No abstract

Bacillus natto Asahikawa produces a considerable amount of polyglutamate (PGA) and its r-glutamyltranspeptidase (1-GTP) activity is 80 times higher than that of the transformable strain B. subtilis Marburg which cannot produce PGA. The genetic character of high PGA productivity in B. natto Asahikawa was transferred to B, subtilis Marburg by the DNA-mediated transformation. Among transformants that acquired high productivity of stringy substance, 4 strains produced a higher amount of PGA. The activities of 1-GTP from the representative 4 transformants were 20 times higher than the activity of B, subtilis Marburg. These results suggested the presence of correlation between PGA productivity and r-GTP activity, and the presence of a specific gene(s) that participated in the production of PGA in B. natto. "Natto ," produced by Bacillus natto, is one of the most traditional fermentation foods in Japan and consists of polysaccharide (levan-form fructan) and polyglutamate (PGA). The component of its viscous material is mainly r-PGA containing D-and L-glutamate in varying proportions. The proportion of D-and L-isomers was found to be dependent on the amount of manganese ion and the kinds of amino acids in the media (1-4). Low concentrations of Mn2+ in the growth medium favor the L-isomer while high concentrations result in a polymer containing up to 9300 of the D-isomer (4, 5).D-glutamate is known to be one of the components of the cell membrane and therefore it is very interesting that D-and L-forms of glutamate occur in PGA produced by B. natto. A plausible mechanism of the biosynthetic pathway of PGA has been proposed by HOUSEWRIGHT et al. (6, 7) for one of the strains

Treatment of Bacillus natto (Asahikawa) with acridine orange resulted in the conversion of approximately 64.2% of the population to stringiness negative, which is indicative of the involvement of plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). Cleared lysate materials were subjected to agarose gel electrophoresis to determine the plasmid composition of each strain. B. natto (Asahikawa) was found to possess a plasmid of approximately 4.2 megadaltons (Mdal). A 4.2 Mdal plasmid has been found to be missing in the stringiness-negative mutants cured by acridine orange. Gamma-GTP activity was also deficient in the stg-mutants which were missing the 4.2 Mdal plasmid.

Treatment of Bacillus subtilis (natto) strains Asahikawa, F, and M with acridine orange resulted in the conversion of approximately 64.2% of the Asahikawa population, 22.4% of the F population, and 9.2% of the M population to polyglutamate-nonproducing colonies. Such curing is suggestive of the involvement of plasmid DNA. Samples of cleared lysates of both parental and their cured strains were subjected to agarose gel electrophoresis to determine the plasmid composition. Parental strains were found to possess a plasmid, but polyglutamatenonproducing derivatives were missing the plasmid. The plasmid-linked polyglutamate production, which was originally isolated from B. subtilis (natto), could be transformed in B. subtilis.

International peace cooperation plays an important role in international relations. National interests and power balances lead to situations in which national security, human security and peace are often threatened, and international cooperation is required. The desire for peace and security is a motivating factor for states to engage in cooperation and to foster a more stable and secure environment, which in turn will also facilitate further social, political and economic development in individual countries as well as worldwide. Due to globalisation, the interconnectedness and interdependence of states in various contexts has significantly increased. This development has also led to a growing demand and need for cooperation between states to take collective action and to commonly solve regional as well as global challenges, such as peace and relevant security issues but also issues of economic, social and political importance. The aim of this paper is to present a comparative analysis and to give an overview of Japan and the Republic of Korea’s efforts and actions concerning peace cooperation in order to promote regional and global peace between 2000 and 2010-apart from the commonly known international peacekeeping operations. How do both states’ global peace supporting activities compare to each other, and is it possible to identify differences in their approaches towards international peace cooperation?