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Background & Aims: University students are prone to changes in their health status and lifestyle due to changes in their living environment and associated stress and anxiety. These changes may affect them in later life. This study utilized a cross-sectional study among Japanese female university students to examine dietary factors affecting their fecal microbiota. Methods: Sixty-eight healthy female university students were evaluated using an eating behavior assessment and diet history questionnaire. The 12-component Japanese diet index (JDI-12) was then calculated. A quantitative real-time PCR method was used to analyze the predominant bacterial species in the gut, and the Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio (F/B ratio) at the phylum level was calculated. The partial correlation between the fecal microbiota and eating behavior abnormality score was assessed, and dietary habits associated with the F/B ratio were analyzed. Results: A significant correlation was identified between F/B ratios and the eating behavior abnormality score (r = 0.26, FDR = 0.064). Additionally, multiple regression analysis identified a negative correlation trend between the F/B ratio and JDI-12 score (β = -0.22; p = 0.091), and exploratory analysis found a negative association between the F/B ratio and consumption of beef and pork, one of the less beneficial JDI-12 components (β = -0.33, FDR = 0.120). Conclusion: In healthy female university students, there was a positive correlation between eating behavior abnormality and the F/B ratio, indicating that adherence to the Japanese diet pattern may be associated with a lower F/B ratio., Competing Interests: Declaration of conflicting interestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

The intestinal microbiota is involved in many diseases, such as constipation, obesity, and inflammatory bowel disease. To determine the associations between the gut microbiome and the frequency of bowel movements, we performed cross-sectional correlation analysis at the baseline and longitudinal correlation analysis after the intervention. Forty-three women were enrolled in this study. All participants ingested soymilk-okara powder (15 g) daily for 12 weeks. They recorded the ingested okara powder amounts and their frequency of bowel movements during the entire 12 weeks of the intervention. The fecal microbiota percentages were measured at baseline and after 12 weeks of intervention. Two women who did not completely record the frequency of bowel movements were excluded. In the cross-sectional correlation analysis at the baseline, there was a significant positive correlation between the relative abundance of the Bacteroides genus in the feces and the frequency of bowel movements per week (R = 0.429, p = 0.005) and a significant negative correlation between the relative abundance of Clostridium cluster XI in the feces and the frequency of bowel movements per week (R = -0.315, p = 0.045). Moreover, in the longitudinal correlation analysis, the difference in the relative abundance of Bacteroides genus in feces between the baseline and after the intervention significantly correlated with the changes in the frequency of bowel movements per week (R = 0.492, p = 0.001). Therefore, it was suggested that there was a relationship between the gut relative abundance of the Bacteroides genus and the frequency of bowel movements., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Herbivorous animals have unique intestinal microbiota that greatly helps with plant digestion in the host; however, knowledge on the microbiota of marine herbivores is limited. To better understand the taxonomy of intestinal microbiota in manatees, and the possible effects of captive conditions on that, we characterized the fecal microbiota of captive Antillean manatee Trichechus manatus manatus and compared the bacterial community with that of wild Florida manatees Trichechus manatus latirostris. Fecal samples were collected from four captive Antillean manatees in Ocean Expo Park, Okinawa, Japan. The high-quality sequences of the V3–V4 region of bacterial 16S rRNA obtained using an Illumina MiSeq platform were assigned to 16 bacterial phyla, and the most dominant was Firmicutes (84.05 ± 3.50%), followed by Bacteroidetes (8.60 ± 1.71%). Seven of the top 20 bacterial genera were responsible for hydrolyzing cellulose and metabolizing bile acid. The microbiota composition was remarkably different from that found in wild Florida manatees and more diverse than the composition in wild Florida manatees; hence, this result may be dependent on a captive environment. Our results highlight the unique intestinal microbiota in captive manatees, reflecting their diet and possibly an impact of the captive environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Backgrounds/Aims: To clarify the usefulness of Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota (LcS)-fermented milk in the normalization of bowel movements and improvement of infection control for the elderly residents and staff of facilities for the elderly. Methods: A randomized placebo-controlled double-blind test was performed among the elderly residents (average age, 85) and staff members (average age, 37) of facilities for the elderly. The participants randomly received either LcS-fermented milk or a placebo beverage once daily for 6 months. Clinical data and enteric conditions were compared between the 2 groups. Results: A significantly lower incidence of fever and improved bowel movements were seen in the LcS-fermented milk group (n = 36) in comparison to the placebo group (n = 36). The numbers of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus were significantly higher (p < 0.01), the numbers of destructive bacteria such as Clostridium difficile were significantly lower (p < 0.05), and the fecal acetic acid concentration and total acidity were significantly higher in the LcS group. A significant difference in the intestinal microbiota, fecal acetic acid, and pH was also observed between the LcS and placebo groups among the facility's staff members. Conclusions: The long-term consumption of LcS-fermented milk may be useful for decreasing the daily risk of infection and improving the quality of life among the residents and staff of facilities for the elderly. © 2015 S. Karger AG, Basel [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Japanese diet (JD) is accepted as a healthy dietary pattern, which has protective effects against cancer and cardiovascular diseases. However, it remains unclear whether there is any association between the JD and fecal microbiota composition. This cross-sectional study examined the relationship between JD scores and fecal microbiota in young Japanese adults, through the analysis of fecal microbiota using the terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) method. JD scores were calculated with regard to nine food groups (rice, miso soup, pickles, green and yellow vegetables, seaweeds, fish, green tea, meat, and coffee) based on a brief self-administered diet-history questionnaire. JD total scores were categorized as low (score 0-3) or high (score 4-8). The high-scoring JD group exhibited a significantly higher relative abundance of Bacteroides than the low JD group, whereas the low JD group exhibited a significantly higher relative abundance of Prevotella than the high JD group. With regard to food group intakes, a higher consumption of rice was associated with a significantly lower relative abundance of Prevotella, whereas a higher consumption of green tea was associated with a significantly higher relative abundance of Bifidobacterium. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study demonstrating an association between JD score and fecal microbiota and may allow the prediction of changes in fecal microbiota due to changes in the JD.