Time trends in neuropathology give clues to dementia risk reduction

A new study sheds light on the declining incidence of dementia by examining trends in neuropathology over time in autopsy results from two large US cohorts. Although the prevalence of neurodegenerative pathologies remained similar, a reduction in the prevalence of vascular pathologies over time suggests that improvements in both cardiovascular health and cognitive reserve have helped to reduce dementia risk

Genus distributions for two classes of graphs

The set of orientable imbeddings of a graph can be partitioned according to the genus of the imbedding surfaces. A genus-respecting breakdown of the number of orientable imbeddings is obtained for every graph in each of two infinite classes. It is proved that the genus distribution of any member of either class is strongly unimodal. These are the first two infinite classes of graphs for which such calculations have been achieved, except for a few classes, such as trees and cycles, whose members have all their cellular orientable imbeddings in the sphere

Genus Distributions for Two Classes of Graphs

The set of orientable imbeddings of a graph can be partitioned according to the genus of the imbedding surfaces. A genus-respecting breakdown of the number of orientable imbeddings is obtained for every graph in each of two infinite classes. These are the first two infinite classes of graphs for which such calculations have been achieved, except for a few classes, such as trees and cycles, whose members have all their polygonal orientable imbeddings in the sphere

The Real Interest Rate Yield on Long Term Municipals: What is the Role of Budget Deficits?

This study empirically finds, using ECM, that the primary federal budget deficit shares a bi-directional relationship with the ex ante real interest rate yield on long term municipal bonds. That is, the primary budget deficit acts to raise the real municipal bond yield whereas that yield also acts to raise the primary deficit

Aducanumab for Alzheimer’s disease?

Patients and families need hope, not false hop

Diving behavior of immature Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus)

Understanding the ontogenetic relationship between juvenile Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus) and their foraging habitat is key to understanding their relationship to available prey and ultimately their survival. We summarize dive and movement data from 13 young-of-the-year (YOY) and 12 yearling Steller sea lions equipped with satellite dive recorders in the Gulf of Alaska and Aleutian Islands (n=18), and Washington (n=7) from 1994 to 2000. A total of 1413 d of transmission (x =56.5 d, range: 14.5–104.1 d) were received. We recorded 222,073 dives, which had a mean depth of 18.4 m (range of means: 5.8−67.9 m; SD=16.4). Alaska YOY dived for shorter periods and at shallower depths (mean depth=7.7 m, mean duration=0.8 min, mean maximum depth=25.7 m, and maximum depth=252 m) than Alaska yearlings (x =16.6 m, 0=1.1 min, x = 63.4 m, 288 m), whereas Washington yearlings dived the longest and deepest (mean depth=39.4 m, mean duration=1.8 min, mean maximum depth=144.5 m, and maximum depth=328 m). Mean distance for 564 measured trips was 16.6 km; for sea lions ≤10 months of age, trip distance (7.0 km) was significantly less than for those >10 months of age (24.6 km). Mean trip duration for 10 of the 25 sea lions was 12.1 h; for sea lions ≤10 months of age, trip duration was 7.5 h and 18.1 h for those >10 months of age. We identified three movements types: long-range trips (>15 km and >20 h), short-range trips (<15 km and <20 h) during which the animals left and returned to the same site, and transits to other haul-out sites. Long-range trips started around 9 months of age and occurred most frequently around the assumed time of weaning, whereas short-range trips happened almost daily (0.9 trips/day, n=426 trips). Transits began as early as 7 months of age, occurred more often after 9 months of age, and ranged between 6.5 and 454 km. The change in dive characteristics coincided with the assumed onset of weaning. These yearling sea lion movement patterns and dive characteristics suggest that immature Steller sea lions are as capable of making the same types of movements as adults

Innovating to improve primary care in less developed countries:Towards a global model

One of the biggest problems in global health is the lack of well trained and supported health workers in less developed settings. In many rural areas there are no physicians, and it is important to find ways to support and empower nurses and other health workers. The Knowledge Translation Unit of the University of Cape Town Lung Institute has spent 14 years developing a series of innovative packages to support and empower nurses and other health workers. PACK (Practical Approach to Care Kit) Adult comprises policybased and evidence-informed guidelines; onsite, team and case-based training; non-physician prescribing; and a cascade system of scaling up. A series of randomised trials has shown the effectiveness of the packages, and methods are now being developed to respond cost-effectively and sustainably to global demand for implementing PACK Adult. Global health would probably benefit from less time and money spent developing new innovations and more spent on finding ways to spread those we already have

Genetic diversity of selected genes that are potentially economically important in feral sheep of New Zealand

Background: Feral sheep are considered to be a source of genetic variation that has been lost from their domestic counterparts through selection. Methods: This study investigates variation in the genes KRTAP1-1, KRT33, ADRB3 and DQA2 in Merino-like feral sheep populations from New Zealand and its offshore islands. These genes have previously been shown to influence wool, lamb survival and animal health. Results: All the genes were polymorphic, but no new allele was identified in the feral populations. In some of these populations, allele frequencies differed from those observed in commercial Merino sheep and other breeds found in New Zealand. Heterozygosity levels were comparable to those observed in other studies on feral sheep. Our results suggest that some of the feral populations may have been either inbred or outbred over the duration of their apparent isolation. Conclusion: The variation described here allows us to draw some conclusions about the likely genetic origin of the populations and selective pressures that may have acted upon them, but they do not appear to be a source of new genetic material, at least for these four genes.This research was supported by the Brian Mason Scientific and Technical Trust