Cerebrospinal Fluid α-Synuclein Predicts Cognitive Decline in Parkinson Disease Progression in the DATATOP Cohort

Most patients with Parkinson disease (PD) develop both cognitive and motor impairment, and biomarkers for progression are urgently needed. Although α-synuclein is altered in cerebrospinal fluid of patients with PD, it is not known whether it predicts motor or cognitive deterioration. We examined clinical data and α-synuclein in >300 unmedicated patients with PD who participated in the deprenyl and tocopherol antioxidative therapy of parkinsonism (DATATOP) study, with up to 8 years of follow-up. Longitudinal measures of motor and cognitive function were studied before (phase 1) and during (phase 2) levodopa therapy; cerebrospinal fluid was collected at the beginning of each phase. Correlations and linear mixed models were used to assess α-synuclein association with disease severity and prediction of progression in the subsequent follow-up period. Despite decreasing α-synuclein (phase 1 to phase 2 change of −0.05 ± 0.21 log-transformed values, P < 0.001), no correlations were observed between α-synuclein and motor symptoms. Longitudinally, lower α-synuclein predicted better preservation of cognitive function by several measures [Selective Reminding Test total recall α-synuclein × time interaction effect coefficient, −0.12 (P = 0.037); delayed recall, −0.05 (P = 0.002); New Dot Test, −0.03 (P = 0.002)]. Thus, α-synuclein, although not clinically useful for motor progression, might predict cognitive decline, and future longitudinal studies should include this outcome for further validation

Trends in Causes and Distribution, and Effects of Whitebark Pine Decline on Grizzly Bear Mortality in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem

Documented grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) mortalities have been increasing in recent years in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), due, in part, to increases in bear numbers and range expansion. Previous research has documented that variable seed production of whitebark pine (WBP; Pinus albicaulis), an important fall food, is inversely related to grizzly bear fall mortality.  However, WBP has experienced widespread mortality during the last decade because of mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) infestations. We investigated trends in causes and distribution of human-caused mortalities for independent-aged (? 2 yrs old) grizzly bears in the GYE during 1975–2012, and the effect of WBP cone production on numbers of fall (&gt; 1 August) mortalities (n = 172) during the period of WBP decline (2000-2012) using Poisson regression. During 1975–1982, 91 percent of mortalities occurred within the Grizzly Bear Recovery Zone and primary causes were poaching/malicious killings and losses related to conflicts with livestock. During the two most recent decades most mortalities were associated with ungulate hunting, usually involving self-defense kills, or anthropogenic sites, and an increasing percentage of mortalities occurred outside the recovery zone. Using predictor variables of cone production, sex, location in or out of the Recovery Zone, and year suggests: 1) annual cone production was still predictive of human-caused fall mortalities, 2) no evidence of a difference in annual numbers of fall mortalities between males and females, and 3) an increase in annual mortalities over the study period, with most of this increase outside the Recovery Zone

DJ-1 isoforms in whole blood as potential biomarkers of Parkinson disease

DJ-1 is a multifunctional protein that plays an important role in oxidative stress, cell death, and synucleinopathies, including Parkinson disease. Previous studies have demonstrated that total DJ-1 levels decrease in the cerebrospinal fluid, but do not change significantly in human plasma from patients with Parkinson disease when compared with controls. In this study, we measured total DJ-1 and its isoforms in whole blood of patients with Parkinson disease at various stages, Alzheimer disease, and healthy controls to identify potential peripheral biomarkers of PD. In an initial discovery study of 119 subjects, 7 DJ-1 isoforms were reliably detected, and blood levels of those with 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal modifications were discovered to be altered in late-stage Parkinson disease. This result was further confirmed in a validation study of another 114 participants, suggesting that, unlike total DJ-1 levels, post-translationally modified isoforms of DJ-1 from whole blood are candidate biomarkers of late-stage Parkinson disease

Citizen Science Reveals Unexpected Continental-Scale Evolutionary Change in a Model Organism

Organisms provide some of the most sensitive indicators of climate change and evolutionary responses are becoming apparent in species with short generation times. Large datasets on genetic polymorphism that can provide an historical benchmark against which to test for recent evolutionary responses are very rare, but an exception is found in the brown-lipped banded snail (Cepaea nemoralis). This species is sensitive to its thermal environment and exhibits several polymorphisms of shell colour and banding pattern affecting shell albedo in the majority of populations within its native range in Europe. We tested for evolutionary changes in shell albedo that might have been driven by the warming of the climate in Europe over the last half century by compiling an historical dataset for 6,515 native populations of C. nemoralis and comparing this with new data on nearly 3,000 populations. The new data were sampled mainly in 2009 through the Evolution MegaLab, a citizen science project that engaged thousands of volunteers in 15 countries throughout Europe in the biggest such exercise ever undertaken. A known geographic cline in the frequency of the colour phenotype with the highest albedo (yellow) was shown to have persisted and a difference in colour frequency between woodland and more open habitats was confirmed, but there was no general increase in the frequency of yellow shells. This may have been because snails adapted to a warming climate through behavioural thermoregulation. By contrast, we detected an unexpected decrease in the frequency of Unbanded shells and an increase in the Mid-banded morph. Neither of these evolutionary changes appears to be a direct response to climate change, indicating that the influence of other selective agents, possibly related to changing predation pressure and habitat change with effects on micro-climate

Contribution of discourse and morphosyntax skills to reading comprehension in Chinese dyslexic and typically developing children

This study aimed at identifying important skills for reading comprehension in Chinese dyslexic children and their typically developing counterparts matched on age (CA controls) or reading level (RL controls). The children were assessed on Chinese reading comprehension, cognitive, and reading-related skills. Results showed that the dyslexic children performed significantly less well than the CA controls but similarly to RL controls in most measures. Results of multiple regression analyses showed that word-level reading-related skills like oral vocabulary and word semantics were found to be strong predictors of reading comprehension among typically developing junior graders and dyslexic readers of senior grades, whereas morphosyntax, a text-level skill, was most predictive for typically developing senior graders. It was concluded that discourse and morphosyntax skills are particularly important for reading comprehension in the non-inflectional and topic-prominent Chinese system

Pleosporales

One hundred and five generic types of Pleosporales are described and illustrated. A brief introduction and detailed history with short notes on morphology, molecular phylogeny as well as a general conclusion of each genus are provided. For those genera where the type or a representative specimen is unavailable, a brief note is given. Altogether 174 genera of Pleosporales are treated. Phaeotrichaceae as well as Kriegeriella, Zeuctomorpha and Muroia are excluded from Pleosporales. Based on the multigene phylogenetic analysis, the suborder Massarineae is emended to accommodate five families, viz. Lentitheciaceae, Massarinaceae, Montagnulaceae, Morosphaeriaceae and Trematosphaeriaceae

‘Filip’ or flop? Managing public relations and the Latin American reaction to the 1966 FIFA World Cup

The 1966 FIFA World Cup has become part of the iconography of its hosts and champions, England. Extant literature has tended to focus on the cultural and symbolic legacy of the tournament, or engaged with diplomatic relations between Britain and North Korea. Contrastingly, we use archival sources from footballing and government institutions to explore the less studied topic of how the tournament was reported and perceived in Latin America, where England had commercial interests and influence, but where there were allegations that FIFA, the FA and even the UK government manipulated the tournament to the advantage of England and other European teams. We provide fresh perspectives on the social and cultural significance of the 1966 FIFA World Cup by analysing how the tournament’s organizers attempted to manage the situation and resulting negative public relations, and how 1966 fits within longer-term footballing and diplomatic relations between England and Latin America

SN 2012fr: Ultraviolet, Optical, and Near-infrared Light Curves of a Type Ia Supernova Observed within a Day of Explosion

We present detailed ultraviolet, optical, and near-infrared light curves of the Type Ia supernova (SN) 2012fr, which exploded in the Fornax cluster member NGC 1365. These precise high-cadence light curves provide a dense coverage of the flux evolution from −12 to +140 days with respect to the epoch of B-band maximum (tBmax). Supplementary imaging at the earliest epochs reveals an initial slow and nearly linear rise in luminosity with a duration of ∼2.5 days, followed by a faster rising phase that is well reproduced by an explosion model with a moderate amount of 56Ni mixing in the ejecta. From our analysis of the light curves, we conclude that: (i) the explosion occurred 1800 Å) luminosity was 16.5 ± 0.6 days, (iii) the supernova suffered little or no host-galaxy dust reddening, (iv) the peak luminosity in both the optical and near-infrared was consistent with the bright end of normal Type Ia diversity, and (v) 0.60 ± 0.15 M⊙ of 56Ni was synthesized in the explosion. Despite its normal luminosity, SN 2012fr displayed unusually prevalent high-velocity Ca II and Si II absorption features, and a nearly constant photospheric velocity of the Si II λ6355 line at ∼12,000 km s-1 that began ∼5 days before tBmax. We also highlight some of the other peculiarities in the early phase photometry and the spectral evolution. SN 2012fr also adds to a growing number of Type Ia supernovae that are hosted by galaxies with direct Cepheid distance measurements.Facultad de Ciencias Astronómicas y GeofísicasInstituto de Astrofísica de La Plat

Development of a Standardized Screening Rule for Tuberculosis in People Living with HIV in Resource-Constrained Settings: Individual Participant Data Meta-analysis of Observational Studies

Haileyesus Getahun and colleagues report the development of a simple, standardized tuberculosis (TB) screening rule for resource-constrained settings, to identify people living with HIV who need further investigation for TB disease

Perceived Conflict of Interest in Health Science Partnerships

University scientists conducting research on topics of potential health concern often want to partner with a range of actors, including government entities, non-governmental organizations, and private enterprises. Such partnerships can provide access to needed resources, including funding. However, those who observe the results of such partnerships may judge those results based on who is involved. This set of studies seeks to assess how people perceive two hypothetical health science research collaborations. In doing so, it also tests the utility of using procedural justice concepts to assess perceptions of research legitimacy as a theoretical way to investigate conflict of interest perceptions. Findings show that including an industry collaborator has clear negative repercussions for how people see a research partnership and that these perceptions shape people’s willingness to see the research as a legitimate source of knowledge. Additional research aimed at further communicating procedures that might mitigate the impact of industry collaboration is suggested