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Single-cell spatial transcriptomic and translatomic profiling of dopaminergic neurons in health, aging, and disease.
The brain is spatially organized and contains unique cell types, each performing diverse functions and exhibiting differential susceptibility to neurodegeneration. This is exemplified in Parkinson's disease with the preferential loss of dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra pars compacta. Using a Parkinson's transgenic model, we conducted a single-cell spatial transcriptomic and dopaminergic neuron translatomic analysis of young and old mouse brains. Through the high resolving capacity of single-cell spatial transcriptomics, we provide a deep characterization of the expression features of dopaminergic neurons and 27 other cell types within their spatial context, identifying markers of healthy and aging cells, spanning Parkinson's relevant pathways. We integrate gene enrichment and genome-wide association study data to prioritize putative causative genes for disease investigation, identifying CASR as a regulator of dopaminergic calcium handling. These datasets represent the largest public resource for the investigation of spatial gene expression in brain cells in health, aging, and disease.
The effect of bariatric surgery type on cardiac reverse remodelling.
INTRODUCTION: Bariatric surgery is effective in reversing adverse cardiac remodelling in obesity. However, it is unclear whether the three commonly performed operations; Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass (RYGB), Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy (LSG) and Laparoscopic Adjustable Gastric Band (LAGB) are equal in their ability to reverse remodelling. METHODS: Fifty-eight patients underwent CMR to assess left ventricular mass (LVM), LV mass:volume ratio (LVMVR) and LV eccentricity index (LVei) before and after bariatric surgery (26 RYGB, 22 LSG and 10 LAGB), including 46 with short-term (median 251-273 days) and 43 with longer-term (median 983-1027 days) follow-up. Abdominal visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) were also assessed. RESULTS: All three procedures resulted in significant decreases in excess body weight (48-70%). Percentage change in VAT and EAT was significantly greater following RYGB and LSG compared to LAGB at both timepoints (VAT:RYGB -47% and -57%, LSG -47% and -54%, LAGB -31% and -25%; EAT:RYGB -13% and -14%, LSG -16% and -19%, LAGB -5% and -5%). Patients undergoing LAGB, whilst having reduced LVM (-1% and -4%), had a smaller decrease at both short (RYGB: -8%, p
A pathogenic variant in RAB32 causes autosomal dominant Parkinson's disease and activates LRRK2 kinase.
BACKGROUND: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. Mendelian forms have revealed multiple genes, with a notable emphasis on membrane trafficking; RAB GTPases play an important role in PD as a subset are both regulators and substrates of LRRK2 protein kinase. To explore the role of RAB GTPases in PD, we undertook a comprehensive examination of their genetic variability in familial PD. METHODS: Affected probands from 130 multi-incident PD families underwent whole-exome sequencing and genotyping, Potential pathogenic variants in 61 RAB GTPases were genotyped in relatives to assess disease segregation. These variants were also genotyped in a larger case-control series, totaling 3,078 individuals (2,734 with PD). The single most significant finding was subsequently validated within genetic data (6,043 with PD). Clinical and pathologic findings were summarized for gene-identified patients, and haplotypes were constructed. In parallel, wild-type and mutant RAB GTPase structural variation, protein interactions, and resultant enzyme activities were assessed. FINDINGS: We found RAB32 c.213C>G (Ser71Arg) to co-segregate with autosomal dominant parkinsonism in three multi-incident families. RAB32 Ser71Arg was also significantly associated with PD in case-control samples: genotyping and database searches identified thirteen more patients with the same variant that was absent in unaffected controls. Notably, RAB32 Ser71Arg heterozygotes share a common haplotype. At autopsy, one patient had sparse neurofibrillary tangle pathology in the midbrain and thalamus, without Lewy body pathology. In transfected cells the RAB32 Arg71 was twice as potent as Ser71 wild type to activate LRRK2 kinase. INTERPRETATION: Our study provides unequivocal evidence to implicate RAB32 Ser71Arg in PD. Functional analysis demonstrates LRRK2 kinase activation. We provide a mechanistic explanation to expand and unify the etiopathogenesis of monogenic PD. FUNDING: National Institutes of Health, the Canada Excellence Research Chairs program, Aligning Science Across Parkinson's, the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, and the UK Medical Research Council.
The role of the state in school reform: Responding to increasing ethnic diversity in britain
The British government has instituted a wide range of educational reforms to tackle ethnic inequality. This article argues that over the past half century most of these have been driven by immediate political considerations and have failed to incorporate a broader, historical perspective. This has invariably led to short-term, and short cut, solutions to long-term, deeply entrenched problems that, in reality, transcend the world of education. The article evaluates all the major reform programs, ranging from assimilationism to multicultural education to anti-racist education. It concludes with discussion of the merits/demerits of faith schools and the use of school reorganization as a means of tackling ethnic segregation. © 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Re-evaluating the links between 'race' and residence
There is a wide swathe, and indeed long history, of UK literature featuring attempts to theorise differentials in housing position and shifting spatial settlement patterns in relation to ethnicity and 'race' (and also, more recently, faith group). Most of the earlier accounts were based on simplified versions of the structure-agency dualism or one or other variant of rational choice theory. Responding to criticisms that these relied too heavily on overly static notions of 'choice' and 'constraint', a few then turned to a form of theorisation that deployed a modified version of Giddens' structuration theory. This paper seeks to take the debate further by developing a model that retains much of the essence of structuration yet embodies a more dynamic and theoretically nuanced interpretation of both structure and agency. Structure, normally seen predominantly as a form of social regulation, will be seen as multi-layered and multi-dimensional and also, importantly, as subject to often unpredictable exogenous factors. The concept of social agency will also be subjected to a radical re-conceptualisation that reflects, amongst other things, recent shifts in social capital theory interpreted in the light of rapid demographic change (influenced by geo-political factors), ongoing social inequality, racism, and heightened inter- and intra-communal tensions in some areas. © 2009 Taylor & Francis.
'Community cohesion': Reflections on a flawed paradigm
This paper interrogates a concept at the core of a social policy agenda that has dominated thinking in the UK over the past decade. It argues that the notion of 'community cohesion' is based on a fundamentally flawed interpretation of the sources of tension and conflict in Britain's towns and cities. It overly ethnicizes societal divisions and essentializes ethnicity. Examining the development of government policy since 2001 the paper shows that the result has been a predominantly culturalist agenda that obscures key sources of division, most notably those related to social class and material inequality. It is argued that the hegemonic status of this policy stream has also undermined the equalities agenda. The paper concludes with a reflection on the implications of the emergence of a Conservative-led coalition government in May 2010. © The Author(s) 2012.
'Race', employment, and contract compliance: A way forward for local authorities?
The concern of this article is with action at the local level to combat racial inequality in employment. It draws on the authors' evaluation of the 'West Midlands Common Standard', an innovative policy introduced by a consortium of West Midlands councils to ensure their contractors have, and implement, an equal opportunities in employment policy. The article assesses the impact of the initiative and its potential transferability. It is argued that the Common Standard provides a highly promising model for other local authorities to adopt.
British Asian narratives of urban space
Ethnic segregation is at the centre of debates about 'race' and 'difference', integration and citizenship in multicultural Britain. This paper critically examines discourses of segregation and challenges interpretations based on cultural 'otherness', normative assumptions about patterns of social and spatial integration and the 'whiteness' of the city. Drawing on research in Leeds and Bradford, the paper presents insights into how British Asians perceive, and make sense of, the spaces in which they are living and through which they are being enjoined to disperse. Their narratives of the city reveal multiple readings of ethnic segregation, the multi-ethnic inner city and the suburbs. © 2007 The Authors. Journal compilation © Royal Geographical Society (with The Institute of British Geographers) 2007.
New labour ambiguity, or neo-liberal consistency? The debate about racial inequality in employment and the use of contract compliance
In 2003 the UK government set an objective that in ten years' time Britain's minority ethnic groups should not face disproportionate barriers in the labour market. A key 'barrier' is discrimination by employers. This article examines one potential way forward: the use of contract compliance. First, the article presents findings from the authors' study of an innovative use of contract compliance by a group of local authorities in the West Midlands. If contract compliance can be made to work and New Labour is committed to addressing racial inequality in employment, this suggests that contract compliance is an approach that the government should be seeking to develop. The second part of the article therefore considers New Labour's stance on contract compliance, which can be seen to be highly ambiguous. It is argued that if contract compliance is located within the broader context of New Labour policy development, what is apparent is that the professed aspiration for social change is compromised by a dominant commitment to the maintenance of neo-liberal economic policies. The conclusion is that it is likely that only limited progress will be made in achieving racial equality in employment. © 2005 Cambridge University Press.
Renewal, regeneration and ‘race’: Issues in urban policy
This article examines the impact of urban policy on Britain's inner city areas, and specifically on the various communities living within them. It is suggested that policies need to address the issue of ‘racial’ inequality directly, rather than relying on trickle-down effects from conventional economic regeneration models. Problems with current urban renewal service delivery policies are highlighted, and proposals are put forward for models of ‘good practice’. © 1992, Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. All rights reserved.