Ultra-weak Photon Emission Intensity Research Articles

Monitoring Alzheimer’s disease via ultraweak photon emission

In an innovative experiment, we detected ultraweak photon emission (UPE) from the hippocampus of male rat brains and found significant correlations between Alzheimer's disease (AD), memory decline, oxidative stress, and UPE intensity. These findings may open up novel methods for screening, detecting, diagnosing, and classifying neurodegenerative diseases, particularly AD. The study suggests that UPE from the brain's neural tissue can serve as a valuable indicator. It also proposes the development of a minimally invasive brain-computer interface (BCI) photonic chip for monitoring and diagnosing AD, offering high spatiotemporal resolution of brain activity. The study used a rodent model of sporadic AD, demonstrating that STZ-induced sAD resulted in increased hippocampal UPE, which was associated with oxidative stress. Treatment with donepezil reduced UPE and improved oxidative stress. These findings support the potential utility of UPE as a screening and diagnostic tool for AD and other neurodegenerative diseases.

Ultra-weak photon emission as a potential tool for evaluating the therapeutic effect of traditional Chinese medicine in patients with type 2 diabetes

BackgroundTraditional Chinese medicine (TCM) has been used to prevent and treat type 2 diabetes (T2DM) for thousands of years. The holistic view of TCM and the “multitarget” characteristics of Chinese medicine have unique advantages in the prevention and treatment of T2DM. TCM syndrome differentiation and treatment are effective for T2DM; however, currently, the therapeutic effect of TCM is generally evaluated by asking for patients' subjective feelings, or by checking the changes in relevant indicators. The main problems are that the patient's descriptions are unclear and subjective, and although the self-reported symptoms may have improved significantly, the relevant indicators are sometimes not obvious, which cannot truly reflect the therapeutic effect of TCM. Therefore, it is urgent to develop a novel, sensitive, and noninvasive method to quantitatively evaluate the therapeutic effect of TCM. MethodsIn this study, ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) was measured at four sites of hands of T2DM patients with Qi-Yin deficiency before treatment and after 1 and 2 weeks of treatment with TCM. The UPE intensity and spectral distribution were calculated and analyzed using the results measured at these four sites. Spearman's correlation coefficient was used to quantify the correlation between the UPE parameters and the syndrome scores of TCM. ResultsThe UPE intensity of T2DM patients with Qi-Yin deficiency decreased gradually with the course of the treatment and was significantly lower than that before the treatment. The ratio of photon counts between the wavelength ranges of 495–550 nm and 550–610 nm after the treatment was higher than that before the treatment and negatively correlated with the corresponding syndrome scores so that the degree of symptoms improvement could be characterized by the ratio (495–550 nm/550–610 nm). ConclusionsThe therapeutic effect of TCM in T2DM patients with Qi-Yin deficiency can be shown at the level of UPE. UPE is a potential and noninvasive tool for evaluating the therapeutic effect of TCM in patients with T2DM.

Effect of methamphetamine on ultraweak photon emission and level of reactive oxygen species in male rat brain

All living cells, including neurons, generate ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) during biological activity, and in particular, in the brain, it has been shown that UPE is correlated with neuronal activity and associated metabolic processes. Various intracellular factors, as well as external factors, can reduce or increase the intensity of UPE. In this study, we have used Methamphetamine (METH) as one potentially effective external factor, which is a substance that has the property of stimulating the central nervous system. METH can impair mitochondrial function by causing toxicity via various pathways, including an increase in the number of mitochondria, hyperthermia, the increased metabolic activity of the brain, and the production of glutamate and excess calcium. In addition to mitochondrial dysfunction, METH alters cellular homeostasis, leading to cell damage and the production of excess ROS. The aim of this study is to measure and compare the UPE intensity and reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels of the prefrontal, motor, and visual cortex before and after METH administration. Twenty male rats were randomly assigned to two groups, the control, and METH groups. In the control group, 2 h after injection of normal saline and without any intervention, and in the experimental group 2 h after IP injection of 20 mg/kg METH, sections were prepared from three areas: prefrontal, motor, and V1-V2 cortex, which were used to evaluate the emission of UPE using a photomultiplier tube (PMT) device and to evaluate the amount of ROS. The results showed that the amount of ROS and UPE in the experimental group in all three areas significantly increased compared to the control group. So, METH increases UPE and ROS in the prefrontal, motor, and visual regions, and there is a direct relationship between UPE intensity and ROS production. Therefore, UPE may be used as a dynamic reading tool to monitor oxidative metabolism in physiological processes related to ROS and METH research. Also, the results of this experiment may create a new avenue to test the hypothesis that the excess in UPE generation may lead to the phenomenon of phosphene and visual hallucinations.

Are Brain-Computer Interfaces Feasible With Integrated Photonic Chips?

The present paper examines the viability of a radically novel idea for brain–computer interface (BCI), which could lead to novel technological, experimental, and clinical applications. BCIs are computer-based systems that enable either one-way or two-way communication between a living brain and an external machine. BCIs read-out brain signals and transduce them into task commands, which are performed by a machine. In closed loop, the machine can stimulate the brain with appropriate signals. In recent years, it has been shown that there is some ultraweak light emission from neurons within or close to the visible and near-infrared parts of the optical spectrum. Such ultraweak photon emission (UPE) reflects the cellular (and body) oxidative status, and compelling pieces of evidence are beginning to emerge that UPE may well play an informational role in neuronal functions. In fact, several experiments point to a direct correlation between UPE intensity and neural activity, oxidative reactions, EEG activity, cerebral blood flow, cerebral energy metabolism, and release of glutamate. Therefore, we propose a novel skull implant BCI that uses UPE. We suggest that a photonic integrated chip installed on the interior surface of the skull may enable a new form of extraction of the relevant features from the UPE signals. In the current technology landscape, photonic technologies are advancing rapidly and poised to overtake many electrical technologies, due to their unique advantages, such as miniaturization, high speed, low thermal effects, and large integration capacity that allow for high yield, volume manufacturing, and lower cost. For our proposed BCI, we are making some very major conjectures, which need to be experimentally verified, and therefore we discuss the controversial parts, feasibility of technology and limitations, and potential impact of this envisaged technology if successfully implemented in the future.

Increment of spontaneous human biophoton emission caused by anger emotional states. Proof of concept

Humans spontaneously emit visible radiation from their skin, which is known as biophoton or ultra-weak photon emission (UPE). Up to date, UPE intensity changes according to different external and internal factors have been reported. However, the influence in the human UPE of negative emotional states has never been studied despite their clinic and forensic interest. In this work, an ad hoc system based on a high-sensitive CCD detector was developed to detect and image UPE from human’s upper body. Then, the UPE emitted by the upper part of the body of nine volunteers was imaged in two different personal states: (i) when subjects were feeling relaxed; and (ii) when they were emotionally stimulated to feel anger. For all the volunteers, the relative measurement of UPE intensity was higher when feeling anger than when feeling relaxed. Due to the relevance of this disruptive idea and the horizon this knowledge can provide, this proof of concept must be followed by further experiments. An increase in the number of subjects will be accomplished in order to enhance these preliminary results and propose UPE as a new physiological parameter of negative emotional states.

Oxidative stress in human facial skin observed by ultraweak photon emission imaging and its correlation with biophysical properties of skin

Oxidative stress is associated with skin ageing and disease in humans. However, it is difficult to evaluate the effects of oxidative stress on the skin in vivo using conventional invasive methods. In this study, we performed two-dimensional imaging of ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) generated by excited species in oxidative reaction to determine regional variations in oxidative stress in human facial skin and analysed the relationship between UPE intensity and biophysical properties in vivo. UPE imaging of the facial skin of volunteers revealed regional variations in oxidative stress. The nose, its surrounding regions, and the area between eyebrows showed higher UPE intensity than other facial regions, indicating high oxidative stress in these regions. In contrast, only the region surrounding the eyes showed age-related alterations in UPE intensity; moreover, wrinkle score in these regions was correlated with UPE intensity. These results suggest that oxidative stress in the skin induces wrinkle formation. UPE intensity was correlated with porphyrin score in the skin; however, no correlation was observed between UPE intensity and skin colour parameters. This study provides insights into the treatment of facial skin areas vulnerable to ageing and helps improve our understanding of topical skin diseases related to oxidative stress.

Application of RRLC-QTOF-MS-based metabonomics and UPE for investigating Spleen-Qi deficiency syndrome with Panax ginseng treatment

Ethnopharmacological relevanceSpleen-Qi deficiency is a syndrome of traditional Chinese medicine. Panax ginseng (ginseng) is well known as the key herb for replenishing Qi and tonifying Spleen. However, the pathogenesis of Spleen-Qi deficiency syndrome and therapeutic mechanism of ginseng on Spleen-Qi deficiency constitution have not yet been entirely elucidated. Aim of the studyThe aim of this work was to investigate the pathogenesis of Spleen-Qi deficiency syndrome and therapeutic mechanism of ginseng on Spleen-Qi deficiency constitution. Materials and methodsThe urinary metabonomics was investigated before and after ginseng treatment in Spleen-Qi deficiency subjects by rapid resolution liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole-time-of-flight mass spectrometry (RRLC-QTOF-MS). The spectra of metabolites were analyzed by principal component analysis (PCA) and the score showed significant difference among the three different groups. The serum biochemical parameters creatine kinases (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), interferon-γ (INF-γ), Interleukin-4 (IL-4), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were determined by assay kits. In addition, ultraweak photon emission (UPE) intensity was measured at dazhui point in each subject. ResultsAccording to the orthogonal partial least-squares discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) results and biochemistry databases searching, 15 potential biomarkers were identified to be involved in Spleen-Qi deficiency syndrome and ginseng influenced Spleen-Qi deficiency. The metabonomics and biological experiment data indicated that metabolism pathways were corresponding to energy metabolism, amino acid, carbohydrate, lipid and pyrimidine metabolisms, oxidative stress urea cycle, and intestinal flora metabolism. And the UPE intensity decreased significantly after the treatment. ConclusionsGinseng could promote the related metabolisms in Spleen-Qi deficiency constitution and the metabolites and UPE intensity may be useful as potential biomarkers for diagnosing and monitoring for Spleen-Qi deficiency syndrome.

An Experimental Investigation of Ultraweak Photon Emission from Adult Murine Neural Stem Cells

Neurons like other living cells may have ultraweak photon emission (UPE) during neuronal activity. This study is aimed to evaluate UPE from neural stem cells (NSC) during their serial passaging and differentiation. We also investigate whether the addition of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) or enhancement of UPE (by AgNPs or mirror) affect the differentiation of NSC. In our method, neural stem and progenitor cells of subventricular zone (SVZ) are isolated and expanded using the neurosphere assay. The obtained dissociated cells allocated and cultivated into three groups: groups: I: cell (control), II: cell + mirror, and III: cell + AgNPs. After seven days, the primary neurospheres were counted and their mean number was obtained. Serial passages continuous up to sixth passages in the control group. Differentiation capacity of the resulting neurospheres were evaluated in vitro by immunocytochemistry techniques. Measurement of UPE was carried out by photomultiplier tube (PMT) in the following steps: at the end of primary culture, six serial cell passages of the control group, before and after of the differentiation for 5 minutes. The results show that neither mirror nor AgNPs affect on the neurosphere number. The UPE of the NSC in the sixth subculturing passage was significantly higher than in the primary passage (P < 0.05). AgNPs significantly increased the UPE of the NSC compared to the control group before and after the differentiation (P < 0.05). Also, the treatment with AgNPs increased 44% neuronal differentiation of the harvested NSCs. UPE of NSC after the differentiation was significantly lower than that before the differentiation in each groups, which is in appropriate to the cell numbers (P < 0.0001). The mirror did not significantly increase UPE, neither before nor after the differentiation of NSC. As a conclusion, NSC have UPE-properties and the intensity is increased by serial passaging that are significant in the sixth passage. The AgNPs increases the UPE intensity of NSC that pushes more differentiation of NSC to the neurons. The mirror was not effective in enhancement of UPE. As a result, UPE measurement may be suitable for assessing and studying the effects of nanoparticles in living cells and neurons.

Imaging of ultraweak photon emission for evaluating the oxidative stress of human skin

Ultraweak photon emission (UPE) is generally observed in living organisms and often designated as biophoton emission. UPE is detectable from human skin, and its intensity increases by external stress such as ultraviolet (UV) irradiation. Presently, UPE measurement is used to evaluate oxidation status. The fact that the electronically excited species responsible for UPE are formed by reactive oxygen species (ROS)-induced lipid peroxidation and protein and nucleic acid oxidation is well known. The human skin undergoes oxidative stress by UV irradiation, resulting in various skin complications; therefore, it is essential to know the oxidation status of the skin. In this study, we assessed the characteristics of UV-induced UPE in the skin by the imaging and spectroscopy systems. Two-dimensional images obtained by a highly sensitive imaging system using a cooled charge-coupled device (CCD) camera revealed that UPE intensity increases with the amount of UV and is suppressed by antioxidants. Additionally, it is indicated that UPE is generated not only from the epidermis but also from the dermis. The spectra of UPE induced by UVA or UVB showed similar peaks in the visible light region. Furthermore, we confirmed the efficiency of sunscreen by the imaging technique. UPE measurement is a useful method to evaluate UV-induced oxidation in the human skin, and UPE imaging is an effective method to visually evaluate oxidative stress in the human skin.

Measuring the Human Ultra-Weak Photon Emission Distribution Using an Electron-Multiplying, Charge-Coupled Device as a Sensor

Ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) is the spontaneous emission from living systems mainly attributed to oxidation reactions, in which reactive oxygen species (ROS) may play a major role. Given the capability of the next-generation electron-multiplying CCD (EMCCD) sensors and the easy use of liquid crystal tunable filters (LCTF), the aim of this work was to explore the potential of a simple UPE spectrometer to measure the UPE from a human hand. Thus, an easy setup was configured based on a dark box for inserting the subject’s hand prior to LCTF as a monochromator and an EMCCD sensor working in the full vertical binning mode (FVB) as a spectra detector. Under controlled conditions, both dark signals and left hand UPE were acquired by registering the UPE intensity at different selected wavelengths (400, 450, 500, 550, 600, 650, and 700 nm) during a period of 10 min each. Then, spurious signals were filtered out by ignoring the pixels whose values were clearly outside of the Gaussian distribution, and the dark signal was subtracted from the subject hand signal. The stepped spectrum with a peak of approximately 880 photons at 500 nm had a shape that agreed somewhat with previous reports, and agrees with previous UPE research that reported UPE from 420 to 570 nm, or 260 to 800 nm, with a range from 1 to 1000 photons s−1 cm−2. Obtaining the spectral distribution instead of the total intensity of the UPE represents a step forward in this field, as it may provide extra information about a subject’s personal states and relationship with ROS. A new generation of CCD sensors with lower dark signals, and spectrographs with a more uniform spectral transmittance, will open up new possibilities for configuring measuring systems in portable formats.

Detection of Ultraweak Photon Emission (UPE) from Cells as a Tool for Pathological Studies.

It is well-known that all living cells emit ultra-weak photon emission (UPE), which is due to byproducts of chemical reactions in cell metabolisms. It has been shown that Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) in the cells enhances the UPE intensity. The magnitude of such UPE is extremely weak (i.e. a few to 103 photons/ (sec.cm22)), and the detection of such ultra-weak signals is hardly possible via sensitive instruments like photomultiplier tube (PMT) that can detect single photons. H2O2 factor with various concentrations was applied on the HT-29 cells to generate ROS. H2O2 concentrations were so low to be nondestructive to the cells. Then, the effect of ROS generation on UPE intensity was investigated. PMT was used to detect UPE from HT-29 cells. The topical application of H2O2 was significantly different (P < 0.05) in comparison with HT-29 cells without H2O2 at a concentration of 1mM in 5 min detection time. The integrated UPE in the presence of H2O2 at concentration of 3mM was significantly higher (P < 0.05) than the integrated UPE in other groups at the same detection time. The difference between the concentrations of 3mM and 4mM was not significant (P > 0.01) for integrated UPE in the cell groups in the presence of H2O2. The results show that the recorded UPE from HT-29 cells increased with the topical application of exogenous ROS inducer. As a result, UPE can be used as a non-invasive technique for monitoring ROS in cells.

Spontaneous ultra-weak photon emission in correlation to inflammatory metabolism and oxidative stress in a mouse model of collagen-induced arthritis

The increasing prevalence of rheumatoid arthritis has driven the development of new approaches and technologies for investigating the pathophysiology of this devastating, chronic disease. From the perspective of systems biology, combining comprehensive personal data such as metabolomics profiling with ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) data may provide key information regarding the complex pathophysiology underlying rheumatoid arthritis. In this article, we integrated UPE with metabolomics-based technologies in order to investigate collagen-induced arthritis, a mouse model of rheumatoid arthritis, at the systems level, and we investigated the biological underpinnings of the complex dataset. Using correlation networks, we found that elevated inflammatory and ROS-mediated plasma metabolites are strongly correlated with a systematic reduction in amine metabolites, which is linked to muscle wasting in rheumatoid arthritis. We also found that increased UPE intensity is strongly linked to metabolic processes (with correlation co-efficiency |r| value >0.7), which may be associated with lipid oxidation that related to inflammatory and/or ROS-mediated processes. Together, these results indicate that UPE is correlated with metabolomics and may serve as a valuable tool for diagnosing chronic disease by integrating inflammatory signals at the systems level. Our correlation network analysis provides important and valuable information regarding the disease process from a system-wide perspective.

Tracking biochemical changes correlated with ultra-weak photon emission using metabolomics

Ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) is light emitted spontaneously by biological systems without the use of specific luminescent complexes. UPE is emitted in the near-UV/UV–Vis/near-IR spectra during oxidative metabolic reactions; however, the specific pathways involved in UPE remain poorly understood. Here, we used HL-60 cells, a human promyelocytic cell line that is often used to study respiratory burst, as a model system to measure UPE kinetics together with metabolic changes. HL-60 cells were differentiated into neutrophil-like cells by culturing in all-trans-retinoic acid for 7days. We then used a targeted metabolomics approach with capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry to profile intracellular metabolites in HL-60 cells and to investigate the biochemical changes based on the measured UPE profile. Our analysis revealed that the levels of specific metabolites, including putrescine, creatine, β-alanine, methionine, hydroxyproline, serine, and S-adenosylmethionine, were significantly altered in HL-60 cells after inducing respiratory burst. A comparison with recorded UPE data revealed that the changes in putrescine, glutathione, sarcosine, creatine, β-alanine, methionine, and hydroxyproline levels were inversely correlated with the change in UPE intensity. These results suggest that these metabolic pathways, particular the methionine pathway, may play a role in the observed changes in UPE in HL-60 cells and therefore demonstrate the potential for using UPE to monitor metabolic changes.

Ultraweak Photon Emission from the Seed Coat in Response to Temperature and Humidity—A Potential Mechanism for Environmental Signal Transduction in the Soil Seed Bank

Seeds beneath the soil sense the changing environment to time germination and seedling emergence with the optimum time of year for survival. Environmental signals first impact with the seed at the seed coat. To investigate whether seed coats have a role in environmental sensing we investigated their ultraweak photon emission (UPE) under the variable temperature, relative humidity and oxygen conditions they could experience in the soil seed bank. Using a custom‐built luminometer we measured UPE intensity and spectra (300–700 nm) from Phaseolus vulgaris seeds, seed coats and cotyledons. UPE was greatest from the internal surface of the seed coat. Seed coat UPE increased concomitantly with both increasing temperature and decreasing relative humidity. Emission was oxygen dependent and it was abolished by treatment with dinitrophenylhydrazine, demonstrating the key role of seed coat carbonyls in the phenomenon. We hypothesize that beneath the soil surface the attenuation of light (virtual darkness: low background noise) enables seeds to exploit UPE for transducing key environmental variables in the soil (temperature, humidity and oxygen) to inform them of seasonal and local temperature patterns. Overall, seed coats were found to have potential as effective transducers of key fluctuating environmental variables in the soil.

Photocount statistics of ultra-weak photon emission from germinating mung bean

Ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) is an endogenous bioluminescence phenomenon present in all biological samples with an active oxidative metabolism, even without an external pre-illumination. To verify the potential of UPE for non-invasive monitoring of metabolism and growth in germinating plants, the aim of this study was to investigate the UPE from a model system - germinating mung bean seedlings (Vigna radiata) - and analyze the statistical properties of UPE during the growth in two different conditions of imbibition (pure water and 1% sucrose). We found that in all days and in both conditions, photocount distributions of UPE time series follow the negative binomial distribution whose parameters changed during the growth due to the increasing ratio of signal-to-detector dark count. Correspondingly for both groups, the mean values of UPE increased during the seedlings growth, while the values of Fano factor show a decreasing trend towards 1 during the 6day period. While our results do not show any significant difference in hypocotyl length and weight gain between the two groups of mung seedlings, there is an indication of a tiny suppressing effect of sucrose on UPE intensity. We believe that UPE can be exploited for a sensitive non-invasive analysis of oxidative metabolism during the plant development and growth with potential applications in agricultural research.

Spectral discrimination between healthy people and cold patients using spontaneous photon emission.

In this paper, ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) was used to distinguish cold patients from healthy subjects. The UPE intensity of fingertips of two hands from healthy subjects and cold patients was measured using a two-hand UPE detecting system and a group of cut-off filters. We found a significant difference in the maximum spectral peak and photon emission ratio between the filter of 550nm and 495nm, which can be used in distinguish cold patients from healthy people. Methods and results in this work could be useful for developing a new optical diagnostic tool for early disease diagnosis in the future.

Imaging of Ultra-Weak Photon Emission in a Rheumatoid Arthritis Mouse Model

Ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) of a living system received scientific attention because of its potential for monitoring increased levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). In this study, a highly sensitive cryogenic charge-coupled device (CCD) camera was used to monitor in a RA mouse model the photon emission both without and with luminol. For that purpose, arthritis was induced in mice utilizing a repeated co-administration of type II collagen with lipopolysaccharide. Quantitative imaging of ultra-weak photon emission of the front and back paws of the animals was initiated 70 days after the first injection. All of the animals were measured once without luminol and once again immediately after luminol injection. Data illustrated a higher UPE intensity after initiating arthritis by CII-injection of the animals. The increase in UPE intensity was measured with and without using luminol indicating that this imaging technology may be useful for the future study of human RA.

生体試料より放出されるBio-Photonの超高感度計測

Study of spontaneous photon emission without external or artificial stimulation in biological tissues and cells in vivo is impeded by the extremely low intensity of such biophoton emission in many subjects and systems of interest. The aim of our research project is the research and development of improved means of detecting these biophoton phenomena and the study of their characteristics. We describe here recent developments in highly sensitive photon counting technique and measurement of ultraweak photon emission. As an illustration, we discuss two areas of current research: 1) Studies of the effects of various solutions of germination promoter on ultraweak photon emission in soybean have been made. Among inhibitors examined, KCN and EtOH were found to enhance photon emission intensity. 2) The effect of environment (oxygen and nitrogen) and scavenger solutions on ultraweak photon emission intensity in soaked soybean was examined and found to be oxygen-dependent. Thus it is thought that the active oxygen species were participated in the ultraweak photon emission of soybeans. The mechanisms underlying these phenomena and the results of further studies will be discussed.