Abstract: The present invention provides an improving agent for hepatic functions containing a lactoferrin and/or a hydrolysate of lactoferrin and having no side effects.

Abstract: A method for producing a peptide mixture from a starting protein by (1) adding at least one protease to an aqueous solution of at least one starting protein to hydrolyse the starting protein, (2) measuring the amount of a free amino acid selected from the group consisting of lysine, phenylalanine, leucine and arginine produced during the hydrolysis of the starting protein, (3) calculating the amount of the free amino acid with respect to the total amount of amino acid contained in the starting protein, and (4) terminating the hydrolysis when the calculated amount of the free amino acid with respect to the total amount of the amino acid contained in the starting protein falls within a predetermined range. The inventive method provides a starting protein hydrolysate of uniform and consistent quality.

Abstract: A method for producing a peptide mixture from whey protein by (1) adding at least one protease to an aqueous solution of at least one whey protein to hydrolyze the whey protein, (2) measuring the amount of a free amino acid selected from the group consisting of lysine, phenylalanine, leucine and arginine produced during the hydrolysis of the whey protein, (3) calculating the amount of the free amino acid with respect to the total amount of the amino acid contained in the whey protein, and (4) terminating the hydrolysis when the calculated amount of the free amino acid with respect to the total amount of the amino acid contained in the whey protein falls within a predetermined range. The inventive method provides a whey protein hydrolysate of consistent quality.

Abstract: The present invention provides a safe antioxidant applicable for food, drug medicine, non-medical drug and other products.The antioxidant of the present invention contains, as an effective ingredient, an antioxidant substance selected from the group consisting of a hydrolysate of lactoferrin, one or more peptides isolated from a hydrolysate of lactoferrins, one or more synthetic peptides having the same sequence as that of the peptide isolated from the hydrolysate of lactoferrins, and any mixture thereof, or said antioxidant substance and oxidant preventive agent.This antioxidant has an excellent antioxidant action for various lipids, and is very safe even when used in foods and drug medicine. Scince it exhibits antioxidant effect with only small quantity, there is almost no adverse effect on flavor even when applied in foods and the like.

Abstract: A whey protein having a phosphorus content reduced to below 0.15 mg per gram of protein, a manufacturing method thereof, a low-phosphorus hydrolysate highly purified having a low phosphorus content. The method comprises the steps of adjusting pH of the solution containing the whey protein to below 4, and contacting the solution with a cation exchange resin, sequentially contacting the solution with an anion exchange resin, thereby reducing the phosphorus content to below 0.15 mg per gram of protein, and the highly purified low-phosphorus whey protein hydrolysate of the present invention is available by hydrolyzing the above-mentioned low-phosphorus whey protein with proteases.

Abstract: There is disclosed an antimicrobial agent comprising one or more of antimicrobial peptides derived from lactoferrins, and one or more of specific compounds and/or at least an antibiotic, and a method for treating matters with said antimicrobial agent. The antimicrobial agent has a potent antimicrobial activity against wide variety of microorganisms, thus it is useful not only as a medication, but also useful for making antimicrobial treatment of matters such as foods, non-medical products, and the like with safety and great efficiency.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for manufacturing lactulose anhydride, which comprises drying lactulose trihydrate at a temperature within a range of from 45.degree. to 75.degree. C. and a degree of vacuum within a range of from 25 to 100 Torr to remove water of crystallization.The method of the present invention permits manufacture of lactulose anhydride through a simple process, at a high yield and at a low cost, and is therefore suitable for mass production of lactulose anhydride in an industrial scale.

Abstract: The present invention provides an activating agent of digestive tract cells, which contains an epidermal growth factor, lactoferrins, a hydrolysate of the lactoferrins, or a mixture thereof.The activating agent of digestive tract cells of the present invention has such effects as prevention and improvement of a damage to the digestive tract, improvement of digestive tract functions deteriorating with age, and acceleration of growth and proliferation of digestive tract cells of a newborn. It is also possible to add it to, or mixed with, various food products to obtain digestive tract cels activating foods.

Abstract: There is disclosed an immunostimulatory agent comprising a peptide derived from lactoferrin having activity to modulate the release of inflammatory mediators from cells of the immune system. The peptide promotes the release of leukotriene B4 from polymorphonuclear neutrophils induced by activators such as the calcium ionophor A23187, It also promotes the release of histamine from mast cells induced by activators such as .alpha.-toxin-producing Staphylococcus aureus cells or the calcium ionophor A23187. The peptide is effective at low concentrations within the range of 1 to 100 ppm. By promoting the release of such inflammatory mediators the peptide can potentiate the cellular immune response and stimulate the host defense against infectious disease. This newly discovered immunostimulatory agent is useful as an active component of pharmaceuticals, hygiene products, clinical foods, etc., for prevention and treatment of bacterial, fungal, and viral infectious in humans and animals.

Abstract: Lactoferrin hydrolyzates, having a decomposition rate between 6%-20% as measured by formol titration, for use as an antibacterial agent, and which have remarkably more potent activity than unhydrolyzed lactoferrin; and lactoferrin hydrolyzates, having a decomposition rate between 4-50% as measured by formol titration, for use as a tyrosinase inhibition agent, are obtainable by conventional methods for hydrolysis with acids or enzymes, and are stable to heating.

Abstract: Bioactive agents, having growth-promoting activity upon Bifidobacteria, consisting of one or more lactoferrin-compounds selected from the group consisting of bovine lactoferrin, bovine apolactoferrin and bovine Fe-lactoferrin, which can be used as it is as agents to promote proliferation of Bifidobacteria both in vivo and in vitro, and as additives to prepare compositions, materials and products to afford growth-promoting activity thereto, and to improve survivability of Bifidobacteria, if contained therein.

Abstract: Lactoferricin (Trade Mark), also called LFCIN (Trade Mark), a potent antimicrobial peptide, is produced by contacting an enzymatic hydrolysate of bovine lactoferrin or any mixture of peptides containing lactoferricin preferably with a butyl moiety-containing hydrophobic interaction chromatography medium, or alternatively with a carboxymethyl moiety-containing cation-exchange chromatography medium, rinsing the medium to remove unbound peptides, desorbing the lactoferricin solution at constant pH, and desalting the desorbed solution. The utility of the process is illustrated, for example, as follows. An enzymatic hydrolysate of bovine lactoferrin (600 g) was contacted with 3000 ml of BUTYL-TOYOPEARL 650M, the medium was rinsed with water, and then with McIlvaine (citric acid-sodium phosphate) buffer at pH 7.0., and lactoferricin was desorbed with McIlvaine buffer at pH 5.0.

Abstract: A crystalline lactulose trihydrate having molecular formula of C.sub.12 H.sub.22 O.sub.11.3H.sub.2 O and a method for its manufacture, which comprises crystallization from a lactulose syrup at a temperature of 2.degree.-20.degree. C., the starting lactulose syrup having a lactulose content of 70-90% of a total solid matters by weight, and having been concentrated to the total solid matters of 65-75% by weight and a ratio of lactose to water of less than 10% by weight.

Abstract: Bioactive agents consisting of one or more lactoferrin-compounds selected from the group consisting of Zn-, Cu- and Mn-lactoferrin and having selective biological activities, i.e. growth-inhibitory activity against certain harmful microorganisms on one hand and growth-promoting activity upon certain useful microorganisms on the other hand; as well as compositions, products or materials therefor comprising the bioactive agents consisting of one or more lactoferrin-compounds selected from the group; and a method for treating materials, which are edible for human beings or animals or which are applicable to a portion of body of human beings or animals, with the bioactive agents consisting of one or more lactoferrin-compounds selected from the group consisting of Zn-, Cu- and Mn-lactoferrin or the compositions comprising the bioactive agent consisting of one or more lactoferrin-compounds selected from the group consisting of Zn-, Cu- and Mn-lactoferrin as an effective component.

Abstract: An agent for tyrosinase inhibition which contains the effective quantity of enzymatic hydrolyzates of milk proteins, having a decomposition rate from 6% to 55% as expressed by the percentage of formol nitrogen to total nitrogen.

Abstract: Lactoferrin hydrolyzates, having a decomposition rate between 6%-20% as measured by formol titration, for use as an antibacterial agent and which have remarkly more potent activity than unhydrolyzed lactoferrin; and lactoferrin hydrolyzates, having a decomposition rate between 4-50% as measured by formol titration, for use as a tyrosinase inhibition agent, are obtainable by conventional methods for hydrolysis with acids or enzymes, and are stable to heating.

Abstract: A composition of feedstuff containing at least 0.5 wt. %, in solid content, of residual liquid of incubated culture broth of Bifido-bacteria and/or lactic acid bacteria which residual liquid is obtainable as the waste by-product of mass production of living or viable cell mass of the microorganisms by substantially excluding microbial cell mass from the incubated culture broth thereof.

Abstract: A grandular product is prepared by fluidizing core material such as saccharide in a granulating chamber, spraying melted binding material such as fat to the fluidized core material and concurrently feeding dried viable microorganism cells such as bifidobacterium towards the fluidized core material to form a granular product having stratified structure by adhering microorganism cells on the periphery of the core material. Since the product is prevented from permeation of atmospheric oxygen and environmental moisture, the cell survival rate of the product is higher than that of the conventional product during prolonged storage periods.

Abstract: A method of determining the viable bacterial count of food which comprises incubating said food in a liquified agar medium which contains from 0.005 to 0.1 gram per liter of said liquified agar medium 2, 3, 5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride as an inhibitor of bacteria colony spreading, and counting the bacteria colonies.