Formin 2 links neuropsychiatric phenotypes at young age to an increased risk for dementia

Age-associated memory decline is due to variable combinations of genetic and environmental risk factors. How these risk factors interact to drive disease onset is currently unknown. Here we begin to elucidate the mechanisms by which post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at a young age contributes to an increased risk to develop dementia at old age. We show that the actin nucleator Formin 2 (Fmn2) is deregulated in PTSD and in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients. Young mice lacking the Fmn2 gene exhibit PTSD-like phenotypes and corresponding impairments of synaptic plasticity, while the consolidation of new memories is unaffected. However, Fmn2 mutant mice develop accelerated age-associated memory decline that is further increased in the presence of additional risk factors and is mechanistically linked to a loss of transcriptional homeostasis. In conclusion, our data present a new approach to explore the connection between AD risk factors across life span and provide mechanistic insight to the processes by which neuropsychiatric diseases at a young age affect the risk for developing dementia

Effect of Coenzyme Q10 on ischemia and neuronal damage in an experimental traumatic brain-injury model in rats

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Head trauma is one of the most important clinical issues that not only can be fatal and disabling, requiring long-term treatment and care, but also can cause heavy financial burden. Formation or distribution of free oxygen radicals should be decreased to enable fixing of poor neurological outcomes and to prevent neuronal damage secondary to ischemia after trauma. Coenzyme Q₁₀(CoQ₁₀), a component of the mitochondrial electron transport chain, is a strong antioxidant that plays a role in membrane stabilization. In this study, the role of CoQ₁₀in the treatment of head trauma is researched by analyzing the histopathological and biochemical effects of CoQ₁₀administered after experimental traumatic brain injury in rats. A traumatic brain-injury model was created in all rats. Trauma was inflicted on rats by the free fall of an object of 450 g weight from a height of 70 cm on the frontoparietal midline onto a metal disc fixed between the coronal and the lambdoid sutures after a midline incision was carried out.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In the biochemical tests, tissue malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were significantly higher in the traumatic brain-injury group compared to the sham group (<it>p </it>< 0.05). Administration of CoQ₁₀after trauma was shown to be protective because it significantly lowered the increased MDA levels (<it>p </it>< 0.05). Comparing the superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels of the four groups, trauma + CoQ₁₀group had SOD levels ranging between those of sham group and traumatic brain-injury group, and no statistically significant increase was detected. Histopathological results showed a statistically significant difference between the CoQ₁₀and the other trauma-subjected groups with reference to vascular congestion, neuronal loss, nuclear pyknosis, nuclear hyperchromasia, cytoplasmic eosinophilia, and axonal edema (<it>p </it>< 0.05).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Neuronal degenerative findings and the secondary brain damage and ischemia caused by oxidative stress are decreased by CoQ₁₀use in rats with traumatic brain injury.</p

Effects of Nutrient Management Scenarios on Marine Eutrophication Indicators: A Pan-European, Multi-Model Assessment in Support of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive

A novel pan-European marine model ensemble was established, covering nearly all seas under the regulation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), with the aim of providing a consistent assessment of the potential impacts of riverine nutrient reduction scenarios on marine eutrophication indicators. For each sea region, up to five coupled biogeochemical models from institutes all over Europe were brought together for the first time. All model systems followed a harmonised scenario approach and ran two simulations, which varied only in the riverine nutrient inputs. The load reductions were evaluated with the catchment model GREEN and represented the impacts due to improved management of agriculture and wastewater treatment in all European river systems. The model ensemble, comprising 15 members, was used to assess changes to the core eutrophication indicators as defined within MSFD Descriptor 5. In nearly all marine regions, riverine load reductions led to reduced nutrient concentrations in the marine environment. However, regionally the nutrient input reductions led to an increase in the non-limiting nutrient in the water, especially in the case of phosphate concentrations in the Black Sea. Further core eutrophication indicators, such as chlorophyll-a, bottom oxygen and the Trophic Index TRIX, improved nearly everywhere, but the changes were less pronounced than for the inorganic nutrients. The model ensemble displayed strong consistency and robustness, as most if not all models indicated improvements in the same areas. There were substantial differences between the individual seas in the speed of response to the reduced nutrient loads. In the North Sea ensemble, a stable plateau was reached after only three years, while the simulation period of eight years was too short to obtain steady model results in the Baltic Sea. The ensemble exercise confirmed the importance of improved management of agriculture and wastewater treatments in the river catchments to reduce marine eutrophication. Several shortcomings were identified, the outcome of different approaches to compute the mean change was estimated and potential improvements are discussed to enhance policy support. Applying a model ensemble enabled us to obtain highly robust and consistent model results, substantially decreasing uncertainties in the scenario outcom

Atmospheric stilling leads to prolonged thermal stratification in a large shallow polymictic lake

To quantify the effects of recent and potential future decreases in surface wind speeds on lake thermal stratification, we apply the one-dimensional process-based model MyLake to a large, shallow, polymictic lake, Võrtsjärv. The model is validated for a 3-year period and run separately for 28 years using long-term daily atmospheric forcing data from a nearby meteorological station. Model simulations show exceptionally good agreement with observed surface and bottom water temperatures during the 3-year period. Similarly, simulated surface water temperatures for 28 years show remarkably good agreement with long-term in situ water temperatures. Sensitivity analysis demonstrates that decreasing wind speeds has resulted in substantial changes in stratification dynamics since 1982, while increasing air temperatures during the same period had a negligible effect. Atmospheric stilling is a phenomenon observed globally, and in addition to recent increases in surface air temperature, needs to be considered when evaluating the influence of climate change on lake ecosystems

Geography of Talent for Understanding Regional Disparities in Spain

Tentative empirical evidence suggests that the agglomeration of talent contributes to regional development. However, given that talented people are not evenly distributed across regions, this paper seeks to determine the role of talent for furthering our understanding of regional disparities in Spain. Here, we empirically evaluate the effects of the distribution of talent on regional differences by means of a detailed analysis of the 17 Autonomous Communities of Spain between 1996 and 2004. The static and non-spatial panel data models are constructed. The unit of analysis is NUTS2. Our findings confirm that the economic performance indicators point to the significant positive impact of talent on regional economic activity. The concentration of talent plays a crucial role in accounting for regional differences. Based on a preliminary analysis of the dispersion in employment and production figures among the Autonomous Communities, the performance of Spain’s outperformers and underperformers is clearly not uniform

Role of Spatial Dispersion of Creative Capital for Understanding Regional Differences in Spain

Abstract It has been argued that ‗creative class&apos; as a source of growth has gained increasing attention in recent years. However, creative people are not spread equally; instead tend to concentrate within particular locations across nations or places. According to Florida, a main factor in explaining creativity driven growth is the location choice of creative people (Florida, 2002; Fritsch and Stuetzer, 2009). This research investigates the spatial distribution of creative capital and its effects on regional disparities by considering geographic differences of employment. We analyze the spatial distribution of creative capital associated with the dispersion of employment, human capital and regional inequalities. This dispersion is tried to be used as a possible factor behind the differences in Spain. Our findings indicate that provinces with low income per capita clusters vanish from 1996 to 2004, while creative capital and human capital concentrations are mostly the same

Effect of altered eating habits and periods during Ramadan fasting on intraocular pressure, tear secretion, corneal and anterior chamber parameters

Purpose To determine whether altered eating habits and periods, especially the pre-dawn meal, during Ramadan fasting have any significant effect on intraocular pressure (IOP), tear secretion, corneal and anterior chamber parameters. Methods IOP, basal tear secretion (BTS), reflex tear secretion (RTS), and Pentacam measurements of 31 healthy volunteers were performed at 0800 and 1600 hours during Ramadan fasting and 1 month later during non-fasting period. Results Comparison of measurements between fasting and non-fasting periods at 0800 hours revealed significantly higher values for IOP (P = 0.005), RTS (P = 0.006), and BTS (P = 0.014) during fasting. Conversely at 1600 hours, IOP = was significantly lower during fasting (P = 0.013) and no statistically significant difference was noted for RTS and BTS. IOP showed a diurnal variation of 2.45 mmHg (P <0.001) and BTS showed a 3.06 mm decrease (P = 0.04) during the fasting period. No significant differences could be found in the corneal and anterior chamber parameters during fasting and non-fasting periods. Conclusions Our results revealed that fluid loading at the pre-dawn meal during Ramadan fasting might increase the IOP = and tear secretion in the early morning period and these values decrease remarkably at the end of 12 h of fasting due to dehydration. Eye (2010) 24, 97-100; doi: 10.1038/eye.2009.96; published online 8 May 200

A novel fat modification strategy in fermented sausages by incorporation of gelled emulsions with fig seed oil

60th International Meat Industry Conference (MEATCON) -- SEP 22-25, 2019 -- Inst Meat Hygiene & Technol, Kopaonik, SERBIAWOS: 000509758800090Gelled emulsion (GE) systems are one of the novel proposals for reformulation of meat products with healthier profiles. in this study, the quality of fermented sausages formulated with fig oil seed-in-water GE as partial or total beef fat replacers were studied. Control sausages (C) consisted of 100% beef fat, whereas GE treatments were formulated by replacing 50% (G1) or 100% (G2) of beef fat. Total replacement of beef fat with GE (G2 sausages) did not change 2-Thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) levels in the sausages, whilst G1 sausages containing 50% GE had the highest TBARS levels among the sausages. in general, TBARS levels tended to increase at the end of the storage. the highest total carbonyl content was measured in C sausages with 100% beef fat; however, the final carbonyl contents of the sausages were not different. All sensory parameters were within acceptable ranges; color scores were higher in G2 sausages than in C sausages, and the rest of the sensory characteristics were similar to each other. Finally, it was concluded that utilization of gelled emulsion systems consisting of fig seed oil GE as beef fat replacers has good potential to enhance the chemical and sensory quality of fermented sausages