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| 2. |
- Oeckl, Patrick, et al.
(författare)
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Different neuroinflammatory profile in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia is linked to the clinical phase
- 2019
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Ingår i: Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry. - : BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. - 0022-3050 .- 1468-330X. ; 90:1, s. 4-10
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: To investigate the role of neuroinflammation in asymptomatic and symptomatic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) mutation carriers.Methods: The neuroinflammatory markers chitotriosidase 1 (CHIT1), YKL-40 and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) were measured in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and blood samples from asymptomatic and symptomatic ALS/FTD mutation carriers, sporadic cases and controls by ELISA.Results: CSF levels of CHIT1, YKL-40 and GFAP were unaffected in asymptomatic mutation carriers (n=16). CHIT1 and YKL-40 were increased in gALS (p<0.001, n=65) whereas GFAP was not affected. Patients with ALS carrying a CHIT1 polymorphism had lower CHIT1 concentrations in CSF (-80%) whereas this polymorphism had no influence on disease severity. In gFTD (n=23), increased YKL-40 and GFAP were observed (p<0.05), whereas CHIT1 was nearly not affected. The same profile as in gALS and gFTD was observed in sALS (n=64/70) and sFTD (n=20/26). CSF and blood concentrations correlated moderately (CHIT1, r=0.51) to weak (YKL-40, r=0.30, GFAP, r=0.39). Blood concentrations of these three markers were not significantly altered in any of the groups except CHIT1 in gALS of the Ulm cohort (p<0.05).Conclusion: Our data indicate that neuroinflammation is linked to the symptomatic phase of ALS/FTD and shows a similar pattern in sporadic and genetic cases. ALS and FTD are characterised by a different neuroinflammatory profile, which might be one driver of the diverse presentations of the ALS/FTD syndrome.
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| 3. |
- Albrecht, Konstanze, et al.
(författare)
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The influence of status on satisfaction with relative rewards.
- 2013
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Ingår i: Frontiers in psychology. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1664-1078. ; 4
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This study investigates how induced relative status affects satisfaction with different relative payoffs. We find that participants with lower status are more satisfied with disadvantageous payoff inequalities than equal or higher status participants. In contrast, when receiving an advantageous payoff, status does not affect satisfaction. Our findings suggest that relative social status has important implications for the acceptance of income inequalities.
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| 4. |
- Bainbridge, Wilma A., et al.
(författare)
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Memorability of photographs in subjective cognitive decline and mild cognitive impairment : Implications for cognitive assessment
- 2019
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Ingår i: Alzheimer's and Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment and Disease Monitoring. - : Wiley. - 2352-8729. ; 11, s. 610-618
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction: Impaired long-term memory is a defining feature of mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We tested whether this impairment is item specific, limited to some memoranda, whereas some remain consistently memorable. Methods: We conducted item-based analyses of long-term visual recognition memory. Three hundred ninety-four participants (healthy controls, subjective cognitive decline [SCD], and MCI) in the multicentric DZNE-Longitudinal Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Study (DELCODE) were tested with images from a pool of 835 photographs. Results: We observed consistent memorability for images in healthy controls, SCD, and MCI, predictable by a neural network trained on another healthy sample. Looking at memorability differences between groups, we identified images that could successfully categorize group membership with higher success and a substantial image reduction than the original image set. Discussion: Individuals with SCD and MCI show consistent memorability for specific items, while other items show significant diagnosticity. Certain stimulus features could optimize diagnostic assessment, while others could support memory.
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| 5. |
- Berron, David, et al.
(författare)
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Higher CSF Tau Levels Are Related to Hippocampal Hyperactivity and Object Mnemonic Discrimination in Older Adults
- 2019
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Ingår i: The Journal of Neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience. - 1529-2401. ; 39:44, s. 8788-8797
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Mnemonic discrimination, the ability to distinguish similar events in memory, relies on subregions in the human medial temporal lobes (MTLs). Tau pathology is frequently found within the MTL of older adults and therefore likely to affect mnemonic discrimination, even in healthy older individuals. The MTL subregions that are known to be affected early by tau pathology, the perirhinal-transentorhinal region (area 35) and the anterior-lateral entorhinal cortex (alEC), have recently been implicated in the mnemonic discrimination of objects rather than scenes. Here we used an object-scene mnemonic discrimination task in combination with fMRI recordings and analyzed the relationship between subregional MTL activity, memory performance, and levels of total and phosphorylated tau as well as Aβ42/40 ratio in CSF. We show that activity in alEC was associated with mnemonic discrimination of similar objects but not scenes in male and female cognitively unimpaired older adults. Importantly, CSF tau levels were associated with increased fMRI activity in the hippocampus, and both increased hippocampal activity as well as tau levels were associated with mnemonic discrimination of objects, but again not scenes. This suggests that dysfunction of the alEC-hippocampus object mnemonic discrimination network might be a marker for tau-related cognitive decline.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Subregions in the human medial temporal lobe are critically involved in episodic memory and, at the same time, affected by tau pathology. Impaired object mnemonic discrimination performance as well as aberrant activity within the entorhinal-hippocampal circuitry have been reported in earlier studies involving older individuals, but it has thus far remained elusive whether and how tau pathology is implicated in this specific impairment. Using task-related fMRI in combination with measures of tau pathology in CSF, we show that measures of tau pathology are associated with increased hippocampal activity and reduced mnemonic discrimination of similar objects but not scenes. This suggests that object mnemonic discrimination tasks could be promising markers for tau-related cognitive decline.
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| 6. |
- Birkhofer, Klaus, et al.
(författare)
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Conventional agriculture and not drought alters relationships between soil biota and functions
- 2021
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Ingår i: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2045-2322. ; 11
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Soil biodiversity constitutes the biological pillars of ecosystem services provided by soils worldwide. Soil life is threatened by intense agricultural management and shifts in climatic conditions as two important global change drivers which are not often jointly studied under field conditions. We addressed the effects of experimental short-term drought over the wheat growing season on soil organisms and ecosystem functions under organic and conventional farming in a Swiss long term trial. Our results suggest that activity and community metrics are suitable indicators for drought stress while microbial communities primarily responded to agricultural practices. Importantly, we found a significant loss of multiple pairwise positive and negative relationships between soil biota and process-related variables in response to conventional farming, but not in response to experimental drought. These results suggest a considerable weakening of the contribution of soil biota to ecosystem functions under long-term conventional agriculture. Independent of the farming system, experimental and seasonal (ambient) drought conditions directly affected soil biota and activity. A higher soil water content during early and intermediate stages of the growing season and a high number of significant relationships between soil biota to ecosystem functions suggest that organic farming provides a buffer against drought effects.
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| 7. |
- Birkhofer, Klaus, et al.
(författare)
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Long-term organic farming fosters below and aboveground biota: Implications for soil quality, biological control and productivity
- 2008
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Ingår i: Soil Biology & Biochemistry. - : Elsevier BV. - 0038-0717. ; 40:9, s. 2297-2308
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Organic farming may contribute substantially to future agricultural production worldwide by improving soil quality and pest control, thereby reducing environmental impacts of conventional farming. We investigated in a comprehensive way soil chemical, as well as below and aboveground biological parameters of two organic and two conventional wheat farming systems that primarily differed in fertilization and weed management strategies. Contrast analyses identified management related differences between "herbicide-free" bioorganic (BIOORG) and biodynamic (BIODYN) systems and conventional systems with (CONFYM) or without manure (CONMIN) and herbicide application within a long-term agricultural experiment (DOK trial, Switzerland). Soil carbon content was significantly higher in systems receiving farmyard manure and concomitantly microbial biomass (fungi and bacteria) was increased. Microbial activity parameters, such as microbial basal respiration and nitrogen mineralization, showed an opposite pattern, suggesting that soil carbon in the conventional system (CONFYM) was more easily accessible to microorganisms than in organic systems. Bacterivorous nematodes and earthworms were most abundant in systems that received farmyard manure, which is in line with the responses of their potential food sources (microbes and organic matter). Mineral fertilizer application detrimentally affected enchytraeids and Diptera larvae, whereas aphids benefited. Spider abundance was favoured by organic management, most likely a response to increased prey availability from the belowground subsystem or increased weed coverage. In contrast to most soil-based, bottom-up controlled interactions, the twofold higher abundance of this generalist predator group in organic systems likely contributed to the significantly lower abundance of aboveground herbivore pests (aphids) in these systems. Long-term organic farming and the application of farmyard manure promoted soil quality, microbial biomass and fostered natural enemies and ecosystem engineers, suggesting enhanced nutrient cycling and pest control. Mineral fertilizers and herbicide application, in contrast, affected the potential for top-down control of aboveground pests negatively and reduced the organic carbon levels. Our study indicates that the use of synthetic fertilizers and herbicide application changes interactions within and between below and aboveground components, ultimately promoting negative environmental impacts of agriculture by reducing internal biological cycles and pest control. On the contrary, organic farming fosters microbial and faunal decomposers and this propagates into the aboveground system via generalist predators thereby increasing conservation biological control. However, grain and straw yields were 23% higher in systems receiving mineral fertilizers and herbicides reflecting the trade-off between productivity and environmental responsibility. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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| 8. |
- Kleineidam, Luca, et al.
(författare)
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Midlife occupational cognitive requirements protect cognitive function in old age by increasing cognitive reserve
- 2022
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Psychology. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1664-1078. ; 13
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Introduction: Several lifestyle factors promote protection against Alzheimer's disease (AD) throughout a person's lifespan. Although such protective effects have been described for occupational cognitive requirements (OCR) in midlife, it is currently unknown whether they are conveyed by brain maintenance (BM), brain reserve (BR), or cognitive reserve (CR) or a combination of them. Methods: We systematically derived hypotheses for these resilience concepts and tested them in the population-based AgeCoDe cohort and memory clinic-based AD high-risk DELCODE study. The OCR score (OCRS) was measured using job activities based on the O*NET occupational classification system. Four sets of analyses were conducted: (1) the interaction of OCR and APOE-ε4 with regard to cognitive decline (N = 2,369, AgeCoDe), (2) association with differentially shaped retrospective trajectories before the onset of dementia of the Alzheimer's type (DAT; N = 474, AgeCoDe), (3) cross-sectional interaction of the OCR and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) AD biomarkers and brain structural measures regarding memory function (N = 873, DELCODE), and (4) cross-sectional and longitudinal association of OCR with CSF AD biomarkers and brain structural measures (N = 873, DELCODE). Results: Regarding (1), higher OCRS was associated with a reduced association of APOE-ε4 with cognitive decline (mean follow-up = 6.03 years), consistent with CR and BR. Regarding (2), high OCRS was associated with a later onset but subsequently stronger cognitive decline in individuals converting to DAT, consistent with CR. Regarding (3), higher OCRS was associated with a weaker association of the CSF Aβ42/40 ratio and hippocampal volume with memory function, consistent with CR. Regarding (4), OCR was not associated with the levels or changes in CSF AD biomarkers (mean follow-up = 2.61 years). We found a cross-sectional, age-independent association of OCRS with some MRI markers, but no association with 1-year-change. OCR was not associated with the intracranial volume. These results are not completely consistent with those of BR or BM. Discussion: Our results support the link between OCR and CR. Promoting and seeking complex and stimulating work conditions in midlife could therefore contribute to increased resistance to pathologies in old age and might complement prevention measures aimed at reducing pathology.
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| 9. |
- Kozjek, Katja, et al.
(författare)
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Long-term agricultural management impacts arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi more than short-term experimental drought
- 2021
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Ingår i: Applied Soil Ecology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0929-1393. ; 168
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Agricultural management practices and extreme weather events associated with climate change can influence the diversity and abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) with potential consequences for crop production. However, the importance of the interactive effects of long-term agricultural management and extreme weather events on AMF communities in agricultural soils is not yet fully explored. A short-term drought experiment with rainout-shelters was performed in winter wheat fields in a long-term agricultural trial with organic (biodynamic) and conventional management practices. During four months of the winter wheat growing period (March–June 2017), the rainout-shelters reduced the ambient precipitation by 65% on average. At two sampling dates, the AMF diversity and community composition were assessed using a single-molecule real-time (SMRT) DNA sequencing. A total of 955 amplicon sequence variants (ASVs), belonging to twelve genera were identified. The long-term farming systems and the short-term experimental drought did not affect AMF ASV diversity levels. The AMF community composition at the genus level differed between the organic and the conventional farming systems, but no distinctive communities were found in response to the experimental drought. The three most abundant genera Acaulospora, Paraglomus and Funneliformis were correlated to the two farming practices. Our study demonstrates that AMF communities in agricultural soils are responsive to long-term farming systems, and are resistant to one short-term summer drought event.
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| 10. |
- Kundel, Dominika, et al.
(författare)
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Effects of simulated drought on biological soil quality, microbial diversity and yields under long-term conventional and organic agriculture
- 2020
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Ingår i: FEMS Microbiology Ecology. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1574-6941 .- 0168-6496. ; 96:12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Drought and agricultural management influence soil microorganisms with unknown consequences for the functioning of agroecosystems. We simulated drought periods in organic (biodynamic) and conventional wheat fields and monitored effects on soil water content, microorganisms and crops. Above the wilting point, water content and microbial respiration were higher under biodynamic than conventional farming. Highest bacterial and fungal abundances were found in biodynamically managed soils, and distinct microbial communities characterised the farming systems. Most biological soil quality parameters and crop yields were only marginally affected by the experimental drought, except for arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), which increased in abundance under the experimental drought in both farming systems. AMF were further strongly promoted by biodynamic farming resulting in almost three times higher AMF abundance under experimental drought in the biodynamic compared with the conventional farming system. Our data suggest an improved water storage capacity under biodynamic farming and confirms positive effects of biodynamic farming on biological soil quality. The interactive effects of the farming system and drought may further be investigated under more substantial droughts. Given the importance of AMF for the plant's water supply, more in-depth studies on AMF may help to clarify their role for yields under conditions predicted by future climate scenarios.
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