Post-maternal social organisation of Amaurobius ferox (Araneae, Amaurobiidae) provides an opportunity to investigate the mechanisms of social behaviour in spiderlings while controlling for potential effects of maternal presence. Development and characteristics of locomotory behaviours in young individuals of the subsocial Amaurobius ferox were examined. Young collectively show a very rapid and linear locomotion in a short distance in response to an intruder in the natal nest. Such a locomotory behaviour of the spiderlings resembles the successive synchronised stepping towards prey of the permanently social spider, Anelosimus eximius. We observed the development of different types of locomotion relative to the age of young, collective tendency (i.e., proportion of individuals within the clutch engaging in the behaviour), and directional properties of the locomotion. Locomotory behaviours of spiderlings fell into two categories: ‘abrupt locomotion’ (AL), involving fast and linear movement over a short distance; and ‘ordinary locomotion’ (OL), involving slower movement over longer distances and times. The frequency of AL (abrupt locomotion) did not vary much throughout the days post-matriphagy, occurring for a limited period of time. On the other hand, the frequency of OL (ordinary locomotion) varied over the days post-matriphagy and increased during the maternal social period.

The purpose of this study was to examine the influences of chronic shoulder pain on the muscle tone in trunk muscles. The study's subjects were 40 men and women in their 30 to 50s, which were divided into two groups. A chronic shoulder pain group consisted of 20 subjects who had been diagnosed with chronic shoulder pain by doctors, and a painless group consisted of 20 subjects who had experienced no such pain. An analysis was performed using electromyography on the muscle tone in the rectus abdominalis, external oblique, internal oblique, and erector spinae muscles under the same conditions between the two groups. The analysis results were as follows. The chronic shoulder pain group exhibited an overall high level of trunk muscle tone than the painless group, along with a statistically significant difference in the rectus abdominalis(p<.05). Moreover, the chronic shoulder pain group showed differences in the trunk muscle tone depending on the affected side. The chronic left shoulder pain group yielded higher levels of muscle tone in the right-side trunk muscles. In particular, the group revealed statistically significant differences in the rectus abdominalis and internal oblique(p<.05). The chronic right shoulder pain group exhibited higher levels of muscle tone in the left-side trunk muscles with a statistically significant difference in the internal oblique(p<.05). The above results suggested that chronic shoulder pain influences increases in the muscle tone in the trunk muscles on the opposite side to the affected shoulder.

The investigation assessed the influence of Compositae plants consumption on the protein profile in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. Diabetes was induced in Sprague-Dawley rats by injection of STZ (45 mg/kg body weight) into tail vein. The rats were randomly assigned to five groups: normal and STZ-control fed an AIN-93 diet, and groups whose diets were supplemented with l0% Compositae powder containing Artemisia iwayomogi (A. iwayomogi), Atracηlodes lancea (A. lancea) or Taraxacum mongolicum (T mongolicum). To observe the effects of Compositae plants in the animal model， the levels of protein in liver, kidney, lung, pancreas, and brain were determined after 4 weeks. The level of protein in kidney increased significantly in rats receiving the A. iwayomogi- and T mongolicum-supplemented diet compared to the STZcontrol group. The level of protein in lung was increased significantly in the A. iwayomogi-supplemented group. Bl00d glucose level correlated well with brain protein level but did not correlate with other protein levels. Also, blood glucose correlated inversely with kidney, lung and brain protein levels. It is suggested that supplementation with A. iwayomogi in diabetic rats leads elevates protein in kidney and lung.