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- Chatterjee, P., et al.
(author)
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Plasma metabolites associated with biomarker evidence of neurodegeneration in cognitively normal older adults
- 2021
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In: Journal of Neurochemistry. - : Wiley. - 0022-3042 .- 1471-4159. ; 159:2, s. 389-402
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that currently has no cure. Identifying biochemical changes associated with neurodegeneration prior to symptom onset, will provide insight into the biological mechanisms associated with neurodegenerative processes, that may also aid in identifying potential drug targets. The current study therefore investigated associations between plasma neurofilament light chain (NF-L), a marker of neurodegeneration, with plasma metabolites that are products of various cellular processes. Plasma NF-L, measured by ultrasensitive Single molecule array (Simoa) technology (Quanterix) and plasma metabolites, measured by mass-spectrometry (AbsoluteIDQ (R) p400HR kit, BIOCRATES), were assessed in the Kerr Anglican Retirement Village Initiative in Ageing Health (KARVIAH) cohort comprising 100 cognitively normal older adults. Metabolites belonging to biogenic amine (creatinine, symmetric dimethylarginine, asymmetric dimethylarginine; ADMA, kynurenine, trans-4-hydroxyproline), amino acid (citrulline, proline, arginine, asparagine, phenylalanine, threonine) and acylcarnitine classes were observed to have positive correlations with plasma NF-L, suggesting a link between neurodegeneration and biological pathways associated with neurotransmitter regulation, nitric oxide homoeostasis, inflammation and mitochondrial function. Additionally, after stratifying participants based on low/high brain amyloid-beta load (A beta +/-) assessed by positron emission tomography, while creatinine, SDMA and citrulline correlated with NF-L in both A beta- and A beta+ groups, ADMA, proline, arginine, asparagine, phenylalanine and acylcarnitine species correlated with NF-L only in the A beta+ group after adjusting for confounding variables, suggesting that the association of these metabolites with neurodegeneration may be relevant to AD-related neuropathology. Metabolites identified to be associated with plasma NF-L may have the potential to serve as prognostic markers for neurodegenerative diseases, however, further studies are required to validate the current findings in an independent cohort, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally.
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- Yuan, J., et al.
(author)
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Elevated plasma sclerostin is associated with high brain amyloid-β load in cognitively normal older adults
- 2023
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In: Npj Aging. - 2731-6068. ; 9:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Osteoporosis and Alzheimer's disease (AD) mainly affect older individuals, and the possibility of an underlying link contributing to their shared epidemiological features has rarely been investigated. In the current study, we investigated the association between levels of plasma sclerostin (SOST), a protein primarily produced by bone, and brain amyloid-beta (A ss) load, a pathological hallmark of AD. The study enrolled participants meeting a set of screening inclusion and exclusion criteria and were stratified into A ss(n = 65) and A ss+ (n = 35) according to their brain A ss load assessed using A ss-PET (positron emission tomography) imaging. Plasma SOST levels, apolipoprotein E gene (APOE) genotype and several putative AD blood-biomarkers including A ss 40, A ss 42, A ss 42/A ss 40, neurofilament light (NFL), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), total tau (t-tau) and phosphorylated tau (p-tau181 and p-tau231) were detected and compared. It was found that plasma SOST levels were significantly higher in the A ss+ group (71.49 +/- 25.00 pmol/L) compared with the A ss- group (56.51 +/- 22.14 pmol/L) (P < 0.01). Moreover, Spearman's correlation analysis showed that plasma SOST concentrations were positively correlated with brain A ss load (. = 0.321, P = 0.001). Importantly, plasma SOST combined with A ss 42/A ss 40 ratio significantly increased the area under the curve (AUC) when compared with using A ss 42/A ss 40 ratio alone (AUC = 0.768 vs 0.669, P = 0.027). In conclusion, plasma SOST levels are elevated in cognitively unimpaired older adults at high risk of AD and SOST could complement existing plasma biomarkers to assist in the detection of preclinical AD.
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- Chatterjee, P., et al.
(author)
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Serum Hepcidin Levels in Cognitively Normal Older Adults with High Neocortical Amyloid-beta Load
- 2020
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In: Journal of Alzheimers Disease. - : IOS Press. - 1387-2877 .- 1875-8908. ; 76:1, s. 291-301
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Background/Objective: Hepcidin, an iron-regulating hormone, suppresses the release of iron by binding to the iron exporter protein, ferroportin, resulting in intracellular iron accumulation. Given that iron dyshomeostasis has been observed in Alzheimer's disease (AD) together with elevated serum hepcidin levels, the current study examined whether elevated serum hepcidin levels are an early event in AD pathogenesis by measuring the hormone in cognitively normal older adults at risk of AD, based on high neocortical amyloid-beta load (NAL). Methods: Serum hepcidin levels in cognitively normal participants (n = 100) aged between 65-90 years were measured using ELISA. To evaluate NAL, all participants underwent 18F-florbetaben positron emission tomography. A standard uptake value ratio (SUVR)<1.35 was classified as low NAL (n = 65) and >= 1.35 (n = 35) was classified as high NAL. Results: Serum hepcidin was significantly higher in participants with high NAL compared to those with low NAL before and after adjusting for covariates: age, gender, and APOE epsilon 4 carriage (p < 0.05). A receiver operating characteristic curve based on a logistic regression of the same covariates, the base model, distinguished high from low NAL (area under the curve, AUC = 0.766), but was outperformed when serum hepcidin was added to the base model (AUC = 0.794) and further improved with plasma A beta(42/40) ratio (AUC = 0.829). Conclusion: The present findings indicate that serum hepcidin is increased in individuals at risk for AD and contribute to the body of evidence supporting iron dyshomeostasis as an early event of AD. Further, hepcidin may add value to a panel of markers that contribute toward identifying individuals at risk of AD; however, further validation studies are required.
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- Pettersen, Emily, 1996, et al.
(author)
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Targeted Muscle Reinnervation: Surgical Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial in Postamputation Pain
- 2024
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In: Journal of Visualized Experiments. - 1940-087X. ; 2024:205
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Over the past decade, the field of prosthetics has witnessed significant progress, particularly in the development of surgical techniques to enhance the functionality of prosthetic limbs. Notably, novel surgical interventions have had an additional positive outcome, as individuals with amputations have reported neuropathic pain relief after undergoing such procedures. Subsequently, surgical techniques have gained increased prominence in the treatment of postamputation pain, including one such surgical advancement-targeted muscle reinnervation (TMR). TMR involves a surgical approach that reroutes severed nerves as a type of nerve transfer to "target" motor nerves and their accompanying motor end plates within nearby muscles. This technique originally aimed to create new myoelectric sites for amplified electromyography (EMG) signals to enhance prosthetic intuitive control. Subsequent work showed that TMR also could prevent the formation of painful neuromas as well as reduce postamputation neuropathic pain (e.g., Residual and Phantom Limb Pain). Indeed, multiple studies have demonstrated TMR's effectiveness in mitigating postamputation pain as well as improving prosthetic functional outcomes. However, technical variations in the procedure have been identified as it is adopted by clinics worldwide. The purpose of this article is to provide a detailed step-by-step description of the TMR procedure, serving as the foundation for an international, randomized controlled trial (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT05009394), including nine clinics in seven countries. In this trial, TMR and two other surgical techniques for managing postamputation pain will be evaluated.
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- Sheikh, U., et al.
(author)
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Benign termination of runaway electron beams on ASDEX Upgrade and TCV
- 2024
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In: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion. - : IOP Publishing. - 0741-3335 .- 1361-6587. ; 66:3
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper discusses the development of a benign termination scenario for runaway electron (RE) beams on ASDEX Upgrade and TCV. A systematic study revealed that a low electron density (n e) companion plasma was required to achieve a large MHD instability, which expelled the confined REs over a large wetted area and allowed for the conversion of magnetic energy to radiation. Control of the companion plasma ne was achieved via neutral pressure regulation and was agnostic to material injection method. The neutral pressure required for recombination was found to be dependent on impurity species, quantity and RE current. On TCV, n e increased at neutral pressures above 1 Pa, indicating that higher collisionality between the REs and neutrals may lead to an upper pressure limit. The conversion of magnetic energy to radiated energy was measured on both machines and a decrease in efficiency was observed at high neutral pressure on TCV. The benign termination technique was able to prevent any significant increase in maximum heat flux on AUG from 200 to 600 kA of RE current, highlighting the ability of this approach to handle fully formed RE beams.
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