Augmented Visual Feedback for Complex Motor Skill Acquisition: A Demonstration with Healthy Young Adults.

Mirror therapy (MT) is a treatment for improving motor function after stroke. Video therapy (VT) training combines observation and imitation of video clips, and it has been used to conduct efficient occupational therapy. We sought to determine the effects of MT and VT on tool-use with healthy young adults.

GroEL Secreted from Natto Exerted a Crucial Role for Anti-Inflammatory IL-10 Induction in THP-1 Cells.

Although diverse immunomodulatory reactions of probiotic bacteria have been reported, this effect via natto remains unclear, despite its long consumption history in Japan and usage in Natto production. Hence, we performed a comparative analysis of the immunomodulatory activities of 23 types of natto isolated from Natto products to elucidate the key active components. Among the isolated 23 strains, the supernatant from strain 1 fermented medium showed the highest induction of anti-inflammatory IL-10 and pro-inflammatory IL-12 in THP-1 dendritic cells (THP-1 DC) after co-incubation.

Design, synthesis and evaluation of unnatural peptides as T1R2/T1R3 PAMs.

The sweet receptor T1R2/T1R3 is a member of G protein-coupled receptor family and recognizes diverse natural and synthetic sweeteners. Previously, we reported a novel class of positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) of T1R2/T1R3 comprising an unnatural tripeptide structure. We classified the structure of these PAMs into three parts: "head", "linker" and "tail".

Unnatural Tripeptides as Potent Positive Allosteric Modulators of T1R2/T1R3.

T1R2/T1R3 belongs to G protein coupled receptors, which recognizes diverse natural and synthetic sweeteners. A novel class of positive allosteric modulators (PAMs) of T1R2/T1R3 was identified through high-throughput screening campaign. Comparing the structure of the potent compound with previously known PAM, we classified the structure of known PAM into three parts, defined as "head", "linker", and "tail".

UV-sensitive photoreceptor protein OPN5 in humans and mice.

A variety of animal species utilize the ultraviolet (UV) component of sunlight as their environmental cues, whereas physiological roles of UV photoreception in mammals, especially in human beings, remain open questions. Here we report that mouse neuropsin (OPN5) encoded by the Opn5 gene exhibited an absorption maximum (λmax) at 380 nm when reconstituted with 11-cis-retinal. Upon UV-light illumination, OPN5 was converted to a blue-absorbing photoproduct (λmax 470 nm), which was stable in the dark and reverted to the UV-absorbing state by the subsequent orange light illumination, indicating its bistable nature.