| 1. |
- Atti, Anna Rita, et al.
(författare)
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Cognitive Impairment after Age 60 : clinical and Social Correlates in the "Faenza Project"
- 2010
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Ingår i: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. - 1387-2877 .- 1875-8908. ; 21:4, s. 1325-1334
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A total of 7,389 dementia-free elderly (60–102 years old) enrolled in the "Faenza Project" (Northern Italy) were clinically evaluated by nurses and physicians with the aim of detecting the independent and combined association of medical and social factors with cognitive status. Cognitive Impairment No Dementia (CIND) was defined for MMSE scores ⩽ 2 standard deviations than the age- and education-corrected mean score obtained by the non-demented persons of the Faenza cohort. Logistic Regression analysis was used to estimate Odds Ratios and 95% Confidence Intervals (OR, 95%CI) for CIND. The diagnostic procedure identified 402 (5.4%) CIND cases. Diabetes (OR, 95%CI=1.6, 1.2–2.2), stroke (OR, 95%CI=1.9, 1.4–2.6), and depressive symptoms (OR, 95%CI=1.9, 1.4–2.7) emerged as the most relevant medical comorbidities of CIND. Low education (OR, 95%CI=1.8, 1.1–2.9), low Socio Economic Status (SES) (OR, 95%CI=1.5, 1.1–2.1), and unmarried status (OR, 95%CI=1.7, 1.2–2.5) were associated with CIND. Medical and social factors were independently related to CIND occurrence. In comparison to subjects without any of the above mentioned conditions, subjects with one medical and one social factor had an OR, 95%CI for CIND equal to 6.0, 2.9–12.4. The strength of the association increased when more of those conditions occurred in combination, suggesting a synergistic effect. Despite some methodological limitations, data from this cross-sectional population-based Italian study show that low education, low SES, unmarried status together with diabetes, stroke, and depressive symptoms are related to cognitive impairment in the general population. The interaction of medical and social factors further increases the probability of CIND.
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| 2. |
- Klionsky, Daniel J., et al.
(författare)
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Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy
- 2012
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Ingår i: Autophagy. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1554-8635 .- 1554-8627. ; 8:4, s. 445-544
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- In 2008 we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, research on this topic has continued to accelerate, and many new scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Accordingly, it is important to update these guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Various reviews have described the range of assays that have been used for this purpose. Nevertheless, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to measure autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. A key point that needs to be emphasized is that there is a difference between measurements that monitor the numbers or volume of autophagic elements (e.g., autophagosomes or autolysosomes) at any stage of the autophagic process vs. those that measure flux through the autophagy pathway (i.e., the complete process); thus, a block in macroautophagy that results in autophagosome accumulation needs to be differentiated from stimuli that result in increased autophagic activity, defined as increased autophagy induction coupled with increased delivery to, and degradation within, lysosomes (in most higher eukaryotes and some protists such as Dictyostelium) or the vacuole (in plants and fungi). In other words, it is especially important that investigators new to the field understand that the appearance of more autophagosomes does not necessarily equate with more autophagy. In fact, in many cases, autophagosomes accumulate because of a block in trafficking to lysosomes without a concomitant change in autophagosome biogenesis, whereas an increase in autolysosomes may reflect a reduction in degradative activity. Here, we present a set of guidelines for the selection and interpretation of methods for use by investigators who aim to examine macroautophagy and related processes, as well as for reviewers who need to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of papers that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a formulaic set of rules, because the appropriate assays depend in part on the question being asked and the system being used. In addition, we emphasize that no individual assay is guaranteed to be the most appropriate one in every situation, and we strongly recommend the use of multiple assays to monitor autophagy. In these guidelines, we consider these various methods of assessing autophagy and what information can, or cannot, be obtained from them. Finally, by discussing the merits and limits of particular autophagy assays, we hope to encourage technical innovation in the field.
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| 3. |
- Mangialasche, Francesca, et al.
(författare)
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High plasma levels of vitamin E forms and reduced Alzheimer's disease risk in advanced age
- 2010
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Ingår i: Journal of Alzheimer's disease : JAD. - Amsterdam, Washington : IOS Press. - 1875-8908. ; 58:3, s. 131-140
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this study we investigated the association between plasma levels of eight forms of vitamin E and incidence of Alzheimer's disease (AD) among oldest-old individuals in a population-based setting. A dementia-free sample of 232 subjects aged 80+ years, derived from the Kungsholmen Project, was followed-up to 6 years to detect incident AD. Plasma levels of vitamin E (alpha-, beta-, gamma, and delta-tocopherol; alpha-, beta-, gamma-, and delta-tocotrienol) were measured at baseline. Vitamin E forms-AD association was analyzed with Cox proportional hazard model after adjustment for several potential confounders. Subjects with plasma levels of total tocopherols, total tocotrienols, or total vitamin E in the highest tertile had a reduced risk of developing AD in comparison to persons in the lowest tertile. Multi-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were 0.55 (0.32-0.94) for total tocopherols, 0.46 (0.23-0.92) for total tocotrienols, and 0.55 (0.32-0.94) for total vitamin E. When considering each vitamin E form, the risk of developing AD was reduced only in association with high plasma levels of beta-tocopherol (HR: 0.62, 95% CI 0.39-0.99), whereas alpha-tocopherol, alpha- tocotrienol, and beta-tocotrienol showed only a marginally significant effect in the multiadjusted model [HR (95% CI): alpha-tocopherol: 0.72 (0.48-1.09); alpha-tocotrienol: 0.70 (0.44-1.11); beta-tocotrienol: 0.69 (0.45-1.06)]. In conclusion, high plasma levels of vitamin E are associated with a reduced risk of AD in advanced age. The neuroprotective effect of vitamin E seems to be related to the combination of different forms, rather than to alpha-tocopherol alone, whose efficacy in interventions against AD is currently debated.
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| 4. |
- Palmer, Katie, et al.
(författare)
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Prevalence of dementia and factors associated with dementia in rural Bangladesh : data from a cross-sectional, population-based study
- 2014
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Ingår i: International psychogeriatrics. - : International Psychogeriatric Association. - 1041-6102 .- 1741-203X. ; 26:11, s. 1905-1915
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: There are currently no published reports of dementia prevalence or factors associated with dementia occurrence in Bangladesh. The aims are to report the prevalence of definite and questionable dementia in rural Bangladesh, and examine factors potentially associated with dementia occurrence, including sociodemographic, clinical, social, and nutritional factors. Methods: We used data from a population-based, cross-sectional study from Matlab, in rural Bangladesh, on 471 persons aged 60+ years. Participants underwent a clinical examination including diagnosis of somatic disorders, and a structured interview including questions about sociodemographic and social factors. Nutritional status was measured with the Mini Nutritional Assessment, and blood tests were conducted to assess a range of nutritional and clinical aspects. Age-and sex-specific dementia prevalence was calculated. Crude and adjusted logistic regression was used to examine associations between dementia and clinical, social, and nutritional factors. Dementia was diagnosed using a two-step procedure by physicians according to DSM-IV criteria. Results: The prevalence of questionable dementia was 11.5% and definite dementia was 3.6%. Dementia prevalence increased with increasing years of age (adjusted OR: 1.04; 95% CI = 1.002-1.1) and decreased with more years of education (adjusted OR: 0.8; 95% CI = 0.6-0.99). Being malnourished increased the odds of dementia almost six-fold (adjusted OR: 5.9; 95% CI = 1.3-26.3), while frequent participation in social activities was associated with a decreased odds (adjusted OR: 0.5; 95% CI = 0.2-0.9). Conclusions: The prevalence of dementia in rural Bangladesh is similar to other countries in the South Asia region, but lower than reports from other world regions. Malnutrition is strongly associated with dementia occurrence, and is a relevant area for future research within low-income countries.
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