International Yakult Symposium

	Professor Giovanni Barbara Dr. Giovanni Barbara graduated ‘summa cum laude’ in Medicine from the University of Bologna (Italy, 1992). He subsequently obtained the specialty in Internal Medicine and then in Gastroenterology from the same University. He was partly trained in London, UK. From 1994 to 1997 he completed a 3-year post-doctoral research fellowship in neuro-immunology at McMaster University, Canada. After returning to Italy, he obtained a faculty position and pursued the academic career in Medicine at the Department of Internal Medicine and Gastroenterology of the University of Bologna. Currently he is involved in clinical gastroenterology diagnostic and therapeutic endoscopy, teaching and research. Dr. Barbara’s main research interest relates to basic and clinical aspects of functional gastrointestinal disorders and neurogastroenterology. On these topics he has authored more than 140 indexed peer-reviewed articles and reviews published in various biomedical journals, including Gastroenterology, Gut, Journal of Clinical Investigation and Trends in Pharmachological Science. He has been invited to give lectures at several national and international scientific societies including the Italian Association of Digestive Diseases (where he served as coordinator of the scientific steering committee) the American Gastroenterological Association, the British Society of Gastroenterology the Argentine Society of Gastroenterology and the World Gastroenterology Organization. Member of the Editorial Board of Gut, American Journal of Gastroenterology, Neurogastroenterology and Motility and other international scientific journals. He has been recipient of national and international awards including those from the American Gastroenterological Association (1996), the Functional Brain Gut Research Group (1997), the European Society of Neurogastroenterology and Motility (2000) and the Master Award in Gastroenterology from the American Gastroenterological Association (2007).
	Professor Harry J. Flint Harry Flint is a Professor and Head of the Gut Health Division at the Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health, University of Aberdeen (U.K). He obtained his B.Sc. and Ph.D. in Genetics from the University of Edinburgh. His research over the past 25 years has focussed on commensal and symbiotic bacteria in the mammalian gut, first in the rumen and now in the human large intestine. Research topics have included gut microbial diversity, enzyme systems involved in the utilization of dietary polysaccharides, factors influencing microbial competition and metabolism in the human colon, and bacterial gene transfer. Earlier in his career, at Universities of Edinburgh, Nottingham and the West Indies, he studied control of gene expression and amino acid metabolism in filamentous fungi. Harry is an Associate Editor of Microbiology, a current member of the editorial boards of FEMS Microbiology Ecology and Environmental Microbiology and Gut Microbes, and a past member of the editorial board of Applied and Environmental Microbiology. He is also a member of the UK Advisory Committee for Novel Foods.
	Professor Mike Gleeson Professor Gleeson is Professor of Exercise Biochemistry in the School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences at Loughborough University (U.K.). In the last 20 years, he has published over 150 papers on exercise biochemistry, physiology, immunology and nutrition. He is co-author of two textbooks on exercise biochemistry for undergraduates (Biochemistry of Exercise and Training: Oxford University Press, 1997; The Biochemical Basis of Sports Performance: Oxford University Press, 2004 and a second edition in 2010). He is a co-author with Asker Jeukendrup of a textbook of Sport Nutrition published by Human Kinetics, 2004 and a second edition in 2010 and has edited a book on Immune Function in Sport and Exercise published by Elsevier in 2005. His recent research has focused on the effects of acute exercise, repeated exercise and intensified training on the immune system and the modifying effects of nutritional interventions. He is on the Editorial Board of several international journals. He is a member of the Physiological Society, BASES, and ACSM and is a past president of the International Society of Exercise and Immunology. He is also a Fellow of the European College of Sport Science. He has provided advice on minimising risks of infection and nutritional strategies to maintain immune function to numerous sports clubs and organisations.
	Professor Dirk Haller Professor Haller obtained his diplomas in Nutrition Science (1996) and in Food Technology (1997) both ’summa cum laude’ from the University of Hohenheim. After which he obtained his Ph.D. ‘summa cum laude’ in Microbiology and Immunology (1999). This was followed by a researcher positon for the Nestlé Research Center (Switzerland, 1999-2000), an Emmy Noether DFG research fellowship at the University of North Carolina (U.S.A., 2001-02) and an ascending career at the Technical University of Munich (Germany) as Emmy Noether DFG group leader (2003-06), Associate Professor of Experimental Nutritional Medicine (2006-08), and Full Professor and Chair for Biofunctionality, Research Center for Nutrition and Food Science, Center for Diet and Disease (2008-to date). He has received several awards and honours such as the Development Award of Excellence from the German Research Foundation (2001, 2003, 2005), the German American Frontiers of Science Symposium at the National Academy of Science (2007, 2008, 2009), Head of the Department Nutrition and Food Science (2007-12), Scientific Chair of the European Science Foundation’s “Forward Look – Gene environment interaction in chronic disease” initiative (2010), and Head of section “Microbiota, Probiota and Host” at the German Society of Microbiology and Hygiene. Professor Haller’s research interests are gut health and microbiome – microbe host interactions in health and disease; inflammation and immune function – mechanisms of cell stress and imprinting; and biofunctionality of nutritional factors and bacteria. His research program focuses on basic and translational questions on gut health and inflammatory processes, specifically the functional role of gut microbiota and nutritional factors in the context of inflammation-driven chronic degenerative pathologies. His group develops novel nutritional strategies for the prevention of immune-mediated and metabolic pathologies and assesses the biofunctional role of food components by using animal models of chronic inflammatory diseases in combination with sophisticated cell isolation techniques and profiling technologies, including proteome analysis. He is also engaged in teaching activities in basics in immunology, food biofunctionality, immunopathology and nutrition, experimental nutritional medicine and immunology, and clinical chemistry.
	Professor Kenya Honda Professor Honda is an Associate Professor in the Department of Immunology at the University of Tokyo (Japan, 2009-present). He received his M.D. degree from Kobe University (Japan, 1994) and worked as a medical resident for some years. He obtained a Ph.D. degree from Kyoto University (Japan, 2001) with his work on cellular interactions and molecular mechanisms involved in the development of Peyer's patches under the direction of Professor Shin-ichi Nishikawa. He transferred to the University of Tokyo later in that year and worked as Research Associate in the Department of Immunology focusing on the role of interferon-regulatory factors in the regulation of innate and adaptive immunity in collaboration with Professor Tadatsugu Taniguchi (2001-07). He then moved to the Laboratory of Immune Regulation of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Osaka University (Japan, 2007-09) to take a position as Associate Professor where he studied the intestinal immune system after which he returned to the University of Tokyo (2009). Most of his work has been published in high impact journals as Cell, Nature and PNAS and he was awarded the Incitement Award of the Japanese Society for Immunology in 2006. In his current position, Professor Honda investigates the murine gut immune system and its interaction with the microbiota. He is also a Researcher of PRESTO (Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology) of the Japan Science and Technology Agency (2008-present).
	Professor Herbert Lochs He obtained his M.D. degree from the Innsbruck Medical University (1970) and was board accredited for Internal Medicine in 1979 and for Gastroenterology in 1985. Following a fellowship at the Institute of Pharmacology of the University of Innsbruck (1970-72), Professor Lochs became Assistant Professor (Internal Medicine /Gastroenterology) (1973–84) and Associate Professor (Gastroenterology) (1986-94) at the University of Vienna Medical School. He also spent a sabbatical period at the University of Pittsburgh (U.S.A.,1984–86). Between 1994 and 2009, he was Chairman of the Department of Gastroenterology/Hepatology/Endocrinology/ Metabolism of the Charité University Hospital Berlin and since October 2009 is the Rector of the Innsbruck Medical University. He is recipient of a number of awards such as the Purkinje Medal (2007) and the Cross of Honor for Science and Art (Austria, 2008) and has more than 300 publications in international scientific journals and book chapters. He is member of several Austrian and international organizations, for instance, the Austrian National Council of Clinical Nutrition, the Austrian Society for Nutrition Research, the German Society of Internal Medicine, the German Society of Digestive and Metabolic Diseases, the European Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition, the American Gastroenterological Association; the International Organization of Inflammatory Bowel Disease, among many others. The research interests of Professor Lochs include inflammatory bowel disease, clinical nutrition and metabolism, amino-acid metabolism, and intestinal permeability. He has initiated and participated in many trials in inflammatory bowel disease, gastrointestinal oncology, and hepatology like the European Cooperative Crohn's disease Study IV; Prophylaxis of postoperative relapse in Crohn’s Disease with mesalamine; Recombinant erythropoietin for the treatment of anemia in inflammatory bowel disease; Photodynamic therapy for cholangiocarcinoma; The German hospital malnutrition study just to mention some of them.
	Professor Lorenzo Morelli He obtained his Ph.D. in Agricultural Sciences from the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart (Piacenza, Italy, 1979). After a traineeship at the National Institute for Research in Dairying (U.K.) and different academic positions at the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Piacenza, he became Professor of Biotechnology at the Institute of Microbiology and Dean of the Agriculture Faculty of the university (2009-). Professor Morelli was the first to isolate and characterise the proteins secreted by lactobacilli responsible for the aggregation phenotype. Presently he concentrates on molecular taxonomy of lactic acid bacteria, molecular typing of probiotic bacterial strains, and the usage of probiotic strains of the Lactobacillus genus. Author of more than 100 articles published in international journals, he also holds European and U.S. patents in the field of probiotic bacteria selection. He has worked in different advisory boards of the Italian Ministry of Health since 2003 and is a current member of the Advisory Board in Dietetics and Nutrition of the Italian Ministry of Health. He also evaluates research centres of the Food Research Department of the Italian National Research Council (2009-) and coordinates the “Sistema Agro-Alimentare” of the National Program of Research (2010-13). He has also participated in various EU projects: "Selection and characterisation of human probiotic strain" (1991), “Safety of probiotics” group of the European Committee creating the “Lactic Acid Bacteria Industrial Platform” (1991), “Probiotics of second generation” (2000-04), “Effects of diet and life style on the risk of gastrointestinal infections and allergies in childhood” (2003-06), “A study of diffusion of genes encoding antibiotic resistance in bacteria isolated from the food chains” (2004-06), and “Assessment and critical evaluation of antibiotic resistance transferability in food chain” (2003-07). He was part of the FAO/WHO board of experts that created the “Guidelines for the use of probiotic food” (2001-02) and of the FAO international committee that prepared the “Technical Report on Probiotics” (2007). Since 2006 he is member of the “Task force on Probiotics” of ILSI; and since 2008, member of the Standing Committee on Nutrition and Health of IDF.
	Professor Joseph Rafter He obtained his B.Sc. (1974) and M.Sc. (1975) in Biochemistry from the University College Dublin (Ireland) and his Ph.D. in Medical Chemistry from the Karolinska Institute (KI) (Sweden, 1982). Later he worked as postdoctoral fellow at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research (Canada) and was appointed Assistant Professor in Medical & Physiological Chemistry and Medical Nutrition at the KI and Visiting Professor at the Carcinogenesis Division of the National Cancer Center Research Institute (Japan). Currently he is Professor of Medical Nutrition at the KI (1999-), Guest Professor at the Jagiellonian University Medical School in Cracow (Poland, 2005-), and Project Manager of the EU project TORNADO: Molecular targets open for regulation by the gut flora – new avenues for improved diet to optimize European health. Professor Rafter was the first to propose the “fecal water hypothesis” which provides a mechanistic explanation as to how dietary components such as fat, fiber, calcium and probiotic bacteria contribute to colon carcinogenesis. He also studied the role of intestinal microflora in this process and generated “surrogate markers” for assessing the effect of diet on colon cancer development. His present research focuses on molecular host-microbe interactions to identify novel molecular targets that can be exploited in the development of a new generation of functional foods. Author of over 160 publications, he is also a frequent lecturer at international meetings. He is member of the American Association for Cancer Research & NASA Food Technology Centre Adjunct Faculty, the Research Committee of the Swedish Nutrition Foundation and the ILSI European Expert Group on Probiotics; and has participated in several EU projects such as: “Synbiotics and cancer prevention in humans”, “Surrogate endpoints for diet-related cancer”, “Process for the assessment of scientific support for claims on foods”, and “Environmental cancer risk, nutrition and individual susceptibility”.
	Professor Joerg D. Schulzke Professor Schulzke is Head of Department of General Medicine (2008 to present) as well as Full Professor of Gastroenterology (1999 to present) with the degree of a specialist in Nutrition Medicine. He obtained his Medical Doctor degree from the Free University of Berlin (1983) and after taking postgraduate and residency positions at the university (1983–1988) he became Faculty of the Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology (1992), Associate Professor (1994), Professor (1996) and Senior Faculty (1997) of the Free University of Berlin. He has also spent some time as Visiting Scientist (1989-1990) and later as Visiting Professor (1996-1997) at the The Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University (North Carolina, USA). His research focus is on epithelial transport and barrier research in the gastrointestinal tract in response to autoimmune and infectious inflammatory diseases. One of the central topics is the regulation of tight junction proteins in health and diseases and the therapeutic action of anti-infammatory drugs, phytopharmatheutics and biologics. He is involved in several research grants on celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, microscopic colitis, and infectious diseases as giardiasis, yersiniosis, bacterial diarrhea and HIV-enteropathy; and has published more than 150 original papers in renowned journals and books.
	Professor Veronique Verhoeven Professor Verhoeven studied Medicine at Antwerp University (1990-7) and obtained the degree of General Practitioner in 1999. Between 1999 and 2000, she worked as a researcher at Domus Medica (scientific committee of Flemish general practitioners) and obtained her Ph.D. degree from Antwerp University in 2005. Currently is Professor of the Department of General Practice (2008-) and researcher at Antwerp University (2000-), while also working as a general practitioner (1999-). Her research interests are focused in infectious diseases, cervical cancer, and frail elderly care. The study "An RCT in nursing homes: The effect of a probiotic treatment with Lactobacillus casei Shirota in respiratory morbidity after influenza vaccination of elderly” was performed under her supervision (2006-8). Professor Verhoeven has been guest speaker on several national and international symposia on general practice and on infectious diseases and is a reviewer for international scientific journals. She is member of the Faculty of Medicine Board (Antwerp University), member of the Jury of the Consensus Conference on Gastro-oesophageal Reflux and Dyspepsia (Belgian Government), member of the ethical committee of Domus Medica, and member of the Belgian committee for surveillance sentinel networks. She has also been ship’s doctor aboard Oceanwide Expeditions (Arctic and Antarctic trips) and expedition doctor on two scientific missions to Svalbard (North pole region).
	Professor Renger Witkamp Professor Witkamp studied Biochemistry and Pharmacy at Utrecht University (the Netherlands). He received his Ph.D. in Pharmacology in 1992 and worked as Associate Professor at the Utrecht University until 1996. Subsequently he moved to TNO, the Netherlands’ Organization for Applied Research, where he held several scientific and managerial positions. In 2006 he was appointed to professor in Nutrition and Pharmacology, a newly established academic chair at the division of Human Nutrition of Wageningen University. This was combined with a half-time position as program manager Nutrition and Health within TNO. Since November 2010 is full-time employed by Wageningen University. His research activities focus on drug-nutrient interactions and on the role of bio-active lipids in inflammation and appetite regulation. In addition he has an interest in health claim support of food supplements and functional foods.
	Professor Liping Zhao Professor Liping Zhao got his Ph.D. in 1989 from Nanjing Agricultural University and worked in Cornell University (U.S.A.) as visiting scholar from 1993-1995. After his return to China, he was appointed Associate Professor (1995-97) and later Professor and Director (1997-2001) of the Institute of Biotechnology of Shanxi University (China). He is currently Associate Dean for the School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University. He is a board member of the International Society for Microbial Ecology (2006-), board member of the International Human Microbiome Consortium (2008-), and editorial board member of Applied and Systematic Microbiology, FEMS Microbiology Ecology (2005-). His team is one of the few pioneers in China to apply molecular and genomic tools for systems understanding and manipulation of complex microbial communities in human and animal guts, as well as in soils, wastewater treatment plants, and oilfields. They have contributed to several technological innovations for structural analysis of complex microbial communities and established a human-flora associated pig model for physiology, ecology and drug discovery research. Their current focus is the relationship between nutrition and gut microbiota for onset and progression of chronic disease such as obesity and diabetes, and how traditional Chinese medicine and medicinal foods may modulate this relationship for achieving preventive healthcare. Together with the Imperial College London (U.K.), they have participated in the development of “whole-body systems biology” with urine metabolites and gut bacteria as two most important emergent functions for health assessment.