Genetic Loci Associated with Alzheimer’s Disease and Cerebrospinal Fluid Biomarkers in a Finnish Case-Control Cohort

Objectives

To understand the relation between risk genes for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and their influence on biomarkers for AD, we examined the association of AD in the Finnish cohort with single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from top AlzGene loci, genome-wide association studies (GWAS), and candidate gene studies; and tested the correlation between these SNPs and AD markers Aβ_1–42, total tau (t-tau), and phosphorylated tau (p-tau) in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).

Methods

We tested 25 SNPs for genetic association with clinical AD in our cohort comprised of 890 AD patients and 701-age matched healthy controls using logistic regression. For the correlational study with biomarkers, we tested 36 SNPs in a subset of 222 AD patients with available CSF using mixed models. Statistical analyses were adjusted for age, gender and APOE status. False discovery rate for multiple testing was applied. All participants were from academic hospital and research institutions in Finland.

Results

APOE-ε4, CLU rs11136000, and MS4A4A rs2304933 correlated with significantly decreased Aβ_1–42 (corrected p<0.05). At an uncorrected p<0.05, PPP3R1 rs1868402 and MAPT rs2435211 were related with increased t-tau; while SORL1 rs73595277 and MAPT rs16940758, with increased p-tau. Only TOMM40 rs2075650 showed association with clinical AD after adjusting for APOE-ε4 (p = 0.007), but not after multiple test correction (p>0.05).

Conclusions

We provide evidence that APOE-ε4, CLU and MS4A4A, which have been identified in GWAS to be associated with AD, also significantly reduced CSF Aβ_1–42 in AD. None of the other AlzGene and GWAS loci showed significant effects on CSF tau. The effects of other SNPs on CSF biomarkers and clinical AD diagnosis did not reach statistical significance. Our findings suggest that APOE-ε4, CLU and MS4A4A influence both AD risk and CSF Aβ_1–42.     

Membrane filtering properties of the bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) photoreceptors across three spectral classes

Filtering properties of the membrane form an integral part of the mechanisms producing the light-induced electrical signal in insect photoreceptors. Insect photoreceptors vary in response speed between different species, but recently it has also been shown that different spectral photoreceptor classes within a species possess diverse response characteristics. However, it has not been quantified what roles phototransduction and membrane properties play in such diversity. Here, we use electrophysiological methods in combination with system analysis to study whether the membrane properties could create the variation of the response speed found in the bumblebee (Bombus terrestris) photoreceptors. We recorded intracellular responses from each photoreceptor class to white noise-modulated current stimuli and defined their input resistance and linear filtering properties. We found that green sensitive cells exhibit smaller input resistance and membrane impedance than other cell classes. Since green sensitive cells are the fastest photoreceptor class in the bumblebee retina, our results suggest that the membrane filtering properties are correlated with the speed of light responses across the spectral classes. In general, our results provide a compelling example of filtering at the sensory cell level where the biophysical properties of the membrane are matched to the performance requirements set by visual ecology.     

Maternal coding variants in complement receptor 1 and spontaneous idiopathic preterm birth

Preterm birth (PTB) is a major global public health concern. However, little is known about the pathophysiology of spontaneous idiopathic PTB. We tested the hypothesis that rare variants in families would target specific genes and pathways that contribute to PTB risk in the general population. Whole-exome sequencing was performed on 10 PTB mothers from densely affected families including two mother–daughter pairs. We identified novel variants shared between the two mother–daughter pairs when compared to a 1000 Genomes Project background exome file and investigated these genes for pathway aggregation using the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG). Genes in enriched pathways were then surveyed in the other six PTB exomes and tested for association in a larger number of nuclear families. The KEGG complement and coagulation cascade was one of the most enriched pathways in our two mother–daughter pairs. When the six genes found in this pathway (CFH, CR1, F13B, F5, CR2, and C4BPA) were examined for novel missense variants, half of all the exomes harbored at least one. Association analysis of variants in these six gene regions in nuclear families from Finland (237 cases and 328 controls) found statistically significant associations after multiple test corrections in three CR1 SNPs; the strongest in an exonic missense SNP, rs6691117, p value = 6.91e?5, OR = 1.71. Our results demonstrate the importance of the complement and coagulation cascades in the pathophysiology of PTB, and suggest potential screening and intervention approaches to prevent prematurity that target this pathway.     

Multi‐generational long‐distance migration of insects: studying the painted lady butterfly in the Western Palaearctic

Long‐range, seasonal migration is a widespread phenomenon among insects, allowing them to track and exploit abundant but ephemeral resources over vast geographical areas. However, the basic patterns of how species shift across multiple locations and seasons are unknown in most cases, even though migrant species comprise an important component of the temperate‐zone biota. The painted lady butterfly Vanessa cardui is such an example; a cosmopolitan continuously‐brooded species which migrates each year between Africa and Europe, sometimes in enormous numbers. The migration of 2009 was one of the most impressive recorded, and thousands of observations were collected through citizen science programmes and systematic entomological surveys, such as high altitude insect‐monitoring radar and ground‐based butterfly monitoring schemes. Here we use V. cardui as a model species to better understand insect migration in the Western Palaearctic, and we capitalise on the complementary data sources available for this iconic butterfly. The migratory cycle in this species involves six generations, encompassing a latitudinal shift of thousands of kilometres (up to 60 degrees of latitude). The cycle comprises an annual poleward advance of the populations in spring followed by an equatorward return movement in autumn, with returning individuals potentially flying thousands of kilometres. We show that many long‐distance migrants take advantage of favourable winds, moving downwind at high elevation (from some tens of metres from the ground to altitudes over 1000 m), pointing at strong similarities in the flight strategies used by V. cardui and other migrant Lepidoptera. Our results reveal the highly successful strategy that has evolved in these insects, and provide a useful framework for a better understanding of long‐distance seasonal migration in the temperate regions worldwide.     

Food‐web structure and mercury dynamics in a large subarctic lake following multiple species introductions

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