1. A biometric monitoring system to measure a body weight of a user, the biometric monitoring system comprising:
a housing configured to be placed on a flat horizontal surface and including a platform configured to receive at least one foot of the user and capable of supporting the body weight of the user;
one or more physiological sensors, wherein the one or more physiological sensors includes a body weight sensor, mechanically coupled to the platform and configured to generate data representative of the body weight of the user and to output the data representative of the body weight of the user to processing circuitry; and
the processing circuitry, wherein the processing circuitry is:
communicatively coupled with the one or more physiological sensors,
configured to calculate biometric data from the one or more physiological sensors,
wherein the biometric data includes body weight data that corresponds to the body weight of the user and that is based on the data representative of the body weight of the user,
configured to compare a user physiological goal with the biometric data and determine that the user physiological goal has been met based, at least in part, on the biometric data;
configured to recommend a social group to the user based, at least in part, on information selected from the group consisting of: a) the user physiological goal, b) the data representative of the body weight of the user, and c) the user physiological goal and the data representative of the body weight of the user, the recommendation being presented through a display; and
configured to rank the user against other members of the social group based on one or more parameters selected from the group consisting of: recent weight lost, cumulative weight lost, and progress towards the user physiological goal.
2. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the one or more physiological sensors further includes, in addition to the body weight sensor, a first physiological sensor configured to collect data selected from the group consisting of: caloric consumption data, sleep data, activity data, body fat data, blood pressure data, heart rate data, heart waveform data, blood sugar data, hydration data, respiratory rate data, and arterial stiffness data.
3. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is selected from the group consisting of: processing circuitry internal to the housing, processing circuitry external to the housing, and processing circuitry both internal and external to the housing.
4. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the one or more physiological sensors further includes a first physiological sensor in addition to the body weight sensor, wherein:
the first physiological sensor is configured to generate data representative of a first physiological state of the user and output the data representative of the first physiological state of the user to the processing circuitry;
and
the processing circuitry is configured to calculate first physiological data using the data representative of the first physiological state of the user.
5. The biometric monitoring system of claim 4, wherein the first physiological sensor is selected from the group consisting of: a body fat sensor, a heart rate sensor, a respiratory rate sensor, a hydration sensor, a height sensor, a blood pressure sensor, an arterial stiffness sensor, and a bio-impedance sensor.
6. The biometric monitoring system of claim 4, wherein the data representative of the first physiological state of the user is selected from the group consisting of: data representative of user body fat, data representative of user heart rate, data representative of user respiratory rate, data representative of user hydration, data representative of user height, data representative of user sun exposure, data representative of user blood pressure, and data representative of user arterial stiffness.
7. The biometric monitoring system of claim 4, further comprising a user interface, wherein:
the user interface is configured to communicate that the user physiological goal has been met,
the processing circuitry is further configured to determine user physiological information using data selected from the group consisting of: the body weight data and the first physiological data,
the processing circuitry is further configured to store historical user physiological information in a memory disposed in a location selected from the group consisting of: a location inside of the housing and a location external to the housing, and
the user interface communicates that the user physiological goal has been met through providing information representing one or more of current user physiological information, historical user physiological information, and current user physiological information in view of historical user physiological information.
8. The biometric monitoring system of claim 7, wherein the user physiological information is selected from the group consisting of: exercise or diet data, exercise or diet coaching, exercise or data instructions, and user progress towards the user physiological goal.
9. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the user physiological goal is selected from the group consisting of: a weight goal, a body fat composition goal, and a caloric consumption goal.
10. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to determine diet or coaching guidance for the user based on the user physiological goal.
11. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, further comprising a user interface, wherein the user interface is configured to communicate that the user physiological goal has been met responsive to a determination that the user physiological goal has been met.
12. The biometric monitoring system of claim 11, wherein the user interface comprises an audio interface.
13. The biometric monitoring system of claim 11, wherein the user interface comprises a visual display and the processing circuitry is configured to cause the display to present a graphical representation that the user physiological goal has been met responsive to the determination that the user physiological goal has been met.
14. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, further comprising a user interface, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to select the user physiological goal responsive to user interaction with the user interface.
15. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to select the user physiological goal.
16. The biometric monitoring system of claim 1, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to determine a duration since at least the last instance of the user interacting with the biometric monitoring system.
17. A biometric monitoring system to measure a body weight of a user, the biometric monitoring system comprising:
a housing configured to be placed on a flat horizontal surface and including a platform configured to receive at least one foot of the user and capable of supporting the body weight of the user;
one or more physiological sensors, wherein the one or more physiological sensors includes a body weight sensor, interconnected with the housing and configured to generate data representative of the body weight of the user and to output the data representative of the body weight of the user to processing circuitry; and
the processing circuitry including circuitry configured to communicatively couple with the one or more physiological sensors, wherein the processing circuitry is:
configured to, when communicatively coupled to the one or more physiological sensors, calculate biometric data from the one or more physiological sensors, wherein the biometric data includes body weight data that corresponds to the body weight of the user and that is based on the data representative of the body weight of the user,
configured to, when communicatively coupled to the one or more physiological sensors, compare a user physiological goal with the biometric data and determine that the user physiological goal has been met based, at least in part, on the biometric data; and
configured to, when communicatively coupled to the one or more physiological sensors, rank the user against a plurality of other users in a social network based on one or more parameters selected from the group consisting of: recent weight lost, cumulative weight lost, and progress towards the user physiological goal.
18. The biometric monitoring system of claim 17, wherein the processing circuitry is further configured to, when communicatively coupled to the one or more physiological sensors, recommend a social group to the user based, at least in part, on information selected from the group consisting of: a) the user physiological goal, b) the data representative of the body weight of the user, and c) the user physiological goal and the data representative of the body weight of the user, the recommendation being provided through a user interface.
19. The biometric monitoring system of claim 17, wherein the one or more physiological sensors further includes, in addition to the body weight sensor, a first physiological sensor configured to collect data selected from the group consisting of: caloric consumption data, sleep data, activity data, body fat data, blood pressure data, heart rate data, heart waveform data, blood sugar data, hydration data, respiratory rate data, and arterial stiffness data.
20. The biometric monitoring system of claim 17, wherein the processing circuitry is selected from the group consisting of: processing circuitry internal to the housing, processing circuitry external to the housing, and processing circuitry both internal and external to the housing.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
What is claimed is:
1. A method for identifying candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function, comprising:
a. contacting a test compound with a VPAC receptor;
b. determining whether the test compound binds to the VPAC receptor; and
c. identifying those test compounds that bind VPAC receptor as candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function.
2. A method for identifying candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function, comprising:
a. contacting a test compound with a VPAC receptor;
b. determining whether the test compound binds to the VPAC receptor;
c. selecting the compounds that bind the VPAC receptor and further determining whether the test compound modulates muscle mass or function in a skeletal muscle atrophy model system; and
d. identifying those test compounds that modulate muscle mass or function in a skeletal muscle atrophy model system as candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function.
3. The method according to claim 1, wherein: in the step (a) the VPAC receptor is expressed on a cell surface, and binding of the test compound to the VPAC receptor activates the VPAC receptor.
4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: administering the test compound determined to bind to the VPAC receptor, to a non-human animal, and determining whether the test compound regulates skeletal muscle mass or function in the animal, wherein test compounds that regulate skeletal muscle mass or function in the animal are identified as candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function in vivo.
5. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 1, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC1 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 80% identical to SEQ ID NO: 1.
6. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 5, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC1 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 90% identical to SEQ ID NO: 1.
7. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 1, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC1 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 80% identical to SEQ ID NO: 2.
8. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 7, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC1 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 90% identical to SEQ ID NO: 2.
9. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 1, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC1 receptor, and is selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9.
10. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 1, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC2 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 80% identical to SEQ ID NO: 10.
11. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 10, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC2 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 90% identical to SEQ ID NO: 10.
12. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 1, wherein the VPC receptor is a VPAC2 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 80% identical to SEQ ID NO: 11.
13. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 12, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC2 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 90% identical to SEQ ID NO: 11.
14. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 1, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC2 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 80% identical to SEQ ID NO: 12.
15. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 14, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC2 receptor, and has an amino acid sequence greater than about 90% identical to SEQ ID NO: 12.
16. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 1, wherein the VPAC receptor is a VPAC2 receptor, and is selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NOs: 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16.
17. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 3, wherein the VPAC receptor is expressed on a eukaryotic cell.
18. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 17, wherein determining whether the test compound activates the VPAC receptor involves determining cellular cAMP level.
19. The method for identifying candidate compounds according to claim 18, wherein the cell further comprises a reporter gene operatively associated with a cAMP responsive element and measuring the cellular cAMP level involves measuring expression or activity of the reporter gene.
20. A method for identifying candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function comprising:
a. contacting a test compound with a cell expressing a functional VPAC2 receptor, and determining level of activation of VPAC2 receptor resulting from the interaction of the test compound with VPAC2 receptor;
b. contacting the test compound with a cell expressing a functional VPAC1 receptor, and determining level of activation of VPAC1 receptor resulting from the interaction of the test compound with VPAC1 receptor;
c. comparing the level of VPAC2 receptor activation with the level of VPAC1 receptor activation; and
d. identifying those test compounds that selectively activate VPAC2 receptor over the VPAC1 receptor as candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function.
21. The method for identifying candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function according to claim 20, further comprising: selecting the compound that selectively activated VPAC2 receptor over VPAC1 receptor according to claim 20, and further determining whether the test compound modulates muscle mass or function in a skeletal muscle atrophy model system; and identifying those compounds that modulate muscle mass or function in a skeletal muscle atrophy model system as candidate compounds for regulating skeletal muscle mass or function.
22. The method according to claim 20 wherein the candidate compound exhibits about 100-fold or greater selectivity for VPAC2 receptor.
23. The method according to claim 20 wherein the candidate compound exhibits about 1000-fold or greater selectivity for VPAC2 receptor.
24. The method according to claim 20 wherein the candidate compound exhibits between about 1-fold and about 100-fold selectivity for VPAC2 receptor.