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Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato (s.l.) (Latreille) feeds on domestic dogs worldwide. This tick species uses dog volatiles during host-seeking behavior. In this study, we identified volatile compounds from dog hairs involved in the host location of R. sanguineus s.l. The R. sanguineus s.l. females, but not males, were attracted to hair samples and Super Q extracts from Schnauzer dogs in Y-tube olfactometer bioassays. A total of 54 compounds from dog hair extracts were identified by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry, including hydrocarbons, aldehydes, alcohols, ketones, and carboxylic acids. Screening the identified compounds by the single sensillum recording technique showed that isovaleric acid, hexanal, heptanal, and sucaltone (6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one) significantly stimulated the olfactory receptor neurons of the basiconic, chaeticum, and trichodeum sensilla of female ticks. When synthetic compounds were evaluated alone, or in binary, tertiary, or quaternary mixtures, female ticks were only attracted to isovaleric acid and 1 tertiary mixture (hexanal, heptanal, and isovaleric acid). We conclude that isovaleric acid functions as an attractant for R. sanguineus s.l. These findings contribute to the understanding of the chemical ecology of ticks during host location.

Anastrepha obliqua Macquart (Diptera: Tephritidae) is a polyphagous species with hog plums (Spondias spp.) (Sapindales: Anacardiaceae) and mangoes (Mangifera indica L.) (Sapindales: Anacardiaceae) as primary host fruits. In this study, the olfactory preference of A. obliqua for three stages of ripeness of two mango cultivars (‘Coche’ and ‘Ataulfo’) was investigated. The female flies were more attracted to ripe ‘Coche’ fruits compared to those ripe ‘Ataulfo’. Further, they were more attracted to the ‘Coche’ half-ripe and ripe fruits than to the unripe ones, but they did not discriminate among the stages of ripeness of ‘Ataulfo’ fruits. The male flies did not show preference for any specific mango cultivars or ripeness stage tested. Four compounds from ripe ‘Coche’ mangoes, and two from ripe ‘Ataulfo’ fruits were identified using coupled gas chromatography-electroantennographic (GC-EAD) recording and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. ‘Coche’ mango volatiles eliciting responses from the female antennae were ethyl butyrate, ethyl hexanoate, ethyl heptanoate, and ethyl octanoate. The two ‘Ataulfo’ mango volatiles were identified as 3-carene and ethyl octanoate. These compounds were absent in unripe mangoes of both cultivars. Synthetic blends of these compounds were attractive to females as mango extracts in field cage tests. Our results suggest that the olfactory preference of A. obliqua for attractive hosts is based on the presence or absence of the compounds associated with fruit maturity.

Blood-based biomarkers offer a major advance in the clinical evaluation of neurodegenerative diseases. Currently, research studies have reported robust assays of blood markers for the detection of amyloid and tau pathologies specific to Alzheimer’s disease (Aß peptides, p-tau), as well as non-specific blood markers of neuronal (neurofilament light, ß-synuclein, ubiquitin-C-terminal-hydrolase-L1) and glial degeneration (glial fibrillary acidic protein) that can measure key pathophysiological processes in several neurodegenerative diseases. In the near future, these markers may be used for screening, diagnosis or disease and treatment response monitoring. Blood-based biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases have been rapidly implemented in research, and they have the potential to enter clinical use soon in different clinical settings. In this review, we will describe the main developments and their potential implications for the general neurologist.

Background: Plasma measurements of phosphorylated tau (ptau) have emerged as promising biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Studies have shown strong associations between ptau and tau-PET that are mainly driven by the difference between amyloid-positive and amyloid-negative patients. However, the relationship between ptau and tau-PET is not well characterized within patients with AD. We conducted a head-to-head comparison between plasma ptau-217 and tau-PET in patients at the clinical stage of AD and assessed biomarker relationships with demographic and clinical variables. Methods: Eighty-seven amyloid-positive patients (age=66±10, 48% women) with mild cognitive impairment (n=53) or dementia (n=34) underwent structural MRI, amyloid-PET (11C-PIB), tau-PET (18F-flortaucipir, FTP), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE, with 28 patients having longitudinal measures 1.5±0.7 years after baseline) and blood draw within a year. Mean cortical PET-Standardized Uptake Value Ratio (SUVR) were extracted using FreeSurfer5.3. Plasma ptau-217 concentrations were measured using an electrochemiluminescence-based assay on the Meso Scale Discovery platform. Results: Ptau-217 and cortical FTP-SUVR were strongly correlated (r=0.61, p0.25). In the whole group, ptau-217 was associated with FTP-SUVR in temporo-parietal and dorsal prefrontal cortices (Figure 3A). However, ptau-217-FTP association patterns varied with amyloid burden: in patients with moderate amyloid (

Background and ObjectivePlasma phosphorylated tau (p-tau) has emerged as a promising biomarker for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Studies have reported strong associations between p-tau and tau-PET that are mainly driven by differences between amyloid-positive and amyloid-negative patients. However, the relationship between p-tau and tau-PET is less characterized within cognitively impaired patients with a biomarker-supported diagnosis of AD. We conducted a head-to-head comparison between plasma p-tau217 and tau-PET in patients at the clinical stage of AD and further assessed their relationships with demographic, clinical, and biomarker variables.MethodsWe retrospectively included 87 amyloid-positive patients diagnosed with MCI or AD dementia who underwent structural MRI, amyloid-PET (11C-PIB), tau-PET (18F-flortaucipir, FTP), and blood draw assessments within one year (age=66±10, 48% female). Amyloid-PET was quantified in Centiloids (CL) while cortical tau-PET binding was measured using Standardized Uptake Value Ratios (SUVRs) referenced against inferior cerebellar cortex. Plasma p-tau217 concentrations were measured using an electrochemiluminescence-based assay on the Meso Scale Discovery platform. MRI-derived cortical volume was quantified with FreeSurfer. Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores were available at baseline (n=85) and follow-up visits (n=28; 1.5±0.7 years).ResultsPlasma p-tau217 and cortical FTP-SUVR were correlated (r=0.61, pDiscussionPlasma p-tau217 and tau-PET are strongly correlated in amyloid-PET-positive patients with MCI and AD, and they exhibited comparable patterns of associations with demographic variables and with markers of downstream neurodegeneration.

Empathy relies on fronto-cingular and temporal networks that are selectively vulnerable in behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD). This study modeled when in the disease process empathy changes begin, and how they progress.Four hundred thirty-one individuals with asymptomatic genetic FTD (n = 114), genetic and sporadic bvFTD (n = 317), and 163 asymptomatic non-carrier controls were enrolled. In sub-samples, we investigated empathy measured by the informant-based Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI) at each disease stage and over time (n = 91), and its correspondence to underlying atrophy (n = 51).Empathic concern (estimate = 4.38, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 2.79, 5.97; p 0.001) and perspective taking (estimate = 5.64, 95% CI = 3.81, 7.48; p 0.001) scores declined between the asymptomatic and very mild symptomatic stages regardless of pathogenic variant status. More rapid loss of empathy corresponded with subcortical atrophy.Loss of empathy is an early and progressive symptom of bvFTD that is measurable by IRI informant ratings and can be used to monitor behavior in neuropsychiatry practice and treatment trials.

Background: Plasma tau phosphorylated at threonine 217 (p-tau217) and plasma tau phosphorylated at threonine 181 (p-tau181) are associated with Alzheimer's disease tau pathology. We compared the diagnostic value of both biomarkers in cognitively unimpaired participants and patients with a clinical diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's disease syndromes, or frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) syndromes. Methods: In this retrospective multicohort diagnostic performance study, we analysed plasma samples, obtained from patients aged 18–99 years old who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease syndromes (Alzheimer's disease dementia, logopenic variant primary progressive aphasia, or posterior cortical atrophy), FTLD syndromes (corticobasal syndrome, progressive supranuclear palsy, behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia, non-fluent variant primary progressive aphasia, or semantic variant primary progressive aphasia), or mild cognitive impairment; the participants were from the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Memory and Aging Center, San Francisco, CA, USA, and the Advancing Research and Treatment for Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration Consortium (ARTFL; 17 sites in the USA and two in Canada). Participants from both cohorts were carefully characterised, including assessments of CSF p-tau181, amyloid-PET or tau-PET (or both), and clinical and cognitive evaluations. Plasma p-tau181 and p-tau217 were measured using electrochemiluminescence-based assays, which differed only in the biotinylated antibody epitope specificity. Receiver operating characteristic analyses were used to determine diagnostic accuracy of both plasma markers using clinical diagnosis, neuropathological findings, and amyloid-PET and tau-PET measures as gold standards. Difference between two area under the curve (AUC) analyses were tested with the Delong test. Findings: Data were collected from 593 participants (443 from UCSF and 150 from ARTFL, mean age 64 years [SD 13], 294 [50%] women) between July 1 and Nov 30, 2020. Plasma p-tau217 and p-tau181 were correlated (r=0·90, pdiff=0·31) and in pathology-confirmed Alzheimer's disease (n=15, mean age 73 years [SD 12]) versus pathologically confirmed FTLD (n=68, mean age 67 years [SD 8]; AUC=0·96 [0·92–1·00] for p-tau217, AUC=0·91 [0·82–1·00] for p-tau181; p diff=0·22). P-tau217 outperformed p-tau181 in differentiating patients with Alzheimer's disease syndromes (n=75) from those with FTLD syndromes (n=274, mean age 67 years [SD 9]; AUC=0·93 [0·91–0·96] for p-tau217, AUC=0·91 [0·88–0·94] for p-tau181; p diff=0·01). P-tau217 was a stronger indicator of amyloid-PET positivity (n=146, AUC=0·91 [0·88–0·94]) than was p-tau181 (n=214, AUC=0·89 [0·86–0·93]; p diff=0·049). Tau-PET binding in the temporal cortex was more strongly associated with p-tau217 than p-tau181 (r=0·80 vs r=0·72; p diff

The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda, is one of the main pests of corn and other economically important crops worldwide. Pheromone traps can be used for monitoring and mass trapping S. frugiperda males. Trap design is an important component of a monitoring system or mass trapping system, along with the attractant. In this study, we evaluated the performance and efficiency of several home-made and commercial traps baited with a pheromone lure developed from Mexican S. frugiperda populations. The trials were performed in corn crops in two different years and regions of Mexico. The white plastic jug trap exhibited the highest capture and efficiency rate for trapping S. frugiperda males in both years and regions. The commercial green bucket trap and the home-made traps (including delta, sleeve and water bottle traps) caught significantly fewer males during the experiments compared to the white plastic jug trap. The latter captured 42.5% of males orienting sleeves the trap. An efficient trap may be useful for monitoring or be used as part of a mass trapping strategy to manage FAW populations in corn.

ImportancePlasma phosphorylated tau217 (p-tau217), a biomarker of Alzheimer disease (AD), is of special interest in corticobasal syndrome (CBS) because autopsy studies have revealed AD is the driving neuropathology in up to 40% of cases. This differentiates CBS from other 4-repeat tauopathy (4RT)–associated syndromes, such as progressive supranuclear palsy Richardson syndrome (PSP-RS) and nonfluent primary progressive aphasia (nfvPPA), where underlying frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is typically the primary neuropathology.ObjectiveTo validate plasma p-tau217 against positron emission tomography (PET) in 4RT-associated syndromes, especially CBS.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsThis multicohort study with 6, 12, and 24-month follow-up recruited adult participants between January 2011 and September 2020 from 8 tertiary care centers in the 4RT Neuroimaging Initiative (4RTNI). All participants with CBS (n = 113), PSP-RS (n = 121), and nfvPPA (n = 39) were included; other diagnoses were excluded due to rarity (n = 29). Individuals with PET-confirmed AD (n = 54) and PET-negative cognitively normal control individuals (n = 59) were evaluated at University of California San Francisco. Operators were blinded to the cohort.Main Outcome and MeasuresPlasma p-tau217, measured by Meso Scale Discovery electrochemiluminescence, was validated against amyloid-β (Aβ) and flortaucipir (FTP) PET. Imaging analyses used voxel-based morphometry and bayesian linear mixed-effects modeling. Clinical biomarker associations were evaluated using longitudinal mixed-effect modeling.ResultsOf 386 participants, 199 (52%) were female, and the mean (SD) age was 68 (8) years. Plasma p-tau217 was elevated in patients with CBS with positive Aβ PET results (mean [SD], 0.57 [0.43] pg/mL) or FTP PET (mean [SD], 0.75 [0.30] pg/mL) to concentrations comparable to control individuals with AD (mean [SD], 0.72 [0.37]), whereas PSP-RS and nfvPPA showed no increase relative to control. Within CBS, p-tau217 had excellent diagnostic performance with area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) for Aβ PET of 0.87 (95% CI, 0.76-0.98; P P P = .005).Conclusions and RelevanceIn this cohort study, plasma p-tau217 had excellent diagnostic performance for identifying Aβ or FTP PET positivity within CBS with likely underlying AD pathology. Plasma P-tau217 may be a useful and inexpensive biomarker to select patients for CBS clinical trials.

Objective:There are minimal data directly comparing plasma neurofilament light (NfL) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in aging and neurodegenerative disease research. We evaluated associations of plasma NfL and plasma GFAP with brain volume and cognition in two independent cohorts of older adults diagnosed as clinically normal (CN), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), or Alzheimer’s dementia.Methods:We studied 121 total participants (Cohort 1: n = 50, age 71.6 ± 6.9 years, 78% CN, 22% MCI; Cohort 2: n = 71, age 72.2 ± 9.2 years, 45% CN, 25% MCI, 30% dementia). Gray and white matter volumes were obtained for total brain and broad subregions of interest (ROIs). Neuropsychological testing evaluated memory, executive functioning, language, and visuospatial abilities. Plasma samples were analyzed in duplicate for NfL and GFAP using single molecule array assays (Quanterix Simoa). Linear regression models with structural MRI and cognitive outcomes included plasma NfL and GFAP simultaneously along with relevant covariates.Results:Higher plasma GFAP was associated with lower white matter volume in both cohorts for temporal (Cohort 1: β = −0.33, p = .002; Cohort 2: β = −0.36, p = .03) and parietal ROIs (Cohort 1: β = −0.31, p = .01; Cohort 2: β = −0.35, p = .04). No consistent findings emerged for gray matter volumes. Higher plasma GFAP was associated with lower executive function scores (Cohort 1: β = −0.38, p = .01; Cohort 2: β = −0.36, p = .007). Plasma NfL was not associated with gray or white matter volumes, or cognition after adjusting for plasma GFAP.Conclusions:Plasma GFAP may be more sensitive to white matter and cognitive changes than plasma NfL. Biomarkers reflecting astroglial pathophysiology may capture complex dynamics of aging and neurodegenerative disease.

The coffee leaf miner, Leucoptera coffeella (Guerin-Meneville), is one of the main pests of coffee (Coffea spp.) in the Neotropical region. Leucoptera coffeella is considered a specialist insect because it develops exclusively within the leaves of the genus Coffea. In this laboratory study, we investigated the oviposition preference and performance of L. coffeella on the coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix Berkeley & Broome)-susceptible C. arabica cultivars “Red Catuai”, “Red Caturra”, and “Typica”, and resistant cultivars “Costa Rica 95”, “Oro Azteca”, and “IAPAR 59”. Individual (non-choice) and group (multiple-choice) leaves of these cultivars were exposed to mated individual L. coffeella females and the number of eggs laid per leaf was recorded. Oviposition preference was found to be indistinct among the coffee cultivars evaluated. However, larvae and pupal period, and adult body length were significantly affected by the coffee cultivar. These results are discussed in relation to the preference-performance hypothesis and its impact on L. coffeella’s strategy to choose the host plant.

Importance: The accurate diagnosis of progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP) and corticobasal degeneration (CBD) is hampered by imperfect clinical-pathological correlations. Objective: To assess and compare the diagnostic value of the magnetic resonance parkinsonism index (MRPI) and other magnetic resonance imaging-based measures of cerebral atrophy to differentiate between PSP, CBD, and other neurodegenerative diseases. Design, setting, and participants: This prospective diagnostic study included participants with 4-repeat tauopathies (4RT), PSP, CBD, other neurodegenerative diseases and available MRI who appeared in the University of California, San Francisco, Memory and Aging Center database. Data were collected from October 27, 1994, to September 29, 2019. Data were analyzed from March 1 to September 14, 2021. Main outcomes and measures: The main outcome of this study was the neuropathological diagnosis of PSP or CBD. The clinical diagnosis at the time of the MRI acquisition was noted. The imaging measures included the MRPI, cortical thickness, subcortical volumes, including the midbrain, pons, and superior cerebellar peduncle volumes. Multinomial logistic regression models (MLRM) combining different cortical and subcortical regions were defined to discriminate between PSP, CBD, and other pathologies. The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUROC) and cutoffs were calculated to differentiate between PSP, CBD, and other diseases. Results: Of the 326 included participants, 176 (54%) were male, and the mean (SD) age at MRI was 64.1 (8.0) years. The MRPI showed good diagnostic accuracy for the differentiation between PSP and all other pathologies (accuracy, 87%; AUROC, 0.90; 95% CI, 0.86-0.95) and between 4RT and other pathologies (accuracy, 80%; AUROC, 0.82; 95% CI, 0.76-0.87), but did not allow the discrimination of participants with CBD. Its diagnostic accuracy was lower in the subgroup of patients without the canonical PSP-Richardson syndrome (PSP-RS) or probable corticobasal syndrome (CBS) at MRI. MLRM combining cortical and subcortical measurements showed the highest accuracy for the differentiation between PSP and other pathologies (accuracy, 95%; AUROC, 0.98; 95% CI, 0.97-0.99), CBD and other pathologies (accuracy, 83%; AUROC, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.81-0.91), 4RT and other pathologies (accuracy, 89%; AUROC, 0.94; 95% CI, 0.92-0.97), and PSP and CBD (accuracy, 91%; AUROC, 0.95; 95% CI, 0.91-0.99), even in participants without PSP-RS or CBS at MRI. Conclusions and relevance: In this study, the combination of widely available cortical and subcortical measures of atrophy on MRI discriminated between PSP, CBD, and other pathologies and could be used to support the diagnosis of 4RT in clinical practice.

Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) and Zaprionus indianus (Gupta) (Diptera: Drosophilidae) are invasive pests of economic importance worldwide. This study was undertaken as a first step to investigate the interaction between visual and chemical cues on the captures of D. suzukii and Z. indianus under field conditions. Specifically, we evaluated the effect of color cardboards and their combinations on the capture of these drosophilids by attractant-baited multihole traps in blackberry and blueberry crops. Color had a significant effect on the captures of D. suzukii and Z. indianus by attractant-baited traps in both crops. Overall, attractant-baited traps with yellow and yellow + green cards captured the highest number of flies compared to attractant-baited traps using cards of other colors or without cards. Multihole traps without attractant and color cardboards caught very few flies of both species. In general, more females than male D. suzukii were captured, but no sexual differences were found in the captures of Z. indianus. The results obtained will be useful for the development of a monitoring or mass trapping system for the management of D. suzukii and Z. indianuspopulations in Mexico.

BackgroundMeasuring systemic inflammatory markers may improve clinical prognosis and help identify targetable pathways for treatment in patients with autosomal dominant forms of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD).MethodsWe measured plasma concentrations of IL-6, TNFα and YKL-40 in pathogenic variant carriers (MAPT, C9orf72, GRN) and non-carrier family members enrolled in the ARTFL-LEFFTDS Longitudinal Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration consortium. We evaluated associations between baseline plasma inflammation and rate of clinical and neuroimaging changes (linear mixed effects models with standardised (z) outcomes). We compared inflammation between asymptomatic carriers who remained clinically normal (‘asymptomatic non-converters’) and those who became symptomatic (‘asymptomatic converters’) using area under the curve analyses. Discrimination accuracy was compared with that of plasma neurofilament light chain (NfL).ResultsWe studied 394 participants (non-carriers=143,C9orf72=117,GRN=62,MAPT=72). InMAPT, higher TNFα was associated with faster functional decline (B=0.12 (0.02, 0.22), p=0.02) and temporal lobe atrophy. InC9orf72,higher TNFα was associated with faster functional decline (B=0.09 (0.03, 0.16), p=0.006) and cognitive decline (B=−0.16 (−0.22, −0.10), p2=0.16, p=0.007; NfL: OR=1.4 (1.03, 1.9), p=0.03; TNFα: OR=7.7 (1.7, 31.7), p=0.007).ConclusionsSystemic proinflammatory protein measurement, particularly TNFα, may improve clinical prognosis in autosomal dominant FTLD pathogenic variant carriers who are not yet exhibiting severe impairment. Integrating TNFα with markers of neuronal dysfunction like NfL could optimise detection of impending symptom conversion in asymptomatic pathogenic variant carriers and may help personalise therapeutic approaches.

The West Indian fruit fly, Anastrepha obliqua (Macquart), infests a wide diversity of tropical fruit. Previous studies suggest that A. obliqua adults are attracted to volatile compounds common in different hosts. However, to date, most studies have used ripe fruit for the identification of attractive compounds. In this study, we investigated the attraction of sexually mature A. obliqua females and males to two cultivars and three ripening stages of guava. We also identified the attractive compounds to A. obliqua by combined gas chromatography-electroantennographic detector (GC-EAD) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and evaluated the biological activity of the identified compounds in field-cage tests. We found that individuals of both sexes of A. obliqua showed no preference to the volatiles of either of the two cultivars of guava evaluated. In contrast, flies were more attracted to ripe and half-ripe fruit than to unripe ones. GC-EAD analyses of extracts of ripe “Creole” or “Thai” cultivars identified six compounds that elicited antennal responses by A. obliqua females and males. The compounds were identified by GC–MS as ethyl butyrate, cis-3-hexen-1-ol, ethyl hexanoate, cis-3-hexenyl acetate, ethyl benzoate, and ethyl octanoate. Half-ripe guava emit ethyl butyrate, cis-3-hexen-1-ol, ethyl hexanoate, and cis-3-hexenyl acetate, while only traces of cis-3-hexenyl-acetate were found in unripe guava. Field-cage tests with synthetic standards confirmed that the compounds identified are responsible for the attraction of A. obliqua flies to ripe guava.

Background: Measuring plasma glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) alongside cortical amyloid-β (Aβ) may shed light on astrocytic changes in aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Objective: To examine associations between plasma GFAP and cortical Aβ deposition in older adults across the typical aging-to-AD dementia spectrum. Methods: We studied two independent samples from UCSF (Cohort 1, N = 50; Cohort 2, N = 37) covering the spectra of clinical severity (CDR Sum of Boxes; CDR-SB) and Aβ-PET burden. Aβ-PET was completed with either florbetapir or Pittsburgh Compound B and standardized uptake value ratios were converted to the Centiloid (CL) scale for analyses. All participants with CDR-SB > 0 were Aβ-PET positive, while clinically normal participants (CDR-SB = 0) were a mix of Aβ-PET positive and negative. Regression analyses evaluated main effect and interaction associations between plasma GFAP, Aβ-PET, and clinical severity. Results: In both cohorts, plasma GFAP increased linearly with Aβ-PET CLs in clinically normal older adults. In Cohort 2, which included participants with more severe clinical dysfunction and Aβ-PET burden, the association between Aβ and GFAP became curvilinear (inverted U-shape; quadratic model R2 change = 0.165, p = 0.009), and Aβ-PET interacted with CDR-SB (R2 change = 0.164, p = 0.007): older adults with intermediate functional impairment (CDR-SB = 0.5–4.0) showed a weak (negative) association between Aβ-PET CLs and plasma GFAP, while older adults with dementia (CDR-SB > 4.0) showed a strong, negative association of higher Aβ-PET CLs with lower plasma GFAP. Conclusion: The relationship between astrocytic integrity and cortical Aβ may be highly dynamic, with linear, positive associations early in disease that diverge in more severe disease stages.

The sterile insect technique has been used for the eradication or control of numerous tephritid fruit flies. However, mass-rearing and sterilization can affect the microbiota and sexual performance of male tephritid fruit flies. Despite the addition of postteneral protein food which contributes to the enhancement of the sexual performance of mass-reared males, in some cases, they are less competitive than their wild counterparts. Alternatively, the addition of probiotics may improve the sexual performance of mass-reared sterile males. In this study, we evaluated the effect of a postteneral Lactobacillus casei-enriched diet on the sexual competitivity, pheromone emission, and cuticular hydrocarbons of mass-reared sterile and fertile Anastrepha ludens (Loew) (Diptera: Tephritidae) males. Flies were fed either with sugar, standard diet (sugar and protein, 3:1), sugar + probiotic, or standard diet + probiotic. The addition of the probiotic improved the sexual competitivity of fertile and sterile males that were devoid of protein but led to a negative effect on males fed with a standard diet. As compared to males that were fed with the standard diet + probiotic/only sugar, the males fed with the standard diet or those fed on sugar + probiotic displayed a higher number of mating instances. Sterile males that fed on sugar + probiotic had a higher relative amount of anastrephine, epianastrephine, n-methyl octacosane, and 2-methyl triacontane than those fed on sugar only. Overall, these compounds were common in the treatments where males had the best sexual performance. Our results suggest that the probiotics offer nutritional advantages to males whose food lacks protein.

BackgroundChronic demyelination is a major contributor to axonal vulnerability in multiple sclerosis (MS). Therefore, remyelination could provide a potent neuroprotective strategy. The ReBUILD trial was the first study showing evidence for successful remyelination following treatment with clemastine in people with MS (pwMS) with no evidence of disease activity or progression (NEDAP). Whether remyelination was associated with neuroprotection remains unexplored.MethodsPlasma neurofilament light chain (NfL) levels were measured from ReBUILD trial’s participants. Mixed linear effect models were fit for individual patients, epoch and longitudinal measurements to compare NfL concentrations between samples collected during the active and placebo treatment period.ResultsNfL concentrations were 9.6% lower in samples collected during the active treatment with clemastine (n=53, geometric mean=6.33 pg/mL) compared to samples collected during treatment with placebo (n=73, 7.00 pg/mL) (B=−0.035 [−0.068 to −0.001], p=0.041). Applying age- and body mass index-standardised NfL Z-scores and percentiles revealed similar results (0.04 vs 0.35, and 27.5 vs 33.3, p=0.023 and 0.042, respectively). Higher NfL concentrations were associated with more delayed P100 latencies (B=1.33 [0.26 to 2.41], p=0.015). In addition, improvement of P100 latencies between visits was associated with a trend for lower NfL values (B=0.003 [−0.0004 to 0.007], p=0.081). Based on a Cohen’s d of 0.248, a future 1:1 parallel-arm placebo-controlled study using a remyelinating agent with comparable effect as clemastine would need 202 subjects per group to achieve 80% power.ConclusionsIn pwMS, treatment with the remyelinating agent clemastine was associated with a reduction of blood NfL, suggesting that neuroprotection is achievable and measurable with therapeutic remyelination.Trial registration numberNCT02040298.