Higher-group structure in lattice Abelian gauge theory under instanton-sum modification

We consider the $U(1)$ gauge theory on a four-dimensional torus, where the instanton number is restricted to an integral multiple of $p$. This theory possesses the nontrivial higher-group structure, which can be regarded as a generalization of the Green--Schwarz mechanism, between $\mathbb{Z}_q$ $1$-form and $\mathbb{Z}_p$ $3$-form symmetries. Here, $\mathbb{Z}_q$ is a subgroup of the center of~$U(1)$. Following the recent study of the lattice construction of the $U(1)/\mathbb{Z}_q$ principal bundle, we examine how such a structure is realized on the basis of lattice regularization.Comment: 16 pages, to appear in EPJ

握力は、糖尿病患者の心血管イベントの独立した予測因子である

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is associated with an increased incidence of cardiovascular events and an elevated prevalence of sarcopenia. However, the relationship between cardiovascular events and sarcopenia in patients with DM remains unclear. This study examined this relationship and investigated the predictors of cardiovascular events in this population.This study enrolled 161 patients with DM and no history of cardiovascular diseases who were admitted to our hospital for the treatment of DM between September 2012 and December 2015. Patients were divided into sarcopenia and non-sarcopenia groups, and were followed until March 2019. The primary endpoint was major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE).The mean age was 65.9 ± 1.8 years old and the mean follow-up period was 4.1 ± 0.8 years. The log-rank test indicated that MACE differed significantly between the two groups (P < 0.0001). Multivariate Cox hazard analysis identified the cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) and handgrip strength as independent predictors of MACE (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.18, P = 0.039; and HR = 0.70, P = 0.016, respectively).Handgrip strength is an indicator of sarcopenia in diabetic patients, and together with CAVI it was independently associated with the incidence of MACE. This suggests that the handgrip strength test might be useful in the management of patients with DM at high risk of cardiovascular outcomes.博士（医学）・乙第1493号・令和3年3月15日© 2021 by the International Heart Journal Association発行元であるインターナショナル・ハート・ジャーナル刊行会の許諾を得て登録（2021年6月23日付）ジャーナル公式サイト（J-STAGE内）：https://doi.org/10.1536/ihj.20-67

Space Environment Effects of Ionizing Radiation on Seed Germination and Growth

An initial limited set of tests of germination rate and seed growth in a controlled environment have identified statistically significant differences between control samples and seed flown in a Russian LEO research flight. Most significantly, average seed germination of space borne seeds was 2 days less than the 6 days for the control seeds. Modification of the seed coat leading to enhanced rate of water uptake, as a result of radiation from the space environment or abrasion due to launch vibrations, is hypothesized to cause early germination. High school students will conduct growth tests on seeds exposed to simulated space environments. The effects of ionizing radiation up to 1 kGy are being studied using a biological exposure test chamber designed by Tsukuba students used in the USU MPG Space Survivability Test (SST) chamber. The SST is a test facility designed to mimic space environments to test environmental-induced modifications to small satellites, or in this case, biological samples. Additional seeds will be exposed to a vibration profile on a shaker table designed to simulate the extreme conditions during flight. Understanding observed space environment effects are important in design of long duration missions, such as to Mars, where food growth is essential. * Supported by USU STARS! GEAR UP partnership. # Partially funded by Japan Student Services Organizatio

How the Space Environment Affects Seed Germination and Growth

Understanding observed space environment effects on biological organisms such seeds are important in design of long duration space missions, such as to those planned for Mars, where appropriate storage and growth of food resources is essential. Evaluation of the effects of the real and simulated space environment on seed germination and growth in space is the purpose of this research. Preliminary tests of germination rate and growth of radish seeds in a controlled environment have identified statistically significant differences between control samples and seeds flown for 30 days in low earth orbit on the Bion M-1 launch capsule Russian research flight in 2013. Most significantly, average germination of space exposed radish seeds was 2 days less than the 6 days observed for the control seed group. Seed coats of the control group, space-exposed, and vibration-exposed seed were also inspected by LHS and USU students for physical changes. Observed changes in both the space-exposed and vibration-exposed seeds coats included the production of proteins presumably related to defense of the embryo from soil pathogens during seed germination. Previous research by others has shown production of anti-fungal proteins in radish seed coats is initiated by disturbance. Effects to germination rate from ionizing radiation up to 1 kGy were studied. Radiation exposure occurred with a custom biological exposure test chamber designed by Tsukuba students for the USU Materials Physics Group Space Survivability Test (SST) chamber, which is designed to mimic low-earth and geosynchronous orbital environments. * USU STARS! GEAR UP partnership # Partially funded by Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO), and University of Tsukub

Orientational mapping augmented sub-wavelength hyper-spectral imaging of silk

Molecular alignment underpins optical, mechanical, and thermal properties of materials, however, its direct measurement from volumes with micrometer dimensions is not accessible, especially, for structurally complex bio-materials. How the molecular alignment is linked to extraordinary properties of silk and its amorphous-crystalline composition has to be accessed by a direct measurement from a single silk fiber. Here, we show orientation mapping of the internal silk fiber structure via polarisation-dependent IR absorbance at high spatial resolution of 4.2 &mu;m and 1.9 &mu;m in a hyper-spectral IR imaging by attenuated total reflection using synchrotron radiation in the spectral fingerprint region around 6 &mu;m wavelength. Free-standing longitudinal micro-slices of silk fibers, thinner than the fiber cross section, were prepared by microtome for the four polarization method to directly measure the orientational sensitivity of absorbance in the molecular fingerprint spectral window of the amide bands of &beta;-sheet polypeptides of silk. Microtomed lateral slices of silk fibers, which may avoid possible artefacts that affect spectroscopic measurements with fibers of an elliptical cross sections were used in the study. Amorphisation of silk by ultra-short laser single-pulse exposure is demonstrated

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

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