43 research outputs found
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Radially localized measurements of superthermal electrons using oblique electron cyclotron emission
It is shown that radial localization of optically tin Electron Cyclotron Emission from superthermal electrons can be imposed by observation of emission upshifted from the thermal cyclotron resonance in the horizontal midplane of a tokamak. A new and unique diagnostic has been proposed and operated to make radially localized measurements of superthermal electrons during Lower Hybrid Current Drive on the PBX-M tokamak. The superthermal electron density profile as well as moments of the electron energy distribution as a function of radius are measured during Lower Hybrid Current Drive. The time evolution of these measurements after the Lower Hybrid power is turned off are given and the observed behavior reflects the collisional isotropization of the energy distribution and radial diffusion of the spatial profile
Decreased body mass index in the preclinical stage of autosomal dominant Alzheimer’s disease
The relationship between body-mass index (BMI) and Alzheimer´s disease (AD) has been extensively investigated. However, BMI alterations in preclinical individuals with autosomal dominant AD (ADAD) have not yet been investigated. We analyzed cross-sectional data from 230 asymptomatic members of families with ADAD participating in the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network (DIAN) study including 120 preclinical mutation carriers (MCs) and 110 asymptomatic non-carriers (NCs). Differences in BMI and their relation with cerebral amyloid load and episodic memory as a function of estimated years to symptom onset (EYO) were analyzed. Preclinical MCs showed significantly lower BMIs compared to NCs, starting 11.2 years before expected symptom onset. However, the BMI curves begun to diverge already at 17.8 years before expected symptom onset. Lower BMI in preclinical MCs was significantly associated with less years before estimated symptom onset, higher global Aβ brain burden, and with lower delayed total recall scores in the logical memory test. The study provides cross-sectional evidence that weight loss starts one to two decades before expected symptom onset of ADAD. Our findings point toward a link between the pathophysiology of ADAD and disturbance of weight control mechanisms. Longitudinal follow-up studies are warranted to investigate BMI changes over time
Resistance to autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease in an APOE3 Christchurch homozygote: a case report.
We identified a PSEN1 (presenilin 1) mutation carrier from the world's largest autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease kindred, who did not develop mild cognitive impairment until her seventies, three decades after the expected age of clinical onset. The individual had two copies of the APOE3 Christchurch (R136S) mutation, unusually high brain amyloid levels and limited tau and neurodegenerative measurements. Our findings have implications for the role of APOE in the pathogenesis, treatment and prevention of Alzheimer's disease
Different rates of cognitive decline in autosomal dominant and late-onset Alzheimer disease
As prevention trials advance with autosomal dominant Alzheimer disease (ADAD) participants, understanding the similarities and differences between ADAD and "sporadic" late-onset AD (LOAD) is critical to determine generalizability of findings between these cohorts. Cognitive trajectories of ADAD mutation carriers (MCs) and autopsy-confirmed LOAD individuals were compared to address this question. Longitudinal rates of change on cognitive measures were compared in ADAD MCs (n = 310) and autopsy-confirmed LOAD participants (n = 163) before and after symptom onset (estimated/observed). LOAD participants declined more rapidly in the presymptomatic (preclinical) period and performed more poorly at symptom onset than ADAD participants on a cognitive composite. After symptom onset, however, the younger ADAD MCs declined more rapidly. The similar but not identical cognitive trajectories (declining but at different rates) for ADAD and LOAD suggest common AD pathologies but with some differences
Serum neurofilament dynamics predicts neurodegeneration and clinical progression in presymptomatic Alzheimer's disease
Neurofilament light chain (NfL) is a promising fluid biomarker of disease progression for various cerebral proteopathies. Here we leverage the unique characteristics of the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network and ultrasensitive immunoassay technology to demonstrate that NfL levels in the cerebrospinal fluid (n = 187) and serum (n = 405) are correlated with one another and are elevated at the presymptomatic stages of familial Alzheimer's disease. Longitudinal, within-person analysis of serum NfL dynamics (n = 196) confirmed this elevation and further revealed that the rate of change of serum NfL could discriminate mutation carriers from non-mutation carriers almost a decade earlier than cross-sectional absolute NfL levels (that is, 16.2 versus 6.8 years before the estimated symptom onset). Serum NfL rate of change peaked in participants converting from the presymptomatic to the symptomatic stage and was associated with cortical thinning assessed by magnetic resonance imaging, but less so with amyloid-β deposition or glucose metabolism (assessed by positron emission tomography). Serum NfL was predictive for both the rate of cortical thinning and cognitive changes assessed by the Mini-Mental State Examination and Logical Memory test. Thus, NfL dynamics in serum predict disease progression and brain neurodegeneration at the early presymptomatic stages of familial Alzheimer's disease, which supports its potential utility as a clinically useful biomarker
Serum neurofilament light chain levels are associated with white matter integrity in autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease
Neurofilament light chain (NfL) is a protein that is selectively expressed in neurons. Increased levels of NfL measured in either cerebrospinal fluid or blood is thought to be a biomarker of neuronal damage in neurodegenerative diseases. However, there have been limited investigations relating NfL to the concurrent measures of white matter (WM) decline that it should reflect. White matter damage is a common feature of Alzheimer's disease. We hypothesized that serum levels of NfL would associate with WM lesion volume and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) metrics cross-sectionally in 117 autosomal dominant mutation carriers (MC) compared to 84 non-carrier (NC) familial controls as well as in a subset (N = 41) of MC with longitudinal NfL and MRI data. In MC, elevated cross-sectional NfL was positively associated with WM hyperintensity lesion volume, mean diffusivity, radial diffusivity, and axial diffusivity and negatively with fractional anisotropy. Greater change in NfL levels in MC was associated with larger changes in fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, and radial diffusivity, all indicative of reduced WM integrity. There were no relationships with NfL in NC. Our results demonstrate that blood-based NfL levels reflect WM integrity and supports the view that blood levels of NfL are predictive of WM damage in the brain. This is a critical result in improving the interpretability of NfL as a marker of brain integrity, and for validating this emerging biomarker for future use in clinical and research settings across multiple neurodegenerative diseases
Serum neurofilament light chain levels are associated with white matter integrity in autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease
Neurofilament light chain (NfL) is a protein that is selectively expressed in neurons. Increased levels of NfL measured in either cerebrospinal fluid or blood is thought to be a biomarker of neuronal damage in neurodegenerative diseases. However, there have been limited investigations relating NfL to the concurrent measures of white matter (WM) decline that it should reflect. White matter damage is a common feature of Alzheimer's disease. We hypothesized that serum levels of NfL would associate with WM lesion volume and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) metrics cross-sectionally in 117 autosomal dominant mutation carriers (MC) compared to 84 non-carrier (NC) familial controls as well as in a subset (N = 41) of MC with longitudinal NfL and MRI data.
In MC, elevated cross-sectional NfL was positively associated with WM hyperintensity lesion volume, mean diffusivity, radial diffusivity, and axial diffusivity and negatively with fractional anisotropy. Greater change in NfL levels in MC was associated with larger changes in fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, and radial diffusivity, all indicative of reduced WM integrity. There were no relationships with NfL in NC. Our results demonstrate that blood-based NfL levels reflect WM integrity and supports the view that blood levels of NfL are predictive of WM damage in the brain. This is a critical result in improving the interpretability of NfL as a marker of brain integrity, and for validating this emerging biomarker for future use in clinical and research settings across multiple neurodegenerative diseases
Tulevaisuuden vamuka : Varhaisiän musiikkikasvattajien työnkuva nyt ja tulevaisuudessa
Opinnäytetyössäni tutkin varhaisiän musiikkikasvattajien työnkuvaa ja sen monia muotoja tulevaisuudessa. Tutkin asiaa työllistymisen, työnkuvan, koulutuksen ja alan yleisten ilmiöiden kannalta. Samalla pohdin omaa työllistymistäni.
Opinnäytetyöni perustana ovat haastattelut, jotka tehtiin keväällä 2017. Haastattelin neljää Metropolia Ammattikorkeakoulusta pääaineenaan varhaisiän musiikkikasvatus ja taiteen soveltava käyttö valmistunutta musiikkipedagogia heidän nykyisestä työnkuvastaan, työn parhaista puolista, työssä kohdatuista haasteista, koulutuksen suhteesta nykyiseen työnkuvaan sekä varhaisiän musiikkikasvattajien ja musiikkikasvatuksen tulevaisuudesta. Haastatteluiden lisäksi tutkin aiheeseen liittyvää tietoaineistoa eri näkökulmista.
Opinnäytetyöni tulosten mukaan varhaisiän musiikkikasvatuksen suosio, arvostus ja tarve tulevat kasvamaan Suomessa. Työn sirpaloituminen eri musiikkioppilaitoksiin ja jopa eri kuntiin on yksi suurimmista varhaisiän musiikkikasvattajien tulevaisuuden haasteista. Erilaiset taiteen soveltavan käytön työt yleistyvät, ja yrittäjyys sekä musiikkikasvatuksen että taiteen soveltavan käytön alalla lisääntyy yhä. Pedagogisesti varhaisiän musiikkikasvattajat ovat tällä hetkellä sekä suomalaisessa musiikinopetuksessa että opetusalalla käynnissä olevaa pedagogista murrosta edellä.
Haastattelutulosten ja tietoaineiston avulla olen luonut kuvaa varhaisiän musiikkikasvattajien työllistymisestä ja koko musiikin opetuksen alan tulevaisuudesta kattavasti. Uskon, että opinnäytetyöstäni on apua omaa työllistymistään pohtivalle varhaisiän musiikkikasvattajalle tai koulutukseen pyrkimistä pohtivalle.In my Bachelor’s thesis, I studied the future of early childhood music education and the future work field of early childhood music educators. I studied the subject from the viewpoint of employment opportunities, education and the phenomena taking place in the music education world.
I base my thesis on an interview study that was conducted in the spring of 2017. I interviewed four early childhood music educators who had graduated from Metropolia University of Applied Sciences specializing in early childhood music education and community music. The interviews covered their work fields, accomplishments and challenges faced in early childhood music education and their opinions about the future of music education and music educators. In addition to the interviews, I studied the source materials from the viewpoint of the thesis. I also compared the state of the early childhood music educator’s education with the future and present challenges of the music education field.
My thesis shows that early childhood music education’s popularity, appreciation and need will grow in the future. Early childhood music educator’s work field fragmenting to different employers and even different cities will be one of the biggest challenges. All kinds of community music jobs will increase exponentially. In both fields, entrepreneurship is going to be the source of income for most. Pedagogically early childhood education is on the top of the pedagogical development occurring in the school world.
With the results of the interview study and source materials, I have managed to create a reliable glimpse to the future of early childhood music education and music education altogether. I believe that my Bachelor’s thesis will be helpful to early childhood music educators wondering about their future workfields or a student thinking of applying to study to become an early childhood music educator