’The Mission is to Keep this Industry Intact’: Digital Transition in the Japanese Newspaper Industry

The focus of this paper is the digital transition in major Japanese newspapers that sell millions of copies per day. By digital transition we refer to the shift to publishing content on digital platforms – in this case the shift from print to online and mobile media. Japan is globally one of the most important newspaper markets with the world’s largest daily newspapers circulation-wise. The research focusing on the digital transition in Japanese newspapers and the implications of this shift has been hitherto almost non-existent. In the paper, the digital transition is examined by means of qualitative in-depth interviews with representatives from the Japanese leading newspapers. The conclusion based on the empirical analysis is that for the Japanese newspapers the most essential approach in coping with the digital transition is protecting the printed paper and treating the digital platforms as supplementary.Peer reviewe

Perancangan Produk Mainan Puzzle untuk Menstimulasi Motorik Anak Usia 3-5 Tahun

Perkembangan motorik anak sangat penting bagi tumbuh kembangnya. Mengasah motorik anak sejak dini, akan memberikan dampak baik bagi anak. Anak-anak akan tumbuh dengan daya kreativitas yang dapat membantu memecahkan permasalahannya dimasa depan, serta mempersiapkan diri untuk berperan dan berperilaku dewasa. Perkembanagan motorik anak cenderung dimulai saat menginjak usia 3 tahun. Menstimulasi motorik anak ini dapat dilakukan melalui permainan. Permainan yang memerlukan konsentrasi, daya fikir sederhana, penetuan sikap dan pengenalan bentuk dapat merangsang perkembangan anak. Puzzle merupakan permainan yang dapat memicu anak mengembangkan sistem motoriknya melalui pengenalan bentuk, warna serta pola potongan dan menuntun anak menggunakan daya kreatifnya dalam mengambil keputusan sederhana dari menggabungkan potongan yang berbeda. Pengembangan pada permainan jeni ini dilakukan agar anak tidak merasa bosan dengan permainan tersebut. Metode yang digunakan dalam perancangan karya ini adalah metode kualitatif. Metode tersebut melibatkan proses wawancara, studi kompetitor dan komperator. Informasi dari data tersebut merupakan landasan dalam pembuatan desain puzzle dan media pendukungnya. Tahap perancangan karya ini meliputi penentuan konsep, proses desain puzzle sebagai media utama dan finishing dari semua komponen pelengkap permainan. Komponen tersebut berupa wadah ikan, ikan, alat pemancing, lencana bintang dan buku panduang bermain. Perancangan serupa juga dilakukan pada media pendukungnya yang berupa gantungan kunci, mug dan kaos

Two novel proteins in the mitochondrial outer membrane mediate β-barrel protein assembly

Mitochondrial outer and inner membranes contain translocators that achieve protein translocation across and/or insertion into the membranes. Recent evidence has shown that mitochondrial β-barrel protein assembly in the outer membrane requires specific translocator proteins in addition to the components of the general translocator complex in the outer membrane, the TOM40 complex. Here we report two novel mitochondrial outer membrane proteins in yeast, Tom13 and Tom38/Sam35, that mediate assembly of mitochondrial β-barrel proteins, Tom40, and/or porin in the outer membrane. Depletion of Tom13 or Tom38/Sam35 affects assembly pathways of the β-barrel proteins differently, suggesting that they mediate different steps of the complex assembly processes of β-barrel proteins in the outer membrane

Neurite imaging reveals microstructural variations in human cerebral cortical gray matter

We present distinct patterns of neurite distribution in the human cerebral cortex using diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). We analyzed both high-resolution structural (T1w and T2w images) and diffusion MRI data in 505 subjects from the Human Connectome Project. Neurite distributions were evaluated using the neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (NODDI) model, optimized for gray matter, and mapped onto the cortical surface using a method weighted towards the cortical mid-thickness to reduce partial volume effects. The estimated neurite density was high in both somatosensory and motor areas, early visual and auditory areas, and middle temporal area (MT), showing a strikingly similar distribution to myelin maps estimated from the T1w/T2w ratio. The estimated neurite orientation dispersion was particularly high in early sensory areas, which are known for dense tangential fibers and are classified as granular cortex by classical anatomists. Spatial gradients of these cortical neurite properties revealed transitions that colocalize with some areal boundaries in a recent multi-modal parcellation of the human cerebral cortex, providing mutually supportive evidence. Our findings indicate that analyzing the cortical gray matter neurite morphology using diffusion MRI and NODDI provides valuable information regarding cortical microstructure that is related to but complementary to myeloarchitecture

Regression of glomerulosclerosis in response to transient treatment with angiotensin II blockers is attenuated by blockade of matrix metalloproteinase-2

Understanding mechanisms that contribute to the regression of glomerulosclerosis is important for developing new strategies to treat chronic kidney disease. We reported that transient high-dose treatment with an angiotensin receptor blocker causes regression of renal arteriolar hypertrophy and hypertension in spontaneously hypertensive rats. To extend those findings to another form of kidney disease, we examined the short- and long-term effects of transient high-dose angiotensin receptor blocker treatment in a mouse model of adriamycin-induced glomerulosclerosis. A 2-week course of candesartan caused a dose-dependent regression of established glomerulosclerotic lesions sustained for over 6 months following cessation of treatment. Highly sensitive in situ zymography and activity assays showed that glomerular matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 activity was increased after high-dose angiotensin blocker therapy. Treatment of cultured podocytes with candesartan resulted in an increase in MMP-2 activity. The regression of glomerulosclerosis was partially attenuated in mice pretreated with the MMP inhibitor doxycycline, as well as in MMP-2 knockout mice. Our results suggest that transient high-dose angiotensin receptor blocker treatment effectively induced sustained regression of glomerulosclerosis by a mechanism mediated, in part, by changes in MMP-2 activity

Thermospermine suppresses auxin-inducible xylem differentiation in Arabidopsis thaliana

Thermospermine, a structural isomer of spermine, is synthesized by a thermospermine synthase designated ACAULIS5 (ACL5). Thermospermine-deficient acl5 mutant of Arabidopsis thaliana shows severe dwarfism and excessive xylem differentiation. By screening for compounds that affect xylem differentiation in the acl5 mutant, we identified auxin analogs that remarkably enhanced xylem vessel differentiation in the acl5 mutant but not in the wild type. The xylem-inducing effect of auxin analogs was clearly suppressed by thermospermine, indicating that auxin-inducible xylem differentiation is normally limited by thermospermine. Here, we further characterized xylem-inducing effect of auxin analogs in various organs. Auxin analogs promoted protoxylem differentiation in roots and cotyledons in the acl5 mutant. Our results indicate that the opposite action between thermospermine and auxin in xylem differentiation is common in different organs and also suggest that thermospermine might be required for the suppression of protoxylem differentiation

A chemical biology approach reveals an opposite action between thermospermine and auxin in xylem development in Arabidopsis thaliana

Thermospermine, a structural isomer of spermine, is produced through the action of ACAULIS5 (ACL5) and suppresses xylem differentiation in Arabidopsis thaliana. To elucidate the molecular basis of the function of thermospermine, we screened chemical libraries for compounds that can modulate xylem differentiation in the acl5 mutant, which is deficient in thermospermine and shows a severe dwarf phenotype associated with excessive proliferation of xylem vessels. We found that the isooctyl ester of a synthetic auxin, 2,4-D, remarkably enhanced xylem vessel differentiation in acl5 seedlings. 2,4-D, 2,4-D analogs and IAA analogs, including 4-chloro IAA (4-Cl-IAA) and IAA ethyl ester, also enhanced xylem vessel formation, while IAA alone had little or no obvious effect on xylem differentiation. These effects of auxin analogs were observed only in the acl5 mutant but not in the wild type, and were suppressed by the anti-auxin, p-chlorophenoxyisobutyric acid (PCIB) and alpha-(phenyl ethyl-2-one)-IAA (PEO-IAA), and also by thermospermine. Furthermore, the suppressor of acaulis51-d (sac51-d) mutation, which causes SAC51 overexpression in the absence of thermospermine and suppresses the dwarf phenotype of acl5, also suppressed the effect of auxin analogs in acl5. These results suggest that the auxin signaling that promotes xylem differentiation is normally limited by SAC51-mediated thermospermine signaling but can be continually stimulated by exogenous auxin analogs in the absence of thermospermine. The opposite action between thermospermine and auxin may fine-tune the timing and spatial pattern of xylem differentiation