Correspondence: debating China's rise and the future of U.S. power

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease worldwide and the most common movement disorder. A defining pathologic feature of PD is the progressive death of dopaminergic neurons in a basal ganglia nucleus termed the substantia nigra (SN). Another hallmark feature of PD pathology is the presence of Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites, which are cellular inclusions with aggregated protein depositions, representing pathology in neuronal cell bodies and neuritic processes. Recently, epidemiological and genetic studies support roles for neuroinflammation in the progression of PD. Two types of cells that play a critical role in regulating neuroinflammation are microglia and astrocytes, which are activated in the basal ganglia of PD patients. Studies within this dissertation characterized activation of microglial cells by alpha-synuclein (α-synuclein), the most abundant protein in Lewy bodies, which has been implicated in PD pathogenesis. To garner insights into molecular mechanisms associated with astrocyte proliferation and activation, genomic alterations during developmental stages of astrocytes were examined since they are likely to recapitulate the reactivity associated with gliosis in PD brain. The activation of these glial cells and pathology of neurons in the basal ganglia causes the hallmark symptoms of PD. The symptoms of PD are termed parkinsonism. These are thought to result, at least in part, from alterations in the balance of output of the neostriatal efferent neurons, due to the loss of dopaminergic neuronal innervation of these cells. Phosphodiesterase 10A (PDE10A) is preferentially expressed in neostriatal efferent pathways and PDE10A inhibitors (PDE10i) have been shown to target dopamine signaling mechanisms. Studies here have utilized PDE10i to understand the balance of activation of medium spiny neurons in the indirect pathway versus activation of the direct pathway, since recent findings show PDE10i lead to a decrease in thalamic drive to the motor cortex, a primary symptom of PD. In conclusion, the aims of this dissertation sought to identify neuroinflammatory mechanisms within activated microglia in response to α-synuclein and proliferating astrocytes. Also, this work evaluated an inhibition of PDE10A in neurons within a region important to the progression of PD

Search for an axion-like particle in radiative J/ψ decays

We search for an axion-like particle (ALP) a through the process ψ(3686)→π+π−J/ψ, J/ψ→γa, a→γγ in a data sample of (2.71±0.01)×109 ψ(3686) events collected by the BESIII detector. No significant ALP signal is observed over the expected background, and the upper limits on the branching fraction of the decay J/ψ→γa and the ALP-photon coupling constant gaγγ are set at 95% confidence level in the mass range of 0.165≤ma≤2.84GeV/c2. The limits on B(J/ψ→γa) range from 8.3×10−8 to 1.8×10−6 over the search region, and the constraints on the ALP-photon coupling are the most stringent to date for 0.165≤ma≤1.468GeV/c2

Study of the processes χcJ → Ξ−Ξ¯+ and Ξ0Ξ¯0

Using 448.1 × 106 ψ(3686) decays collected with the BESIII detector at the BEPCII e+e− storage rings, the branching fractions and angular distributions of the decays χcJ → Ξ−Ξ¯¯¯¯+ and Ξ0Ξ¯¯¯¯0 (J = 0, 1, 2) are measured based on a partial-reconstruction technique. The decays χc1 → Ξ0Ξ¯¯¯¯0 and χc2 → Ξ0Ξ¯¯¯¯0 are observed for the first time with statistical significances of 7σ and 15σ, respectively. The results of this analysis are in good agreement with previous measurements and have significantly improved precision

Permanent Genetic Resources added to Molecular Ecology Resources Database 1 October 2009–30 November 2009.

5 pagesInternational audienceThis article documents the addition of 411 microsatellite marker loci and 15 pairs of Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) sequencing primers to the Molecular Ecology Resources Database. Loci were developed for the following species: Acanthopagrus schlegeli, Anopheles lesteri, Aspergillus clavatus, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus oryzae, Aspergillus terreus, Branchiostoma japonicum, Branchiostoma belcheri, Colias behrii, Coryphopterus personatus, Cynogolssus semilaevis, Cynoglossus semilaevis, Dendrobium officinale, Dendrobium officinale, Dysoxylum malabaricum, Metrioptera roeselii, Myrmeciza exsul, Ochotona thibetana, Neosartorya fischeri, Nothofagus pumilio, Onychodactylus fischeri, Phoenicopterus roseus, Salvia officinalis L., Scylla paramamosain, Silene latifo, Sula sula, and Vulpes vulpes. These loci were cross-tested on the following species: Aspergillus giganteus, Colias pelidne, Colias interior, Colias meadii, Colias eurytheme, Coryphopterus lipernes, Coryphopterus glaucofrenum, Coryphopterus eidolon, Gnatholepis thompsoni, Elacatinus evelynae, Dendrobium loddigesii Dendrobium devonianum, Dysoxylum binectariferum, Nothofagus antarctica, Nothofagus dombeyii, Nothofagus nervosa, Nothofagus obliqua, Sula nebouxii, and Sula variegata. This article also documents the addition of 39 sequencing primer pairs and 15 allele specific primers or probes for Paralithodes camtschaticus