Abstract: An assay method for a component in a specimen containing any one of ATP, deamide-NAD and an amide donor which comprises performing a main reaction which comprises incubating the specimen with NAD synthetase in the presence of ATP, deamide-NAD, an amide donor and Mg.sup.++ to generate NAD; performing a coenzyme cycling reaction by combining the oxidation-reduction reaction system with coenzyme NAD and the oxidation-reduction reaction system with coenzyme reduced NAD, and measuring a consumed or generated component in the cycling reaction. The NAD synthetase can be produced by culturing the microorganism Bacillus licheniformis B-0844 FERM P-6809, in a culture medium, and isolating the thus-produced NAD synthetase therefrom.

Abstract: An assay method for a component in a specimen containing any one of ATP, deamide-NAD and an amide donor which comprises performing a main reaction which comprises incubating the specimen with NAD synthetase in the presence of ATP, deamide-NAD, an amide donor and Mg.sup.++ to generate NAD; performing a coenzyme-cycling reeaction by combining the oxidation-reduction reaction system with coenzyme NAD and the oxidation-reduction reaction system with coenzyme reduced NAD, and measuring a consumed or generated component in the cycling reaction. The NAD synthetase can be produced by culturing the microorganism Bacillus licheniformis B-0844 FERM P-6809, in a culture medium, and isolating the thus-produced NAD synthetase therefrom.

Abstract: An enzyme which acts on a reducing terminal of a monosaccharide or oligosaccharide without requiring NAD or NADP and which catalyzes the reaction ##STR1## wherein R is a saccharide chain residue or hydrogen, A is a hydrogen acceptor other than NAD or NADP, AH or AHn is a reduced form acceptor and n is 1 or 2. This maltose dehydrogenase is produced by culturing a microorganism belonging to genus Staphylococcus, specifically, sp. B-0875 FERM BP-385, and isolating the thus-produced maltose dehydrogenase from the culture medium. An assay method for the determination of saccharide or the activity of a saccharide liberating enzyme, comprises reacting this enzyme with a substrate in the presence of a hydrogen acceptor, and measuring the amount of a detectable change.

Abstract: L-glutamic acid oxidase having the following biochemical properties:(a) substrate specificity: L-glutamic acid,(b) enzyme action: catalyzes a reaction which forms one mole of .alpha.-ketoglutaric acid, one mole of ammonia and one mole of hydrogen peroxide from one mole of L-glutamic acid, one mole of oxygen and one mole of water, as follows: ##STR1## This oxidase is produced by culturing microorganisms belonging to genus Streptomyces in a nutrient medium and isolating the thus-produced L-glutamic acid oxidase. Particular microorganisms of genus Streptomyces are sp. A7700 FERM P-6241 (NRRL No. 15267) and sp. 8063 FERM P-6242 (NRRL No. 15268). The oxidase can be used for detecting L-glutamic acid or L-glutamate, in an aqueous sample, because it catalyzes a reaction which forms one mole of .alpha.-ketoglutaric acid, one mole of ammonia and one mole of hydrogen peroxide from one mole of glutamic acid, one mole of oxygen and one mole of water.

Abstract: An enzyme having enoyl-CoA hydratase activity, 3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase activity and 3-ketoacyl-CoA thiolase activity, all in the same enzyme, is produced by culturing the microorganism strain Pseudomonas fragi B-0771 FERM-P No. 5701, and isolating the enzyme thus produced from the culture medium. Such an enzyme is useful in an assay method for a fatty acid component in a sample, which fatty acid is originally present in the sample or is liberated from a fatty acid ester in the sample, comprising:(a) converting the fatty acid to acyl-CoA;(b) converting the thus-produced acyl-CoA to dehydroacyl-CoA;(c) converting the thus-produced dehydroacyl-CoA to hydroxyacyl-CoA;(d) converting the thus-produced hydroxyacyl-CoA to ketoacyl-CoA;(e) converting the thus-produced ketoacyl-CoA to acyl-CoA; and measuring the detectable changes in the reaction mixture.

Abstract: An assay method for amylase activity in a biological specimen such as serum, saliva or urine. The enzyme amylase in the specimen is used to decompose a substrate which is a glucose polymer having a modified reducing terminal glucose residue or a cyclic glucose polymer. A component of the decomposed substrate is measured as an indication of amylase activity in the specimen. The residue may be amylose, amylopectin, starch, starch hydrolyzate, an etherified reducing terminal, an esterified reducing terminal, gluconolactone or a gluconic acid residue or its derivative. Decomposed substrate assay may be effected by contacting the same with maltose dehydrogenase and NAD or NADP, whereupon the assay is performed by measuring the amount of reduced NAD or reduced NADP, by reacting the same with reduced-form hydrogen transport colorimetric reaction reagent. This reagent may be a tetrazolium salt and diaphorase, or tetrazolium salt and phenazinemethosulfate.

Abstract: L-amino acid oxidase is obtained by culturing a microorganism which can produce L-amino acid oxidase and belongs to the genus Colletotrichum, e.g. Colletotrichum sp. M5073, deposition number FERMP 5441, in a culturing medium and recovering the oxidase from cells of the microorganism.

Abstract: A process for the production of acyl-Coenzyme A oxidase, comprises culturing an acyl-Coenzyme A-oxidase-producing microorganism belonging to genus Macrophomina, genus Cladosporium, genus Aspergillus, genus Monascus, genus Saccharomyces or genus Arthrobacter in a nutrient medium, and isolating the thus-formed acyl-CoA oxidase therefrom. The preferred species of microorganism are Macrophomina phaseoli ATCC 14383, Cladosporium resinae IFO 6367, Aspergillus candidus M-4815 FERM-P No. 5226, Monascus sp. M-4800 FERM-P No. 5225, Saccharomyces cerevisiae Y 0036 FERM-P No. 5174, and Arthrobacter sp. B-720 FERM-P No. 5224, respectively.

Abstract: Ascorbate oxidase is produced by extraction from plants of the genus Sechium, particularly the species thereof which is Sechium edule Sw. The crushed plant tissues are extracted with an aqueous alkaline solvent, preferably at about pH 11. The extract is then subjected to centrifugation, concentration under vacuum, salting out with ammonium sulfate and solvent fractionation with acetone, to prepare crude ascorbate oxidase, which is then further purified by dialysis, ion exchange chromatography, adsorption chromatography and gel filtration. The ascorbate oxidase thus obtained has an optimum pH of about 7, a km value of 0.3 mM, an isoelectric point of around pH 6.3 and a molecular weight of about 100,000.

Abstract: In a color printing method, a color photosensitive material is exposed in the photographing step to object illuminating light, which is recorded thereon as an optical density by photographic treatments. In the printing step, the optical density is detected to determine blue, green and red exposures, which cause the object illuminating light to be reproduced on a color positive photosensitive material so as to have neutal gray or to be colored to a standard color. An object image on the color/photosensitive material is printed on the color positive photosensitive material with the most suitable color reproduction with the same three-color component exposures as those determined in printing the object illuminating light.

Abstract: In a color printing method, a color photosensitive material is exposed in the photographing step to object illuminating light, which is recorded thereon as an optical density by photographic treatments. In the printing step, the optical density is detected to determine blue, green and red exposures, which cause the object illuminating light to be reproduced on a color positive photosensitive material so as to have neutral gray or to be colored to a standard color. An object image on the color photosensitive material is printed on the color positive photosensitive material with the most suitable color reproduction with the same three-color component exposures as those determined in printing the object illuminating light.

Abstract: A method of bleaching an imagewise exposed and then developed silver halide photosensitive material for color photography wherein said material contains a red sensitive silver halide emulsion layer having at least one of a particular group of compounds and treating said photosensitive material with a bleaching or bleach-fixing solution containing an organic metal chelate compound.

Abstract: Novel light-sensitive silver halide photographic materials comprising at least one sensitizing dye having the following formula: ##STR1## wherein Z represents a non-metallic atom group necessary for completing a three membered heterocyclic ring, R represents an alkyl or a substituted alkyl radical, R.sub.1 and R.sub.2 represent hydrogen atoms or lower alkyl radicals, R.sub.3 represents a hydrogen atom, an alkyl or alkoxyl radical, m represents an integer of 0 or 1, X represents an acid anion and forms an inner salt when m is 0, and n represents an integer of 1 or 2.

Abstract: A silver halide photosensitive element using specifically defined yellow, magenta and cyan color couplers in the individual respectively blue, green and red-sensitive layers.

Abstract: A process for the preparation of silver halide photographic emulsions, characterized in that a water-soluble rhodium salt and an effective stabilizing amount of a compound taken from the class consisting of adenine, guanine, uracil, cytosine and thymine is added to a silver halide photographic emulsion prior to completion of the physical ripening thereof.