Word and color impressions measured with normal and simulated deutan color stimulus sets in color vision normal and deuteranopic observers.

Impressions of nine semantic words expressing abstract meanings were measured by a color selection process using twelve hues from vivid tone in the Practical Color Coordinate System (PCCS) as well as White, Grey and Black (as a normal color stimulus set) in a paired comparison method (Experiment 1). Color impressions were rated using 35 paired words in a semantic differential (SD) method (Experiment 2). The data of ten color vision normal (CVN) and four deuteranopic observers were analyzed separately by principal component analysis (PCA).

Suppression of Luminance Contrast Sensitivity by Weak Color Presentation.

The results of psychophysical studies suggest that color in a visual scene affects luminance contrast perception. In our brain imaging studies we have found evidence of an effect of chromatic information on luminance information. The dependency of saturation on brain activity in the visual cortices was measured by functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while the subjects were observing visual stimuli consisting of colored patches of various hues manipulated in saturation (Chroma value in the Munsell color system) on an achromatic background.

Bidirectional relationships between semantic words and hues in color vision normal and deuteranopic observers.

We previously showed that impressions of nine semantic words expressing abstract meanings (like "tranquil") can be expressed by 12 hues in a paired comparison method; in this study, White, Gray, and Black were added (Exp. 1) to the previous 12 hues. Color impressions were also estimated using a set of 35 paired words by a semantic differential (SD) method (Exp.

Examining the Role of Familiarity in the Perception of Depth.

Bishop Berkeley suggested that the distance of an object can be estimated if the object's size is familiar to the observer. It has been suggested that humans can perceive the distance of the object by using such "familiarity" information, but most or many of the prior experiments that found an effect of familiarity were not designed to minimize or eliminate potential influences of: higher cognitive factors on the observers' responses, or the influences of low-level image features in the visual stimuli used. We looked for the familiarity effect in two experiments conducted both in Russia and Japan.

Transmitochondrial mice as models for primary prevention of diseases caused by mutation in the tRNA(Lys) gene.

We generated transmitochondrial mice (mito-mice) that carry a mutation in the tRNA(Lys) gene encoded by mtDNA for use in studies of its pathogenesis and transmission profiles. Because patients with mitochondrial diseases frequently carry mutations in the mitochondrial tRNA(Lys) and tRNA(Leu(UUR)) genes, we focused our efforts on identifying somatic mutations of these genes in mouse lung carcinoma P29 cells. Of the 43 clones of PCR products including the tRNA(Lys) or tRNA(Leu(UUR)) genes in mtDNA of P29 cells, one had a potentially pathogenic mutation (G7731A) in the tRNA(Lys) gene.