Journal Staff

This master’s thesis paper is an exploratory study along with conceptual design of launch and recovery systems(LARS) for unmanned vehicles and RHIB:s, which has been conducted for ThyssenKrupp Marine System AB inKarlskrona, Sweden. Two concepts have been developed, one for aerial vehicles (UAV:s) and one for surfaceand underwater vehicles (USV, RHIB and UUV). The goal when designing the two LARS has been to meet thegrowing demand within the world navies for greater off-board capabilities. The two concepts have been designedto be an integrated solutions on a 90 m long naval ship and based on technology that will be proven in year2015-2020. To meet the goal of using technology that will be proven in year 2015-2020, existing and futurepossible solutions has been evaluated. From the evaluations one technique for each concept was chosen forfurther development.In the development of a LARS for aerial vehicles only fixed wing UAV:s have been considered. The conceptwas made for a reference UAV based on the UAV Shadow 200B, which has a weight of 170 kg. The conceptthat was developed is a parasail lifter that can both launch and recover the reference UAV effectively. In thedevelopment of a system for surface and underwater vehicles only vehicle lengths in the span 1-12 m have beenconsidered. The concept that has been developed is a stern ramp that uses a sled to launch and recover all threevehicle types. The two concepts that has been developed are in an early design state and the papers results shouldtherefore be seen as an estimation of what each system are capable of performing

Mode of action of brown rot decay resistance in modified wood: A review

Chemically or physically modified wood materials have enhanced resistance to wood decay fungi. In contrast to treatments with traditional wood preservatives, where the resistance is caused mainly by the toxicity of the chemicals added, little is known about the mode of action of nontoxic wood modification methods. This study reviews established theories related to resistance in acetylated, furfurylated, dimethylol dihydroxyethyleneurea- treated, and thermally modified wood. The main conclusion is that only one theory provides a consistent explanation for the initial inhibition of brown rot degradation in modified wood, that is, moisture exclusion via the reduction of cell wall voids. Other proposed mechanisms, such as enzyme nonrecognition, micropore blocking, and reducing the number of free hydroxyl groups, may reduce the degradation rate when cell wall water uptake is no longer impeded. © 2014 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Neuroimaging Measures as Endophenotypes in Alzheimer's Disease

Late onset Alzheimer's disease (AD) is moderately to highly heritable. Apolipoprotein E allele ε4 (APOE4) has been replicated consistently as an AD risk factor over many studies, and recently confirmed variants in other genes such as CLU, CR1, and PICALM each increase the lifetime risk of AD. However, much of the heritability of AD remains unexplained. AD is a complex disease that is diagnosed largely through neuropsychological testing, though neuroimaging measures may be more sensitive for detecting the incipient disease stages. Difficulties in early diagnosis and variable environmental contributions to the disease can obscure genetic relationships in traditional case-control genetic studies. Neuroimaging measures may be used as endophenotypes for AD, offering a reliable, objective tool to search for possible genetic risk factors. Imaging measures might also clarify the specific mechanisms by which proposed risk factors influence the brain

Regional association of pCASL-MRI with FDG-PET and PiB-PET in people at risk for autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease.

Autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease (ADAD) is a small subset of Alzheimer's disease that is genetically determined with 100% penetrance. It provides a valuable window into studying the course of pathologic processes that leads to dementia. Arterial spin labeling (ASL) MRI is a potential AD imaging marker that non-invasively measures cerebral perfusion. In this study, we investigated the relationship of cerebral blood flow measured by pseudo-continuous ASL (pCASL) MRI with measures of cerebral metabolism (FDG PET) and amyloid deposition (Pittsburgh Compound B (PiB) PET). Thirty-one participants at risk for ADAD (age 39 ± 13 years, 19 females) were recruited into this study, and 21 of them received both MRI and FDG and PiB PET scans. Considerable variability was observed in regional correlations between ASL-CBF and FDG across subjects. Both regional hypo-perfusion and hypo-metabolism were associated with amyloid deposition. Cross-sectional analyses of each biomarker as a function of the estimated years to expected dementia diagnosis indicated an inverse relationship of both perfusion and glucose metabolism with amyloid deposition during AD development. These findings indicate that neurovascular dysfunction is associated with amyloid pathology, and also indicate that ASL CBF may serve as a sensitive early biomarker for AD. The direct comparison among the three biomarkers provides complementary information for understanding the pathophysiological process of AD

Plasma methionine sulfoxide in persons with familial Alzheimer’s disease mutations

The final, published version of this article is available at http://www.karger.com/?doi=10.1159/000338546.BACKGROUND: Convergent evidence suggests that oxidative stress plays a central role in the pathology of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). We asked if consequently, oxidation of methionine residues to methionine sulfoxide (MetO) increased in plasma proteins of persons carrying familial AD (FAD) mutations. METHODS: Plasma was collected from 31 persons from families harboring PSEN1 or APP mutations. Using Western blot analysis with a novel anti-MetO polyclonal antibody, MetO levels were measured and compared between FAD mutation carriers (MCs) and non-mutation carrying (NCs) kin. RESULTS: A MetO-positive 120 kDa gel band distinguished FAD MCs and NCs (mean 11.4 ± 2.8 vs. 4.0 ± 3.1, p = 0.02). In a subset of subjects for whom both measurements were available, MetO levels correlated well with plasma F2-isoprostane (r = 0.81, p < 0.001) and superoxide dismutase 1 (r = 0.52, p = 0.004) levels. CONCLUSIONS: Our data provide evidence for elevated MetO levels in persons carrying FAD mutations that correlate with other indices of oxidative stress and suggest that plasma oxidative stress markers may be useful for diagnosis of AD

Critical review of the Appropriate Use Criteria for amyloid imaging: Effect on diagnosis and patient care

INTRODUCTION: The utility of the Appropriate Use Criteria (AUC) for amyloid imaging is not established. METHODS: Fifty-three cognitively impaired patients with clinical F18-florbetapir imaging were classified as early and late onset, as well as AUC-consistent or AUC-inconsistent. Chi-square statistics and t test were used to compare demographic characteristics and clinical outcomes as appropriate. RESULTS: Early-onset patients were more likely to be amyloid positive. Change in diagnosis was more frequent in late-onset cases. Change in therapy was more common in early-onset cases. AUC-consistent and AUC-inconsistent cases had comparable rates of amyloid positivity. We saw no difference in the rate of treatment changes in the AUC-consistent group as opposed to the AUC-inconsistent group. DISCUSSION: The primary role of amyloid imaging in the early-onset group was to confirm the clinically suspected etiology, and in the late-onset group in detecting amyloid-negative cases. The rate of therapeutic changes was significantly greater in the early-onset cases

Autosomal-dominant Alzheimer's disease: a review and proposal for the prevention of Alzheimer's disease

Autosomal-dominant Alzheimer's disease has provided significant understanding of the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease. The present review summarizes clinical, pathological, imaging, biochemical, and molecular studies of autosomal-dominant Alzheimer's disease, highlighting the similarities and differences between the dominantly inherited form of Alzheimer's disease and the more common sporadic form of Alzheimer's disease. Current developments in autosomal-dominant Alzheimer's disease are presented, including the international Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network and this network's initiative for clinical trials. Clinical trials in autosomal-dominant Alzheimer's disease may test the amyloid hypothesis, determine the timing of treatment, and lead the way to Alzheimer's disease prevention

Common Alzheimer's disease risk variant within the CLU gene affects white matter microstructure in young adults

There is a strong genetic risk for late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD), but so far few gene variants have been identified that reliably contribute to that risk. A newly confirmed genetic risk allele C of the clusterin (CLU) gene variant rs11136000 is carried by similar to 88% of Caucasians. The C allele confers a 1.16 greater odds of developing late-onset AD than the T allele. AD patients have reductions in regional white matter integrity. We evaluated whether the CLU risk variant was similarly associated with lower white matter integrity in healthy young humans. Evidence of early brain differences would offer a target for intervention decades before symptom onset. We scanned 398 healthy young adults (mean age, 23.6 +/- 2.2 years) with diffusion tensor imaging, a variation of magnetic resonance imaging sensitive to white matter integrity in the living brain. We assessed genetic associations using mixed-model regression at each point in the brain to map the profile of these associations with white matter integrity. Each Callele copy of the CLU variant was associated with lower fractional anisotropy-a widely accepted measure of white matter integrity-in multiple brain regions, including several known to degenerate in AD. These regions included the splenium of the corpus callosum, the fornix, cingulum, and superior and inferior longitudinal fasciculi in both brain hemispheres. Young healthy carriers of the CLU gene risk variant showed a distinct profile of lower white matter integrity that may increase vulnerability to developing AD later in life