Abstract: A method for manufacturing polyhydroxyalkanoate-containing structure, at least a part of a base material surface of the structure being coated with polyhydroxyalkanoate, the method comprises the steps of immobilizing a polyhydroxyalkanoate synthase on the base material surface, synthesizing, on the base material surface, polyhydroxyalkanoate using a 3-hydroxyacyl coenzyme A to become the substrate of the synthase and the synthase and coating at least a part of the base material surface with the synthesized polyhydroxyalkanoate, wherein the synthase contains an amino acid sequence capable of binding to the base material.

Abstract: A polyhydroxyalkanoate having a monomer unit composition represented by General Formula (1): AmB(1−m)  (1)  wherein A is represented by General Formula (2), B is at least one selected from the group consisting of monomer units represented by General Formula (3) or (4), and m has a value of 0.

Abstract: A method is provided for controlling the molecular weight of a polyhydroxyalkanoate containing at least one of a unit: —[OCH((CH2)mR1)CH2C(O)]— (m=1-8; R1 is a residue having a ring structure of any of phenyl and thienyl structure), and a unit: —[OCH((CH2)kC6H1)R2)CH2C(O)]— (k=0-8; R2 denotes a substituent on the cyclohexyl group including H, CN, NO2, halogen atom, CH3, C2H5, C3H7, CF3, C2F5 or C3F7), wherein a microorganism is cultivated in the presence of a hydroxyl group-containing compound, which is capable of producing the polyhydroxyalkanoate from R3(CH2)qCH2CH2COOH (q=1-8; R3 contains a residue having a ring structure of phenyl or thienyl) or R4C6H10(CH2)rCH2CH2COOH (r=0-8; R4 denotes a substituent on the cyclohexyl group including H, CN, NO2, halogen, CH3, C2H5, C3H7, CF3, C2F5, or C3F7).

Abstract: A polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) having a desired configuration is produced using a raw material containing &ohgr;-(4-vinylphenyl)-alkanoic acid and (&ohgr;-substituted alkanoic acid in which a group having a ring structure selected from phenyl, thienyl, and cyclohexyl structures substitutes therefor on the end thereof by producing a PHA copolymer containing the corresponding 3-hydroxy-&ohgr;-(4-vinylphenyl)-alkanoate unit and the corresponding 3-hydroxy-&ohgr;-substituted alkanoate unit by making use of a microorganism capable of producing the PHA or by oxidizing a predetermined portion of the corresponding PHA.

Abstract: Electrophoretic particles for electrophoretic display having excellent dispersibility and dispersion stability with time for insulating media, and being protected against coagulation, settling and the like, a process for production of the electrophoretic particles having high versatility for pigments to be used in response to a full-color display, and an electrophoretic display device using the electrophoretic particles that has an excellent memory property and is highly reliable are provided. The electrophoretic particles are formed using as at least a part of structure a pigment with at least a part of the surface covered with polyhydroxyalkanoate.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method of effectively producing polyhydroxyalkanoate having an aromatic substituted residue in its monomer unit.

Abstract: A polyhydroxyalkanoate having a monomer unit composition represented by General Formula (1):

Abstract: A method is provided for controlling the molecular weight of a polyhydroxyalkanoate containing at least one of a unit: —[OCH((CH2)mR1)CH2C(O)]— (m=1-8; R1 is a residue having a ring structure of any of phenyl and thienyl structure), and a unit: —[OCH ((CH2)kC6H10R2) CH2C(O)]— (k=0-8; R2 denotes a substituent on the cyclohexyl group including H, CN, NO2, halogen atom, CH3, C2H5, C3H7, CF3, C2F5 or C3F7), wherein a microorganism is cultivated in the presence of a hydroxyl group-containing compound, which is capable of producing the polyhydroxyalkanoate from R3(CH2)qCH2CH2COOH (q=1-8; R3 contains a residue having a ring structure of phenyl or thienyl) or R4C6H10(CH2)rCH2CH2COOH (r=0-8; R4 denotes a substituent on the cyclohexyl group including H, CN, NO2, halogen, CH3, C2H5, C3H7, CF3, C2F5, or C3F7).

Abstract: The invention provides coloring composition for color filters making use of a pigment, in which the dispersed state of the pigment is stable without using any surfactant, and so aggregation is hard to occur, and which permits formation of high-definition and high-quality images excellent in color rendition, transparency and contrast, and a simple production process thereof, by which the use of surfactants can be abolished, or the amount of surfactants used can be reduced to a great extent. The coloring composition for color filters is provided by using at least a coloring material obtained by coating at least part of surfaces of pigment particles with polyhydroxyalkanoate, and a dispersion medium for the coloring material.

Abstract: A polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) having a desired configuration is produced using a raw material containing &ohgr;-(4-vinylphenyl)-alkanoic acid and &ohgr;-substituted alkanoic acid in which a group having a ring structure selected from phenyl, thienyl, and cyclohexyl structures substitutes therefor on the end thereof by producing a PHA copolymer containing the corresponding 3-hydroxy-&ohgr;-(4-vinylphenyl)-alkanoate unit and the corresponding 3-hydroxy-&ohgr;-substituted alkanoate unit by making use of a microorganism capable of producing the PHA or by oxidizing a predetermined portion of the corresponding PHA.

Abstract: A micro-capsulated pigment containing pigment ink being excellent in density, fineness, transparency, and coloring and color rendering properties required for ink solutions and having excellent dispersibility and dispersion stability with time due to the reduced particle size is provided. At least a color material with at least part of the surfaces of pigment particles covered with polyhydroxyalkanoate, and a medium for dispersion of the color material are used to obtain the pigment ink.

Abstract: To provide a novel polyhydroxyalkanoate and a manufacturing method by a microorganism capable of substantially reducing unintended monomer units and obtaining the polyhydroxyalkanoate in a high yield. A microorganism capable of synthesizing a novel polyhydroxyalkanoate having 3-hydroxy-substituted benzoylalkanoic acid as a monomer unit using a substituted benzoylalkanoic acid as a material is cultured in the medium containing a substituted benzoylalkanoic acid, then the polyhydroxyalkanoate produced in the cultured bacteria is extracted and recovered.

Abstract: The invention provides polyhydroxyalkanoate having a bromo group in a unit and being thermally stable and capable of arbitrarily controlling physical properties, and a producing method thereof. According to the invention, there are provided a polyhydroxyalkanoate copolymer including a 3-hydroxy-&ohgr;-bromoalkanoic acid unit represented by a formula —[OCH((CH2)nBr)CH2C(O)]— (n=1 to 8) (1) and a unit represented by a formula —[OCH((CH2)mR)CH2C(O)]— (2) within a same molecule, and a method for producing a polyhydroxyalkanoate copolymer by microorganisms, utilizing a &ohgr;-bromoalkanoic acid represented by a formula Br(CH2)pCH2CH2COOH (p=1 to 8) (20) and a compound represented by a formula R(CH2)qCH2CH2COOH (21) as raw materials.

Abstract: The invention provides a particulate construct such as microcapsules containing a drug, and serving a slow releasing preparation not associated with a practically unacceptable initial burst release but showing a practically acceptable zero-order release for a certain period and a producing method for such particulate construct, and a slow releasing preparation of a high drug content capable of stably incorporating the drug in the particulate construct such as microcapsules, and a producing method for such preparation.

Abstract: A microbial polyhydroxyalkanoate which comprises one or more of monomer units represented by Formula (1), 1

Abstract: There is provided means for detecting the presence and predominance of a polyhydroxyalkanoate synthesizing microorganism in a rapid, convenient, specific, and sensitive way. There is provided a method of detecting a PHA synthesizing microorganism having the intended PHA synthetase gene by using the nucleic acid fragment comprising at least partial sequence thereof, based on a base sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:1 to 9 or complementary base sequence thereof, as a probe or primer for detecting a PHA synthetase gene.

Abstract: The present invention provides a PHA (polyhydroxyalkanoate) synthase useful in a process for preparing a PHA, a gene encoding the enzyme, a recombinant vector comprising the gene, a transformant transformed by the vector, a process for producing a PHA synthase utilizing the transformant and a process for preparing a PHA utilizing the transformant. A transformant obtained by introducing a PHA synthase gene from Pseudomonas putida P91 strain into a host microorganism is cultured to produce a PHA synthase or PHA.

Abstract: A polyhydroxyalkanoate having a monomer unit composition represented by General Formula (1): AmB(1−m)  (1) wherein A is represented by General Formula (2), B is at least one selected from the group consisting of monomer units represented by General Formula (3) or (4), and m has a value of 0.

Abstract: Electrostatic charge image developing toner allows to design the toner characteristics such as chargeability, flowability, stability in time and environmental stability uniform among the toners of different colors. The toner has a small particle size enough for enabling uniform dispersion and being excellent in color saturation and transparency. The toner also shows higher contribution to the environmental security. The toner includes a coloring agent of which at least a part of the surface is covered with polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA). The toner is produced by dispersing the coloring agent in aqueous medium, then fixing PHA synthesizing enzyme to the coloring agent dispersed in the aqueous medium, then adding 3-hydroxyacyl CoA, and executing a PHA synthesizing reaction to cover at least a part of the surface of the coloring agent with PHA. The toner thus obtained is used for an image forming method.

Abstract: To provide a structure that has both drug holding capability and sustained releasability a liposome and mechanical strength of polyhydroxyalkanoate, is excellent in holding capability for hydrophilic drugs and other water-soluble substances as well as liphophilic drugs and other hydrophobic substances, and is capable of controlling the sustained releasability. To coat with polyhydroxyalkanoate at least part of the outer wall of the liposome.