Oregon State research reveals how key diabetes drug is made in nature

Peer-Reviewed Publication

OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY

CORVALLIS, Ore. – Research by Oregon State University has explained how an important type 2 diabetes drug is made in nature, opening the door to improvements in manufacturing through biotechnology.

The findings are particularly important because global demand for the drug, acarbose, is rising along with incidence of type 2 diabetes – according to the International Diabetes Federation, the disease affects nearly 500 million adults worldwide.

Developed by Bayer, the drug has been on the market under the brand name Precose since 1996. Acarbose comes from soil bacteria but until now the biosynthetic pathway underlying its production – the sequence of steps taken by enzymes to catalyze the chemical reactions responsible for making it – was not known.

Findings of the study, led by Taifo Mahmud of the OSU College of Pharmacy, were published in Nature Communications.

Frequently associated with obesity and low physical activity, type 2 diabetes is a serious metabolic disease that affects roughly one in 10 Americans. Formerly known as adult-onset diabetes, it is a chronic condition affecting the way the body metabolizes glucose, a sugar that’s a key source of energy.

For some patients, that means their body does not properly respond to insulin – it resists the effects of insulin, the hormone produced by the pancreas that opens the door for sugar to enter cells. In the later disease stages, when the pancreas is exhausted, patients don’t produce enough insulin to maintain normal glucose levels.

In either case, sugar builds up in the bloodstream and, if left untreated, impairs many major organs, sometimes to disabling or life-threatening degrees.

Acarbose normalizes blood glucose levels by inhibiting alpha-glucosidase enzymes – it helps keep blood sugar from rising too quickly after someone eats by blocking the breakdown of starchy foods like bread, potatoes and pasta and slowing down the intestinal absorption of some sugars.

Acarbose derives from Actinoplanes bacteria and several other strains of soil bacteria. It was the first alpha-glucosidase inhibitor approved for use in the United States and Europe

“Despite its significant therapeutic importance, how acarbose is made in nature had not been completely understood,” Mahmud said. “Our research not only sheds light on how this high-value pharmaceutical is made in nature but also provides a platform for further improvements of industrial acarbose production – for example, by modifying the DNA of the producing bacteria or through other biotechnological approaches. That means knowing its complete biosynthetic pathway is important from both scientific and industrial points of view.”

What remains unknown, Mahmud added, is why soil bacteria produce acarbose – what purpose does the compound serve for them? Some hypothesize that it plays a role in shuttling sugars between bacteria’s intra- and extracellular spaces or that it protects against the carbohydrate-degrading enzymes of other organisms.

“What exactly the function is for the producing organisms in their natural environment remains an exciting topic for future studies,” he said.

Takeshi Tsunoda, Arash Samadi and Sachin Burade of the OSU College of Pharmacy also participated in this research, which was funded in part by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences and by the College of Pharmacy.

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JOURNAL

Nature Communications

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Observational study

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Cells

ARTICLE TITLE

Complete biosynthetic pathway to the antidiabetic drug acarbose

UTSW scientists identify protein key to inhibiting flu virus

Down-regulating TAO2 prevents influenza from replicating in cells and could provide new target for antiviral therapies

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER

 

IMAGE: NUCLEAR SPECKLES (GREEN) SHOWN INSIDE A HOST CELL NUCLEUS. PROTEIN COMPLEXES (RED/PINK) REGULATE ITS ASSEMBLY AND FUNCTION. view more 

CREDIT: UT SOUTHWESTERN MEDICAL CENTER

A collaborative study from UT Southwestern scientists has identified a new function for a protein called TAO2 that appears to be key to inhibiting replication of the influenza virus, which sickens millions of individuals worldwide each year and kills hundreds of thousands. The findings were published in PNAS.

“These results uncover new strategies for interfering with influenza virus replication, providing a potential avenue for the development of new antivirals against influenza,” said Beatriz Fontoura, Ph.D., Professor of Cell Biology at UT Southwestern, whose lab studies the interplay between RNA viruses, such as influenza A virus, with their hosts. The study was led by Dr. Fontoura, together with first author and postdoctoral fellow Shengyan Gao, Ph.D., and Melanie H. Cobb, Ph.D., Professor of Pharmacology.

To replicate, influenza virus takes over parts of the host cell nucleus known as nuclear speckles, which then provide the virus an environment to express its genes. Dr. Fontoura and her colleagues, including experts in cell biology, molecular biology, and pharmacology, identified a novel role in regulating nuclear speckle assembly and function for the TAO2 kinase – a protein involved in transferring phosphate groups to other proteins.

“We found that TAO2 is needed to maintain the physical integrity and function of nuclear speckles. Among the functions of nuclear speckles is regulation of key steps in gene expression, which are usurped by influenza virus at these compartments to support viral replication. Consequently, by down-regulating TAO2 levels – or its kinase activity – we were able to inhibit influenza virus replication without causing major toxic effects to the host cell,” said Dr. Fontoura.

Other UTSW researchers who contributed to this study include Matthew Esparza, Ishmael Dehghan, Ke Zhang, Kimberly Batten, Tolga Cagatay, Jerry W. Shay, Elizabeth J. Goldsmith, and Zhijian “James” Chen.

Dr. Goldsmith holds the Patti Bell Brown Professorship in Biochemistry. Dr. Shay is a Distinguished Teaching Professor and holds the Southland Financial Corporation Distinguished Chair in Geriatrics. Dr. Chen is Professor of Molecular Biology and Director of the Center for Inflammation Research at UTSW, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator, and winner of the 2019 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences as well as holder of the George L. MacGregor Distinguished Chair in Biomedical Science. Dr. Cobb holds the Jane and Bill Browning, Jr. Chair in Medical Science. Drs. Chen and Cobb are members of the National Academy of Sciences.

This work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (R01 AI154635, NIH R01 AI125524), The Welch Foundation (I1243), the Center for Research of Influenza Pathogenesis and Transmission, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Center of Excellence for Influenza Q:40 Research and Response (Contract No. 75N93021C00014), and NIAID (Grant U19AI135972), National Cancer Institute (U54 CA260560 Project 2), and a Mary Kay Foundation International Postdoctoral Scholar Fellowship.

About UT Southwestern Medical Center

UT Southwestern, one of the nation’s premier academic medical centers, integrates pioneering biomedical research with exceptional clinical care and education. The institution’s faculty has received six Nobel Prizes, and includes 26 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 17 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 14 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators. The full-time faculty of more than 2,900 is responsible for groundbreaking medical advances and is committed to translating science-driven research quickly to new clinical treatments. UT Southwestern physicians provide care in more than 80 specialties to more than 100,000 hospitalized patients, more than 360,000 emergency room cases, and oversee nearly 4 million outpatient visits a year.

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JOURNAL

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

SOON TO BE A QANON CONSPIRACY

Duke-NUS, Johnson & Johnson join hands to advance dengue innovation through a new discovery center

Business Announcement

DUKE-NUS MEDICAL SCHOOL

 

IMAGE: SINGAPORE HAS EXPERIENCED SIGNIFICANT SURGES IN THE FREQUENCY OF DENGUE OVER THE PAST TWO DECADES. THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE J&J SATELLITE CENTER AT DUKE-NUS WILL FACILITATE ANTIVIRAL DRUG DISCOVERY FOR THE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT OF DENGUE AND OTHER FLAVIVIRUS-ASSOCIATED DISEASES THAT ARE AFFECTING COMMUNITIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA AND BEYOND. view more 

CREDIT: DUKE-NUS MEDICAL SCHOOL

Singapore, 21 June 2022 – Duke-NUS Medical School and Johnson & Johnson (J&J), the world’s largest healthcare company, today jointly launched a new J&J Satellite Center for Global Health Discovery that will drive new solutions to mitigate the threat posed by flaviviruses such as dengue and Zika.

The Satellite Center at Duke-NUS is the first of the J&J Centers for Global Health Discovery to open in the Asia-Pacific region and marks the latest effort of the SingHealth Duke-NUS Academic Medical Centre (AMC) to develop a collaborative Discovery District on its campus to advance bench-to-bedside research. The Satellite Center at Duke-NUS builds on the longstanding collaboration between Duke-NUS and the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, bringing together Duke-NUS' expertise in research and translational commercialisation with J&J’s deep industry experience to accelerate discovery research against flavivirus-related diseases and improve lives. 

Flaviviruses, like dengue and Zika, cause significant illness and death, yet no specific antiviral therapeutics are currently available. By uniting expertise from across the scientific community, the Satellite Center at Duke-NUS will strengthen Singapore’s standing as a hub of discovery research to address the unmet medical need of flaviviruses, which infect more than 400 million people each year, putting half of the global population at risk. In particular, Asia bears nearly three-quarters of the global burden. A warming planet means that billions more could be impacted in the coming decades as the animal vectors that carry flaviviruses venture beyond the tropical regions where they have traditionally thrived, spreading the diseases to new areas. 

“The establishment of the Satellite Center at Duke-NUS builds upon our strong track record in flavivirus research and bench-to-bedside innovations, and will facilitate antiviral drug discovery for the prevention and treatment of flavivirus-associated diseases that are affecting communities in Southeast Asia and beyond. The collaboration is both timely, in view of the impending threat of climate change, and purposeful in realising the School’s vision of transforming medicine and improving lives,” said Professor Patrick Casey, Senior Vice-Dean for Research at Duke-NUS.

“This collaboration is a perfect illustration of the thriving innovation ecosystem within our AMC, where the innovation team brings scientists and industry partners together to accelerate scientific discovery to real-world patient care. With J&J’s solid drug development experience and the School’s research expertise, I am confident that we will break new ground in curbing the threat of these diseases,” said Associate Professor Christopher Laing, Vice-Dean for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Duke-NUS.

The frequency of dengue, in particular, has grown considerably over the past two decades, as evidenced by surges in places like Singapore. After experiencing its worst outbreak in history in 2020, Singapore is facing yet another major outbreak this year with more than 8,000 cases recorded in the first five months of 2022, exceeding the number of cases reported in the whole of 2021.

“Singapore is both a leading innovation and research hub and one of the epicentres of the dengue threat, making Duke-NUS a natural match for our vision to address flaviviruses by advancing innovative science,” said Ruxandra Draghia-Akli, M.D., Ph.D., Global Head, Global Public Health R&D at Janssen Research & Development, LLC. “Together, we can each leverage our unique strengths to translate action in the lab into solutions at the last mile that can help better protect people against one of the world’s most significant and rising health threats.” 

Building a thriving Discovery District on campus

The establishment of the Satellite Center at Duke-NUS is part of the continued commitment by both Duke-NUS and the School’s academic medicine partner SingHealth to build a Discovery District on the AMC campus. In attracting local and overseas innovation partners to co-locate on the campus, the Discovery District fosters collaborations between the AMC and its industry partners while achieving synergy though a vibrant ecosystem of education, research, clinical expertise and commercialisation. 

“Through the Satellite Center at Duke-NUS, we will zero in on antiviral profiling of novel compounds against flaviviruses in this region, and establish a new drug discovery programme by exploring conserved antiviral drug targets and developing a strategic plan for host targets,” said Dr Milly Choy, Senior Research Fellow at Duke-NUS who will manage the Satellite Center at Duke-NUS. 

Research at the Satellite Center at Duke-NUS is already underway, led by Professor Subhash Vasudevan, PhD, Emerging Infectious Diseases Programme, Duke-NUS, and Olivia Goethals, PhD, Principal Scientist, Global Public Health R&D, Janssen Pharmaceutica NV.

“The mission of the Satellite Center at Duke-NUS is to develop a drug pipeline for dengue, as well as other flaviviral diseases, using state-of-the-art approaches in molecular virology, and innovative in vivo approaches to evaluate candidate drugs in model systems,” said Dr Kitti Chan, Senior Research Fellow at Duke-NUS and a lead scientist at the Satellite Center. 

The Emerging Infectious Diseases Programme at Duke-NUS has been at the forefront of tackling the most pressing healthcare challenges faced by Singapore and region. Most recently, the School played a critical role in driving progress to tackle dengue by working with SingHealth’s Investigational Medicine Unit to conduct a Phase 2a clinical trial evaluating Janssen’s antiviral compound for the prevention and treatment of dengue.

About Duke-NUS Medical School
Duke-NUS is Singapore’s flagship graduate entry medical school, established in 2005 with a strategic, government-led partnership between two world-class institutions: Duke University School of Medicine and the National University of Singapore (NUS). Through an innovative curriculum, students at Duke-NUS are nurtured to become multi-faceted ‘Clinicians Plus’ poised to steer the healthcare and biomedical ecosystem in Singapore and beyond. A leader in ground-breaking research and translational innovation, Duke-NUS has gained international renown through its five signature research programmes and ten centres. The enduring impact of its discoveries is amplified by its successful Academic Medicine partnership with Singapore Health Services (SingHealth), Singapore’s largest healthcare group. This strategic alliance has spawned 15 Academic Clinical Programmes, which harness multi-disciplinary research and education to transform medicine and improve lives.  

For more information, please visit www.duke-nus.edu.sg

Development of large area, organic solar cell printing technology

Development of polymer additives to solve the performance degradation of large-area solar cells based on the solution process. Future expectations regarding solar cell technology commercialization that can be applied in printing technology

Peer-Reviewed Publication

NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL OF SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

 

IMAGE: (LEFT) HIGH-EFFICIENCY, HIGH-STABILITY, ORGANIC SOLAR MODULE INCORPORATING TERNARY PHOTOACTIVE LAYERS. (RIGHT) PERFORMANCE OF THE HIGH-EFFICIENCY, HIGH-STABILITY, ORGANIC SOLAR MODULE INCORPORATING TERNARY PHOTOACTIVE LAYERS view more 

CREDIT: KOREA INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (KIST)

Solar cell technology is a prominent clean energy source. In particular, organic solar cells, part of the third generation of solar cells, are gaining attention as a core technology for urban solar ray energy generation as they can be printed and applied to exterior walls or glass windows of buildings. However, the photoactive area that absorbs sunlight and converts it to electricity remains significantly smaller than 0.1 cm². Additionally, commercialization is obstructed by performance and reproducibility problems that occur when expanding the cell area to several m2 where practical energy supply levels are available.

A research team led by Dr. Hae Jung Son of the Advanced Photovoltaics Research Center at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST; President: Seok-Jin Yoon) discovered the factors causing performance degradation in large-area organic solar cells and announced the development of a new polymer additive material for large-area, organic solar cell technology development.

The research team focused on the photoactive layer’s compositional form in organic solar cells and the solution process, which is a part of the organic solar cell manufacturing process. The spin coating method, a solution process mainly used in the laboratory research stage, creates a uniform photoactive layer mixture as the solvent evaporates rapidly while the substrate rotates at a high speed. However, the large-area, continuous solution process designed for industrial use caused solar cell performance deterioration because the solar cell material solution’s solvent evaporation rate was too slow. Consequently, unwanted aggregation between the photoactive materials can be formed.

The research team developed a polymer additive that can prevent this phenomenon by interacting with materials prone to aggregate. As a result, ternary photoactive layers containing polymer additives were fabricated to prevent aggregation in photoactive layers. Additionally, owing to possible nano-level structure control, solar cell performance improvements and stability security are acquired against light-induced temperature increases during solar cell operation. A 14.7% module efficiency was achieved, resulting in a 23.5% performance increase compared to that of the conventional binary system. Efficiency and stability were simultaneously demonstrated by maintaining over 84% initial efficiency for 1,000 hours, even in an 85℃ heated environment.

KIST’s Dr. Son stated, “We have gotten closer to organic solar cell commercialization by proposing the core principle of a solar cell material capable of high-quality, large-area solution processing,” further expressing that “commercialization through follow-up research will make eco-friendly self-sufficient energy generation possible that is easily applicable to exterior building walls and automobiles and also utilized as an energy source for mobile and IoT devices.”

CAPTION

high-efficiency, high-stability organic solar module

CREDIT

Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST)

###

KIST was established in 1966 as the first government-funded research institute in Korea to establish a national development strategy based on science and technology and disseminate various industrial technologies to promote the development of major industries. KIST is now elevating the status of Korean science and technology through the pursuit of world-leading innovative research and development. For more information, please visit KIST’s website at https://eng.kist.re.kr/kist_eng_renew/

This study was supported by a KIST institutional program and National R&D Program through National Research Foundation of Korea funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (Minister: Dr. Jong-Ho Lee). The results of this study were published in the latest issue of Nano Energy (IF:17.881, top 4.641% in JCR), an international scientific journal in the energy field.

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JOURNAL

Nano Energy

DOI

10.1016/j.nanoen.2022.107187 

ARTICLE TITLE

Important role of alloyed polymer acceptor for high efficiency and stable large-area organic photovoltaics

Muscle biopsy test for biomarker could lead to earlier diagnosis of ALS

Peer-Reviewed Publication

HIROSHIMA UNIVERSITY

 

IMAGE: TDP-43 ACCUMULATION WAS EVIDENT IN INTRAMUSCULAR NERVE BUNDLE FROM ALS PATIENT. view more 

CREDIT: TAKESHI KURASHIGE, KURE MEDICAL CENTER

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive disease of the nervous system. It affects nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord called motor neurons. Motor neurons control muscle movement and ALS causes them to deteriorate and eventually die. The motor neurons lose the ability to send messages to the muscles in the body, affecting voluntary muscle movements. There have been recent advances in treating ALS, but current treatments can only slow disease progression. That is why it is important to diagnose ALS as early as possible.

ALS is difficult to diagnose because, currently, there is no single test that can confirm the disease. Doctors look for neurological symptoms such as muscle weakness and upper and lower motor neuron symptoms. They will also do diagnostic tests to rule out other conditions like cervical spondylosis. A diagnostic test that could confirm ALS would help people get a diagnosis earlier and start treatment as soon as possible.

In a paper published on May 23 in JAMA Neurology, researchers outline preliminary research that could pave the way for a future test to diagnose ALS.

“It is difficult to diagnose ALS in its early stages because there is not a known biomarker,” said researcher Hirofumi Maruyama, a professor at the Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences at Hiroshima University in Hiroshima, Japan. “Muscle is possible to biopsy, and transactive response DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP-43) accumulates in the peripheral nerves inside muscle. TDP-43 is a protein that plays a key role on motor neurons, and accumulation of TDP-43 may be a biomarker for early diagnosis of ALS.”

Previous research in mice has revealed a crucial function of TDP-43 in axons, the part of the neuron that sends signals to other neurons. This is important for ALS, because axonal degeneration causes the lower motor neuron problems that can be a symptom of ALS. Researchers hypothesized that TDP-43 accumulation in muscular nerve bundles could be an early predictor of ALS.

To test this theory, researchers first examined the muscle tissue of 10 individuals who had confirmed cases of ALS at the time of their death and 12 who did not. All 10 ALS patients had TDP-43 accumulations in their intramuscular nerve bundles, while 12 non-ALS controls had no TDP-43 accumulation.

Next, researchers targeted 114 patients who underwent a muscle biopsy and did not have a family history of ALS or another muscle or neuromuscular diagnosis. Of these, 71 had evidence of intramuscular nerve bundles and 43 did not. Among the 71 patients, axonal TDP-43 accumulations in their nerve bundles were confirmed in 33. These 33 patients with axonal TDP-43 accumulations were all later diagnosed with ALS. Among the 43 patients without nerve bundles, three were later diagnosed with ALS.

“Results of this dual case-control and cohort study suggest that axonal TDP-43 accumulations may be characteristic for patients with ALS, and consequently may be a novel diagnostic biomarker for ALS,” said Maruyama. “Early diagnosis enables patients to initiate prompt treatment. We aim to prevent the progression of ALS and will continue research into developing new medication.”  

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Other contributors include Takashi Kurashige, Tomomi Murao, Tomohito Sugiura, and Tsuyoshi Torii, Department of Neurology, National Hospital Kure Medical Center and Chugoku Cancer Center; Hiroyuki Morino, Department of Clinical Neuroscience and Therapeutics, Graduate School of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Hiroshima University; Yuishin Izumi, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Tokushima University Graduate School; Kazuya Kuraoka, Department of Diagnostic Pathology, National Hospital Organization Kure Medical Center and Chugoku Cancer Center; and Hideshi Kawakami, Department of Epidemiology, Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima University.

The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, the Research Committee of Central Nervous System Degenerative Diseases, Research on Policy Planning and Evaluation for Rare and Intractable Diseases, Health, Labour, and Welfare Sciences Research Grants, the Ministry of Health, Labour, and Welfare of Japan, the Taiju Life Social Welfare Foundation, the Takeda Science Foundation, and the Tsuchiya Memorial Medical Foundation supported this research.

About Hiroshima University

Since its foundation in 1949, Hiroshima University has striven to become one of the most prominent and comprehensive universities in Japan for the promotion and development of scholarship and education. Consisting of 12 schools for undergraduate level and 4 graduate schools, ranging from natural sciences to humanities and social sciences, the university has grown into one of the most distinguished comprehensive research universities in Japan.
English website: https://www.hiroshima-u.ac.jp/en

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JOURNAL

JAMA Neurology

DOI

10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.1113 

ARTICLE TITLE

TDP-43 Accumulation Within Intramuscular Nerve Bundles of Patients With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Do benefits of physical, mental activity on thinking differ for men and women?

Peer-Reviewed Publication

AMERICAN ACADEMY OF NEUROLOGY

MINNEAPOLIS – Studies have shown that physical and mental activity help preserve thinking skills and delay dementia. A new study suggests that these benefits may vary for men and women. The study is published in the July 20, 2022, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

The study looked at the effects of physical and mental activities, such as reading, going to classes, or playing cards or games, on cognitive reserve in the areas of thinking speed and memory. Cognitive reserve is the buffer that occurs when people have strong thinking skills even when their brains show signs of the underlying changes associated with cognitive impairment and dementia.

“We found that greater physical activity was associated with greater thinking speed reserve in women, but not in men,” said study author Judy Pa, PhD, of the University of California, San Diego. “Taking part in more mental activities was associated with greater thinking speed reserve for both men and women.”

Greater physical activity was not associated with memory reserve in men or women.

The study involved 758 people with an average age of 76. Some had no thinking or memory problems, some had mild cognitive impairment, and some had dementia. The participants had brain scans and took thinking speed and memory tests. To calculate cognitive reserve, people’s thinking tests scores were compared against the changes in the brain associated with dementia, such as the total volume of the hippocampus, a key brain region impacted by Alzheimer’s disease.

People were also asked about their usual weekly physical activity. For mental activity, they were asked whether they participated in three types of activities in the past 13 months: reading magazines, newspapers or books; going to classes; and playing cards, games or bingo. They were given one point for each type of activity, for a maximum of three points.

For mental activity, participants averaged 1.4 points. For physical activity, participants took part in an average of at least 15 minutes per week of activities that elevate heart rates such as brisk walking and biking.

Pa said that each additional mental activity people participated in corresponded to 13 fewer years of aging in their processing speed in their thinking skills—17 years among men and 10 years among women.

“As we have arguably few-to-no effective treatments for Alzheimer’s disease, prevention is crucial. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of treatment,” Pa said. “To know that people could potentially improve their cognitive reserve by taking simple steps such as going to classes at the community center, playing bingo with their friends or spending more time walking or gardening is very exciting.”

Pa said that based on the effect sizes seen in the study, a doubling of the amount of physical activity would be equivalent to an estimated 2.75 fewer years of aging when it comes to women’s processing speed in their thinking skills.

Researchers also looked at whether the relationship between physical and mental activities and cognitive reserve was affected by the gene that carries the strongest risk for Alzheimer’s, called APOE e4. They found that for women, having the gene lessens the effects of the beneficial relationship between physical and mental activities and cognitive reserve.

The study does not prove that physical and mental activities help improve cognitive reserve. It only shows an association.

A limitation of the study was that people reported their own physical and mental activity, so they may not have remembered correctly. Also, structural and societal factors that affect cognitive reserve, such as education, were not measured in the study.

The study was supported by the National Institute on Aging and the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences.

Learn more about brain health at BrainandLife.org, home of the American Academy of Neurology’s free patient and caregiver magazine focused on the intersection of neurologic disease and brain health. Follow Brain & Life® on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

When posting to social media channels about this research, we encourage you to use the hashtags #Neurology and #AANscience.

The American Academy of Neurology is the world’s largest association of neurologists and neuroscience professionals, with over 38,000 members. The AAN is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, concussion, Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy.

For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visit AAN.com or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.

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JOURNAL

Neurology

North ‘plaza’ in Cahokia was likely inundated year-round, study finds

Peer-Reviewed Publication

UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN, NEWS BUREAU

 

IMAGE: RESEARCHERS TOOK SAMPLES FROM NEARBY WETLANDS TO DETERMINE THE ENVIRONMENTAL HISTORY OF THE NORTH PLAZA IN CAHOKIA. view more 

CREDIT: PHOTO COURTESY CAITLIN RANKIN

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The ancient North American city of Cahokia had as its focal point a feature now known as Monks Mound, a giant earthwork surrounded on its north, south, east and west by large rectangular open areas. These flat zones, called plazas by archaeologists since the early 1960s, were thought to serve as communal areas that served the many mounds and structures of the city.

New paleoenvironmental analyses of the north plaza suggest it was almost always underwater, calling into question earlier interpretations of the north plaza’s role in Cahokian society. The study is reported in the journal World Archaeology.

Cahokia was built in the vicinity of present-day St. Louis, beginning in about A.D. 1050. It grew, thrived for more than 300 years and was abandoned by 1400. Many mysteries surround the culture, layout and architecture of the city, in particular its relationship to water. Cahokia was built in a flood plain below the confluence of the Mississippi and Illinois rivers and would have been regularly infiltrated with flowing water, said Caitlin Rankin, a geoarchaeologist at the Illinois State Archaeological Survey who conducted the new research.

“Cahokia is the largest archaeological site in North America, but only about 1% of it has been excavated, so there’s so much about the site that we don’t know,” Rankin said.

Early in her encounters with the city’s layout, Rankin was baffled by the location and height of the north plaza.

“It’s a really strange area because it’s at a very low elevation, like the lowest elevation of the site,” she said. “And it’s in an old meander scar of the Mississippi River.”

Two creeks ran through the area, and it likely flooded whenever the Mississippi swelled after heavy rains.

To investigate the site, Rankin conducted test excavations and extracted sediment cores around the four mounds that define the north plaza. She also took soil samples in the same meander scar less than 5 kilometers from the plaza and analyzed stable carbon isotopes in these modern soils to determine isotope differences between wetlands, seasonal wetlands and prairie environments. Comparing these with carbon isotopes from ancient soils chronologically associated with the mounds gave insight into what types of plants had grown there in the past.

“What I learned is that this area remained wet throughout the year,” Rankin said. “There may have been some seasonal dryness, but overall, it was a wetland.”

Her findings challenge previous notions about this site being a plaza, which is generally thought of as a dry open area across which people walk and congregate. “Generally, those places aren’t underwater,” Rankin said.

How the north plaza was used remains a mystery, she said, but the study adds to the evidence that water was a central element of the city.

“Water was important to the people of Cahokia for a number of reasons,” she said. “They had a whole agricultural suite of wetland plants that they domesticated and relied on as food.” Water also was essential to their trade with people up and down the Mississippi River. And the cosmological beliefs of many Indigenous groups include creation stories that involve complex interactions with sky, water and earth.

“At Cahokia, you have these mounds emerging from this watery sphere,” she said. “And so that was a significant feature that probably resonated with their creation stories and their myths and their worldview.”

The Illinois State Archaeological Survey is a division of the Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

The National Geographic Society and National Science Foundation supported this work.

Editor’s notes: 

To reach Caitlin Rankin, email rankinc@illinois.edu

The paper “The exceptional environmental setting of the north plaza, Cahokia Mounds, Illinois, USA” is available online and from the U. of I. News Bureau.

DOI: 10.1080/00438243.2022.2077824

  

CAPTION

The study focused on the north plaza, an expanse at a low elevation that is almost always inundated with water.

CREDIT

Photo courtesy Caitlin Rankin

CAPTION

Sediments from excavations at Mound 5 reveal that the north plaza was a wetland prior to, and after, mound construction.

CREDIT

Photo courtesy Caitlin Rankin

CAPTION

Caitlin Rankin stands in a trench dug in Mound 16, one of four mounds that delineate the north plaza.

CREDIT

Photo by Ann Merkle

JOURNAL

World Archaeology

DOI

10.1080/00438243.2022.2077824 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Content analysis

ARTICLE TITLE

The exceptional environmental setting of the north plaza, Cahokia Mounds, Illinois, USA

SEE https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/search?q=CAHOKIA

What Harry Potter can (and can’t) teach us about economics

Peer-Reviewed Publication

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS USA

A new paper in Oxford Open Economics, published by Oxford University Press, explores “Potterian economics”—the economics of the world of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. Comparing such economics with professional economic models indicates that while some aspects of this economy are in line with economic models, many other aspects are distorted, contradicting professional economists’ views.

Evidence suggests that the public’s economic literacy is low and that it acquires much of the knowledge about economics through books, newspapers, etc. There is also evidence that literature affects readers, shaping their views. It is, therefore, possible that the 7-book series may exert influence and reflect on the public’s economic perspectives and sentiments. A conservative estimate suggests that more than 7.3% of the world’s population has read the Potter books and millions more have seen their movie versions. Given such extraordinary popularity of the books, their effect on the economic sentiments of the public might be considerable.

The researchers found that the economics of these books mix ideas from different models and worldviews. For example, the Potterian economic model is critical of market-based systems, yet it belittles government. The government is corrupt, yet it has public support.

The money used in the Harry Potter books is made of precious metals (like in the old English monetary system), yet its purchasing power is unrelated to its commodity value (like fiduciary money). The conversion rates between the Galleon, Sickle, and Knut are prime numbers which make transactions that involve more than one type of coin very inconvenient. Also, the money is not easily storable, divisible, portable, and homogeneous, which are essential for it to serve as an efficient medium of exchange or store of value. Lack of divisibility forces retailers to use round prices, leading to inefficient grid pricing. For example, prices denoted in Galleons only change by Galleons, and thus retailers cannot respond to small shocks. Lack of portability means that carrying coins is cumbersome, and thus characters in the Harry Potter books store them at Gringotts bank, where withdrawals and deposits are costly, requiring time and lengthy procedures.

The researchers find that arbitrage opportunities are not exploited, and efficiency-improving transactions go unnoticed. For example, there is a large gap between the commodity value of a gold Galleon and its exchange value which points to an arbitrage opportunity: Wizards could melt the gold, sell it to muggles as a commodity, and then exchange the muggle money for Galleons. However, characters in the novels do not seem to take advantage of this opportunity, although it promises immense profits and no risk. Not even the bankers, including the greediest ones, seem to notice it.

The Gringotts bank, which has a monopoly, does not serve as an intermediary between savers and investors, and it does not offer loans because of biases and prejudices against financial service providers, yet the books are often viewed and described as rejecting stereotypes.

The researchers also note that characters in the Harry Potter books do not seem to experience technological progress, except in the magical broomstick industry, where new models are introduced each year.

“A naïve reader of Harry Potter would get a distorted view of economics,” said Daniel Levy, one of the paper’s authors. “Consider some of the lessons we learn from Potterian economics: markets are not fair for transactions are zero sum; the political process is not transparent; markets encourage crony capitalism; capitalists want to enslave the proletariat; businessmen are deceptive and devious; wealthy people are mean and unethical; no interest is paid on deposits; there is a monopoly on information; power is concentrated; ignorance about foreigners is the norm; domestic producers are protected from foreign competition even if they are inefficient; paper checks are non-existent; creative thinking is rare; human capital does not accumulate; public employees have life-time job-security irrespective of their efficiency; the public sector is the default employer; downward social mobility is the norm; there is a constant class struggle. This is only a partial list.”

“The shortcomings listed above characterize many real economies,” Levy continued. “This perhaps explains why the Potterian economic model resonates with people. Despite its inaccuracies, it is consistent with folk economics, which while perhaps problematic for human flourishing in a Smithian sense, captures and reflects popular views on many economic and social issues.”

The paper “Potterian Economics” is available (at midnight on July 21st) at: https://academic.oup.com/ooec/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/ooec/odac004.

Direct correspondence to: 
Daniel Levy
Department of Economics, Bar-Ilan University
Ramat Gan 5290002, ISRAEL
Daniel.Levy@biu.ac.il

To request a copy of the study, please contact:
Daniel Luzer 
daniel.luzer@oup.com

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JOURNAL

Oxford Open Economics

DOI

10.1093/ooec/odac004 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Literature review

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Potterian Economics