Patterns of cognitive performance in healthy ageing in Northern Portugal: a cross-sectional analysis

Background

The Minho Integrative Neuroscience Database (MIND)-Ageing project aims to identify predictors of healthy cognitive ageing, including socio-demographic factors. In this exploratory analysis we sought to establish baseline cohorts for longitudinal assessment of age-related changes in cognition.

Methods

The population sample (472 individuals) was strictly a convenient one, but similar to the Portuguese population in the age profile. Participants older than 55 years of age were included if they did not present defined disabling pathologies or dementia. A standardized clinical interview was conducted to assess medical history and a battery of neuropsychological tests was administered to characterize global cognition (Mini Mental State Examination), memory and executive functions (Selective Reminding Test; Stroop Color and Word Test; and Block Design subtest of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale). Cross-sectional analysis of the neuropsychological performance with individual characteristics such as age, gender, educational level and setting (retirement home, senior university, day care center or community), allowed the establishment of baseline clusters for subsequent longitudinal studies.

Results

Based on different socio-demographic characteristics, four main clusters that group distinctive patterns of cognitive performance were identified. The type of institution where the elders were sampled from, together with the level of formal education, were the major hierarchal factors for individual distribution in the four clusters. Of notice, education seems to delay the cognitive decline that is associated with age in all clusters.

Conclusions

Social-inclusion/engagement and education seem to have a protective effect on mental ageing, although this effect may not be effective in the eldest elders.     

A prospectus for ethical analysis of ageing individuals' responsibility to prevent cognitive decline

As the world's population ages, governments and non‐governmental organizations in developed countries are promoting healthy cognitive ageing to reduce the rate of age‐related cognitive decline and sustain economic productivity in an ageing workforce. Recommendations from the Productivity Commission (Australia), Dementia Australia, Government Office for Science (UK), Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues (USA), Institute of Medicine (USA), among others, are encouraging older adults to engage in mental, physical, and social activities. These lifestyle recommendations for healthy cognitive ageing are timely and well supported by scientific evidence but they make implicit normative judgments about the responsibility of ageing individuals to prevent cognitive decline. Ethical tensions arise when this individual responsibility collides with social and personal realities of ageing populations. First, we contextualize the priority given to healthy cognitive ageing within the current brain‐based medical and social discourses. Second, we explore the individual responsibility by examining the economic considerations, medical evidence and individual interests that relate to the priority given to healthy cognitive ageing. Third, we identify three key ethical challenges for policymakers seeking to implement lifestyle recommendations as an effective population‐level approach to healthy cognitive ageing. The result is a prospectus for future in‐depth analysis of ethical tensions that arise from current policy discussions of healthy cognitive ageing.     

表观遗传调控健康衰老

衰老是自然界普遍存在的现象。衰老伴随着组织和器官功能的逐渐衰退,最终导致生物体死亡。衰老也是人们罹患老年性疾病如心血管疾病、神经退行性疾病、癌症、糖尿病等的主要风险因素。因此,延缓衰老对于预防和治疗衰老相关的疾病意义重大。衰老与遗传和表观遗传改变密切相关。最近,Nature杂志发表了中国科学院脑科学与智能技术卓越创新中心蔡时青研究组与中国科学院上海巴斯德研究所江陆斌研究组的合作成果。该研究发现了两个新的保守的表观调控因子妨碍健康衰老。     

A novel aspect of NADPH production in ageing Penicillium chrysogenum

NADPH is involved in many basically important anabolic processes. For a long time, pentose phosphate pathway (PPS) was regarded as the most important source of NADPH in fungi. Here we present evidence of a metabolic switch to an alternative NADPH-producing pathway in ageing Penicillium chrysogenum cultures, which involves NADP+ -specific isocitrate dehydrogenase (NADP+ -ID) rather than PPS enzymes. Considering the main biochemical functions of NADPH, we propose that NADP+ -ID could have deep impact on many physiological processes switched on glucose deprivation including proteinase production or penicillin biosynthesis. We also demonstrate that although the alternative pathway was inferior to PPS when the fungus was grown on well-utilisable carbon sources yet it could have an important role in fatty acid biosynthesis as well as in the maintenance of high intracellular NADPH/NADP+ ratios.     

A novel circular RNA hsa_circ_0060927 may serve as a potential diagnostic biomarker for human colorectal cancer

Molecular Biology Reports - CYP24A1 plays a role in strictly regulated vitamin D metabolism pathway and has been nominated as a prognostic biomarker for colorectal cancer (CRC). Increasing evidence...     

Stemness of the organ of Corti relates to the epigenetic status of Sox2 enhancers

In the adult mammalian auditory epithelium, the organ of Corti, loss of sensory hair cells results in permanent hearing loss. The underlying cause for the lack of regenerative response is the depletion of otic progenitors in the cell pool of the sensory epithelium. Here, we show that an increase in the sequence-specific methylation of the otic Sox2 enhancers NOP1 and NOP2 is correlated with a reduced self-renewal potential in vivo and in vitro; additionally, the degree of methylation of NOP1 and NOP2 is correlated with the dedifferentiation potential of postmitotic supporting cells into otic stem cells. Thus, the stemness the organ of Corti is related to the epigenetic status of the otic Sox2 enhancers. These observations validate the continued exploration of treatment strategies for dedifferentiating or reprogramming of differentiated supporting cells into progenitors to regenerate the damaged organ of Corti.     

A novel approach to rapidly prevent age‐related cognitive decline

The loss of cognitive function is a pervasive and often debilitating feature of the aging process for which there are no effective therapeutics. We hypothesized that a novel metal chaperone (PBT2; Prana Biotechnology, Parkville, Victoria, Australia) would enhance cognition in aged rodents. We show here that PBT2 rapidly improves the performance of aged C57Bl/6 mice in the Morris water maze, concomitant with increases in dendritic spine density, hippocampal neuron number and markers of neurogenesis. There were also increased levels of specific glutamate receptors (alpha‐amino‐3‐hydroxy‐5‐methyl‐4‐isoxazolepropionic acid and N‐methyl‐d ‐aspartate), the glutamate transporter (VGLUT1) and glutamate itself. Markers of synaptic plasticity [calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) and phosphorylated CaMKII, CREB, synaptophysin] were also increased following PBT2 treatment. We also demonstrate that PBT2 treatment results in a subregion‐specific increase in hippocampal zinc, which is increasingly recognized as a potent neuromodulator. These data demonstrate that metal chaperones are a novel approach to the treatment of age‐related cognitive decline.     

Hydraulic lift by Juglans regia relates to nutrient status in the intercropped shallow-root crop plant

Aims

The objective of our study was to confirm if hydraulic lift (HL) promotes nutrient uptake in field-grown plants in the same way as demonstrated previously in pot-grown plants.

Methods

We conducted a field experiment in an agroforestry system, over an entire growing season that included a dry period and a wet period. We used a shallow-root crop plant, mung bean (Vigna radiata L.), intercropped with walnut (Juglans regia L.) and jujube (Zizyphus jujube Mill.), as an indicator for the presence of HL and its effects on nutrient uptake. To monitor HL, we artificially applied deuterium isotope to the deep roots of trees.

Results

We demonstrated the presence of a natural nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium gradient along the soil depth, and the occurrence of HL, evidenced by deuterium signature in the shallow soil layers and V. radiata stem, only during the dry season. J. regia and Z. jujube both had deep root systems, but the former species exhibited stronger HL to the shallow soil than the latter. Meanwhile, the upper soil layers of J. regia had significantly higher moisture content, and the intercropped V. radiata had higher nutrient content.

Conclusion

HL can facilitate water uptake by V. radiata from the upper soil layers in the field condition during the dry season, which relates to nutrient acquisition by the crop.     

Double-stranded RNA in rice: A novel RNA replicon in plants

The entire sequence of 13952 nucleotides of a plasmid-like, double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) from rice was assembled from more than 50 independent cDNA clones. The 5 non-coding region of the coding (sense) strand spans over 166 nucleotides, followed by one long open reading frame (ORF) of 13716 nucleotides that encodes a large putative polyprotein of 4572 amino acid residues, and by a 70-nucleotide 3 noncoding region. This ORF is apparently the longest reported to date in the plant kingdom. Amino acid sequence comparisons revealed that the large putative polyprotein includes an RNA helicase-like domain and an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (replicase)-like domain. Comparisons of the amino acid sequences of these two domains and of the entire genetic organization of the rice dsRNA with those found in potyviruses and the CHV1-713 dsRNA of chestnut blight fungus suggest that the rice dsRNA is located evolutionarily between potyviruses and the CHV1-713 dsRNA. This plasmid-like dsRNA in rice seems to constitute a novel RNA replicon in plants.     

Telemental health: A status update

A rather large body of literature now exists on the use of telemental health services in the diagnosis and management of various psychiatric conditions. This review aims to provide an up‐to‐date assessment of telemental health, focusing on four main areas: computerized CBT (cCBT), Internet‐based CBT (iCBT), virtual reality exposure therapy (VRET), and mobile therapy (mTherapy). Four scientific databases were searched and, where possible, larger, better‐designed meta‐analyses and controlled trials were highlighted. Taken together, published studies support an expanded role for telepsychiatry tools, with advantages that include increased care access, enhanced efficiency, reduced stigma associated with visiting mental health clinics, and the ability to bypass diagnosis‐specific obstacles to treatment, such as when social anxiety prevents a patient from leaving the house. Of technology‐mediated therapies, cCBT and iCBT possess the most efficacy evidence, with VRET and mTherapy representing promising but less researched options that have grown in parallel with virtual reality and mobile technology advances. Nonetheless, telepsychiatry remains challenging because of the need for specific computer skills, the difficulty in providing patients with a deep understanding or support, concerns about the “therapeutic alliance”, privacy fears, and the well documented problem of patient attrition. Future studies should further test the efficacy, advantages and limitations of technology‐enabled CBT, as well as explore the online delivery of other psychotherapeutic and psychopharmacological modalities.     

A novel bacterial community index to assess stream ecological health

相似文献   

Association of socioeconomic status with successful ageing: differences in the components of successful ageing

This study sought to determine which factors among the indicators of socioeconomic status have the most influence on physical, mental and social functions, and on subjective well-being, all of which are components of successful ageing. A representative random sample of 1825 persons aged 65 years or older was surveyed by face-to-face interview. Socioeconomic status was measured by educational level, family household income, personal income and property ownership. The factors measured were chronic diseases, activities of daily living (ADL) for physical functioning, history of mental disease, Mini-Mental Status Examination questionnaire (MMSE) scores for mental functioning, social activity participation per week for social functioning, and the Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale (PGCMS) for subjective well-being. Multiple logistic regression analyses were performed. Education level was the most important factor in physical and mental functioning, whereas personal income was the most important in social functioning. Educational level, household income and personal income were significantly associated with subjective well-being as assessed by PGCMS scores. Subjects who demonstrated successful ageing were more likely to have a higher education and higher personal income. The results point to the importance of focusing on disparities in each component of successful ageing, which may point to appropriate health-promotion strategies for eliminating inequality in successful ageing.     

Diurnal transcriptome landscape of a multi-tissue response to time-restricted feeding in mammals

1. Download : Download high-res image (186KB)
2. Download : Download full-size image

     

Selenium status in elderly: Relation to cognitive decline

Studies show that decreased antioxidant system is related to cognitive decline. Thus we aimed to measure selenium (Se) status in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) elderly and compared them with a control group (CG). 27 AD, 17 MCI and 28 control elderly were evaluated. Se concentration was determined in plasma and erythrocyte by using hydride generation atomic absorption spectroscopy. Erythrocyte Se concentration in AD group was lower than CG (43.73 ± 23.02 μg/L and 79.15 ± 46.37 μg/L; p = 0.001), but not statistically different from MCI group (63.97 ± 18.26 μg/L; p = 0.156). AD group exhibited the lowest plasma Se level (34.49 ± 19.94 μg/L) when compared to MCI (61.36 ± 16.08 μg/L; p = 0.000) and to CG (50.99 ± 21.06 μg/L; p = 0.010). It is observed that erythrocyte Se decreases as cognition function does. Since erythrocyte reflects longer-term nutritional status, the data point to the importance of the relation between Se exposure and cognitive function. Our findings suggest that the deficiency of Se may contribute to cognitive decline among aging people.