Publications by authors named "Yasuko Kawamata"

Plasma glutamate concentrations are constant despite dynamic changes in diets. Most likely, virtually all the dietary glutamate is metabolized in the gut. The present study investigated permeability and metabolism of dietary glutamate in a Caco-2 intestinal epithelial cell layer model by tracing the fate of [U-C] or [N]glutamate added to the apical medium.

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is a genus of protein-rich aquatic plants. Mankai, a cultivated strain of , contains more than 40 % protein based on dry matter evaluation. Furthermore, Mankai is nutritionally excellent as a food material, and is expected to be applicable to various products as a substitute for animal protein.

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In response to the lack of authenticated mutagenicity/genotoxicity studies on MSG monohydrate, a series of genotoxicity studies conducted under GLP and according to globally accepted test guidelines (e.g., OECD) was performed.

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Although previous growth studies in rodents have indicated the importance of dietary nonessential amino acids (NEAAs) as nitrogen sources, individual NEAAs have different growth-promoting activities. This phenomenon might be attributable to differences in the nitrogen metabolism of individual NEAAs. The aim of this study was to compare nitrogen metabolism across dietary NEAAs with the use of their N isotopologues.

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To examine 4-week toxicity of l-methionine (methionine), 5-week-old Fisher strain male rats were fed on diets containing 0, 0.1, 0.3, 0.

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6-Aminoquinolyl-N-hydroxysuccinimidyl carbamate (AQC) is an amino acid-specific derivatizing reagent that has been used for sensitive amino acid quantification by liquid chromatography-tandem quadrupole mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). In this study, we aimed to evaluate the ability of this method to measure the isotopic enrichment of amino acids and to determine the positional (15)N enrichment of urea cycle amino acids (i.e.

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The use of monosodium glutamate (MSG) as a flavor enhancer spans more than 100 y and there are many studies indicating the safety of general use of MSG. Recently, however, Collison et al. (2010) reported a two-generation study with a low dose of MSG that caused abdominal obesity, insulin resistance and dyslipidemia in mice.

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Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) are circulating nutrient signals for protein accretion, however, they increase in obesity and elevations appear to be prognostic of diabetes. To understand the mechanisms whereby obesity affects BCAAs and protein metabolism, we employed metabolomics and measured rates of [1-(14)C]-leucine metabolism, tissue-specific protein synthesis and branched-chain keto-acid (BCKA) dehydrogenase complex (BCKDC) activities. Male obese Zucker rats (11-weeks old) had increased body weight (BW, 53%), liver (107%) and fat (∼300%), but lower plantaris and gastrocnemius masses (-21-24%).

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Although previous studies have shown that virtually the entire carbon skeleton of dietary glutamate (glutamate-C) is metabolized in the gut for energy production and amino acid synthesis, little is known regarding the fate of dietary glutamate nitrogen (glutamate-N). In this study, we hypothesized that dietary glutamate-N is an effective nitrogen source for amino acid synthesis and investigated the fate of dietary glutamate-N using [(15)N]glutamate. Fischer male rats were given hourly meals containing [U-(13)C]- or [(15)N]glutamate.

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A subchronic feeding study of l-serine (l-Ser) was conducted with groups of 10 male and 10 female Fischer 344 rats fed a powder diet containing 0, 0.06, 0.5, 1.

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Although many animal studies have reported that dietary excess of methionine causes toxic changes including growth suppression and hemolytic anemia, the biochemical mechanism and biomarkers for methionine toxicity have not been well elucidated. The present study aimed to identify toxicity biomarkers from plasma metabolites in rats fed excessive methionine. Young growing rats were fed graded doses of additional methionine for 2 wk.

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