such as genes also became possible by using this membrane structure. Further provided is a membrane-destroying member for disrupting a membrane at a specific site. Thus, the present invention enabled, for example, easy membrane penetration using components constituting microelectrodes, micromanipulators, and microinjectors, which were conventionally hardly usable in penetrating cell membranes.

Abstract: A technique for controlling membrane denaturation reactions other than physical shear force was developed. For example, the present invention provides, a method for causing membrane disruption at a specific site by reacting a stimulus such as light with a compound that is activated by the stimulus, where the reaction occurs on a membrane such as a biomembrane. It also provides a membrane structure such as cells in which a specific site has been disrupted, which are obtained by the present method. Introduction of substances such as genes also became possible by using this membrane structure. Further provided is a membrane-destroying member for disrupting a membrane at a specific site. Thus, the present invention enabled, for example, easy membrane penetration using components constituting microelectrodes, micromanipulators, and microinjectors, which were conventionally hardly usable in penetrating cell membranes.

Abstract: An objective of the present invention is to provide a measuring chip for a surface plasmon resonance sensor that can detect a small amount of target substances in high sensitivity. The present invention provides a measuring chip for a surface plasmon resonance sensor comprising a metal layer, one or more plasma polymerization layers formed on said metal layer, and a biologically active substance immobilized on the surface of said plasma polymerization layer.

Abstract: An objective of the present invention is to provide a measuring chip for a surface plasmon resonance sensor that can detect a small amount of target substances in high sensitivity. The present invention provides a measuring chip for a surface plasmon resonance sensor comprising a metal layer, one or more plasma polymerization layers formed on said metal layer, and a biologically active substance immobilized on the surface of said plasma polymerization layer.

Abstract: A technique for controlling membrane denaturation reactions other than physical shear force was developed. For example, the present invention provides, a method for causing membrane disruption at a specific site by reacting a stimulus such as light with a compound that is activated by the stimulus, where the reaction occurs on a membrane such as a biomembrane. It also provides a membrane structure such as cells in which a specific site has been disrupted, which are obtained by the present method. Introduction of substances such as genes also became possible by using this membrane structure. Further provided is a membrane-destroying member for disrupting a membrane at a specific site. Thus, the present invention enabled, for example, easy membrane penetration using components constituting microelectrodes, micromanipulators, and microinjectors, which were conventionally hardly usable in penetrating cell membranes.

Abstract: A method for detecting nucleic acids wherein the binding activity of a nucleic acid aptamer, which is formed by the hybridization of a target nucleotide sequence and a probe, is detected using the binding with a ligand as an index has been provided. Utilizing a structure such as the three-way junction, whose binding activity significantly changes depending on a mismatch of a single nucleotide, as the nucleic acid aptamer SNP can be detected.