Abstract: The invention is intended to develop a drug capable of directly or indirectly inhibiting the activation of caspase. Specifically, the invention provides a caspase 3 inhibitor comprising a protein comprising the same or substantially the same amino acid sequence as that represented by SEQ ID NO: 1, 2, 3 or 31 or a salt thereof. The protein of the invention, a partial peptide or a salt thereof is useful as a pharmaceutical such as a prophylactic and/or therapeutic agent for AIDS, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, pigmentary retinopathy, cerebellar degeneration, myelodysplastic syndrome, aplastic anemia, sideroblastic anemia, myocardial ischemia, conduction disturbance, chronic cardiac failure, graft-versus-host disease, or congenital or acquired enzymatic defect.

Abstract: An illuminating device for photographing includes: an illuminating unit having a plurality of current-controlled light emitting elements, which illuminates a subject with light emitted from the plurality of light emitting elements; a storage unit in which light emission brightness information is stored in correspondence to each of the plurality of light emitting elements; and a light emission control unit that controls light emission at the plurality of light emitting elements based upon the light emission brightness information stored in the storage unit so that the plurality of light emitting elements achieve uniform brightness levels at the subject.

Abstract: A rubber composition comprises a diene rubber component, a filler and a softening agent, in which a given amount of a filler is compounded based on 100 parts by mass of a diene rubber component, and a softening agent is included in a given amount per the filler, and not less than 60% by mass of the diene rubber component is a solution-polymerized styrene-butadiene copolymer rubber having a mass average molecular weight of not less than 1,000,000, and the filler is selected from the group consisting of carbon black, silica and an inorganic agent of a formula (I): mM.xSiOy.zH2O (wherein M is at least one metal selected from the group consisting of aluminum, magnesium, titanium and calcium, or an oxide of such a metal or a hydroxide of such a metal, m is a number of 1-5, x is a number of 0-10, y is a number of 2-5 and z is a number of 0-10), wherein each of the filler and the softening agent is charged in at least two fractions.

Abstract: The invention provides novel liver function controlling agents and others. The liver function controlling agents of the present invention are useful as preventive/therapeutic agents for diseases such as hepatic dysfunction, hepatitis, liver cancer, liver cirrhosis, etc.

Abstract: A navigation apparatus includes a guidance-information creating unit that creates guidance information by acquiring a guiding direction, in which a vehicle should be guided, from preset route information and current position information; an acoustic-image creating unit that creates an acoustic image for notifying a driver of the guidance information; and an acoustic-image control unit that changes at least one of a movement start position of the acoustic image, a direction change position of the acoustic image, a moving amount of the acoustic image, a moving speed of the acoustic image, and a moving locus of the acoustic image according to the current position information and a guiding position in the preset route information.

Abstract: An image-capturing system includes: an image-capturing device that captures an image of a subject; and an illumination device that illuminates the subject. The image-capturing device includes a control unit that calculates a light quantity needed to illuminate the subject based upon at least, either an exposure time or an aperture value and image-capturing sensitivity. The illumination device includes a current-controlled light emission unit that emits light used to illuminate the subject and a light emission control unit that controls the light emission unit so as to emit light in the light quantity calculated by the control unit.

Abstract: The present invention aims to solve the conventional problems by providing a peptide compound, in which when administered to a patient of immunologic disease, cardiac hypertrophy or a disease caused by NFAT activation, the period from administration to actual exhibition of effectiveness is short and there are no side effects or antigenicity. Specifically, the present invention relates to a membrane permeable NFAT inhibitory peptide comprising several consecutive arginines and a NFAT-activity inhibitory peptide sequence; a NFAT activation inhibitory agent comprising the peptide; and a immunosuppressive agent and cardiac hypertrophy suppressive agent, comprising the peptide compound as the active ingredient.

Abstract: A novel G protein-conjugating receptor protein containing an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO.1, or its salt; a polynucleotide encoding the same; and medicinal use, etc. thereof.

Abstract: This invention provides the electromagnetic waves shield material that has a sufficient effect of shielding the electromagnetic waves by making the electric conductive fibers into mesh. And this invention also provides the electromagnetic waves shield mobile phone case that avoids a harmful effect on the human body without reducing the function of communication of the mobile phone used the said electromagnetic waves shield material. The fibers with electric conductivity are woven into mesh by a general knitting machine like a machine for tricot. The cost is low even used for the wide area to shield the electromagnetic waves because the consumption of the fibers needed is less. The coarseness of the net is maintained the same by controlling the movement of the length and breadth each other. To avoid the radiation to the head direction, the electromagnetic waves shield material is used for the front and upper sides of the mobile phone case which are the direction to the head when the mobile phone is in use.

Abstract: To restrict a loss, or a variation in a loudness, of the sound of a rear speaker if the separation of a two-channel stereo signal degrades in a surround device which generates a four-channel surround signal based on a difference component of the two-channel stereo signal. In a surround device which generates the difference signal based on input left and right channel signal, and generates a driving signal of a front speaker arranged in front of the audience and a driving signal of a rear speaker arranged behind the audience based on the left and right input signals and the difference signal, a part of the driving signal of the front speaker or a part of the two-channel signal is mixed to the driving signal of the rear speaker, and therefore, the loss or the variation in the loudness of the sound of the rear speaker can be restricted even if the separation of the two-channel stereo signal degrades.

Abstract: The screening method for a compound or a salt thereof that alters the binding property between Neuromedin U or a salt thereof and TGR-1 or a salt thereof, characterized by using Neuromedin U, a derivative thereof or a salt thereof and TGR-1 or a salt thereof, can be useful for screening a therapeutic and/or prophylactic agent for hypertension and stress-related diseases, etc. A TGR-1 antagonist can be useful as a therapeutic and/or prophylactic agent for hypertension and stress-related diseases, etc.

Abstract: The invention is intended to develop a drug capable of directly or indirectly inhibiting the activation of caspase. Specifically, the invention provides a caspase 3 inhibitor comprising a protein comprising the same or substantially the same amino acid sequence as that represented by SEQ ID NO: 1, 2, 3 or 31 or a salt thereof. The protein of the invention, a partial peptide or a salt thereof is useful as a pharmaceutical such as a prophylactic and/or therapeutic agent for AIDS, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, pigmentary retinopathy, cerebellar degeneration, myelodysplastic syndrome, aplastic anemia, sideroblastic anemia, myocardial ischemia, conduction disturbance, chronic cardiac failure, graft-versus-host disease, or congenital or acquired enzymatic defect.

Abstract: A novel G protein-coupled receptor protein will be screened. Further, the function will be elucidated.

Abstract: The present invention provides a novel G protein-coupled receptor protein comprising the same or substantially the same amino acid sequence as that represented by SEQ ID NO: 5 or salts thereof, and a polynucleotide encoding the same. The present invention also provides a use such as pharmaceuticals, etc.

Abstract: DNAs encoding human leukocyte-derived G protein-coupled receptor proteins or salts thereof are useful in: (1) determining ligands; (2) acquiring antibodies and antisera; (3) constructing a recombinant receptor protein expression system; (4) developing a receptor-bound assay system and screening candidate compounds for a drug using the expression system above; (5) designing drugs based on the comparison with ligand receptors having similar structures; (6) reagents in preparing probes, PCR primers, etc. for gene therapy; (7) constructing transgenic animals; (8) drugs such as gene preventives and remedies; etc.

Abstract: The present invention provides a novel G protein-coupled receptor protein or salts thereof, and a polynucleotide encoding the same, which is useful for screening agonist/antagonist and comprises the same or substantially the same amino acid sequence as that represented by SEQ ID NO: 1. It also provides a use such as pharmaceuticals.

Abstract: A dimming plate for dimming light from an internal flash device of a camera, is disposed on the external flash device of the present invention which is mounted for use on a mounting seat of the camera. A two-lamp-lighting photographing is carried out in a state where the light from the internal flash device of the camera is dimmed by covering a luminescent unit of the internal flash device with the dimming plate of the external flash device. Thereby the two-lamp-lighting photographing can be carried out easily and reliably, where the light emission of the external flash device is used as a main light source, and the light emission of the internal flash device of the camera as a supplementary light source. The external flash device becomes inexpensive because the two-lamp-lighting photographing can be carried out only by incorporating the dimming plate therein without a special sub-luminescent unit disposed.

Abstract: A novel G protein-conjugating receptor protein containing an amino acid sequence which is the same or substantially the same as the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO.1, or its salt; a polynucleotide encoding the same; and medicinal use, etc. thereof.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a process for producing a protein in the active form or salt thereof, which comprises extracting a protein, which has been expressed by genetic engineering in a prokaryotic host, with a solution containing about 0.1 mM to about 50 mM of a reducing agent having a reduction potential higher than −331 mV; and then refolding the protein in a solution containing a mercapto-free amino acid or its salt.

Abstract: The present invention provides a novel G protein-coupled receptor protein comprising the same or substantially the same amino acid sequence as that represented by SEQ ID NO: 1 or salts thereof, and a polynucleotide encoding the same, a use such as pharmaceuticals, etc.