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Chen AM, Gajdošík M, Ahmed W, Ahn S, Babb JS, Blessing EM, Boutajangout A, de Leon MJ, Debure L, Gaggi N, Gajdošík M, George A, Ghuman M, Glodzik L, Harvey P, Juchem C, Marsh K, Peralta R, Rusinek H, Sheriff S, Vedvyas A, Wisniewski T, Zheng H, Osorio R, Kirov II. Retrospective analysis of Braak stage- and APOE4 allele-dependent associations between MR spectroscopy and markers of tau and neurodegeneration in cognitively unimpaired elderly. Neuroimage 2024; 297:120742. [PMID: 39029606 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2024] [Revised: 06/28/2024] [Accepted: 07/16/2024] [Indexed: 07/21/2024] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE The pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD), amyloid, tau, and associated neurodegeneration, are present in the cortical gray matter (GM) years before symptom onset, and at significantly greater levels in carriers of the apolipoprotein E4 (APOE4) allele. Their respective biomarkers, A/T/N, have been found to correlate with aspects of brain biochemistry, measured with magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), indicating a potential for MRS to augment the A/T/N framework for staging and prediction of AD. Unfortunately, the relationships between MRS and A/T/N biomarkers are unclear, largely due to a lack of studies examining them in the context of the spatial and temporal model of T/N progression. Advanced MRS acquisition and post-processing approaches have enabled us to address this knowledge gap and test the hypotheses, that glutamate-plus-glutamine (Glx) and N-acetyl-aspartate (NAA), metabolites reflecting synaptic and neuronal health, respectively, measured from regions on the Braak stage continuum, correlate with: (i) cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) p-tau181 level (T), and (ii) hippocampal volume or cortical thickness of parietal lobe GM (N). We hypothesized that these correlations will be moderated by Braak stage and APOE4 genotype. METHODS We conducted a retrospective imaging study of 34 cognitively unimpaired elderly individuals who received APOE4 genotyping and lumbar puncture from pre-existing prospective studies at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine between October 2014 and January 2019. Subjects returned for their imaging exam between April 2018 and February 2020. Metabolites were measured from the left hippocampus (Braak II) using a single-voxel semi-adiabatic localization by adiabatic selective refocusing sequence; and from the bilateral posterior cingulate cortex (PCC; Braak IV), bilateral precuneus (Braak V), and bilateral precentral gyrus (Braak VI) using a multi-voxel echo-planar spectroscopic imaging sequence. Pearson and Spearman correlations were used to examine the relationships between absolute levels of choline, creatine, myo-inositol, Glx, and NAA and CSF p-tau181, and between these metabolites and hippocampal volume or parietal cortical thicknesses. Covariates included age, sex, years of education, Fazekas score, and months between CSF collection and MRI exam. RESULTS There was a direct correlation between hippocampal Glx and CSF p-tau181 in APOE4 carriers (Pearson's r = 0.76, p = 0.02), but not after adjusting for covariates. In the entire cohort, there was a direct correlation between hippocampal NAA and hippocampal volume (Spearman's r = 0.55, p = 0.001), even after adjusting for age and Fazekas score (Spearman's r = 0.48, p = 0.006). This relationship was observed only in APOE4 carriers (Pearson's r = 0.66, p = 0.017), and was also retained after adjustment (Pearson's r = 0.76, p = 0.008; metabolite-by-carrier interaction p = 0.03). There were no findings in the PCC, nor in the negative control (late Braak stage) regions of the precuneus and precentral gyrus. CONCLUSIONS Our findings are in line with the spatially- and temporally-resolved Braak staging model of pathological severity in which the hippocampus is affected earlier than the PCC. The correlations, between MRS markers of synaptic and neuronal health and, respectively, T and N pathology, were found exclusively within APOE4 carriers, suggesting a connection with AD pathological change, rather than with normal aging. We therefore conclude that MRS has the potential to augment early A/T/N staging, with the hippocampus serving as a more sensitive MRS target compared to the PCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna M Chen
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Vilcek Institute of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Martin Gajdošík
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Wajiha Ahmed
- Center for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sinyeob Ahn
- Siemens Medical Solutions USA Inc., Malvern, PA, USA
| | - James S Babb
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Esther M Blessing
- Department of Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Healthy Brain Aging and Sleep Center, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Allal Boutajangout
- Center for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mony J de Leon
- Retired Director, Center for Brain Health, Department of Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Brain Health Imaging Institute, Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ludovic Debure
- Center for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Naomi Gaggi
- Department of Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Healthy Brain Aging and Sleep Center, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mia Gajdošík
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ajax George
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mobeena Ghuman
- Center for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Lidia Glodzik
- Brain Health Imaging Institute, Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Patrick Harvey
- Brain Health Imaging Institute, Department of Radiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Christoph Juchem
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA; Department of Radiology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Karyn Marsh
- Center for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Rosemary Peralta
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Henry Rusinek
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sulaiman Sheriff
- Department of Radiology, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA
| | - Alok Vedvyas
- Center for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Thomas Wisniewski
- Center for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Department of Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Department of Pathology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Helena Zheng
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ricardo Osorio
- Department of Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Healthy Brain Aging and Sleep Center, NYU Langone Health, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Ivan I Kirov
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Advanced Imaging Innovation and Research (CAI(2)R), Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Vilcek Institute of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Center for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Department of Neurology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
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Matsuoka K, Hirata K, Kokubo N, Maeda T, Tagai K, Endo H, Takahata K, Shinotoh H, Ono M, Seki C, Tatebe H, Kawamura K, Zhang MR, Shimada H, Tokuda T, Higuchi M, Takado Y. Investigating neural dysfunction with abnormal protein deposition in Alzheimer's disease through magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging, plasma biomarkers, and positron emission tomography. Neuroimage Clin 2023; 41:103560. [PMID: 38147791 PMCID: PMC10944210 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2023.103560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2023] [Revised: 11/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023]
Abstract
In Alzheimer's disease (AD), aggregated abnormal proteins induce neuronal dysfunction. Despite the evidence supporting the association between tau proteins and brain atrophy, further studies are needed to explore their link to neuronal dysfunction in the human brain. To clarify the relationship between neuronal dysfunction and abnormal proteins in AD-affected brains, we conducted magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) and assessed the neurofilament light chain plasma levels (NfL). We evaluated tau and amyloid-β depositions using standardized uptake value ratios (SUVRs) of florzolotau (18F) for tau and 11C-PiB for amyloid-β positron emission tomography in the same patients. Heatmaps were generated to visualize Z scores of glutamate to creatine (Glu/Cr) and N-acetylaspartate to creatine (NAA/Cr) ratios using data from healthy controls. In AD brains, Z score maps revealed reduced Glu/Cr and NAA/Cr ratios in the gray matter, particularly in the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (rDLPFC) and posterior cingulate cortex (PCC). Glu/Cr ratios were negatively correlated with florzolotau (18F) SUVRs in the PCC, and plasma NfL levels were elevated and negatively correlated with Glu/Cr (P = 0.040, r = -0.50) and NAA/Cr ratios (P = 0.003, r = -0.68) in the rDLPFC. This suggests that the abnormal tau proteins in AD-affected brains play a role in diminishing glutamate levels. Furthermore, neuronal dysfunction markers including Glu/tCr and NAA/tCr could potentially indicate favorable clinical outcomes. Using MRSI provided spatial information about neural dysfunction in AD, enabling the identification of vulnerabilities in the rDLPFC and PCC within the AD's pathological context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiwamu Matsuoka
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan; Department of Psychiatry, Nara Medical University, Nara, Japan.
| | - Kosei Hirata
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Naomi Kokubo
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Takamasa Maeda
- QST Hospital, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Kenji Tagai
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Hironobu Endo
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Keisuke Takahata
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Hitoshi Shinotoh
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan; Neurology Clinic, Chiba, Chiba, Japan
| | - Maiko Ono
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan; Institute for Quantum Life Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Chie Seki
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Harutsugu Tatebe
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Kazunori Kawamura
- Department of Advanced Nuclear Medicine Sciences, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Ming-Rong Zhang
- Department of Advanced Nuclear Medicine Sciences, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Hitoshi Shimada
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan; Center for Integrated Human Brain Science, Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan
| | - Takahiko Tokuda
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Makoto Higuchi
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan
| | - Yuhei Takado
- Department of Functional Brain Imaging, Institute for Quantum Medical Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan; Institute for Quantum Life Science, Quantum Life and Medical Science Directorate, National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology, Chiba, Japan.
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Shahid SS, Grecco GG, Atwood BK, Wu YC. Perturbed neurochemical and microstructural organization in a mouse model of prenatal opioid exposure: A multi-modal magnetic resonance study. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0282756. [PMID: 37471385 PMCID: PMC10358947 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282756] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Accepted: 07/08/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Methadone-based treatment for pregnant women with opioid use disorder is quite prevalent in the clinical environment. A number of clinical and animal model-based studies have reported cognitive deficits in infants prenatally exposed to methadone-based opioid treatments. However, the long-term impact of prenatal opioid exposure (POE) on pathophysiological mechanisms that govern neurodevelopmental impairment is not well understood. Using a translationally relevant mouse model of prenatal methadone exposure (PME), the aim of this study is to investigate the role of cerebral biochemistry and its possible association with regional microstructural organization in PME offspring. To understand these effects, 8-week-old male offspring with PME (n = 7) and prenatal saline exposure (PSE) (n = 7) were scanned in vivo on 9.4 Tesla small animal scanner. Single voxel proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) was performed in the right dorsal striatum (RDS) region using a short echo time (TE) Stimulated Echo Acquisition Method (STEAM) sequence. Neurometabolite spectra from the RDS was first corrected for tissue T1 relaxation and then absolute quantification was performed using the unsuppressed water spectra. High-resolution in vivo diffusion MRI (dMRI) for region of interest (ROI) based microstructural quantification was also performed using a multi-shell dMRI sequence. Cerebral microstructure was characterized using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and Bingham-neurite orientation dispersion and density imaging (Bingham-NODDI). MRS results in the RDS showed significant decrease in N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), taurine (tau), glutathione (GSH), total creatine (tCr) and glutamate (Glu) concentration levels in PME, compared to PSE group. In the same RDS region, mean orientation dispersion index (ODI) and intracellular volume fraction (VFIC) demonstrated positive associations with tCr in PME group. ODI also exhibited significant positive association with Glu levels in PME offspring. Significant reduction in major neurotransmitter metabolites and energy metabolism along with strong association between the neurometabolites and perturbed regional microstructural complexity suggest a possible impaired neuroadaptation trajectory in PME offspring which could be persistent even into late adolescence and early adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Syed Salman Shahid
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
| | - Gregory G. Grecco
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
| | - Brady K. Atwood
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
| | - Yu-Chien Wu
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
- Stark Neurosciences Research Institute, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, United States of America
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Calderón-Garcidueñas L, Hernández-Luna J, Aiello-Mora M, Brito-Aguilar R, Evelson PA, Villarreal-Ríos R, Torres-Jardón R, Ayala A, Mukherjee PS. APOE Peripheral and Brain Impact: APOE4 Carriers Accelerate Their Alzheimer Continuum and Have a High Risk of Suicide in PM 2.5 Polluted Cities. Biomolecules 2023; 13:927. [PMID: 37371506 DOI: 10.3390/biom13060927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2023] [Revised: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 05/29/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
This Review emphasizes the impact of APOE4-the most significant genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD)-on peripheral and neural effects starting in childhood. We discuss major mechanistic players associated with the APOE alleles' effects in humans to understand their impact from conception through all life stages and the importance of detrimental, synergistic environmental exposures. APOE4 influences AD pathogenesis, and exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5), manufactured nanoparticles (NPs), and ultrafine particles (UFPs) associated with combustion and friction processes appear to be major contributors to cerebrovascular dysfunction, neuroinflammation, and oxidative stress. In the context of outdoor and indoor PM pollution burden-as well as Fe, Ti, and Al alloys; Hg, Cu, Ca, Sn, and Si UFPs/NPs-in placenta and fetal brain tissues, urban APOE3 and APOE4 carriers are developing AD biological disease hallmarks (hyperphosphorylated-tau (P-tau) and amyloid beta 42 plaques (Aβ42)). Strikingly, for Metropolitan Mexico City (MMC) young residents ≤ 40 y, APOE4 carriers have 4.92 times higher suicide odds and 23.6 times higher odds of reaching Braak NFT V stage versus APOE4 non-carriers. The National Institute on Aging and Alzheimer's Association (NIA-AA) framework could serve to test the hypothesis that UFPs and NPs are key players for oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, protein aggregation and misfolding, faulty complex protein quality control, and early damage to cell membranes and organelles of neural and vascular cells. Noninvasive biomarkers indicative of the P-tau and Aβ42 abnormal protein deposits are needed across the disease continuum starting in childhood. Among the 21.8 million MMC residents, we have potentially 4 million APOE4 carriers at accelerated AD progression. These APOE4 individuals are prime candidates for early neuroprotective interventional trials. APOE4 is key in the development of AD evolving from childhood in highly polluted urban centers dominated by anthropogenic and industrial sources of pollution. APOE4 subjects are at higher early risk of AD development, and neuroprotection ought to be implemented. Effective reductions of PM2.5, UFP, and NP emissions from all sources are urgently needed. Alzheimer's Disease prevention ought to be at the core of the public health response and physicians-scientist minority research be supported.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lilian Calderón-Garcidueñas
- College of Health, The University of Montana, Missoula, MT 59812, USA
- Universidad del Valle de México, Mexico City 14370, Mexico
| | | | - Mario Aiello-Mora
- Otorrinolaryngology Department, Instituto Nacional de Cardiología, Mexico City 14080, Mexico
| | | | - Pablo A Evelson
- Facultad de Farmacia y Bioquímica, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires C1113 AAD, Argentina
| | | | - Ricardo Torres-Jardón
- Instituto de Ciencias de la Atmósfera y Cambio Climático, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City 04510, Mexico
| | - Alberto Ayala
- Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District, Sacramento, CA 95814, USA
- West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
| | - Partha S Mukherjee
- Interdisciplinary Statistical Research Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata 700108, India
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