Adult Lifespan Research Articles

Extending understanding of the genetic architecture of cerebral small vessel disease using advanced imaging measures in UK Biobank

AbstractCerebral small vessel disease (cSVD) is a leading cause of stroke and a major contributor to cognitive decline and dementia in the population (Debette JAMA Neurol 2019). Covert cSVD, which is detectable with brain MRI but does not manifest as clinical stroke, is highly prevalent in the general population, particularly with increasing age. Large collaborative genomic studies through consortia like CHARGE or ISGC have led to substantial progress in the identification of common genetic variants that are associated with cSVD. In this presentation, we will provide an overview of such collaborative studies, prominently involving the unique UK Biobank resource, that have recently extended our understanding of the genetic architecture of cSVD, revealing over 70 independent loci associated with this condition, especially with MRI‐markers of cSVD (Bordes, Nat Rev Neurol 2022; Duperron, Nat Med AIP). In silico functional explorations of the observed genetic associations point to a major role of blood pressure‐related pathways, but also mechanisms independent of vascular risk factors, such as extracellular matrix, membrane transport, vascular development, myelination, and blood‐brain barrier. Leveraging next‐generation sequencing data in UK Biobank and other resources, these studies also shed new light on the continuum between monogenic and multifactorial cSVD, with several genes (HTRA1, COLA4) harboring both rare mutations and common variants contributing to the disease (Mishra, Brain 2019). Further, we recently showed that MRI‐cSVD risk loci identified in middle‐ and older age in UK Biobank and other cohorts are associated with white matter microstructure on diffusion imaging (DTI, NODDI) and perivascular space burden already in young adults in their twenties (e.g. at VCAN, OPA1, SLC13A3) suggesting that processes contributing to cSVD may find their root much earlier in life than previously thought (Duperron, Nat Med AIP; Sargurupremraj, Nat Commun. 2020). We provide preliminary insights on how these association patterns change across the adult lifespan and discuss how this can inform dementia prevention, including, in combination with other omics resources, for proof‐of‐concept genomics‐driven drug discovery (Duperron, Nat Med AIP; Mishra, Nature. 2022; Mishra, Brain. 2022).

Individual‐specific change in Alzheimer’s disease vulnerable brain regions across the healthy adult lifespan is associated with genetic AD risk

AbstractBackgroundAcross the healthy adult lifespan, our brain’s undergo widespread structural change. Many of these changes – occurring gradually across life – are not qualitatively distinct from atrophy patterns seen in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), raising the possibility accelerated longitudinal brain change across healthy adult life may relate to genetic AD‐risk.MethodWe modelled subject‐specific structural brain change relative to that expected given age, in dense longitudinal adult lifespan data (1430 scans from 420 individuals aged 30 to 89 years; 2‐7 timepoints). Using polygenic AD scores (PRS‐AD) from four GWAS, we tested PRS‐AD associations with age‐relative change in early Braak stage regions – namely hippocampus, entorhinal cortex, amygdala, and medial temporal cortex. Next, to empirically identify features with accelerated change in AD, in ADNI data (scans = 4410; N = 978) we applied machine learning classification on the subject‐specific slopes estimated from individuals classed as consistently healthy over time versus those succumbing to AD. In healthy adult lifespan data, we then tested PRS‐AD associations with age‐relative change, in many combinations of brain features with model‐implied importance. Lastly, we tested whether high PRS‐AD individuals showing more negative brain change exhibit more longitudinal memory decline over healthy adult life.ResultIn healthy adult lifespan data, we observed many significant PRS‐AD associations with age‐relative change in hippocampus (bilateral), right entorhinal cortex, amygdala (bilateral), and left medial temporal cortex, and typically for all four scores (FDR‐corrected). We show that age‐relative change across the healthy adult lifespan in many combinations of AD‐accelerated features is significantly associated with PRS‐AD. As proof‐of‐principle, applying the ADNI‐derived model weights to the healthy adult lifespan data also enabled detection of PRS‐AD associations in healthy adults, but only using models trained on age‐relative change. Most, but not all, of the observed PRS‐AD associations were driven by APOE. Finally, we find high PRS‐AD individuals with more negative brain change exhibit significantly more memory decline, relative to high PRS‐AD individuals with less brain change.ConclusionThe results support a dimensional account linking gradual lifespan brain changes with pathological aging, and demonstrate PRS‐AD impacts the slope of brain aging in most AD‐relevant brain regions in healthy adults.

Early life factors and individual differences in the brain through the human lifespan – association of intercept or change?

AbstractBackgroundHuman fetal development has been associated with brain health at later stages. In this presentation, I review results of analyses by the center for Lifespan Changes in Brain and cognition (LCBC), on whether and how consistently factors present in utero, including genetics (APOE4; polygenic risk for Alzheimer´s Disease; AD), prenatal drug exposure and, especially, growth in utero, as indexed by birth weight (BW), relates to lifespan brain characteristics and changes.MethodWe investigated associations between BW and cortical surface area, thickness and volume as derived from MRIs, across and within developmental, aging and lifespan longitudinal samples (N = 5794, 4‐82 years of age, w/ 386 monozygotic (MZ) twins, followed for up to 8.3 years w/12,088 brain MRIs).ResultsAssociations of BW and structural brain characteristics appear to be identifiable through the lifespan, with largely topographically consistent effects across samples of varying age. In developmental (ABCD), older adult and aging (UKB) and lifespan (LCBC) longitudinal samples, positive associations between BW and cortical surface area and volume were remarkably stable within and across samples of different age and origin, with spatial correlations in the range r = .51‐.79. In contrast, there was modest and no consistent effect of BW on brain changes. Effects of BW discordance in the twin subsample indicated the effects were partly environmental. This stable effect of an early life factor (BW), is similar to effects through the lifespan of genetic risk for AD, and persistent effects of prenatal opioid and ‐polydrug exposure in childhood and young adulthood.ConclusionThe influence of these early life factors, as here shown for BW, on brain topography, appear in part stable through the lifespan, being reliably seen in development, adulthood, and aging, as an intercept effect. These findings support early life influence on the brain through the lifespan according to a threshold model of brain reserve, rather than a maintenance model. To test experimentally whether early life factors may still influence slopes of brain and cognitive change, a navigation training neuroimaging study of twins with known extent of discordance in BW has been conducted, preliminary data from which is also presented.

Does religiosity in early adulthood predict change in filial eldercare norms after midlife among baby boomers?

This study investigated whether patterns of religious change from early to middle adulthood is associated with patterns of change in filial norms from midlife to later life. Tracking change across 45 years of the adult life span, we link developmental processes occurring at two stages of life using midlife as the point of inflection. Respondents consisted of 436 individuals in the Baby Boom generation who participated in the Longitudinal Study of Generations from Waves 1 (1971) to 9 (2016). We conducted latent class and latent transition analysis to identify religious classes and their transitions over several decades, and latent growth curve modeling to identify change in filial norms. We identified three religiosity classes in Waves 1 and 5-strongly religious, weakly religious, and moderately religious-and five patterns of religious transitions. These transitions were then used to predict change in filial norms between Waves 5 and 9. Respondents who remained weakly religious from early to mid-adulthood reported weaker filial norms in midlife, compared to those who became more religious, and declined more rapidly in their strength of filial norms after middle age. Those who stayed weakly religious also declined more rapidly post-middle age. Our findings link dynamics in religiosity and filial norms across disparate stages of the adult life span and suggest that religious orientations earlier in adulthood are linked to filial norms at time of life when responsibilities for eldercare become a concern for one's parents as well as oneself. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Longitudinal free‐water changes in dementia with Lewy bodies

AbstractBackgroundDiffusion‐weighted MRI (dMRI) examines tissue microstructure integrity and white matter pathways in vivo. Prior dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) studies focused on white matter or voxel‐based techniques. Less is known about longitudinal white and grey matter microstructural changes in DLB. We aimed to characterize longitudinal diffusion microstructural changes in individuals with DLB.MethoddMRI scans were collected on individuals with DLB from the Mayo Clinic Longitudinal Imaging Biomarkers of DLB Program. Demographics, clinical evaluations and MRI were collected at baseline, and 12‐ or 24‐months. Free water (FW) and FW‐corrected fractional anisotropy (FAT) were analyzed in grey and white matter using 122 bilateral template regions and tracts of interest from the Mayo Clinic Adult Lifespan Template. Primary outcomes were differences in FW and FAT between baseline and 12‐ or 24‐months.ResultWe identified 23 individuals with DLB or mild cognitive impairment with Lewy bodies (MCI‐LB) from baseline to 12‐months [mean age 69.3 years (SD 9.5); 95.8% male], and 16 individuals from baseline to 24‐months [mean age 67.5 years (SD 9.3); 100% male]. Participants at both time‐points showed worsening in Montreal Cognitive Assessment and Movement Disorders Society Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale motor scores (p<0.05). We found significant differences in FW, but not FAT, from baseline to 12‐months. Significant increases in FW at both time‐points compared to baseline were observed in the insula, putamen, parahippocampal, and rolandic operculum regions (pfdr<0.05). We found additional more widespread microstructural changes from baseline to 24‐months, with increased FW in the amygdala, entorhinal, mid and posterior cingulum, inferior frontal, hippocampal, pallidum, precuneus and retrosplenial regions (pfdr<0.05). We found decreased FAT from baseline to 24‐months in the cerebellar and superior occipital regions (pfdr<0.01).ConclusionLonger follow‐up at 24‐months identified broader networks of free water changes in individuals with DLB. Results support dMRI as a promising, non‐invasive tool to track disease progression in DLB. More investigation is needed to evaluate the relationship of microstructural changes with clinical progression in DLB.

Levels of awareness of age-related gains and losses throughout adulthood and their developmental correlates.

Views of aging predict key developmental outcomes. Less is known, however, about the consequences of constellations of domain-specific perceived gains and losses across the full adult lifespan. First, we explored levels of awareness of age-related gains (AARC-gains) and losses (AARC-losses) in five behavioral domains across adulthood. Second, we identified the number and types of profiles of AARC-gains and AARC-losses in young adulthood, midlife, young-old age, and old-old age. Third, we investigated whether the identified profiles differed in their associations with developmental correlates. Data came from the 2018 German Socio-Economic Panel Innovation Sample (SOEP-IS), comprising 403 young, 721 middle-aged, 260 young-old and 228 old-old individuals. We assessed AARC, physical and mental functioning, information processing speed, social relations, lifestyle, and engagement. At the sample level, AARC-losses were higher in old age, whereas AARC-gains did not differ across adulthood. Latent profile analyses revealed two distinguishable constellations of AARC-gains and AARC-losses that characterize young adulthood and old-old age, whereas four and three gains-to-losses constellations are needed to characterize midlife and young-old age, respectively. In middle, young-old, and old-old age, profiles with more AARC-losses were associated with poorer scores on all developmental correlates. Overall, study results suggest that age-related experiences are most diversified in midlife and young-old age. Asking individuals about their negative age-related experiences may help identify those individuals who are doing less well in important developmental correlates. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Ignorance is not a blessing: Aging exists! The Role of Religion, Spirituality, and Belief in the Comprehension and Acceptance of Aging

Aging is an inevitable part of life. It brings forth a plethora of changes, both physical and emotional, that can pose several challenges for individuals. In this article, we will delve into the issues associated with aging, explore their impact on daily life, and provide insights on how to navigate through them gracefully. We all know that Aging is nothing more than a natural stage of life. "Aging takes place in a cell, an organ, or the total organism with the passage of time. It is a process that goes on over the entire adult life span of any living thing." [1] Still, while speaking of it, it is mainly surrounded by positive narratives and pleasant thoughts - all of which were created not to highlight the quality and value of old age but to give all those who have not yet reached it a sugarcoated image. Things are entirely different for those approaching or already deep into this [final] stage of life. "Old age [is] heavy clothes" is one of the folk Romanian sayings accom-panying this stage – emphasizing the unwieldiness of this stage. The concept of positive Aging is constantly gaining attention in the literature as an approach to health and well-being that incorporates a range of factors in the lives of older adults. But, religion, through theological explanation, has a different approach to aging and approaching death. Let us see what the depths of religious thinking about aging and theological grounds embodied in religious faiths and practices, making specific behaviors conform to these beliefs. The possibility of controlling aging effects is so biased, as if you were trying to build a dam in the middle of the floods. That is why the conclusion of the study is not limited to the management of the effects of aging or to the recognition of the problems it faces and stipulates a method of approaching aging in advance as pre-vention.

Supporting physical activity for mobility in older adults with mobility limitations (SuPA Mobility): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

BackgroundLimited mobility in older adults consistently predicts both morbidity and mortality. As individuals age, the rates of mobility disability increase from 1.0% in people aged 15–24 to 20.6% in adults over 65 years of age. Physical activity can effectively improve mobility in older adults, yet many older adults do not engage in sufficient physical activity. Evidence shows that increasing physical activity by 50 min of moderate intensity physical activity in sedentary older adults with mobility limitations can improve mobility and reduce the incidence of mobility disability. To maximize the healthy life span of older adults, it is necessary to find effective and efficient interventions that can be delivered widely to prevent mobility limitations, increase physical activity participation, and improve quality of life in older adults. We propose a randomized controlled trial to assess the effect of a physical activity health coaching intervention on mobility in older adults with mobility limitations.MethodsThis randomized controlled trial among 290 (145 per group) community-dwelling older adults with mobility limitations, aged 70–89 years old, will compare the effect of a physical activity health coaching intervention versus a general healthy aging education program on mobility, as assessed with the Short Physical Performance Battery. The physical activity health coaching intervention will be delivered by exercise individuals who are trained in Brief Action Planning. The coaches will use evidence-based behavior change techniques including goal-setting, action planning, self-monitoring, and feedback to improve participation in physical activity by a known dose of 50 min per week. There will be a total of 9 health coaching or education sessions delivered over 26 weeks with a subsequent 26-week follow-up period, wherein both groups will receive the same duration and frequency of study visits and activities.DiscussionThe consequences of limited mobility pose a significant burden on the quality of life of older adults. Our trial is novel in that it investigates implementing a dose of physical activity that is known to improve mobility in older adults utilizing a health coaching intervention.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov Protocol Registration System: NCT05978336; registered on 28 July 2023.

Coming in handy: CeTI-Age — A comprehensive database of kinematic hand movements across the lifespan

The Tactile Internet aims to advance human-human and human-machine interactions that also utilize hand movements in real, digitized, and remote environments. Attention to elderly generations is necessary to make the Tactile Internet age inclusive. We present the first age-representative kinematic database consisting of various hand gesturing and grasping movements at individualized paces, thus capturing naturalistic movements. We make this comprehensive database of kinematic hand movements across the adult lifespan (CeTI-Age-Kinematic-Hand) publicly available to facilitate a deeper understanding of intra-individual–focusing especially on age-related differences–and inter-individual variability in hand kinematics. The core of the database contains participants’ hand kinematics recorded with wearable resistive bend sensors, individual static 3D hand models, and all instructional videos used during the data acquisition. Sixty-three participants ranging from age 20 to 80 years performed six repetitions of 40 different naturalistic hand movements at individual paces. This unique database with data recorded from an adult lifespan sample can be used to advance machine-learning approaches in hand kinematic modeling and movement prediction for age-inclusive applications.

Larval diet and temperature alter mosquito immunity and development: using body size and developmental traits to track carry-over effects on longevity

BackgroundEstimating arbovirus transmission potential requires a mechanistic understanding of how environmental factors influence the expression of adult mosquito traits. While preimaginal exposure to environmental factors can have profound effects on adult traits, tracking and predicting these effects remains challenging.MethodsUsing Aedes albopictus and a structural equation modeling approach, we explored how larval nutrition and temperature jointly affect development rate and success, female body size, and whether these metrics capture carry-over effects on adult female longevity. Additionally, we investigated how larval diet and temperature affect the baseline expression of 10 immune genes.ResultsWe found that larval development success was primarily determined by diet, while temperature and diet both affected development rate and female body size. Under a low larval diet, pupal wet weight and wing length both declined with increasing temperature. In contrast, responses of the two morphometric measures to rearing temperature diverged when females were provided higher larval nutrition, with pupal wet weight increasing and wing length decreasing at higher temperatures. Our analyses also revealed opposing relationships between adult female lifespan and the two morphometric measures, with wing length having a positive association with longevity and pupal weight a negative association. Larval diet indirectly affected adult longevity, and the time to pupation was negatively correlated with longevity. The expression of eight immune genes from the toll, JAK-STAT and Imd pathways was enhanced in mosquitoes with higher nutrition.ConclusionsOur results highlight deficiencies from using a single body size measure to capture carry-over effects on adult traits. Further studies of larval development rate under varying environmental conditions and its potential for tracking carry-over effects on vectorial capacity are warranted.Graphical

Periodical Cicadas and the Abundance of Time

The life cycle of periodical cicadas, like the scientists who have studied them, is characterized by periods of long waiting punctuated with spectacular bouts of activity. In remarkable synchrony, every thirteen or seventeen years—depending on the species and the locatio —billions of nymphs crawl from the ground and embark on a relatively short adult life span of three to four weeks. This paper traces three pulses in the scientific study of periodical cicadas, as researchers sought to determine the geographical range of the broods, the number and biological identity of the species found in each brood, and the relationship between the individual and the swarm. Together these threads of research highlight the historical significance of mass collaboration in the scientific study of these charismatic animals and the surprisingly entangled affective relations between human and insect.

Does habitual moderate alcohol consumption enhance working memory performance?

The present study aimed to establish whether habitual alcohol consumption benefits verbal and spatial working memory performance after addressing the main criticisms that have been raised against the finding that alcohol benefits cognition. An adult lifespan sample of 1,652 healthy adults between 21 and 80 years of age participated in the study. Participants were classified as lifetime nondrinkers or drinkers, and several demographic and biological variables were controlled. Alcohol consumption was assessed through a lifestyle questionnaire created for the study. Working memory was measured through a 2-back computerized task. Discrimination and speed in verbal and spatial working memory among drinkers were superior to those among nondrinkers. Total alcohol intake across life and the amount of alcohol intake per week predicted higher verbal and spatial working memory discrimination. Beer drinkers showed more accurate and faster responses in verbal and spatial working memory than nondrinkers, wine drinkers and spirit drinkers. The optimal amount of alcohol intake to benefit working memory for women and men was 100 g per week, which is equivalent to one drink per day. After consuming 350 g of alcohol per week, equivalent to 25 drinks per week, the effects of alcohol on working memory become more negative than the effects of alcohol abstinence. While alcohol consumption is considered a risk factor for several diseases, we found that moderate alcohol intake benefits working memory performance throughout the adult lifespan to a greater extent than whole-life abstinence.

How Loneliness Gets Under the Skin: Inflammation Mediates the Relationship Between Loneliness and Gait Speed.

Loneliness is linked to interleukin 6 (IL-6), a marker of systemic inflammation, which chronically has deleterious effects on physical and mental health across the adult life span. This study investigated cross-sectional relationships among loneliness, IL-6, demographics, multimorbidity, depression, obesity, friendship quantity, and slowed gait. Data from the Midlife Development in the United States Biomarker Project, a national adult sample ( N = 822; age range, 26-78 years) was used for this study. The PROCESS macro tested the hypothesis that IL-6 would mediate the relationship between loneliness and gait, after adjusting for demographic and health risk factors. Age ( β = 0.292, p < .001), sex ( β = 0.197, p < .001), body mass index (BMI, β = 0.374, p < .001), waist-hip ratio ( β = 0.242, p < .001), and loneliness ( β = 0.089, p = .025) but not multimorbidity ( β = 0.043, p = .20), depression history ( β = 0.022, p = .47), depression symptoms ( β = 0.036, p = .28), and number of friends ( β = 0.022, p = .46) contributed to the variance in IL-6. Serial mediation analyses supported the chained effect of loneliness on walking time through BMI and IL-6. Results also showed specific indirect effects of BMI and IL-6 on walking time, suggesting more than one pathway by which loneliness influences health. These results suggest that loneliness may increase the risk of systemic inflammation, leading to slowed gait and adverse health outcomes. Psychosocial interventions that address loneliness may provide an optimal treatment target for reducing inflammation and preventing declines in health.

Gender Differences in Pain Threshold, Unpleasantness, and Descending Pain Modulatory Activation Across the Adult Life Span: A Cross Sectional Study

The neurobiological underpinnings of gender differences in pain perception, and how these differences may be modified by age, are incompletely understood, placing patients at risk of suboptimal pain management. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we examined brain responses in the descending pain modulatory system (DPMS, specifically, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, insula, hypothalamus, amygdala, and periaqueductal gray, during an evoked pain task. We investigated the interaction of age and gender in our sample of healthy adults (27 females, 32 males, 30–86 years) on DPMS response. In a perceptually matched thermal pain paradigm, we investigated pain unpleasantness and neural responses for 3 heat pain percepts: just noticeable pain, weak pain, and moderate pain (MP). Females reported just noticeable pain at a lower temperature, but reported less unpleasantness at weak pain and MP percepts, compared to males. There was a significant age-by-gender interaction during moderate pain in the right anterior cingulate cortex and bilateral insula, such that, males had a stronger positive relationship between DPMS response and age compared to females in these regions. Our results indicate that differences in DPMS responses may explain some gender differences in pain perception and that this effect may change across the adult lifespan. PerspectiveGender differences in pain have been well-documented but the brain mechanisms for these differences are still unclear. This article describes potential differences in brain functioning during different levels of pain that could explain differences in pain responses between men and women across the adult lifespan.

Thinking twice: examining gender differences in repetitive negative thinking across the adult lifespan.

A wealth of literature shows that women report greater levels of repetitive negative thinking, particularly rumination, than men in adolescence and adulthood. However, little research has examined how these gender differences develop or change across the entire adult lifespan. The present study addresses these oversights using a nationwide longitudinal probability sample of adults over 12 annual assessment points (N = 64,901; Mage = 42.50, range 18-81; 62.9% women) and a single-item measure of global repetitive negative thinking. Critically, we use multigroup cohort-sequential latent growth modeling to determine whether changes in this construct over time are due to (a) normative aging, (b) generational differences associated with the historical period one was born and raised in, or (c) a combination of these processes. Our results reveal that rumination peaks in young adulthood for both women and men but declines steadily thereafter, reaching its lowest levels at the end of the adult lifespan. That said, some gender and cohort differences emerged, with young women-particularly young cohorts-reporting higher levels of rumination than their male counterparts and older birth cohorts. Our study suggests that gender differences in rumination may be most prevalent among young birth cohorts, though future research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms underlying these processes.

Trait- and density-mediated effects of predation on fecundity and fertility of Aedes aegypti (Diptera: Culicidae) mosquitoes.

Prey populations that encounter predators experience density-mediated effects through lethality and associated numerical changes in the population. Prey also exhibit trait-mediated effects through nonlethal alterations in phenotypic traits associated with exposure to predators. Immature stages of mosquitoes commonly co-occur in habitats along with predators, a natural source of mortality and potential biocontrol agent. Toxorhynchites rutilus Coquillett 1896 is a natural source of mortality with potential as a biological control agent. Previous studies have shown that predation and the mere presence of Tx. rutilus (predator cues) can alter the life-history traits of Aedes aegypti (L. 1762). In addition to observed reductions in recruitment of adults (lethality), exposure to Tx. rutilus without consumption resulted in adult Ae. aegypti females with altered growth and reduced lifespan. To determine the influence of predation on the reproductive biology of Ae. aegypti, we tested the hypothesis that predation, or exposure to predator cues, will compromise the reproduction of adult survivors through reductions in fecundity (egg batch size) and fertility (hatch rate). We observed that for both female and male Ae. aegypti, survival to adulthood was the lowest and development time the shortest in treatments containing prey removal effects, attributable to predation and treatment manipulations of density reduction. There were effects of Ae. aegypti weight, but not predation treatments, on fecundity and fertility. Results suggest that predator-mediated effects on Ae. aegypti derive from lethal effects due to consumption and alterations in other phenotypic traits of survivors, including development, weight, lifespan of adults, and population growth, but not reproductive parameters measured here.

Morphology-based classification of the flying capacities of aquatic insects: A first attempt.

Flight is a key feature of the reproduction and dispersal of emerging aquatic insects. However, morphological measurements of insect flight are mostly available for terrestrial taxa and dragonflies, while aquatic insects have been poorly investigated. We analyzed 7 flight-related morphological parameters of 32 taxa belonging to 5 orders of emerging aquatic insects (Ephemeroptera, Trichoptera, Plecoptera, Diptera, and Megaloptera) with different life history traits related to flight (dispersal strategy, voltinism, adult lifespan, and swarming behavior). After correcting for allometry, we used an a priori-free approach to cluster the individuals according to their flight-related morphology. Then, we explored the levels of agreement between these clusters, taxonomy, and several life history traits of the taxa. All orders were scattered among several clusters, suggesting a large range of flight capacities, particularly for Diptera. We found swarming taxa in each cluster, showing that morphological adaptations to swarming are not identical in all aquatic insects. The clusters did not match the expected dispersal capacity of the taxa as derived from the literature or databases. Heavy wide-winged insects notably gathered taxa traditionally described as good or weak dispersers. Flight capacities based on morphology partly matched with the taxonomy and life-history traits of aquatic insect imagoes. Other parameters such as flight propensity, energy stores, and wing kinematics should help refine their flying and dispersal capacity.

Sex-Specific Limitation of Cardiac Capacity During the Adult Life Span: Return to Fundamental Structure and Function.

Physiology underlying reduced cardiac pumping capacity in women compared with men and its interaction with aging remains unresolved. Herein, the pressure gradient (PG) driving venous return was manipulated to evidence whether cardiac structure and/or function explain sex differences in cardiac capacity. Healthy women/men matched by age and physical activity were included within young (n = 40, age = 25 ± 4 years) and older (n = 55, age = 60 ± 8 years) groups. Cardiac volumes/output (Q) were assessed up-to-peak exercise under 2 hemodynamic conditions ("low"/"high" PG between lower/upper body). Main outcomes included sex differences in delta ("high" - "low" PG) left ventricular (LV) end-diastolic volume (∆LVEDV), stroke volume (∆SV), and Q (∆Q). In young individuals, "high"-PG increased exercise LVEDV and SV in men (p ≤ .002), but not in women (p ≥ .562), relative to "low"-PG (control condition). Accordingly, peak ∆LVEDV, ∆SV, and ∆Q were enhanced in young men versus young women (p ≤ .019). Notwithstanding, right/left atrial volumes during exercise were similarly increased by "high"-PG in both young sexes (p ≤ .007). "High"-PG exclusively prolonged moderate exercise LV filling time in young men (p ≤ .036). In older individuals, "high"-PG did not modify exercise cardiac volumes and reduced LV diastolic function (p ≤ .049). In conclusion, the female young heart is unrestrained by venous return or structural factors external to the myocardium. As determined during moderate exercise, impaired LV filling time lengthening limits female-specific cardiac capacity. With older age, cardiac chambers are not distended and LV relaxation is impaired with increased PG in both sexes. During early but not late adulthood, a functional LV limitation may explain sex differences in cardiac capacity.

Partnership status and positive DNA methylation age acceleration across the adult lifespan in the UK

Although a significant body of research has shown that married people are healthier and live longer, empirical research on sex differences in the link between marital status and health suggests results are mixed. Moreover, the sex disparities in marital status and health relationships vary across adulthood. The literature on partnership status and measures of ageing is largely focused on older age groups and is limited in its view of early adulthood. Data from waves 2 and 3 (2010–2012) of Understanding Society: UKHLS were used to examine the association of current partnership status with epigenetic age acceleration (AA) assessed with DNA methylation (DNAm) algorithms 'Phenoage' and ' DunedinPACE ' in 3492 participants (aged 16–97). Regression models were estimated separately for men and women, and further stratified by age groups.Divorced/separated and widowed people showed positive age acceleration compared to the married/cohabiting people (reference group). Some sex differences were apparent, especially, among the single and divorced/separated groups. Age differences were also apparent, for example in men, being single was negatively associated with DNAmAA in the youngest group, but positively in the oldest group compared to partnered counterparts.These findings illustrate the importance of partnerships on the ageing process, in particular marital change through divorce and widowhood for positive age acceleration in adults. For single groups, observations were heterogenous by age and sex.

Risk of post-fracture pneumonia and its association with cardiovascular events and mortality in adults with intellectual disabilities.

Fragility fractures are associated with an increased risk of pneumonia, which is a leading cause of death in adults with intellectual disabilities; however, the timing and complications of post-fracture pneumonia are underinvestigated. The objectives of this study were to determine the 30-day pneumonia rate post-fracture and the association of post-fracture pneumonia with mortality and cardiovascular events among adults with intellectual disabilities. This retrospective cohort study was conducted using Medicare and commercial claims from 01 January 2011 to 31 December 2016. Incidence of pneumonia 30 days after a fragility fracture among adults ≥18 years old with intellectual disabilities (Fx cohort) was compared to the incidence among matched adults with intellectual disabilities without fractures (w/oFx cohort) and the general population of patients with an incident fragility fracture (GP+Fx). For the Fx cohort, Cox regression was used to examine the adjusted association of time-varying pneumonia (within 30 days post-fracture) with mortality and incidence of cardiovascular events 0-30, 31-365, and 366-730 days post-fracture. There was a high-early rate of pneumonia within 30 days post-fracture for young, middle-aged, and elderly adults with intellectual disabilities (n = 6,183); this rate was 2.2- to 6.1-fold higher than the rate among the w/oFx (n = 12,366) and GP+Fx (n = 363,995) cohorts (all P < 0.05). For the Fx cohort, post-fracture 30-day incidence of pneumonia was associated with an increased 30-day rate of mortality (adjusted HR [aHR] = 5.19; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 3.68-7.32), heart failure (aHR = 2.96; 95% CI = 1.92-4.56), and cerebrovascular disease (aHF = 1.48; 95% CI = 0.93-2.35; P = 0.098), with sustained effects to 1 year for heart failure (aHR = 1.61; 95% CI = 1.19-2.17) and 2 years for mortality (aHR = 1.39; 95% CI = 1.06-1.83), and without evidence of effect modification by age. Adults with intellectual disabilities are vulnerable to post-fracture pneumonia within 30 days, and complications arising from this, across the adult lifespan, and not only during the elderly years.