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Gordon, Reyna L.; Martschenko, Daphne O.; Nayak, Srishti; Niarchou, Maria; Morrison, Matthew D.; Bell, Eamonn; Jacoby, Nori; Davis, Lea K.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14972pmid: 36851882
New interdisciplinary research into genetic influences on musicality raises a number of ethical and social issues for future avenues of research and public engagement. The historical intersection of music cognition and eugenics heightens the need to vigilantly weigh the potential risks and benefits of these studies and the use of their outcomes. Here, we bring together diverse disciplinary expertise (complex trait genetics, music cognition, musicology, bioethics, developmental psychology, and neuroscience) to interpret and guide the ethical use of findings from recent and future studies. We discuss a framework for incorporating principles of ethically and socially responsible conduct of musicality genetics research into each stage of the research lifecycle: study design, study implementation, potential applications, and communication.
Saywell, Isaac; Child, Brittany; Foreman, Lauren; Collins‐Praino, Lyndsey; Baetu, Irina
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14967pmid: 36740453
Cognitive reserve has been used to justify neuropathologically unexplainable mismatches in Alzheimer's disease outcomes. Recent evidence has suggested this effect may be replicable across other conditions. However, it is still unclear whether cognitive reserve applies to α‐synucleinopathies or to motor outcomes, or if medication confounds effects. This review protocol follows PRISMA‐P guidelines and aims to investigate whether cognitive reserve can predict both cognitive and motor outcomes for α‐synucleinopathy patients. MEDLINE (via PubMed), Scopus, psycINFO (via Ovid), CINAHL (via EBSCO), and Web of Science have been searched. Cross‐sectional, cohort, case‐control, and longitudinal studies investigating the association between cognitive reserve and cognitive and/or motor outcomes for Parkinson's disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, or multiple system atrophy will be included. Reviewers will independently perform screening, while also extracting data, assessing the risk of bias (using a version of the Quality in Prognostic Studies tool), and rating evidence quality (using GRADE). If possible, random‐effects meta‐analyses will be conducted for each unique outcome variable and α‐synucleinopathy; otherwise, a narrative synthesis will be performed. Depending on the number of studies, exploratory analyses may involve meta‐regression to assess potential confounding effects. Understanding the broader protective effect of cognitive reserve has significant implications for preventive interventions in the wider population.
Selcen, Ipek; Prentice, Emily; Casaccia, Patrizia
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14959pmid: 36740586
The epigenetic landscape of oligodendrocyte lineage cells refers to the cell‐specific modifications of DNA, chromatin, and RNA that define a unique gene expression pattern of functionally specialized cells. Here, we focus on the epigenetic changes occurring as progenitors differentiate into myelin‐forming cells and respond to the local environment. First, modifications of DNA, RNA, nucleosomal histones, key principles of chromatin organization, topologically associating domains, and local remodeling will be reviewed. Then, the relationship between epigenetic modulators and RNA processing will be explored. Finally, the reciprocal relationship between the epigenome as a determinant of the mechanical properties of cell nuclei and the target of mechanotransduction will be discussed. The overall goal is to provide an interpretative key on how epigenetic changes may account for the heterogeneity of the transcriptional profiles identified in this lineage.
Khakh, Baljit S.; Goldman, Steven A.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14977pmid: 36864567
Huntington's disease (HD) is a fatal, monogenic, autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disease caused by a polyglutamine‐encoding CAG expansion in the huntingtin (HTT) gene that results in mutant huntingtin proteins (mHTT) in cells throughout the body. Although large parts of the central nervous system (CNS) are affected, the striatum is especially vulnerable and undergoes marked atrophy. Astrocytes are abundant within the striatum and contain mHTT in HD, as well as in mouse models of the disease. We focus on striatal astrocytes and summarize how they participate in, and contribute to, molecular pathophysiology and disease‐related phenotypes in HD model mice. Where possible, reference is made to pertinent astrocyte alterations in human HD. Astrocytic dysfunctions related to cellular morphology, extracellular ion and neurotransmitter homeostasis, and metabolic support all accompany the development and progression of HD, in both transgenic mouse and human cellular and chimeric models of HD. These findings reveal the potential for the therapeutic targeting of astrocytes so as to restore synaptic as well as tissue homeostasis in HD. Elucidation of the mechanisms by which astrocytes contribute to HD pathogenesis may inform a broader understanding of the role of glial pathology in neurodegenerative disorders and, by so doing, enable new strategies of glial‐directed therapeutics.
Cable, Jennifer; Sun, Jie; Cheon, In Su; Vaughan, Andrew E.; Castro, Italo A.; Stein, Sydney R.; López, Carolina B.; Gostic, Katelyn M.; Openshaw, Peter J. M.; Ellebedy, Ali H.; Wack, Andreas; Hutchinson, Edward; Thomas, Mallory M.; Langlois, Ryan A.; Lingwood, Daniel;
Vilà‐Guerau de Arellano, Jordi; Hartogensis, Oscar; Benedict, Imme; de Boer, Hugo; Bosman, Peter J. M.; Botía, Santiago; Cecchini, Micael Amore; Faassen, Kim A. P.; González‐Armas, Raquel; van Diepen, Kevin; Heusinkveld, Bert G.; Janssens, Martin; Lobos‐Roco, Felipe; Luijkx, Ingrid T.; Machado, Luiz A. T.; Mangan, Mary Rose; Moene, Arnold F.; Mol, Wouter B.;
Dafnomilis, Ioannis; den Elzen, Michel; Vuuren, Detlef P.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14970pmid: 36841927
More than 100 countries have communicated or adopted new Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and net‐zero target pledges. We investigate the impact on global, national, sectoral, and individual greenhouse gas emissions projections under different scenarios based on the announced NDCs and net‐zero pledges using the IMAGE integrated assessment model. Our results show that while the net‐zero pledges, if implemented, could be an important step forward, they are still not enough to achieve the Paris Agreement goals of well below 2°C and preferably 1.5°C by the end of the century. Still, our net‐zero scenarios project significant all‐sector decarbonization, in particular, electricity; however, certain sectors like industry and transport prove hard to completely abate.
Assouline, Susan G.; Mahatmya, Duhita; Ihrig, Lori M.; Lynch, Stephanie; Karakis, Nesibe
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14978pmid: 36908105
The pipeline of highly trained STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) professionals has narrowed in recent decades, forcing society to re‐examine how schools are discovering and developing STEM talent. Of particular concern is the finding that rural students attend post‐secondary schools at lower rates than their urban counterparts, and when they do attend, they are less likely to graduate from STEM programs. One reason may be that they are not prepared for advanced STEM coursework because they lack access to essential STEM talent‐development programs in middle or high school. This creates excellence gaps, which exacerbate the narrowing STEM pipeline to the workforce. To address this, we formed a university–school partnership to develop an outside‐of‐school STEM talent development program, called STEM Excellence, for rural middle‐school students who attend under‐resourced schools. The aim of STEM Excellence was to increase students’ achievement and aspirations while empowering their teachers to develop local STEM programs grounded in developmental psychology theories. STEM Excellence integrated the Talent Development Megamodel Principles of ability, domains of talent, opportunity, and psychosocial variables. STEM Excellence also recognized the interplay of multiple person–environment systems as presented in the Bioecological Systems Model.
Li, Rui; Miao, Xiaoyan; Han, Buxin; Li, Juan
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14971pmid: 36799333
Hearing impairment is considered a leading modifiable risk factor of cognitive decline and dementia. While most evidence has been established on clinical assessment of peripheral hearing loss, understanding of how central hearing in real‐world conditions is associated with cognitive aging is limited. This study analyzed the data of 473 unrelated healthy adults aged 36–100 years old from the Lifespan Human Connectome Project in Aging. Central hearing was evaluated using the Words‐in‐Noise decibel threshold. Cognitive functions were evaluated by the performance on cognitive tests, and cortical thickness was estimated from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. Here, we show that a higher hearing threshold was associated with a lower performance on immediate and delayed episodic memory retrieval, switching aspect of executive function, working memory, reading decoding, and vocabulary comprehension. Cortical thickness in the left parahippocampal cortex (lPHC) was negatively associated with the hearing threshold and acted as a significant partial mediator in the association of central hearing with immediate recall, switching, reading decoding, and vocabulary comprehension. These findings suggest that cortical thickness in the lPHC, an early target of dementia, partially links central hearing and performance in multiple cognitive domains in aging.
Showing 1 to 10 of 13 Articles
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14958pmid: 36722473
Respiratory viruses are a common cause of morbidity and mortality around the world. Viruses like influenza, RSV, and most recently SARS‐CoV‐2 can rapidly spread through a population, causing acute infection and, in vulnerable populations, severe or chronic disease. Developing effective treatment and prevention strategies often becomes a race against ever‐evolving viruses that develop resistance, leaving therapy efficacy either short‐lived or relevant for specific viral strains. On June 29 to July 2, 2022, researchers met for the Keystone symposium “Respiratory Viruses: New Frontiers.” Researchers presented new insights into viral biology and virus–host interactions to understand the mechanisms of disease and identify novel treatment and prevention approaches that are effective, durable, and broad.
doi: 10.1111/nyas.14956pmid: 36726230
Vegetation and atmosphere processes are coupled through a myriad of interactions linking plant transpiration, carbon dioxide assimilation, turbulent transport of moisture, heat and atmospheric constituents, aerosol formation, moist convection, and precipitation. Advances in our understanding are hampered by discipline barriers and challenges in understanding the role of small spatiotemporal scales. In this perspective, we propose to study the atmosphere–ecosystem interaction as a continuum by integrating leaf to regional scales (multiscale) and integrating biochemical and physical processes (multiprocesses). The challenges ahead are (1) How do clouds and canopies affect the transferring and in‐canopy penetration of radiation, thereby impacting photosynthesis and biogenic chemical transformations? (2) How is the radiative energy spatially distributed and converted into turbulent fluxes of heat, moisture, carbon, and reactive compounds? (3) How do local (leaf‐canopy‐clouds, 1 m to kilometers) biochemical and physical processes interact with regional meteorology and atmospheric composition (kilometers to 100 km)? (4) How can we integrate the feedbacks between cloud radiative effects and plant physiology to reduce uncertainties in our climate projections driven by regional warming and enhanced carbon dioxide levels? Our methodology integrates fine‐scale explicit simulations with new observational techniques to determine the role of unresolved small‐scale spatiotemporal processes in weather and climate models.