A New Frontier in Film Studies: Applying Digital Humanities Methods to Indian Film Research <Article>

This paper proposes a framework for the use of the digital humanities (DH) methods in the analysis of Indian films, which has been subjected to bias from the use of the conventional qualitative methods that inevitably depend on the researchers’ subjectivity and sensibilities. To date, the DH methods have been employed primarily in literary studies, with notable results. We are confident that these methods can also be applied to Indian film studies as they can provide deep insights into the Indian culture and society. Although the DH methods are still in the introductory stage in many ways, this study was a preliminary attempt to elucidate them as new methods that can be used in film studies.This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP19K00231

Delayed Re-Epithelialization in Periostin-Deficient Mice during Cutaneous Wound Healing

BACKGROUND: Matricellular proteins, including periostin, are important for tissue regeneration. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Presently we investigated the function of periostin in cutaneous wound healing by using periostin-deficient ⁻/⁻ mice. Periostin mRNA was expressed in both the epidermis and hair follicles, and periostin protein was located at the basement membrane in the hair follicles together with fibronectin and laminin γ2. Periostin was associated with laminin γ2, and this association enhanced the proteolytic cleavage of the laminin γ2 long form to produce its short form. To address the role of periostin in wound healing, we employed a wound healing model using WT and periostin⁻/⁻ mice and the scratch wound assay in vitro. We found that the wound closure was delayed in the periostin⁻/⁻ mice coupled with a delay in re-epithelialization and with reduced proliferation of keratinocytes. Furthermore, keratinocyte proliferation was enhanced in periostin-overexpressing HaCaT cells along with up-regulation of phosphorylated NF-κB. CONCLUSION: These results indicate that periostin was essential for keratinocyte proliferation for re-epithelialization during cutaneous wound healing

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

A Study on Trends in Bollywood Films since the late 2000s: Focus on Movie Genres and the Social Strata of Audiences<Forum>

インドの大衆向け映画は，その特徴的なフォーマットから「ボリウッド映画」の異名をもち，ジャンル映画としての性格をもつ。先行研究では，経済開放後の人々の嗜好と観客層の変化を，特定のジャンルと社会階層とを対応させることで描出してきた。本稿もジャンルとその観客層に注目し，ボリウッド映画を取り上げ，先行研究で対象とされなかったジャンルも分析に加え，2000年代後半以降を中心としたトレンドを補完することを目的とする。その際，インターネット上に公開されている映画情報を活用し，データからインド映画の概況を把握したうえで，ジャンルと観客層の関連を分析した。 以上の結果，経済開放以降，短い周期で作品のトレンドが変遷していることが確認できた。その要因には観客層の分化があり，制作側がターゲットをどこに当てるか苦慮している様子がうかがえる。その対応の一環として，メインストリーム映画において多くの観客層を取り込むための内容の揺り戻しが生じたり，あえて大規模ヒットにこだわらないテーマ重視の小規模予算映画が出現したりするなど，観客層の取り込みをはかった試行錯誤が続いている状況が明らかになった

Quantum Interference in DC-SQUIDs Comprising Two Sub-Micron Aluminum Josephson Junctions: Deviation from Classical Model

AbstractIn a small Josephson junction, the critical current is often found experimentally to be smaller than the value expected fromthe Ambegaokar-Baratoff theory because of the quantum phase fluctuations. We also observed in our previous study that the quantum interference in a dc-SQUID comprising sub-micron Al junctions deviated from the classical model. In this work, we have fabricated 13devices having different values of maximal critical currents, and evaluated their quantum interference patterns.The quantum interference of 12among 13 devices has deviated from the classical model. It is confirmed that their maximal critical currents(Icsq,max) are reduced from the values (Icsq0) predicted by the Ambegaokar-Baratofftheory. Besides, the quantum interference for Icsq,max / Icsq0< 0.4 agrees with themodified quantum-interference model

Ischemic Preconditioning Effect of Prodromal Angina Is Attenuated in Acute Myocardial Infarction Patients With Hypertensive Left Ventricular Hypertrophy (前駆症状である狭心症の虚血性前処置効果は高血圧性左室肥大がある急性心筋梗塞患者では減弱する)

雑誌掲載版動物実験によると、急性心筋梗塞に対する虚血性前処置の保護効果は高血圧動物ではより著明と言われるが、臨床的にこれを検証した報告はない。本研究では再灌流治療に成功した初回前壁急性心筋梗塞(AMI)患者125例を高血圧の有無により2群に分け、更に各群を狭心症の前駆症状の有無により2群に分け、更に各群を狭心症の前駆症状の有無により2群に分けて再灌流治療後の左室形態と左室機能をSPECT、左室造影、心エコー図により評価した。その結果は動物実験とは逆で、高血圧性左室肥大があるAMI患者ではそれがないAMI患者と比較して前駆狭心症による保護効果は減弱していた