Probiotics, Prebiotics, and Biogenics for the Stomach

Recently, many studies concerning probiotics, prebiotics, and biogenics have been performed, whereas only a few are related to the stomach (about 2% as publication number). In this chapter, we focus on recent studies on probiotics, prebiotics, and biogenics for the stomach and also describe our recent research on a novel strain of lactobacillus beneficial to stomach, Lactobacillus johnsonii No.1088 (LJ88). As probiotics for the stomach, some beneficial strains were summarized, and underlying mechanisms of anti-Helicobacter pylori activity were discussed. Prebiotics for the stomach were considered as a future potential target, since no indigenous bacteria beneficial to the stomach have been found to date. As biogenics, some plant-derived candidates were discussed. In this context, recent results on LJ88 lactobacillus were presented. Orally administered LJ88 inhibited H. pylori growth and the increase in the number of gastrin-producing cells, which side effect is caused by triple therapy for H. pylori. LJ88 had no resistance to typical antibiotics, and both living and heat-killed forms of it increased the number of bifidobacteria among human intestinal-microbiota in mice. These results suggest that LJ88 is a lactobacillus beneficial to both stomach and intestine as a probiotic and biogenic

Gender difference in the relationships between vision and hearing impairments and negative well-being.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the association of hearing impairment, vision impairment and their combination (dual sensory impairment) with negative well-being such as depression, subjective poor health and the reduced functional ability in community-dwelling older adults, and to determine whether any association varies by gender. METHODS: Between 2005 and 2006, we objectively examined vision and hearing impairment (using best-corrected visual acuity and pure-tone audiometric test) in 843 people aged 65 years and older (351 males, 492 females) in a rural Japanese town. Through a home visit interview survey using a structured questionnaire, we also collected information on depression (the five-item Geriatric Depression Scale), subjective poor health, and reduced functional activity (the Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology's Index of Competence). RESULTS: We observed gender differences in the association between sensory impairment and depression. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that hearing impairment in males (adjusted odds ratio: 2.22, 95% confidence interval; 1.07-4.61) and vision impairment in females (1.91, 1.14-3.21) were related to depression. Vision impairment and dual sensory impairment were also associated with subjective poor health and reduced functional activity in both sexes. CONCLUSIONS: Sensory impairment is significantly associated with negative well-being in older persons, and its association with depression may differ between males and females

Phylogeny and ontogeny of mental time

Humans have mental time in our mind, apart from physical time that is a part of system that governs the physical world, and memory is our key cognitive ability for recognizing the passage of time. Recent studies have suggested that the memory system of several nonhuman animals may have an incidental nature, which is also a feature of episodic memory. In addition, apes, which are phylogenetically close to humans, have an ability to remember a single past event. In the case of humans, preverbal infants under the age of two are able to retain long-term memory of a single event and apply it to predict a future event. Thus, nonhuman animals and preverbal human infants both have their own specific mental time travel abilities, and there is a phylogenetic and ontogenic basis of full-fledged mental time travel that can be found in human adults

Analysis of Speaker Adaptation Algorithms for HMM-based Speech Synthesis and a Constrained SMAPLR Adaptation Algorithm

In this paper we analyze the effects of several factors and configuration choices encountered during training and model construction when we want to obtain better and more stable adaptation in HMM-based speech synthesis. We then propose a new adaptation algorithm called constrained structural maximum a posteriori linear regression (CSMAPLR) whose derivation is based on the knowledge obtained in this analysis and on the results of comparing several conventional adaptation algorithms. Here we investigate six major aspects of the speaker adaptation: initial models transform functions, estimation criteria, and sensitivity of several linear regression adaptation algorithms algorithms. Analyzing the effect of the initial model, we compare speaker-dependent models, gender-independent models, and the simultaneous use of the gender-dependent models to single use of the gender-dependent models. Analyzing the effect of the transform functions, we compare the transform function for only mean vectors with that for mean vectors and covariance matrices. Analyzing the effect of the estimation criteria, we compare the ML criterion with a robust estimation criterion called structural MAP. We evaluate the sensitivity of several thresholds for the piecewise linear regression algorithms and take up methods combining MAP adaptation with the linear regression algorithms. We incorporate these adaptation algorithms into our speech synthesis system and present several subjective and objective evaluation results showing the utility and effectiveness of these algorithms in speaker adaptation for HMM-based speech synthesis

Serum levels of retinol and other antioxidants for hearing impairment among Japanese older adults.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to assess the relation between serum levels of retinol and other antioxidants and hearing impairment in Japanese older adults. METHODS: This is a community-based cross-sectional study comprising 762 residents aged 65 years or older in Kurabuchi, Gumma, Japan. We measured serum retinol and other antioxidants (alpha- and gamma-tocopherols, and carotenoids including beta-cryptoxanthin, alpha- and beta-carotenes, lycopene, and lutein plus zeaxanthin) by high-performance liquid chromatography and divided each measurement into quartiles. Hearing impairment was defined as a failure to hear a 30-dB hearing level (HL) signal at 1 kHz and a 40-dB HL signal at 4 kHz in the better ear in pure-tone audiometric tests. The odds ratios (OR) for hearing impairment were calculated for each of the upper three quartiles of retinol and other antioxidant levels relative to the lowest quartile. RESULTS: Crude analysis showed that serum levels of retinol and provitamin A carotenoids (beta-cryptoxanthin, and alpha- and beta-carotenes) were inversely related to the prevalence of hearing impairment. The multiadjusted ORs (95% confidence intervals) for the highest quartile of retinol and the provitamin A family (combinations of provitamin A carotenoids) compared with the lowest were 0.51 (0.26-1.00) and 0.53 (0.27-1.02), respectively. A dose-response relationship was observed for retinol (p = .03) and provitamin A (p = .09). CONCLUSION: Increased serum levels of retinol and provitamin A carotenoids were clearly associated with a decreased prevalence of hearing impairment

High-speed metasurface modulator using critically coupled bimodal plasmonic resonance

Free-space electro-optic (EO) modulators operating at gigahertz and beyond are attractive for a wide range of emerging applications, including high-speed imaging, free-space optical communication, microwave photonics, and diffractive computing. Here we experimentally demonstrate a high-speed plasmonic metasurface EO modulator operating at a near-infrared wavelength range with a gigahertz modulation bandwidth. To achieve efficient intensity modulation of reflected light from an ultrathin metasurface layer, we utilize the bimodal plasmonic resonance inside a subwavelength metal-insulator-metal grating, which is precisely tuned to satisfy the critical coupling condition. As a result, perfect absorption of -27 dB (99.8%) and a high quality (Q) factor of 113 are obtained at a resonant wavelength of 1650 nm. By incorporating an EO polymer inside the grating, we achieve a modulation depth of up to 9.5 dB under an applied voltage of $\pm$30 V. The 3-dB modulation bandwidth is confirmed to be 1.25 GHz, which is primarily limited by the undesired contact resistance. Owing to the high electrical conductivity of metallic gratings and a compact device structure with a minimal parasitic capacitance, the demonstrated device can potentially operate at several tens of gigahertz, which opens up exciting opportunities for ultrahigh-speed active metasurface devices in various applications.Comment: Main text: 18 pages, 3 figures, 39 references Supplementary material: 3 pages, 2 figures