Intestinal microflora at 4 months of age and the development of allergy

Background: Because microflora has been reported to have an important effect on the development of allergic disorders, we measured intestinal microflora levels in 4-month-old infants and studied the development of allergic disorders. Methods: Blood samples from 18 4-month-old infants and 15 1-year-old infants were examined for total serum IgE and specific IgE antibodies. Stool samples from 18 4-month-old infants were examined for the presence of microflora. Results: A positive correlation was observed between the ratio of breast-feeding at 1 month and the percentage of bifidobacteria in the intestine at 4 months (correlation ratio = 0.54; P = 0.022). Atopic dermatitis was observed in 12 of 18 infants at 4 months and in five of 15 infants at 1 year. Egg white-specific IgE was positive (≥0.70 UA/mL) in six infants at 4 months and in seven infants at 1 year. No relationship was observed between the percentage of bifidobacteria, lactobacilli or clostridia in the intestinal tract at 4 months and the development of allergy. However, all five infants who exhibited a percentage of bacter- oides (compared with the total intestinal microflora level) of more than 10% at 4 months had positive egg white-specific IgE and higher levels of total IgE (>25 IU/mL) at 1 year; these relationships were statistically significant (P = 0.01). Conclusions: Colonization with bacteroides at 4 months of age is suggested to be related to the allergic state at 1 year of age

Small Imaging Depth LIDAR and DCNN-Based Localization for Automated Guided Vehicle

We present our third prototype sensor and a localization method for Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs), for which small imaging LIght Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) and fusion-based localization are fundamentally important. Our small imaging LIDAR, named the Single-Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) LIDAR, uses a time-of-flight method and SPAD arrays. A SPAD is a highly sensitive photodetector capable of detecting at the single-photon level, and the SPAD LIDAR has two SPAD arrays on the same chip for detection of laser light and environmental light. Therefore, the SPAD LIDAR simultaneously outputs range image data and monocular image data with the same coordinate system and does not require external calibration among outputs. As AGVs travel both indoors and outdoors with vibration, this calibration-less structure is particularly useful for AGV applications. We also introduce a fusion-based localization method, named SPAD DCNN, which uses the SPAD LIDAR and employs a Deep Convolutional Neural Network (DCNN). SPAD DCNN can fuse the outputs of the SPAD LIDAR: range image data, monocular image data and peak intensity image data. The SPAD DCNN has two outputs: the regression result of the position of the SPAD LIDAR and the classification result of the existence of a target to be approached. Our third prototype sensor and the localization method are evaluated in an indoor environment by assuming various AGV trajectories. The results show that the sensor and localization method improve the localization accuracy

Single-Photon Avalanche Diode with Enhanced NIR-Sensitivity for Automotive LIDAR Systems

A single-photon avalanche diode (SPAD) with enhanced near-infrared (NIR) sensitivity has been developed, based on 0.18 μm CMOS technology, for use in future automotive light detection and ranging (LIDAR) systems. The newly proposed SPAD operating in Geiger mode achieves a high NIR photon detection efficiency (PDE) without compromising the fill factor (FF) and a low breakdown voltage of approximately 20.5 V. These properties are obtained by employing two custom layers that are designed to provide a full-depletion layer with a high electric field profile. Experimental evaluation of the proposed SPAD reveals an FF of 33.1% and a PDE of 19.4% at 870 nm, which is the laser wavelength of our LIDAR system. The dark count rate (DCR) measurements shows that DCR levels of the proposed SPAD have a small effect on the ranging performance, even if the worst DCR (12.7 kcps) SPAD among the test samples is used. Furthermore, with an eye toward vehicle installations, the DCR is measured over a wide temperature range of 25–132 °C. The ranging experiment demonstrates that target distances are successfully measured in the distance range of 50–180 cm

Chewing Lice Found on Captive Tufted Puffin, Fratercula cirrhata

During the postmortem of tufted puffin chicks (Fratercula cirrhata), who died a few days after hatching in the aquarium, a large number of chewing lice were collected. These lice were identified as Quadraceps helgovauki (Philopteridae) based on morphological caracteristics. This is the first record of Q. helgovauki from F. cirrhata and in Japan.国内水族館で飼育され、孵化後3日で死亡したエトピリカ(Fratercula cirrhata)のヒナの剖検において、多数のハジラミ類が採集された。ハジラミは形態学的にニシツノメドリから報告のある Quadraceps helgovaukiと同定された。本種はエトピリカから初めて記録され、また国内初記録であった