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I peer into volcanoes to see when they’ll blow
A horse cemetery in London reveals medieval mounts’ distant origins
Long-lasting, injectable HIV prevention drug set for “aggressive” roll-out in Africa
U.S. government agency plans to make inexpensive shots widely available for people at risk
South Korea to join the European Union’s research funding program
But as Horizon Europe opens up to the world, some European researchers worry they will miss out
Plasma p-tau212 antemortem diagnostic performance and prediction of autopsy verification of Alzheimer's disease neuropathology
Blood phosphorylated tau (p-tau) biomarkers, including p-tau217, show high associations with Alzheimer's disease (AD) neuropathologic change and clinical stage. Certain plasma p-tau217 assays recognize tau forms phosphorylated additionally at threonine-212, but the contribution of p-tau212 alone to AD is unknown. We developed a blood-based immunoassay that is specific to p-tau212 without cross-reactivity to p-tau217. Here, we examined the diagnostic utility of plasma p-tau212. In five cohorts (n...
Development of Midbrain Dopaminergic Neurons and the Advantage of Using hiPSCs as a Model System to Study Parkinson's Disease
Midbrain dopaminergic (mDA) neurons are significantly impaired in patients inflicted with Parkinson's disease (PD), subsequently affecting a variety of motor functions. There are four pathways through which dopamine elicits its function, namely, nigrostriatal, mesolimbic, mesocortical and tuberoinfundibular dopamine pathways. SHH and Wnt signalling pathways in association with favourable expression of a variety of genes, promotes the development and differentiation of mDA neurons in the brain....
The genetic architecture of multimodal human brain age
The complex biological mechanisms underlying human brain aging remain incompletely understood. This study investigated the genetic architecture of three brain age gaps (BAG) derived from gray matter volume (GM-BAG), white matter microstructure (WM-BAG), and functional connectivity (FC-BAG). We identified sixteen genomic loci that reached genome-wide significance (P-value < 5×10^(-8)). A gene-drug-disease network highlighted genes linked to GM-BAG for treating neurodegenerative and...
Design and validation of a reporter mouse to study the dynamic regulation of TFEB and TFE3 activity through <em>in vivo</em> imaging techniques
TFEB and TFE3 belong to the MiT/TFE family of transcription factors that bind identical DNA responsive elements in the regulatory regions of target genes. They are involved in regulating lysosomal biogenesis, function, exocytosis, autophagy, and lipid catabolism. Precise control of TFEB and TFE3 activity is crucial for processes such as senescence, stress response, energy metabolism, and cellular catabolism. Dysregulation of these factors is implicated in various diseases, thus researchers have...
Resting-state Functional Connectivity of the Motor and Cognitive Areas is Preserved in Masters Athletes
Aging is characterized by a decline in physical and cognitive functions, often resulting in decreased quality of life. Physical activity has been suggested to potentially slow down various aspects of the aging process, a theory that has been supported by studies of Masters Athletes (MA). For example, MA usually have better cognitive and physical functions than age-matched sedentary and healthy older adults (OA), making them a valuable model to gain insights into mechanisms that promote physical...
The aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 rs671 variant enhances amyloid β pathology
In the ALDH2 rs671 variant, a guanine changes to an adenine, resulting in a dramatic decrease in the catalytic activity of the enzyme. Population-based data are contradictory about whether this variant increases the risk of Alzheimer's disease. In East Asian populations, the prevalence of the ALDH2 rs671 variant is 30-50%, making the National Human Brain Bank for Development and Function (the largest brain bank in East Asia) an important resource to explore the link between the ALDH2 rs671...
Humanin variant P3S is associated with longevity in APOE4 carriers and resists APOE4-induced brain pathology
The APOE4 allele is recognized as a significant genetic risk factor to Alzheimer's disease (AD) and influences longevity. Nonetheless, some APOE4 carriers exhibit resistance to AD even in advanced age. Humanin, a mitochondrial-derived peptide comprising 24 amino acids, has variants linked to cognitive resilience and longevity. Our research uncovered a unique humanin variant, P3S, specifically enriched in centenarians with the APOE4 allele. Through in silico analyses and subsequent experimental...
Pregnancy advances your 'biological' age - but giving birth turns it back
No abstract
Proteomics of mouse brain endothelium uncovers dysregulation of vesicular transport pathways during aging
Age-related decline in brain endothelial cell (BEC) function contributes critically to neurological disease. Comprehensive atlases of the BEC transcriptome have become available, but results from proteomic profiling are lacking. To gain insights into endothelial pathways affected by aging, we developed a magnetic-activated cell sorting-based mouse BEC enrichment protocol compatible with proteomics and resolved the profiles of protein abundance changes during aging. Unsupervised cluster analysis...
Humanin variant P3S is associated with longevity in APOE4 carriers and resists APOE4-induced brain pathology
The APOE4 allele is recognized as a significant genetic risk factor to Alzheimer's disease (AD) and influences longevity. Nonetheless, some APOE4 carriers exhibit resistance to AD even in advanced age. Humanin, a mitochondrial-derived peptide comprising 24 amino acids, has variants linked to cognitive resilience and longevity. Our research uncovered a unique humanin variant, P3S, specifically enriched in centenarians with the APOE4 allele. Through in silico analyses and subsequent experimental...
The effects of pregnancy, its progression, and its cessation on human (maternal) biological aging
No abstract
Nucleolar stress caused by arginine-rich peptides triggers a ribosomopathy and accelerates aging in mice
Nucleolar stress (NS) has been associated with age-related diseases such as cancer or neurodegeneration. To investigate how NS triggers toxicity, we used (PR)n arginine-rich peptides present in some neurodegenerative diseases as inducers of this perturbation. We here reveal that whereas (PR)n expression leads to a decrease in translation, this occurs concomitant with an accumulation of free ribosomal (r) proteins. Conversely, (PR)n-resistant cells have lower rates of r-protein synthesis, and...
Global fertility in 204 countries and territories, 1950-2021, with forecasts to 2100: a comprehensive demographic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021
BACKGROUND: Accurate assessments of current and future fertility-including overall trends and changing population age structures across countries and regions-are essential to help plan for the profound social, economic, environmental, and geopolitical challenges that these changes will bring. Estimates and projections of fertility are necessary to inform policies involving resource and health-care needs, labour supply, education, gender equality, and family planning and support. The Global...
Failure to share scientific data is undermining efforts to protect major Asian rivers, reports find
Managing the Indus, Ganges, and Brahmaputra rivers will require more cooperation among nations, researchers say
Pregnancy may increase biological age by 2 years—though some people end up ‘younger’
Body’s cells appear to age faster during pregnancy, but they might recover—and even thrive—in the months after birth
Optical coherence tomography as a potential surrogate marker of dopaminergic modulation across the life span
The retina has been considered a "window to the brain" and shares similar innervation by the dopaminergic system with the cortex in terms of an unequal distribution of D1 and D2 receptors. Here, we provide a comprehensive overview that Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT), a non-invasive imaging technique, which provides an "in vivo" representation of the retina, shows promise to be used as a surrogate marker of dopaminergic neuromodulation in cognition. Overall, most evidence supports reduced...