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- Abulafia, C., et al.
(author)
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Relationship between Cognitive and Sleep-wake Variables in Asymptomatic Offspring of Patients with Late-onset Alzheimer's Disease
- 2017
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In: Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1663-4365. ; 9
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Early neuropathological changes characteristic of late-onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD) involve brain stem and limbic structures that regulate neurovegetative functions, including sleep-wake rhythm. Indeed, sleep pattern is an emerging biomarker and a potential pathophysiological mechanism in LOAD. We hypothesized that cognitively asymptomatic, middle-aged offspring of patients with LOAD (O-LOAD) would display a series of circadian rhythm abnormalities prior to the onset of objective cognitive alterations. We tested 31 children of patients with LOAD (O-LOAD) and 19 healthy individuals without family history of Alzheimer's disease (control subjects, CS) with basic tests of cognitive function, as well as actigraphy measures of sleep-wake rhythm, cardiac autonomic function, and bodily temperature. Unexpectedly, O-LOAD displayed subtle but significant deficits in verbal episodic memory (Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test delayed recall 10.6 +/- 0.4 vs. 8.6 +/- 0.6, t = 4.97, df = 49, p < 0.01) and language (Weschler's vocabulary 51.4 +/- 1.3 vs. 44.3 +/- 1.5, t = 2.49, df = 49, p < 0.001) compared to CS, even though all participants had results within the clinically normal range. O-LOAD showed a phase-delayed rhythm of body temperature (2.56 +/- 0.47 h vs. 3.8 +/- 0.26 h, t = 2.48, df = 40, p = 0.031). Cognitive performance in O-LOAD was associated with a series of cardiac autonomic sleep-wake variables; specifically indicators of greater sympathetic activity at night were related to poorer cognition. The present results suggest sleep pattern deserves further study as a potential neurobiological signature in LOAD, even in middle-aged, at risk individuals.
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- Adelöf, Julia, 1990, et al.
(author)
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Survival-Span Method: How to Qualitatively Estimate Lifespan to Improve the Study of Aging, and not Disease, in Aging Studies
- 2021
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In: Frontiers in Aging. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1663-4365 .- 2673-6217. ; 2
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Lifespan analyses are important for advancing our understanding of the aging process. There are two major issues in performing lifespan studies: 1) late-stage animal lifespan analysis may include animals with non-terminal, yet advanced illnesses, which can pronounce indirect processes of aging rather than the aging process per se and 2) they often involves challenging welfare considerations. Herein, we present an option to the traditional way of performing lifespan studies by using a novel method that generates high-quality data and allows for the inclusion of excluded animals, even animals removed at early signs of disease. This Survival-span method is designed to be feasibly done with simple means by any researcher and strives to improve the quality of aging studies and increase animal welfare.
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- Aksnes, M, et al.
(author)
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Comparison of Cerebrospinal Fluid Amyloidogenic Nanoplaques With Core Biomarkers of Alzheimer's Disease
- 2021
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In: Frontiers in aging neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1663-4365. ; 12, s. 608628-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Accurate biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are essential for early diagnosis and intervention. Available biomarkers are not sufficient to permit the monitoring of AD progression over time, and additional biomarkers are required. Measures of aggregated amyloid-β (Aβ) could be useful biomarkers for AD. Here, we investigate whether levels of Thioflavin-T (ThT) positive amyloid aggregates, i.e., nanoplaques, in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) could serve as useful biomarkers for AD. One-hundred and eighteen memory clinic patients were AT(N) classified, and CSF nanoplaque concentrations were compared between patients on the “Alzheimer’s continuum” (A+ patients) and patients with “Normal AD biomarkers” or “Non-AD pathologic change” (A− patients). CSF nanoplaque concentrations and sizes were quantified using the novel ThT-Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (ThT-FCS) assay, and core biomarkers (Aβ42, total tau and phosphorylated tau) were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays. We investigated the association between nanoplaque concentrations and core biomarkers, and the diagnostic value of nanoplaque levels. Nanoplaque levels were increased in A+ patients compared to A− patients. Nanoplaque concentrations were negatively associated with Aβ42, but not related to total tau or phosphorylated tau measures. Quantification of nanoplaques did not improve the classification of patients on the Alzheimer’s continuum compared to the core biomarkers alone. Dynamic changes in nanoplaques concentration and size throughout AD stages should be explored in longitudinal studies.
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- Almkvist, Ove, et al.
(author)
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Practice effects in cognitive assessments three years later in non-carriers but not in symptom-free mutation carriers of autosomal-dominant Alzheimer's disease : Exemplifying procedural learning and memory?
- 2022
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In: Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1663-4365. ; 14
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Practice effects (PEs) defined as an improvement of performance in cognition due to repeated assessments between sessions are well known in unimpaired individuals, while less is known about impaired cognition and particularly in latent brain disease as autosomal-dominant Alzheimer's disease. The purpose was to evaluate the general (across tests/domains) and domain-specific PE calculated as the annual rate of change (ARC) in relation to years to the estimated disease onset (YECO) and in four groups of AD: asymptomatic mutation carriers (aAD, n = 19), prodromal, i.e., symptomatic mutation carriers, criteria for AD diagnosis not fulfilled (pAD, n = 4) and mutation carriers diagnosed with AD (dAD, n = 6) as well as mutation non-carriers from the AD families serving as a healthy comparison group (HC, n = 35). Cognition was assessed at baseline and follow-up about 3 years later by 12 tests covering six domains. The aAD and HC groups were comparable at baseline in demographic characteristics (age, gender, and education), when they were in their early forties, while the pAD and dAD groups were older and cognitively impaired. The results on mean ARC for the four groups were significantly different, small, positive, and age-insensitive in the HC group, while ARC was negative and declined with time/disease advancement in AD. The differences between HC and aAD groups in mean ARC and domain-specific ARC were not significant, indicating a subtle PE in aAD in the early preclinical stage of AD. In the symptomatic stages of AD, there was no PE probably due to cognitive disease-related progression. PEs were the largest in the verbal domain in both the HC and aAD groups, indicating a relationship with cognitive vulnerability. The group-related difference in mean ARC was predominant in timekeeping tests. To conclude, the practice effect in over 3 years was suggested to be linked to procedural learning and memory.
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- Alonso-Bellido, Isabel M., et al.
(author)
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The Other Side of SARS-CoV-2 Infection : Neurological Sequelae in Patients
- 2021
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In: Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1663-4365. ; 13
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has spread around the globe causing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Because it affects the respiratory system, common symptoms are cough and breathing difficulties with fever and fatigue. Also, some cases progress to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). The acute phase of COVID-19 has been also related to nervous system symptoms, including loss of taste and smell as well as encephalitis and cerebrovascular disorders. However, it remains unclear if neurological complications are due to the direct viral infection of the nervous system, or they appear as a consequence of the immune reaction against the virus in patients who presented pre-existing deficits or had a certain detrimental immune response. Importantly, the medium and long-term consequences of the infection by SARS-CoV-2 in the nervous system remain at present unknown. This review article aims to give an overview of the current neurological symptoms associated with COVID-19, as well as attempting to provide an insight beyond the acute affectation.
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- Altorfer, P, et al.
(author)
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Feasibility of Cognitive-Motor Exergames in Geriatric Inpatient Rehabilitation: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Study
- 2021
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In: Frontiers in aging neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1663-4365. ; 13, s. 739948-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Objective: The aim of this pilot randomized clinical trial was to test the feasibility and efficacy of an exergame-based cognitive-motor training program in geriatric inpatients.Methods: The study participants were randomly allocated to either the exergame intervention group or the control group. The control group received the standard rehabilitation treatment offered in the clinic. In addition to the standard rehabilitation program, the intervention group conducted supervised exergame training on 5 days per week using the Dividat Senso, an exergame system specifically designed for older adults. The primary outcome was feasibility, as measured by e.g., adherence rate, attrition rate, occurrence of adverse events, System Usability Scale (SUS) and NASA-TLX score. Secondary outcomes included measures of physical and cognitive functioning such as comfortable walking speed, maximal walking speed, dual task walking speed, Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), Timed Up and Go test (TUG), Color-Word Interference test (D-KEFS), Trail Making test A and B (TMT), Go/No-Go test and Step Reaction Time test (SRTT). All secondary outcome measures were assessed pre- and post-intervention.Results: Thirty-nine persons were included in the study. Average adherence rate was 99%, there were no intervention-related dropouts and no adverse events. The mean System Usability Scale (SUS) score was 83.6 and the mean NASA-TLX score 45.5. Significant time-group interaction effects were found for the dual task walking speed, the Go/No-Go test and Step Reaction Time test (SRTT).Conclusion: Exergaming is a feasible, safe and effective cognitive-motor training approach in inpatient rehabilitation of geriatric patients. Incorporating exergaming in the rehabilitation program of geriatric patients offers potential to reduce fall risk factors and to increase patients’ exercise motivation and rehabilitation success.
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- Antonsson, Malin, 1986, et al.
(author)
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Using a Discourse Task to Explore Semantic Ability in Persons With Cognitive Impairment.
- 2021
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In: Frontiers in aging neuroscience. - : Frontiers Media SA. - 1663-4365. ; 12
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This paper uses a discourse task to explore aspects of semantic production in persons with various degree of cognitive impairment and healthy controls. The purpose of the study was to test if an in-depth semantic analysis of a cognitive-linguistic challenging discourse task could differentiate persons with a cognitive decline from those with a stable cognitive impairment. Both quantitative measures of semantic ability, using tests of oral lexical retrieval, and qualitative analysis of a narrative were used to detect semantic difficulties. Besides group comparisons a classification experiment was performed to investigate if the discourse features could be used to improve classification of the participants who had a stable cognitive impairment from those who had cognitively declined. In sum, both types of assessment methods captured difficulties between the groups, but tests of oral lexical retrieval most successfully differentiated between the cognitively stable and the cognitively declined group. Discourse features improved classification accuracy and the best combination of features discriminated between participants with a stable cognitive impairment and those who had cognitively declined with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.93.
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