Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and polysialylated-neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM) in the human brainstem precerebellar nuclei from prenatal to adult age.

Occurrence and distribution of the neurotrophin brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and polysialylated-neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM), a neuroplasticity marker known to modulate BDNF signalling, were examined by immunohistochemistry in the human brainstem precerebellar nuclei at prenatal, perinatal and adult age. Western blot analysis performed in human brainstem showed for both molecules a single protein band compatible with the molecular weight of the dimeric form of mature BDNF and with that of PSA-NCAM. Detectability of both molecules up to 72 h post-mortem was also assessed in rat brain. In neuronal perikarya, BDNF-like immunoreactivity (LI) appeared as intracytoplasmic granules, whereas PSA-NCAM-LI appeared mostly as peripheral staining, indicative of membrane labelling; immunoreactivity to both substances also labelled nerve fibres and terminals. BDNF- and PSA-NCAM-LI occurred in the external cuneate nucleus, perihypoglossal nuclei, inferior olive complex, arcuate nucleus, lateral reticular formation, vestibular nuclei, pontine reticulotegmental and paramedian reticular nuclei, and pontine basilar nuclei. With few exceptions, for both substances the distribution pattern detected at prenatal age persisted later on, though the immunoreactivity appeared often higher in preand full-term newborns than in adult specimens. The results obtained suggest that BDNF operates in the development, maturation, maintenance and plasticity of human brainstem precerebellar neuronal systems. They also imply a multiple origin for the BDNF-LI of the human cerebellum. The codistribution of BDNF- and PSA-NCAM-LI in analyzed regions suggests that PSA-NCAM may modulate the functional interaction between BDNF and its high and low affinity receptors, an issue worth further analysis, particularly in view of the possible clinical significance of neuronal trophism in cerebellar neurodegenerative disorders.

Stellar Astrophysics and Exoplanet Science with the Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE)

The Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer (MSE) is a planned 11.25-m aperture facility with a 1.5 square degree field of view that will be fully dedicated to multi-object spectroscopy. A rebirth of the 3.6m Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on Maunakea, MSE will use 4332 fibers operating at three different resolving powers (R ~ 2500, 6000, 40000) across a wavelength range of 0.36-1.8mum, with dynamical fiber positioning that allows fibers to match the exposure times of individual objects. MSE will enable spectroscopic surveys with unprecedented scale and sensitivity by collecting millions of spectra per year down to limiting magnitudes of g ~ 20-24 mag, with a nominal velocity precision of ~100 m/s in high-resolution mode. This white paper describes science cases for stellar astrophysics and exoplanet science using MSE, including the discovery and atmospheric characterization of exoplanets and substellar objects, stellar physics with star clusters, asteroseismology of solar-like oscillators and opacity-driven pulsators, studies of stellar rotation, activity, and multiplicity, as well as the chemical characterization of AGB and extremely metal-poor stars.Comment: 31 pages, 11 figures; To appear as a chapter for the Detailed Science Case of the Maunakea Spectroscopic Explore

Involvement of the endocannabinoid system in the physiological response to transient common carotid artery occlusion and reperfusion

Background: The transient global cerebral hypoperfusion/reperfusion achieved by induction of Bilateral Common Carotid Artery Occlusion followed by Reperfusion (BCCAO/R) may trigger a physiological response in an attempt to preserve tissue and function integrity. There are several candidate molecules among which the endocannabinoid system (ECS) and/or peroxisome-proliferator activated receptor-alpha (PPAR-alpha) may play a role in modulating oxidative stress and inflammation. The aims of the present study are to evaluate whether the ECS, the enzyme cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and PPAR-alpha are involved during BCCAO/R in rat brain, and to identify possible markers of the ongoing BCCAO/R-induced challenge in plasma. Methods: Adult Wistar rats underwent BCCAO/R with 30 min hypoperfusion followed by 60 min reperfusion. The frontal and temporal-occipital cortices and plasma were analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS) to determine concentrations of endocannabinoids (eCBs) and related molecules behaving as ligands of PPAR-alpha, and of oxidative-stress markers such as lipoperoxides, while Western Blot and immunohistochemistry were used to study protein expression of cannabinoid receptors, COX-2 and PPAR-alpha. Unpaired Student's t-test was used to evaluate statistical differences between groups. Results: The acute BCCAO/R procedure is followed by increased brain tissue levels of the eCBs 2-arachidonoylglycerol and anandamide, palmitoylethanolamide, an avid ligand of PPAR-alpha, lipoperoxides, type 1 (CB1) and type 2 (CB2) cannabinoid receptors, and COX-2, and decreased brain tissue concentrations of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), one of the major targets of lipid peroxidation. In plasma, increased levels of anandamide and lipoperoxides were observed. Conclusions: The BCCAO/R stimulated early molecular changes that can be easily traced in brain tissue and plasma, and that are indicative of the tissue physiological response to the reperfusion-induced oxidative stress and inflammation. The observed variations suggest that the positive modulation of the ECS and the increase of proinflammatory substances are directly correlated events. Increase of plasmatic levels of anandamide and lipoperoxides further suggests that dysregulation of these molecules may be taken as an indicator of an ongoing hypoperfusion/reperfusion challenge

Moon Mapping Project: un progetto di cooperazione scientifica in ambito spaziale tra Italia e Cina

Il programma “Joint Lunar Map Drawing Project by Chinese and Italian College Students”, noto come Moon Mapping Project, rappresenta un’importante iniziativa di cooperazione scientifica tra Italia e Cina, finalizzata al coinvolgimento diretto degli studenti dei due Paesi nella creazione di mappe tematiche della Luna attraverso l’elaborazione di dati acquisiti dai satelliti cinesi Chang’e-1 e Chang’e-2. Il progetto triennale, iniziato nel 2015, è inserito nell’accordo bilaterale siglato dal Ministry of Science and Technology, P.R. China (MOST) e dal MIUR, coordinato dall’ASI per l’Italia e dal National Remote Sensing Center of China. La parte italiana coinvolge 11 università e centri di ricerca e da parte cinese sono coinvolte 8 università e centri di ricerca. A seguito di una serie di visite presso le strutture di ricerca italiane e cinesi, che hanno permesso di conoscere nel dettaglio le attività che si svolgono nelle sedi del progetto, sono stati delineati 6 temi di ricerca, coordinati in modo congiunto da parte italiana e cinese. Le prime attività di ricerca hanno riguardato l’analisi dei dati resi disponibili da parte dei colleghi cinesi ed è stata estesa la piattaforma di condivisione web ASDC MATISSE (https://tools.asdc.asi.it/matisse.jsp). Da un punto di vista tecnico i dati cinesi devono essere considerati con un’attenzione particolare e necessitano di una fase di pre-trattamento importante a monte di un utilizzo operativo. Sono disponibili nel sito dati del sensore multispettrale IIM (Sagnac- based Imaging Spectrometer) e della camera CCD per la ricostruzione di immagini stereo per interpretazione in 3D. Queste prime attività hanno messo in evidenza diversi aspetti di sicuro interesse scientifico nell’ottica di un approfondimento dello stato di conoscenza della superficie lunare anche finalizzato 437 alle future missioni già previste nei programmi spaziali. Risulta inoltre di evidente interesse, anche nella sua complessità, il coinvolgimento diretto degli studenti provenienti da ambiti disciplinari e culturali diversi. Ulteriori informazioni sul progetto sono disponibili sul sito: http://solarsystem.asdc.asi.it/moonmapping

Haplotype Affinities Resolve a Major Component of Goat (Capra hircus) MtDNA D-Loop Diversity and Reveal Specific Features of the Sardinian Stock

Goat mtDNA haplogroup A is a poorly resolved lineage absorbing most of the overall diversity and is found in locations as distant as Eastern Asia and Southern Africa. Its phylogenetic dissection would cast light on an important portion of the spread of goat breeding. The aims of this work were 1) to provide an operational definition of meaningful mtDNA units within haplogroup A, 2) to investigate the mechanisms underlying the maintenance of diversity by considering the modes of selection operated by breeders and 3) to identify the peculiarities of Sardinian mtDNA types. We sequenced the mtDNA D-loop in a large sample of animals (1,591) which represents a non-trivial quota of the entire goat population of Sardinia. We found that Sardinia mirrors a large quota of mtDNA diversity of Western Eurasia in the number of variable sites, their mutational pattern and allele frequency. By using Bayesian analysis, a distance-based tree and a network analysis, we recognized demographically coherent groups of sequences identified by particular subsets of the variable positions. The results showed that this assignment system could be reproduced in other studies, capturing the greatest part of haplotype diversity

Addressing climate change with behavioral science: a global intervention tournament in 63 countries

Effectively reducing climate change requires marked, global behavior change. However, it is unclear which strategies are most likely to motivate people to change their climate beliefs and behaviors. Here, we tested 11 expert-crowdsourced interventions on four climate mitigation outcomes: beliefs, policy support, information sharing intention, and an effortful tree-planting behavioral task. Across 59,440 participants from 63 countries, the interventions’ effectiveness was small, largely limited to nonclimate skeptics, and differed across outcomes: Beliefs were strengthened mostly by decreasing psychological distance (by 2.3%), policy support by writing a letter to a future-generation member (2.6%), information sharing by negative emotion induction (12.1%), and no intervention increased the more effortful behavior—several interventions even reduced tree planting. Last, the effects of each intervention differed depending on people’s initial climate beliefs. These findings suggest that the impact of behavioral climate interventions varies across audiences and target behaviors