Macro-econometric Models and the Outline of the MEAD-RIETI Model (Japanese)

The global financial crisis, triggered by the subprime mortgage problem and resulting in the collapse of a major American investment bank in September 2008, has seriously affected the Japanese economy. The Japanese government has instigated certain policies in response to the global economic recession and volatility in financial markets. In formulating policies, it has become increasingly necessary to forecast different economic scenarios by taking into account the possible impact of policies and risks, including contributing factors from abroad. Using macro-econometric models is one way to respond to this. In recent years, the governments, central banks and international organizations of many nations have placed more emphasis on aligning their macro-econometric models with macroeconomic theory, in order to better respond with the "Lucas Critique." This paper will attempt to achieve two things: 1) to illustrate the macro-econometric models of foreign countries and Japan and the macroeconomic theory behind those models, and 2) to explain the "MEAD-RIETI Model" (MRM) which we have constructed. While the aim of the MRM is to evaluate quantitatively the risks and impacts of policy decisions, it is a hybrid model which attaches a high degree of importance to how it fits with empirical data considering the consistency of the model with macroeconomic theory. Although MRM comprehensively covers SNA and other key economic variables, MRM prefers simplicity over complexity with regards to model specification and avoids the use of too many variables.

The whole blood transcriptional regulation landscape in 465 COVID-19 infected samples from Japan COVID-19 Task Force

「コロナ制圧タスクフォース」COVID-19患者由来の血液細胞における遺伝子発現の網羅的解析 --重症度に応じた遺伝子発現の変化には、ヒトゲノム配列の個人差が影響する--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2022-08-23.Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a recently-emerged infectious disease that has caused millions of deaths, where comprehensive understanding of disease mechanisms is still unestablished. In particular, studies of gene expression dynamics and regulation landscape in COVID-19 infected individuals are limited. Here, we report on a thorough analysis of whole blood RNA-seq data from 465 genotyped samples from the Japan COVID-19 Task Force, including 359 severe and 106 non-severe COVID-19 cases. We discover 1169 putative causal expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) including 34 possible colocalizations with biobank fine-mapping results of hematopoietic traits in a Japanese population, 1549 putative causal splice QTLs (sQTLs; e.g. two independent sQTLs at TOR1AIP1), as well as biologically interpretable trans-eQTL examples (e.g., REST and STING1), all fine-mapped at single variant resolution. We perform differential gene expression analysis to elucidate 198 genes with increased expression in severe COVID-19 cases and enriched for innate immune-related functions. Finally, we evaluate the limited but non-zero effect of COVID-19 phenotype on eQTL discovery, and highlight the presence of COVID-19 severity-interaction eQTLs (ieQTLs; e.g., CLEC4C and MYBL2). Our study provides a comprehensive catalog of whole blood regulatory variants in Japanese, as well as a reference for transcriptional landscapes in response to COVID-19 infection

DOCK2 is involved in the host genetics and biology of severe COVID-19

「コロナ制圧タスクフォース」COVID-19疾患感受性遺伝子DOCK2の重症化機序を解明 --アジア最大のバイオレポジトリーでCOVID-19の治療標的を発見--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2022-08-10.Identifying the host genetic factors underlying severe COVID-19 is an emerging challenge. Here we conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) involving 2, 393 cases of COVID-19 in a cohort of Japanese individuals collected during the initial waves of the pandemic, with 3, 289 unaffected controls. We identified a variant on chromosome 5 at 5q35 (rs60200309-A), close to the dedicator of cytokinesis 2 gene (DOCK2), which was associated with severe COVID-19 in patients less than 65 years of age. This risk allele was prevalent in East Asian individuals but rare in Europeans, highlighting the value of genome-wide association studies in non-European populations. RNA-sequencing analysis of 473 bulk peripheral blood samples identified decreased expression of DOCK2 associated with the risk allele in these younger patients. DOCK2 expression was suppressed in patients with severe cases of COVID-19. Single-cell RNA-sequencing analysis (n = 61 individuals) identified cell-type-specific downregulation of DOCK2 and a COVID-19-specific decreasing effect of the risk allele on DOCK2 expression in non-classical monocytes. Immunohistochemistry of lung specimens from patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia showed suppressed DOCK2 expression. Moreover, inhibition of DOCK2 function with CPYPP increased the severity of pneumonia in a Syrian hamster model of SARS-CoV-2 infection, characterized by weight loss, lung oedema, enhanced viral loads, impaired macrophage recruitment and dysregulated type I interferon responses. We conclude that DOCK2 has an important role in the host immune response to SARS-CoV-2 infection and the development of severe COVID-19, and could be further explored as a potential biomarker and/or therapeutic target

Effects of Stress Concentration on the Mechanical Properties of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic

Mechanical properties of conventional CFRP plates with small holes were investigated systematically. Those artificial holes are considered to be rivet connection between CFRP and other materials. The machining holes were employed with different number (n=0-5) and different mode, e.g., parallel (Sample A), 45 degree (Sample B) and perpendicular (Sample C) against the loading direction. To understand the mechanical properties of the CFRP plates clearly, tensile tests and failure analysis were conducted experimentally. Excellent mechanical properties were obtained for Sample A, compared to the other ones. This is due to the different size of the cross-section area in the specimen. With increasing the number of rivet hole, the mechanical properties were lineally decreasing. Such mechanical properties were analyzed by direct observation using a high speed camera, i.e., in-situ measurement of deformation during the tensile loading was carrie

Effects of Stress Concentration on the Mechanical Properties of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic

Mechanical properties of conventional CFRP plates with small holes were investigated systematically. Those artificial holes are considered to be rivet connection between CFRP and other materials. The machining holes were employed with different number (n=0-5) and different mode, e.g., parallel (Sample A), 45 degree (Sample B) and perpendicular (Sample C) against the loading direction. To understand the mechanical properties of the CFRP plates clearly, tensile tests and failure analysis were conducted experimentally. Excellent mechanical properties were obtained for Sample A, compared to the other ones. This is due to the different size of the cross-section area in the specimen. With increasing the number of rivet hole, the mechanical properties were lineally decreasing. Such mechanical properties were analyzed by direct observation using a high speed camera, i.e., in-situ measurement of deformation during the tensile loading was carried

Bromoallylation of Alkenes Leading to 4‑Alkenyl Bromides Based on Trapping of β‑Bromoalkyl Radicals

A radical-chain addition of allyl bromides to aryl alkenes, vinyl ester, and vinyl phthalimide was studied in which elusive β-bromoalkyl radicals were trapped efficiently to give 5-bromo-1-pentenes in good to high yields (16 examples). A subsequent carbonylative radical cyclization with AIBN/Bu₃SnH/CO was successful in giving the corresponding 3,5-disubstituted cyclohexanone derivatives in moderate yields. Synthesis of a piperidine ring was also successful by subsequent reaction with primary amine