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La Commissione Europea (CE) ha inserito ad oggi 36 taxa esotici vegetali nella lista delle specie esotiche invasive di rilevanza unionale ai sensi del Regolamento (UE) n. 1143/2014 del Parlamento Europeo e del Consiglio, recante disposizioni volte a prevenire e gestire l’introduzione e la diffusione delle specie esotiche invasive. La lista delle specie di rilevanza unionale viene periodicamente aggiornata e include quelle specie che rappresentano una grave minaccia per la biodiversità, ma anche per la salute dei cittadini e le attività economiche nei territori dell’Unione Europea e che necessitano di una gestione concertata a livello comunitario. La CE vigila sullo stato di ogni taxon grazie anche a periodiche rendicontazioni da parte dei paesi dell'Unione. In vista di tali report, tra il 2020 e il 2021 è stata definita e integrata la distribuzione di queste specie in Italia.

Electrical stimulations of the insula performed during stereo-electro-encephalography (SEEG) reproduce the ictal symptoms observed during the development of insular seizures and are also a unique opportunity to provide a functional mapping of the insular cortex. We provide here a functional mapping of the insular cortex obtained by electrical stimulation, based on our previous work and a review of literature. The most frequent responses to insula stimulation were somatosensory sensations followed by visceral responses. Then, in decreasing order of frequency, auditory sensations, vestibular illusions, speech impairment, gustato-olfactory sensations and motor reactions were evoked. A bipolar organization could be evidenced with a posterior part assigned to somatosensory functions and notably to pain perception; and an anterior part assigned to visceral functions. Although some degree of spatial segregation could be evidenced, there was a clear spatial overlap between the representations of the different types of responses. These data provide a better understanding of physiological insular functions, insula seizures semiology and a prediction of post-surgical deficits. Insula is the only cortical region where stimulations demonstrate such a multi-modal representation, perhaps supporting its integrative functions of polymodal inputs.

Objective Electrical stimulations performed in awake patients identified dura mater, venous sinuses, and arteries as pain-sensitive intracranial structures. However, cephalic pain has been only occasionally reported in patients with epilepsy undergoing stereo-electroencephalography (SEEG) stimulations. Methods The aim of our study was to investigate whether headache can be triggered by SEEG stimulations and might be related to specific cortical areas. Data were gathered from 16 050 stimulations collected in 266 patients who underwent a SEEG as part of a presurgical assessment of their drug-resistant epilepsy. Results Two-hundred and eight stimulations (1.3%) evoked headaches. Pain was more frequently described as bilateral (42.31%) than ipsilateral (16.83%) or contralateral (14.42%) to the stimulated hemisphere. Headache was more frequently elicited during stimulation of the insulo-limbic regions such as the anterior and medial cingulate gyrus, the mesial part of temporal lobe, and the insula. Conclusion This study shows that cortical stimulation can evoke headache, mostly during stimulation of the temporo-frontal limbic regions. It suggests that brief epileptic headache can be an epileptic symptom caused by a cortical discharge involving somatic or visceral network and does not reflect only trigemino-vascular activation. Although not specific, the occurrence of a brief epileptic headache may point to a seizure origin in the temporo-frontal limbic regions.

ObjectiveWe aimed to test whether patients who died of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP) had an abnormal cardiac autonomic response to sympathetic stimulation by hyperventilation.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective, observational, case-control study of a group of patients who died of SUDEP and controls who were matched to the patients for epilepsy type, drug resistance, sex, age at EEG recording, age at onset of epilepsy, and duration of epilepsy. We analyzed the heart rate (HR) and HR variability (HRV) at rest and during and after hyperventilation performed during the patient's last EEG recording before SUDEP. In each group, changes over time in HRV indexes were analyzed with linear mixed models.ResultsTwenty patients were included in each group. In the control group, the HR increased and the root mean square of successive RR-interval differences (RMSSD) decreased during the hyperventilation and then returned to the baseline values. In the SUDEP group, however, the HR and RMSSD did not change significantly during or after hyperventilation. A difference in HR between the end of the hyperventilation and 4 minutes after its end discriminated well between patients with SUDEP and control patients (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve 0.870, sensitivity 85%, specificity 75%).ConclusionMost of patients with subsequent SUDEP have an abnormal cardiac autonomic response to sympathetic stimulation through hyperventilation. An index reflecting the change in HR on hyperventilation might be predictive of the risk of SUDEP and could be used to select patients at risk of SUDEP for inclusion in trials assessing protective measures.

The hybrid propulsion performed with paraffin waxes exhibits most attractive capabilities compared to solid or liquid engines, e.g., throttleability and re-ignition, alongside higher regression rates compared to the conventional hydroxyl terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) hybrid fuel. This is because the paraffin wax forms a thin and hydro-dynamically unstable liquid layer, and then enhances the regression rate with the entrainment of droplets from the liquid-gas interface. Nevertheless, some critical open points on the manufacturing of the paraffin fuel grains still persist, because the paraffin wax exhibits high shrinkage during the solidification phase, leading to the formation of cavities, cracks and internal rips, which may be detrimental to the mechanical properties and the structural integrity of the fuel grain. In this context, this paper deals with a wide calorimetric, thermo-mechanical and physical characterization of the paraffin wax selected to manufacture the hybrid rocket engines (HRE) fuel grain, in order to gain a thorough knowledge of the material necessary to avoid the formation of critical defects. Several manufacturing methods were investigated, and it was found that only laboratory scale processes, based on the use of a heated circular mould-piston apparatus, are able to avoid the formation of critical defects, with the application of both high temperature and pressure. Keywords: Paraffin wax, Hybrid rockets, Manufacturing, SASOL® 0907, Regression rate

One of the main problem for the aircrafts is the ice formation on a critical components that decrease reliability and safety of the flights. At present, methods which prevent or oppose the ice nucleation and growth are not effective and several studies are on going. In this work we focus the activity on passive methods to prevent the ice (ice-phobic surfaces). The factors characterizing the adhesion of water to the surfaces are analyzed, in particular we focused our studies on two performance indexes, wettability and surface free energy, which are strongly correlated with the ice-phobic properties. Surface Free Energy (SFE) and wettability are two properties which depend on the chemical state and the roughness of the surface material. Changing the chemical state or roughness, it is possible to change the surface behavior of the materials. It is evident that, to design ice-phobic surfaces, it is important to evaluate the behavior of supercooled water droplet which starts to be in contact with the surface of the component at real condition of pressure and temperature of flight. For this reason it is important to realize a characterization technique which allows to analyze the sample surfaces varying both pressure and temperature. In this work we have design, developed and validated a test room in order to determine wettability and surface free energy in flight condition (pressure until to 0.1 bar and temperature until to −50 °C). In this way it was possible to reproduce, in static condition, the behavior of a supercooled liquid drop on the surface component. This new method was validate on a standard material such as Polypropylene. Tests demonstrated that both temperature and pressure influence the shape of the drops, in particular reducing the pressure and temperature, the liquid spread on the surfaces much more than standard conditions (at ambient pressure and temperature). It was corroborated that this new test room is useful for the characterization of ice-phobic surfaces.

EnglishConventionally, Latin accent is viewed within the context of versification where syllabic quantity plays a crucial role. It is the claim of this paper that the Penultimate Stress Rule, based on syllabic quantity, inappropriately neglects a Rhythmic determination of stress. Stress is assigned, rather, by default in the lexicon by the classic trimoraic trochee. When right-branching, this basic rhythmic constituent sets the environment for leftward stress retraction in Latin. This shift in stress in turn brings trochees in line for the essential environment for syncope in Latin and Romance. francaisTraditionnellement, l’accent du latin est etudie dans le contexte de la versification ou la quantite syllabique joue un role essentiel. La problematique de la presente etude met en question le role de la quantite syllabique dans la determination de la voyelle accentuee. En revanche, elle propose l’idee que l’accent est attribue par defaut dans le lexique, par le trochee trimoraique classique. S’il se rencontre a droite, le trochee declenche une accentuation deplacee a gauche, lequel deplacement d’accent conduit les trochees a pouvoir pretendre au role d’environnement essentiel pour la syncope en latin et en roman.

The main problem for the aircrafts is the ice formation on critical components (leading edges, slats, vertical tails, etc … ) that decreases reliability and safety of the flights. The objectives of this work are mainly two. The former is to design and develop a new multifunctional coating with aesthetical (livery effect) and icephobic properties other than high adhesion and abrasion resistance. The latter is to design and realise a new tool to use with classical contact angle measurement techniques. This tool allows to replicate the same thermodynamic conditions (in terms of pressure and temperature) present at flight altitude. In fact it was demonstrated that the water contact angle changes, varying at the same time pressure and temperature. The experimental results corroborated the influence of temperature and pressure on the shape of the supercooled water droplet applied on the new icephobic coating. The high durability of the new anti-ice livery coating was determined thorough several mechanical tests...

Ice adhesion over critical aircraft surfaces is a serious potential hazard that runs the risk of causing accidents. To face this issue, the design and diagnostics of new multifunctional coatings with icephobic and aesthetical properties are demanded. In particular, diagnostic tools, capable of characterizing coating surface finishing and its defects, are needed. In this paper, terahertz (THz) imaging is considered as a high-resolution diagnostic tool useful for contactless surveys providing information on surface defects and material inner structure. Therefore, two composite specimens, one covered by a classical commercial livery coating and the other one by a new multifunctional coating with icephobic properties, are investigated by THz surveys carried out in normal environmental conditions of pressure and temperature. The results, obtained by processing the raw data properly, corroborate that THz imaging allows us to detect variations of the coating thickness, to localize hidden anomalies as well as to characterize surface defects at millimetric scale.

Ice adhesion on critical aircraft surfaces is a serious potential hazard that runs the risk of causing accidents. Frozen contaminants cause rough and uneven surfaces which will disturb smooth air flow and greatly degrade the ability of the wing to generate lift and increasing drag. Amongst icing mitigation systems, passive anti-icing coatings represent a challenge to reduce the ice nucleation and growth, reducing the power consumption of the active de-icing systems and consequently the fuel consumption. In this work the advanced properties and effectiveness of the new multifunctional coating with ice-phobic and aesthetical properties are described. In particular advanced morphological characterizations based on Atomic Force Microscopy and Laser Scanning Microscopy measurements as well as subsequent Power Spectral Density analysis were performed to evaluate the surface roughness. Contact angle measurements were executed in order to determine the wettability and surface free energy as well as work of adhesion in flight conditions. In addition, dynamic analysis of the impact of single water droplets on the new multifunctional coating and the classical livery coating were performed in order to demonstrate the different physical behavior during the impingement. It was also demonstrated that the new multifunctional coating overcome the environmental test similarly to the commercial livery coating in accordance with the aeronautical specification. Finally, two NACA symmetric airfoils were design and developed using 3D printing technology. The surfaces were coated with a commercial coating in one case and with the new multifunctional coating in the other case. Both airfoils were tested in the Icing Wind Tunnel at different conditions in order to evaluate the effectiveness, in terms of reduction of accreted ice, of the new multifunctional coating respect to the commercial one. Tests demonstrated the reduction of accreted ice of 50% using the new multifunctional coating.

Resume Les vascularites du systeme nerveux central sont liees a l’infiltration de la paroi des vaisseaux encephaliques par des cellules inflammatoires circulantes. Chez l’enfant, elles sont caracterisees par leur origine (infectieuse versus (vs) non infectieuse), leur evolutivite (transitoires vs chroniques) et par la taille du vaisseau prioritairement affecte. On distingue aussi les affections confinees au systeme nerveux central de celles dont l’atteinte cerebro-vasculaire est la manifestation neurologique d’une maladie systemique. Les vascularites des grosses arteres cerebrales se presentent par un deficit neurologique focal soudain secondaire a un accident vasculaire, ischemique plus frequemment qu’hemorragique. Elles sont souvent post-infectieuses et monophasiques. Le diagnostic repose sur les antecedents de l’enfant et l’angiographie cerebrale. Les vascularites des petits vaisseaux, plus rares, se manifestent par des cephalees, une epilepsie, des deficits multifocaux, une deterioration cognitive et des troubles du comportement. Ces symptomes peuvent survenir insidieusement sur quelques semaines a quelques mois. Le tableau clinico-biologique systemique associe aux formes secondaires et la biopsie cerebro-meningee dans les formes primitives permettent de porter le diagnostic etiologique. Le traitement des vascularites secondaires est celui de leur cause. La vascularite primitive du systeme nerveux central est une maladie diffuse et evolutive justifiant un traitement immunosuppresseur prolonge. A l’inverse, les arteriopathies cerebrales post-infectieuses, en particulier post-varicelle, ont une evolution favorable sous monotherapie par aspirine. La prise en charge des symptomes associes, des sequelles et des complications du traitement doit reposer sur une equipe pluridisciplinaire.

Time of flight Terahertz imaging deserves huge attention in a wide range of applications, among which artwork diagnostic, food quality control, composite material assessment and so on. In all these contexts, the common requirement is to obtain high quality images from which one can infer material structure and localize hidden anomalies. Here, we apply a filtering procedure, which exploits the concept of the actual frequency bandwidth of the data, and present experimental results assessing the achievable improvements with respect to raw data imaging. These results regard specimens of interest in different applications, which have been surveyed by means of the Fiber-Coupled Terahertz Time Domain (FiCO) system.

Resume Apres un traumatisme crânien minime et dans un contexte de stress professionnel, le patient presenta une amnesie retrograde pure, isolee et globale concernant sa biographie avec un element identitaire transitoire et ses souvenirs semantiques. Le patient n’avait plus acces a ses souvenirs, qui ne semblaient cependant pas perdus : il pouvait, dans certains tests concernant des evenements historiques, repondre mieux que le hasard et il fut capable de repondre automatiquement aux questions d’un jeu televise ou qu’il presentât des phenomenes de deplacements temporels (ecmnesie), et il recupera l’ensemble de ses souvenirs en neuf mois. Le mode de la recuperation fut graduel, progressif, irregulier, spontane, par « flash », aidee par les reves ou facilitee par des associations ou des indices contextuels. La persistance du caractere familier des souvenirs recuperes et de leur conscience autonoetique, leur precision phenomenologique sont rapportees et font discuter l’organisation de la memoire a long terme.

Olanzapine is commonly prescribed to patients with schizophrenia. One retrospective study demonstrates the efficacy of physostigmine in reversing mental status changes induced by olanzapine. We report two patients with delirium due to confirmed olanzapine overdose treated with physostigmine. One patient's mental status transiently returned to normal. The other patient completely recovered. CASE 1: A 25-year-old man ingested 300 mg of olanzapine. On presentation, he was agitated, delirious, tachycardic, had dry skin and mucous membranes, and dilated pupils (6 mm) minimally reactive to light. Physostigmine, 0.5 mg, was given intravenously (IV) without effect. Additional physostigmine doses of 1.5 mg IV administered 5 minutes later and then 1 mg IV resulted in the patient having a clear sensorium and normal mentation. The patient's mental status continued to remain normal for the duration of his hospital stay. Olanzapine was identified in the urine by high performance liquid chromatography. CASE 2: A 20-year-old female ingested 600 mg of olanzapine. On presentation, she was tachycardic, obtunded, and minimally responsive to painful stimuli, with decreased bowel sounds, dry skin and dry mucous membranes. Physostigmine, 2 mg, was given IV. Shortly thereafter she regained full consciousness and began speaking coherently. She remained in this condition for approximately 30 minutes, and then became obtunded. Her serum olanzapine concentration was 1230 ng/mL. No further doses of physostigmine were administered. On day 3 of admission her mental status returned to normal.We report two cases of olanzapine-induced mental status changes treated with physostigmine. The utility of physostigmine as a safe or necessary antidote in the setting of olanzapine overdose remains to be determined.

The benefit of aspirin use in the emergent care of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) has been well-established. Recent studies have further demonstrated the importance of antiplatelet therapy in the acute setting, primarily with the use of intravenous glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor inhibitors. Aspirin and the thienopyridines (ticlopidine and clopidogrel) are oral antiplatelet agents that interfere with platelet activation in complementary, but separate pathways. Combination therapy of aspirin with other antiplatelet agents has demonstrated a benefit for the management of ACS. This article reviews the pathophysiology of platelet activation in ACS, landmark trials regarding antiplatelet agents, and the current recommendations for the use of both intravenous and oral antiplatelet agents in the management of patients with ACS.

Subcellular interactions of neurodegenerative disease proteins may provide a basic molecular mechanism underlying neuronal disorders. Each protein may also exhibit activities related to normal cell structure and function. It may be necessary to develop methodologies to distinguish between normal and abnormal intracellular interactions of such proteins in human cells. The latter would result in distinct perturbations in cell function depending both on the specific protein or nucleic acid interactions as well as its subcellular localization. Individual neurodegenerative disorders may be characterized by distinct alterations in subcellular neuronal protein structure and function. We developed as a basic experimental paradigm a novel human cell system to identify and examine such abnormal neuronal protein structures. The basic rationale is that neurodegenerative protein interactions would result in the formation of intracellular high molecular weight (HMW) complexes in cells from afflicted individuals. Following cell fractionation these unique structures could be detected by gradient sedimentation coupled with immunoblot analysis. They would not be observed in age matched control normal human cells. We now report that this procedure has been successfully used to determine a unique subcellular alteration of β-amyloid precursor protein (β-APP) structure in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) cells. The latter was not observed in normal cells. Similar structural alterations were observed for glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), a protein known to bind to β-APP in vitro. The utility of this model system to interrelate aberrant protein interactions of neurodegenerative disease proteins and their subcellular localization is considered.

Platelets contribute to antimicrobial host defense against infective endocarditis (IE) by releasing platelet microbicidal proteins (PMPs). We investigated the influence of thrombin-stimulated human platelets on the evolution of simulated IE in the presence and absence of vancomycin or nafcillin.Staphylococcus aureusstrains differing in intrinsic susceptibility to PMPs or antibiotics were studied: ISP479C (thrombin-induced PMP-1 [tPMP-1] susceptible; nafcillin and vancomycin susceptible), ISP479R (tPMP-1 resistant; nafcillin and vancomycin susceptible), and GISA-NJ (tPMP-1 intermediate-susceptible; vancomycin intermediate-susceptible). Platelets were introduced and thrombin activated within the in vitro IE model 30 min prior to inoculation withS. aureus. At 0 to 24 h postinoculation, bacterial densities in chamber fluid and simulated endocardial vegetations (SEVs) were quantified and compared among groups. Activated platelets alone, or in combination with antibiotics, inhibited the proliferation of ISP479C in chamber fluid or SEVs over the initial 4-h period (P< 0.05 versus controls). Moreover, nafcillin-containing regimens exerted inhibitory effects beyond 4 h against ISP479C in both model phases. By comparison, activated platelets inhibited GISA-NJ proliferation in SEVs but not in chamber fluid. The combination of platelets plus nafcillin or vancomycin significantly inhibited proliferation of the GISA-NJ strain in SEVs compared to the effect of platelets or antibiotics alone (P< 0.05). In contrast, platelets did not significantly alter the antistaphylococcal efficacies of nafcillin or vancomycin against ISP479R. These data support our hypothesis that a beneficial antimicrobial effect may result from the interaction among platelets, PMPs, and anti-infective agents against antibiotic-susceptible or -resistant staphylococci that exhibit a tPMP-1-susceptible or -intermediate-susceptible phenotype.

The regulation of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) has been implicated both in age-related neurodegenerative disease and in apoptosis. Previous in vitro studies suggest an interaction between GAPDH and the beta-amyloid precursor protein (beta-APP), a protein directly involved in Alzheimer's disease (AD). New studies indicate that GAPDH is a multidimensional protein with diverse membrane, cytoplasmic, and nuclear functions; each is distinct from its role in glycolysis. The nuclear functions of GAPDH include a role in apoptosis that requires its translocation to the nucleus. Accordingly, beta-APP-GAPDH interactions, altering GAPDH structure in vivo, may affect energy generation, inducing hypometabolism, a characteristic AD phenotype. Because GAPDH is a multifunctional protein, pleiotropic effects may also occur in a variety of fundamental cellular pathways in AD cells. This may include unique GAPDH-RNA interactions. We report here the identification of a high-molecular-weight (HMW) GAPDH species present exclusively in the postnuclear fraction of AD cells. The latter is characterized by reduced GAPDH activity. The HMW GAPDH species was not detected in postnuclear age-matched control (AMC) fractions nor in AD whole-cell preparations. Each is characterized by normal GAPDH activity. By definition, the preparation of whole-cell extracts entails the destruction of subcellular structure. The latter findings indicate that the dissociation of the GAPDH protein from the HMW species restores its enzymatic activity. Thus, these results reveal a new, unique intracellular phenotype in AD cells. The functional consequences of subcellular alteration in GAPDH structure in AD cells are considered.

Electroencephalography allows the functional analysis of electrical brain cortical activity and is the gold standard for analyzing electrophysiological processes involved in epilepsy but also in several other dysfunctions of the central nervous system. Morphological imaging yields complementary data, yet it cannot replace the essential functional analysis tool that is EEG. Furthermore, EEG has the great advantage of being non-invasive, easy to perform and allows control tests when follow-up is necessary, even at the patient's bedside. Faced with the advances in knowledge, techniques and indications, the Société de Neurophysiologie Clinique de Langue Française (SNCLF) and the Ligue Française Contre l'Épilepsie (LFCE) found it necessary to provide an update on EEG recommendations. This article will review the methodology applied to this work, refine the various topics detailed in the following chapters. It will go over the summary of recommendations for each of these chapters and underline proposals for writing an EEG report. Some questions could not be answered by the review of the literature; in those cases, an expert advice was given by the working and reading groups in addition to the guidelines.

It is claimed in this paper that the well known incongruence between the phonology and the syntax is resolved by removing syntactic boundaries by means of the rhythmic patterning. Resulting from this is a direct interface between the phonological phrasing and the syntax. The intermediary of the prosodic component is thereby eliminated. Accordingly, it is emphasized that language is rhythmic and that the rhythm of any given language directly interprets the syntactic constituency. The instrument by which this is achieved is the rhythmic foot, which contravenes the syntactic constituency directly and restructures it to align it with the rhythmic patterning. In contrast to Nespor (1990), therefore, this approach takes into account no separation between the prosody and rhythm. As a result, it limits the need for pre-compiled rules as proposed by Hayes (1990). Especially targeted in relation to this discussion is the behavior of French schwa.

A sequence of V -band light curves of the active close binary SZ Piscium (F8 V-IV+ K1 IV), extending from 1957 to 1998, is presented and analysed to derive the spot distribution and evolution on the component stars. In our modelling approach the Roche geometry and Kurucz's atmospheric models were adopted. The resulting maps of the spot surface distribution were regularized by means of the Maximum Entropy and Tikhonov criteria to take full advantage of the increased geometrical resolution during eclipses. By comparing the maps obtained with these two criteria, it was possible to discriminate between surface features actually required by the data and artifacts introduced by the regularization process. Satisfactory ts were obtained assuming spots on both components and the unspotted V -band luminosity ratio: L1=L2 =0 :35 0:035. The derived yearly spot distributions indicate that the spot patterns consist of two components, one uniformly and the other non-uniformly distributed in longitude, the latter suggesting the presence of preferential longitudes. Starspots at latitudes higher than75 were not required to reproduce the photometric modulation. For the spot pattern on the less luminous F8 V primary component there are only some hints of the possible presence of spots around the substellar point facing the K1 IV secondary component. On the more luminous and larger secondary component there is clear evidence for the presence of three active longitudes. A stable active longitude around the substellar point facing the primary star appears to be quite compact with an extension of40 on several maps. The other two active longitudes display irregular changes of the spot area and location. The variation of the total spotted area on the secondary component shows sizeable fluctuations and a possible short-term cycle of about 13 yr, which is more clearly apparent in the variation of the spotted area unevenly distributed in longitude. A longer-term cycle of about 30 yr with a markedly non-sinusoidal variation might also be present. The spatial association between photospheric spots and chromospheric plages (as detected in the UV lines) appears signicant for the active region around the substellar point in the K1 IV component. A possible connection between magnetic activity and orbital period variation is suggested by comparing the variation of the total spotted area with the O C diagram of the primary eclipse times. The time span covered by the available data is, however, not long enough for us to draw any denite conclusions.

New functions have been identified for glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) including its role in neurodegenerative disease and in apoptosis. GAPDH binds specifically to proteins implicated in the pathogenesis of a variety of neurodegenerative disorders including the beta-amyloid precursor protein and the huntingtin protein. However, the pathophysiological significance of such interactions is unknown. In accordance with published data, our initial results indicated there was no measurable difference in GAPDH glycolytic activity in crude whole-cell sonicates of Alzheimer's and Huntington's disease fibroblasts. However, subcellular-specific GAPDH-protein interactions resulting in diminution of GAPDH glycolytic activity may be disrupted or masked in whole-cell preparations. For that reason, we examined GAPDH glycolytic activity as well as GAPDH-protein distribution as a function of its subcellular localization in 12 separate cell strains. We now report evidence of an impairment of GAPDH glycolytic function in Alzheimer's and Huntington's disease subcellular fractions despite unchanged gene expression. In the postnuclear fraction, GAPDH was 27% less glycolytically active in Alzheimer's cells as compared with age-matched controls. In the nuclear fraction, deficits of 27% and 33% in GAPDH function were observed in Alzheimer's and Huntington's disease, respectively. This evidence supports a functional role for GAPDH in neurodegenerative diseases. The possibility is considered that GAPDH:neuronal protein interaction may affect its functional diversity including energy production and as well as its role in apoptosis.