Patents by Inventor Masako Ichikawa

Masako Ichikawa has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Publication number: 20240052358
    Abstract: A method of producing transformed cell or plant body of maize includes overexpressing, in a cell or plant body of maize, 1) a nucleic acid encoding an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, or a nucleic acid encoding a polypeptide including an amino acid sequence having at least 95% sequence identity with the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 2, the polypeptide having a function of promoting cell division of maize, or 2) a nucleic acid encoding an amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15, or a nucleic acid encoding a polypeptide including an amino acid sequence having at least 95% sequence identity with the amino acid sequence of SEQ ID NO: 15, the polypeptide having a function of promoting cell division of maize, the overexpressing being controlled by a promoter including a 35S promoter of Cauliflower mosaic virus.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 27, 2021
    Publication date: February 15, 2024
    Inventors: Yuji ISHIDA, Masako ICHIKAWA
  • Publication number: 20190390207
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for introducing a substance into a plant. The method of the present invention comprises introducing a substance into a plant germ cell with incomplete cell wall formation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: January 31, 2018
    Publication date: December 26, 2019
    Applicants: JAPAN TOBACCO INC., RIKEN, TOKYO METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY
    Inventors: Norio KATO, Masako ICHIKAWA, Takashi OKAMOTO, Narumi KOISO, Takatoshi KIBA, Erika TODA
  • Patent number: 8957190
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a solid support having a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein attached thereto. The present invention also relates to the use of the solid support of the present invention having a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein attached thereto. The present invention further relates to technical fields such as purification, concentration, detection and/or capture of a biotin-linked substance by means of a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein. Such a biotin-binding protein used in the solid support of the present invention is heat-resistant and is therefore useful for use in assay systems involving exposure to a temperature of 70° C. or more.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 11, 2013
    Date of Patent: February 17, 2015
    Assignee: Japan Tobacco Inc.
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu Takakura, Satoru Usami, Masako Ichikawa
  • Publication number: 20130309691
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a solid support having a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein attached thereto. The present invention also relates to the use of the solid support of the present invention having a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein attached thereto. The present invention further relates to technical fields such as purification, concentration, detection and/or capture of a biotin-linked substance by means of a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein. Such a biotin-binding protein used in the solid support of the present invention is heat-resistant and is therefore useful for use in assay systems involving exposure to a temperature of 70° C. or more.
    Type: Application
    Filed: July 11, 2013
    Publication date: November 21, 2013
    Applicant: JAPAN TOBACCO INC.
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu TAKAKURA, Satoru USAMI, Masako ICHIKAWA
  • Patent number: 8372617
    Abstract: The present invention provides an extremely useful and novel ?-galactoside-?2,6-sialyltransferase having an optimum reaction pH in a neutral to alkaline range, and a nucleic acid encoding the sialyltransferase. The present invention further provides a vector carrying a nucleic acid encoding the sialyltransferase, and a host cell transformed with the vector, as well as a method for producing a recombinant ?-galactoside-?2,6-sialyltransferase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 25, 2012
    Date of Patent: February 12, 2013
    Assignee: Japan Tobacco Inc.
    Inventors: Takeshi Yamamoto, Yoshimitsu Takakura, Toshiki Mine, Yoko Hamada, Hitomi Kajiwara, Masako Ichikawa, Hiroshi Tsukamoto
  • Patent number: 8343727
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method of binding a protein to a carrier in such a way that the protein is not impaired in its function but can be allowed to act more efficiently than when it is bound directly. The method of the present invention for binding a protein to a carrier comprises: preparing a biotin-bound carrier; preparing a fusion protein having the protein bound to a tamavidin; and binding the protein to the carrier via tamavidin-biotin bonds.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 28, 2008
    Date of Patent: January 1, 2013
    Assignee: Japan Tobacco Inc.
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu Takakura, Masako Ichikawa, Satoru Usami, Takeshi Yamamoto, Hiroshi Tsukamoto, Hitomi Kajiwara, Naomi Oka
  • Publication number: 20120282659
    Abstract: The present invention provides an extremely useful and novel ?-galactoside-?2,6-sialyltransferase having an optimum reaction pH in a neutral to alkaline range, and a nucleic acid encoding the sialyltransferase. The present invention further provides a vector carrying a nucleic acid encoding the sialyltransferase, and a host cell transformed with the vector, as well as a method for producing a recombinant ?-galactoside-?2,6-sialyltransferase.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 25, 2012
    Publication date: November 8, 2012
    Inventors: Takeshi Yamamoto, Yoshimitsu Takakura, Toshiki Mine, Yoko Hamada, Hitomi Kajiwara, Masako Ichikawa, Hiroshi Tsukamoto
  • Patent number: 8304236
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a modified biotin-binding protein. The modified biotin-binding protein of the present invention includes an amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 2, an amino acid sequence having one to several amino acid mutations in the sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 2, or an amino acid sequence having 80% or more identity to the sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 2, and having a biotin-binding activity, wherein at least one residue selected from the group consisting of: 1) an arginine residue at position 104 of SEQ ID NO: 2; 2) a lysine residue at position 141 of SEQ ID NO: 2; 3) a lysine residue at position 26 of SEQ ID NO: 2; and 4) a lysine residue at position 73 of SEQ ID NO: 2 is replaced with an acidic amino acid residue or a neutral amino acid residue.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: August 13, 2009
    Date of Patent: November 6, 2012
    Assignee: Japan Tobacco Inc.
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu Takakura, Masako Ichikawa
  • Patent number: 8187853
    Abstract: The present invention provides an extremely useful and novel ?-galactoside-?2,6-sialyltransferase having an optimum reaction pH in a neutral to alkaline range, and a nucleic acid encoding the sialyltransferase. The present invention further provides a vector carrying a nucleic acid encoding the sialyltransferase, and a host cell transformed with the vector, as well as a method for producing a recombinant ?-galactoside-?2,6-sialyltransferase.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 3, 2008
    Date of Patent: May 29, 2012
    Assignee: Japan Tobacco Inc.
    Inventors: Takeshi Yamamoto, Yoshimitsu Takakura, Toshiki Mine, Yoko Hamada, Hitomi Kajiwara, Masako Ichikawa, Hiroshi Tsukamoto
  • Publication number: 20110263824
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a modified biotin-binding protein. The modified biotin-binding protein of the present invention includes an amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 2, an amino acid sequence having one to several amino acid mutations in the sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 2, or an amino acid sequence having 80% or more identity to the sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 2, and having a biotin-binding activity, wherein at least one residue selected from the group consisting of: 1) an arginine residue at position 104 of SEQ ID NO: 2; 2) a lysine residue at position 141 of SEQ ID NO: 2; 3) a lysine residue at position 26 of SEQ ID NO: 2; and 4) a lysine residue at position 73 of SEQ ID NO: 2 is replaced with an acidic amino acid residue or a neutral amino acid residue.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 13, 2009
    Publication date: October 27, 2011
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu Takakura, Masako Ichikawa
  • Publication number: 20110053250
    Abstract: The present invention provides a novel method that can increase readily a virus or viral vector concentration in a solution having a low concentration and a kit for performing the method. Conventional methods require complicated operations, expensive equipment, or highly trained experts for efficiently concentrating viruses from low-concentration virus solutions. The method of the present invention can concentrate viral vectors readily while maintaining infection abilities of the viral vectors, and thus it can be used as a safe and simple technique for concentrating a vector useful in the field of a genetic therapy or a vaccine therapy using a viral vector.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 31, 2009
    Publication date: March 3, 2011
    Applicants: Japan Tobacco Inc., Virus Ikagaku Kenkyusho Inc.
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu Takakura, Masako Ichikawa, Kazuhiro Kondo, Akihiro Shimizu
  • Publication number: 20110053145
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of quantitatively determining the number of human herpesvirus (HHV) collected from a body fluid and a kit for performing the method. Conventionally, a trained technician has been required to accurately quantitatively determine a number of HHV collected from a body fluid. The method of the present invention is a novel method of quantitative determination that enables measurement of a number of HHV in a body fluid to be simply, accurately, and efficiently determined. The method of the present invention can enable continuous evaluation of the number of HHV in body fluids and, therefore, can be applied to quantitative evaluation of the accumulation of fatigue.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 31, 2009
    Publication date: March 3, 2011
    Applicants: JAPAN TOBACCO INC., VIRUS IKAGAKU KENKYUSHO INC.
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu Takakura, Masako Ichikawa, Kazuhiro Kondo, Akihiro Shimizu
  • Publication number: 20100330701
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a solid support having a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein attached thereto. The present invention also relates to the use of the solid support of the present invention having a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein attached thereto. The present invention further relates to technical fields such as purification, concentration, detection and/or capture of a biotin-linked substance by means of a heat-resistant biotin-binding protein. Such a biotin-binding protein used in the solid support of the present invention is heat-resistant and is therefore useful for use in assay systems involving exposure to a temperature of 70° C. or more.
    Type: Application
    Filed: December 28, 2007
    Publication date: December 30, 2010
    Applicant: Japan Tobacco Inc.
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu Takakura, Satoru Usami, Masako Ichikawa
  • Publication number: 20100311076
    Abstract: The present invention provides a method of binding a protein to a carrier in such a way that the protein is not impaired in its function but can be allowed to act more efficiently than when it is bound directly. The method of the present invention for binding a protein to a carrier comprises: preparing a biotin-bound carrier; preparing a fusion protein having the protein bound to a tamavidin; and binding the protein to the carrier via tamavidin-biotin bonds.
    Type: Application
    Filed: August 28, 2008
    Publication date: December 9, 2010
    Inventors: Yoshimitsu Takakura, Masako Ichikawa, Satoru Usami, Takeshi Yamamoto, Hiroshi Tsukamoto, Hitomi Kajiwara, Naomi Oka
  • Publication number: 20100112616
    Abstract: The present invention provides an extremely useful and novel ?-galactoside-?2,6-sialyltransferase having an optimum reaction pH in a neutral to alkaline range, and a nucleic acid encoding the sialyltransferase. The present invention further provides a vector carrying a nucleic acid encoding the sialyltransferase, and a host cell transformed with the vector, as well as a method for producing a recombinant ?-galactoside-?2,6-sialyltransferase.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 3, 2008
    Publication date: May 6, 2010
    Applicant: JAPAN TOBACCO INC.
    Inventors: Takeshi Yamamoto, Yoshimitsu Takakura, Toshiki Mine, Yoko Hamada, Hitomi Kajiwara, Masako Ichikawa, Hiroshi Tsukamoto
  • Patent number: 4899386
    Abstract: For use in deciding optimum pole and zero parameters for an input signal with reference to an input cepstrum of the signal, candidate pole and zero parameters are stored in advance in a table. Supplied with an impulse and controlled by a candidate set pair of a pole parameter set and a zero parameter set selected from the candidate pole and zero parameters of the table, first and second filters produce first and second outputs defined by terms of up to a certain order. Responsive to the first and second outputs and to factors of multiplication which are given by inverse numbers of time intervals related to the respective terms, an analysis filter produces a converted signal which is equivalent to a model output cepstrum of a model output signal produced by a pole-zero model defined by the candidate set pair. A cepstrum subtracter calculates a cepstrum difference between the input cepstrum and the converted signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 11, 1988
    Date of Patent: February 6, 1990
    Assignee: NEC Corporation
    Inventors: Masako Ichikawa, Yukio Mitome