Biomarkers of Parkinson's Disease: From Basic Research to Clinical Practice.

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a common neurodegenerative disease characterized pathologically by dopaminergic neuron loss and the formation of Lewy bodies, which are enriched with aggregated α-synuclein (α-syn). PD currently has no cure, but therapeutic strategies are available to alleviate symptoms. Early diagnosis can greatly improve therapeutic interventions, but the clinical diagnosis of PD remains challenging and depends mainly on clinical features and imaging tests. Efficient and specific biomarkers are crucial for the diagnosis, monitoring, and evaluation of PD. Here, we reviewed the biomarkers of PD in different tissues and biofluids, along with the current clinical biochemical detection methods. We found that the sensitivity and specificity of single biomarkers are limited, and selecting appropriate indicators for combined detection can improve the diagnostic accuracy of PD.

Improving Building Envelope Efficiency Lowers Costs and Emissions from Rural Residential Heating in China.

In 2017, the Chinese government launched a clean heating campaign that replaced millions of rural coal stoves with various clean heaters. The clean heating program contributed to remarkable improvements in air quality. However, the benefits of reducing heating demand by improving building envelope efficiency were not sufficiently considered. This study provides a needed quantitative assessment of potential energy-savings, costs, greenhouse gas emission reductions, and adoption strategies for improving building envelope efficiency in Chinese rural residential buildings. We find that different strategies must be employed in existing and new buildings to achieve desired outcomes. For existing buildings, to encourage easy and beneficial building retrofits (e.g., air sealing, efficient windows), current fuel subsidies should be replaced with retrofit subsidies. Building retrofits can reduce the size and hence capital costs of new clean heaters. They can also reduce operating costs, hence reducing the likelihood of backsliding to coal. For new construction, whole-home insulation and heat pumps would best avoid carbon lock-in. These efficient technologies have high upfront costs but decrease heating costs and significantly reduce carbon emissions relative to current policies. Hence, subsidies and policies that encourage improvements in building envelopes as well as the uptake of clean and efficient heaters are critical.

Interactions of sodium halides with sugars in water: a study of viscosity and (1)H spin-lattice relaxation time.

Viscosity B-coefficients for sodium halides (NaX, X- = Cl-, Br-, and I-) in aqueous monosaccharides (d-glucose, d-galactose, d-xylose, and d-arabinose) were determined from density and viscosity (eta) measurements at 298.15 K. The contributions of solvent property (B1) and the electrolyte-solvent interaction (B2) to the B-coefficient were also obtained together with molar activation energies (Delta(mu)E0(not equal)) of the electrolytes for viscous flow of the aqueous saccharide-electrolyte solution. In addition, 1H spin-lattice relaxation times (T1) were measured for two glycosides in D2O with and without sodium halides. The results show the interactions between X- and the saccharides are in the following order: Cl- > Br- > I-. A linear relationship is observed between the relaxation rate (1/T1) and electrolyte concentration.

A (13)C NMR study on the interactions of calcium chloride/potassium chloride with pyranosides in D(2)O.

The (13)C NMR spectra of methyl beta-d-glucopyranoside, methyl beta-d-galactopyranoside, methyl beta-d-xylopyranoside, and methyl beta-l-arabinopyranoside were recorded in CaCl(2)/KCl+D(2)O mixtures and in D(2)O. The chemical shifts of C-1, C-3, and C-5 in the methyl beta-d-glucopyranoside and methyl beta-d-galactopyranoside decrease rapidly as molalities of CaCl(2)/KCl increase, while those of C-1, C-2, and C-3 in the methyl beta-d-xylopyranoside and methyl beta-l-arabinopyranoside decrease rapidly as molalities of CaCl(2)/KCl increase. Cations (Ca(2+)/K(+)) can weakly complex with O in OMe of the pyranosides studied. Results are discussed in terms of the stereochemistry of the pyranoside molecules and the structural properties of the ions.