Piperine, along with its isomer chavicine, is the alkaloid responsible for the pungency of black pepper and long pepper. It has been used in some forms of traditional medicine.
In the Japanese constitutional monarchy, the emperor does not have any political power. In world politics, he is the only current emperor. The current emperor is His Imperial Majesty the Emperor Akihito. He has been on the Chrysanthemum Throne since his father Emperor ShÅwa (Hirohito) died in 1989. The amount of power belonging to the emperor of Japan has changed a lot throughout Japanese history.
The true role of the current emperor of Japan seems to be two-fold: to provide continuity and reassurance to the Japanese people, and to apologize to the citizens of neighboring countries for past Japanese atrocities.