Comparison of EEG biofeedback and visual search strategies during e-sports play according to skill level

About 83% of the perceptual information humans receive from the outside world comes through the visual domain, making the tracking of visual information important for the superior performance of e-sports players. In addition, it is known that e-sports players’ emotional state during performance affects their results. However, few studies have examined visual search strategies and electroencephalogram (EEG) findings of e-sports players while engaged in e-sports. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate the characteristics of visual search activity and EEG feedback during first person shooter (FPS) game play, in which the tracking of visual information is important, and to examine the characteristics of different gaming skill levels. Four skilled and five semi-skilled e-sports participants (mean age ± 19.11, SD = 0.99) participated in this study. Gazepoint GP3 (Canada) was used to measure eye movements, and the Sports KANSEI (Littlesoftware Inc., Japan) was used to analyse the emotional state of the participants by using EEG data. The results showed that the skilled e-sports players checked the camera significantly more frequently than the semi-skilled participants. The results of the area of interest (AOI) analysis showed that skilled e-sports players glanced at the friendly team information displayed at the top of the game screen more often than semi-skilled players. Furthermore, it was found that skilled e-sports players had significantly higher average EEG relaxation values during gameplay than semi-skilled players. Thus, the visual search strategy and emotional state while playing e-sports differed according to gaming skill level

Multilevel–Multigroup Analysis Using a Hierarchical Tensor SOM Network

This paper describes a method of multilevel–multigroup analysis based on a nonlinear multiway dimensionality reduction. To analyze a set of groups in terms of the probabilistic distribution of their constituent member data, the proposed method uses a hierarchical pair of tensor self-organizing maps (TSOMs), one for the member analysis and the other for the group analysis. This architecture enables more flexible analysis than ordinary parametric multilevel analysis, as it retains a high level of translatability supported by strong visualization. Furthermore, this architecture provides a consistent and seamless computation method for multilevel–multigroup analysis by integrating two different levels into a hierarchical tensor SOM network. The proposed method is applied to a dataset of football teams in a university league, and successfully visualizes the types of players that constitute each team as well as the differences or similarities between the teams.23rd International Conference on Neural Information Processing, ICONIP 2016, October 16–21, 2016, Kyoto, Japa

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 gaming glasses on the autonomic nervous system while playing e-Sports

[Purpose] Eyestrain associated with playing e-Sports has been identified as a problem. Several types of glasses for use during play have been developed to address this, but the studies to prove their efficacy are scarce. This research aims to examine what influence the wearing of gaming glasses has on the autonomic nervous system when playing e-sports. [Method] 60 students were divided into 3 groups, with two of these using gaming glasses and one group using demonstration lenses. Each group got Standard Deviation of Normal to Normal (SDNN), Physiological Stress Index (PSI), Total Power (LF/HF/VLF), Sympathetic Nerve Activity (LnLF), Parasympathetic activity (LnHF), as well as Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Balance (Ln (LF/HF)) Autonomic Nervous System measurements (6 in total) before and after playing one videogame for three hours. [Results and remarks] Blue and Gray lenses were compared against demonstration lenses with the results of the SDNN, showing a higher and healthier heartbeat variability, stronger resistance to stress and improved concentration after playing. Furthermore, the results of the Ln (LF/HF) showed the use blue lenses remarkably improved Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Balance, both working actively and in good form. These results suggest the wearing of gaming glasses during play have a real effect on players

〈Originals〉Histological change of cbronic ulcers following negative-pressure wound therapy

[Abstract]We treated various ulcerative lesions associated with different causes of ulceration using negative-pressure wound therapy, and investigated the characteristics of the histological changes during the treatment period. The wound surface was then entirely sealed and maintained with a closed dressing material and managed by applying approximately 125 mmHg of continuous negative pressure to the wound surface. Tissue was collected from the central region of the ulcer floor and the collected specimen was macroscopically and histologically evaluated. Using this de-vice, the remission of edema, neutrophil infiltration, capillary blood vessel formation, and collagen fibers advancing in the vertical direction from the wound floor were observed regardless of the cause of ulceration. The results of histological examinations also confirmed that favorable granulation is achievable in chronic ulcers. Although this method necessitates the monitoring of the negative pressure load and infection level in the wound during device application, it is simple, less invasive, and effective