The present disclosure relates to a composition for screening an intestinal environment-improving material and a screening method using the composition, and according to the composition and the method of the present disclosure, it is possible to provide an effective analysis method for screening a microbiota-improving candidate material in a personalized manner by providing a method for verifying personalized probiotics, prebiotics, foods, health functional foods and drugs under in vitro conditions based on microbiota and microbiota metabolites.

Described is a method for determining an analyte in a sample suspected to contain the analyte, by a) contacting the sample with a first and a second capture compound for the analyte, wherein the first and second capture compounds are non-identical capture compounds, and the capture compounds compete in binding to the analyte; b) contacting the capture compounds contacted with the sample with a specifier, wherein the specifier competes in binding to the capture compounds with the analyte; c) determining the amount of complexes having the specifier and a capture compound; and d) determining the analyte in a sample based on the result of step c). Also disclosed is a method for improving the specificity of an indirect immunoassay for determining an analyte, as well as kits, devices, and uses related to the methods.

Assays for rapid measurement of total vitamin D in blood are provided. Vitamin D is measured following the rapid and irreversible release of vitamin D due to denaturation and digestion of vitamin D binding proteins by aspartyl peptidases (e.g., pepsin) under acidic conditions. Such measurements may be made using a vitamin D binder (e.g., an antibody) to measure competition between free vitamin D and added, labeled vitamin D. Synergy between denaturation and degradation is believed to provide more rapid and more complete release of vitamin D than would occur with acid or enzyme alone.

Accurate measurements of the presence or absence of a target cell in a sample are provided. For example, the sample can be mixed with a plurality of transduction particles capable of binding to the target cells, the transduction particles being engineered to include a nucleic acid molecule formulated to cause the target cells to produce a plurality of detectable reporter molecules once the particles bind to and deliver the nucleic acid molecules into the one or more target cells. A set of signal data points are received that are associated with a quantity of reporter molecules and the signal data points are analyzed to accurately detect target cells in the sample. Systems and methods are disclosed.

There is provided a separation method in which a target component in a solution can be separated simply but safely and efficiently without contamination from the environment. This method includes: providing a solution containing a target component, and a reaction reagent; while continuously feeding the solution and the reaction reagent to a flow path, intermittently injecting bubbles into the flow path to produce a gas-liquid slug flow in which a mixed liquid containing the solution and the reaction reagent is segmented into a plurality of droplets by the bubbles; continuing the feed of the gas-liquid slug flow in the flow path, thereby facilitating the mixing of the solution and the reaction reagent, and the gasification of the target component by the mixing, in each droplet, and the movement of a target component-derived gas produced by the gasification to the bubbles; and recovering the target component-derived gas with an absorbing liquid.

There is provided a separation method in which a target component in a solution can be separated simply but safely and efficiently without contamination from the environment. This method includes: providing a solution containing a target component, and a reaction reagent; while continuously feeding the solution and the reaction reagent to a flow path, intermittently injecting bubbles into the flow path to produce a gas-liquid slug flow in which a mixed liquid containing the solution and the reaction reagent is segmented into a plurality of droplets by the bubbles; continuing the feed of the gas-liquid slug flow in the flow path, thereby facilitating the mixing of the solution and the reaction reagent, and the gasification of the target component by the mixing, in each droplet, and the movement of a target component-derived gas produced by the gasification to the bubbles; and recovering the target component-derived gas with an absorbing liquid.

The systems of the present invention provide monitoring and recording means for monitoring and maintaining a history of one or more parameters associated with a building or a particular location. The system can be preset with default actions to be conducted as a result of certain events or changes in certain parameters being detected. For example, the water and/or gas utilities can be programmed to shut down if smoke is detected, indicating the possible presence of a fire, or if the temperature drops below freezing temperature. All utilities, including gas, and water can be programmed to shut down in the event that a potentially significant change in a monitored parameter is detected.

Provided are methods of determining a presence or level of soluble mortalin in a body fluid of a subject, and predicting prognosis of a subject diagnosed with cancer (e.g., solid tumor) by determining the presence or level of soluble mortalin in a body fluid of the subject. Also provided are kits for determining presence and/or level of soluble mortalin in a body fluid of the subject and/or predicting prognosis of a subject diagnosed with cancer, comprising at least two distinct antibodies to mortalin directed against different epitopes of said mortalin.

The invention is directed to a method for chemiluminescent sulphur detection wherein the method comprises the following steps. (a) oxidation of a gaseous starting mixture comprising one or more sulphur compounds to obtain an oxidized gas mixture. (b) reduction of the oxidized gas mixture as obtained in step (a) to obtain a gaseous mixture of reduced sulphur compounds in the presence of a ceramic surface. (c) reacting the mixture of reduced sulphur compounds obtained in step (b) with ozone to obtain a sulphur compound in excited state and measuring a chemiluminescent emission of the sulphur compound in excited state to obtain a measure for the amount of sulphur compounds in the gaseous starting mixture. The ceramic surface in step (b) is a magnesium aluminium silicate comprising surface.

A swab material 5 is configured from a knitted body 50 in which fibers 51 formed from a heat-resistant inorganic material are knitted. A surface of an object is wiped off by the swab material 5 to collect a substance, and the swab material 5 is inserted together with the collected substance into a combustion tube provided in a total carbon measurement device. Because the swab material 5 includes the knitted body 50, tip ends of the fibers 51 constituting the knitted body 50 hardly protrude from the surface thereof, and the fibers 51 are not prone to coming apart from each other. Consequently, the surface of the object is hardly damaged when the substance is collected from the surface of the object, and high durability is obtained.