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Adult Age (adult + age)
Kinds of Adult Age Terms modified by Adult Age Selected AbstractsThe mother-offspring dyad and the immune systemACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 3 2000LĹ Hanson A. The mother and the fetus. The mother's immune system reacts against the fetus and there is therefore a risk of destruction of or damage to the fetus. We are now beginning to understand some of the mechanisms that protect the fetus, but, when these are defective, intrauterine growth retardation or abortions may ensue. However, the cytokines of this maternal immune response to the fetus also monitor different phases of pregnancy, starting with effects on the ovarium and involving preparation of the decidua for the implantation of the fertilized egg, the growth of the trophoblasts, the production of hormones important for the pregnancy and finally of the prostaglandins that induce delivery. B. The mother and the child. Human milk contains anti-idiotypic antibodies which after transfer to the offspring are capable of enhancing antibody responses. Human milk contains numerous leucocytes especially during early lactation. There is increasing evidence that milk lymphocytes are taken up by the breastfed infant, which seems to have become tolerant to maternal HLA. Breastfeeding mothers are therefore good donors of renal transplants to their breastfed offspring in adult age, too. Conclusion: It is suggested that the milk lymphocytes may be taken up by the offspring and that immunological information is thereby carried over from the mother. This mechanism may explain why breastfeeding seems to confer enhanced protection against infections also some years after the termination of breastfeeding. [source] Child behaviour and adult personality: comparisons between criminality groups in Finland and SwedenCRIMINAL BEHAVIOUR AND MENTAL HEALTH, Issue 3 2000Professor Lea Pulkkinen Background; Lately there has been an increasing interest in whether personality traits are associated with criminal behaviour in male and female subjects. Criminality and alcohol abuse are often associated. Delinquent adolescents are impulsive and danger seeking. Childhood aggression may be a precursor of adult criminality. Method Using longitudinal data, adult personality and childhood behaviours were examined for groups of non-criminals and criminals of Finnish (n = 268) and Swedish (n + 169) samples, and crime groups were compared in the two cultures. Karolinska Scales of Personality (KSP) were given at adult age and the participants had been observed and rated by their teachers in respect of behaviour in childhood (at age 8 years and 13 years, respectively). Results Male offenders with alcohol problems (Finnish and Swedish) had significantly higher scores on psychopathy-related personality traits in adulthood than other subgroups, as indicated by higher impulsivity, muscular tension and lower socialization. They also displayed higher scores on teacher-rated aggressiveness in childhood than the non-criminal groups. The female subgroup displaying criminal activity was small. It did not differ significantly from non-offenders in adult personality characteristics. Female offenders, however, showed early indications of lower sociability (in Finland) and higher aggressiveness and disharmony in childhood than non-offenders (in Sweden). Discussion The study suggests that early problem behaviours are precursors of subsequent criminal activity in at least two cultures. The results emphasize the importance of longitudinal research programmes. Copyright © 2000 Whurr Publishers Ltd. [source] Altered sensorimotor development in a transgenic mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosisEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 10 2004Julien Amendola Abstract Most neurodegenerative diseases become manifest at an adult age but abnormalities or pathological symptoms appear earlier. It is important to identify the initial mechanisms underlying such progressive neurodegenerative disease in both humans and animals. Transgenic mice expressing the familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)-linked mutation (G85R) in the enzyme superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) develop motor neuron disease at 8,10 months of age. We address the question of whether the mutation has an early impact on spinal motor networks in postnatal mutant mice. Behavioural tests showed a significant delay in righting and hind-paw grasping responses in mutant SOD1G85R mice during the first postnatal week, suggesting a transient motor deficit compared to wild-type mice. In addition, extracellular recordings from spinal ventral roots in an in vitro brainstem,spinal cord preparation demonstrated different pharmacologically induced motor activities between the two strains. Rhythmic motor activity was difficult to evoke with N -methyl- dl -aspartate and serotonin at the lumbar levels in SOD1G85R mice. In contrast to lumbar segments, rhythmic activity was similar in the sacral roots from the two strains. These results strongly support the fact that the G85R mutation may have altered lumbar spinal motor systems much earlier than previously recognized. [source] LOXL as a target to increase the elastin content in adult skin: a dill extract induces the LOXL gene expressionEXPERIMENTAL DERMATOLOGY, Issue 8 2006Valérie Cenizo Abstract:, The lysyl oxidases lysyl oxidase (LOX) and lysyl oxidase-like (LOXL) are responsible for elastin cross-linking. It was shown recently that LOXL is essential for the elastic fibres homeostasis and for their maintenance at adult age. We first determined whether or not elastin, LOX and LOXL are less expressed during adulthood. The LOX and LOXL mRNA level, quantified by real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction decreased in adult skin fibroblasts compared with fibroblasts from children. In contrast, the elastin mRNA level remains stable at all ages. The goal of this study was to induce elastogenesis at the adult age. Therefore, both enzymes, and in particular LOXL, of which expression is the most affected by age, could be targeted to induce elastogenesis in adult skin. We screened a library of about 1000 active ingredients to find activators capable to stimulate specifically the LOXL gene expression in adult dermal fibroblasts. The positive effect of selected active ingredients was confirmed on fibroblasts grown on monolayers and on dermal and skin equivalent cultures. One extract, obtained from dill (LYS'LASTINE V, Engelhard, Lyon, France), stimulates the LOXL gene expression in dermal equivalents (+64% increase in the LOXL mRNA level when compared with control). At the same time, the elastin detection is increased in dermal equivalents and under the dermal,epidermal junction of skin equivalents, without increase of the elastin mRNA. In conclusion, LOXL can be considered as a new target to reinduce elastogenesis. Its stimulation by a dill extract is correlated with increased elastin detection, suggesting an increase in elastogenesis efficiency. [source] Force fluctuations during the Maximum Isometric Voluntary Contraction of the quadriceps femoris in haemophilic patientsHAEMOPHILIA, Issue 1 2007L.-M. GONZÁLEZ Summary., In the general population, the degenerative processes in joints are directly related to adult age, and osteoarthrosis represents the most frequent musculoskeletal alteration. In the haemophilic patient, the degenerative processes in the joint begin at very early ages, and are directly related to musculoskeletal bleeding episodes, which are occasionally subclinical and constitute haemophilic arthropathy. In the haemophilic patient, arthropathy constitutes the most frequent, severe and disabling pathology, and its assessment includes muscular force-related parameters. We have studied the value of Maximum Isometric Voluntary Contraction in the quadriceps femoris of 46 subjects, 28 haemophiliacs (16 severe, eight moderate and four mild) and 18 healthy individuals with a view to establishing appropriate values of force and to restoring physical therapy recommendations. The maximum force values were significantly greater (P < 0.001) in the healthy individuals group. The mild haemophiliacs group also presented significant differences of force (P < 0.05) in relation to the severe and moderate haemophilic patient groups. The mild and severe haemophilia patients presented greater fluctuations of force (P < 0.001) than the control group, the haemophilia group have a minor skill to produce constant force. The seriousness of the arthropathy in the knee is directly related to diminished values of maximum force. Our work evidences that patients with severe haemophilia present a greater degree of arthropathy in relation to moderate and mild haemophilia patients. Haemophilic arthropathy is associated with muscular atrophy and strength deficit. In haemophilic patients, the deficit of maximum force and the presence of fluctuations may suggest an increased risk of bleeding during physical activities and the need to programme specific physical therapy guidelines which increase muscular power through resistance training. [source] How Children and Parents Evaluate the Headache Centre's InterventionHEADACHE, Issue 2 2009Anna Ferrari MD Background., While adult headache patients' satisfaction with treatments has been widely investigated, less attention has been paid to children and adolescent headache patients' opinions and their parents' views. Objective., The aim of our follow-up survey was to analyze the outcomes of the Headache Centre's intervention and the evolution of headache according to patients until the age of 16 and their parents. Methods., We studied all outpatients suffering from episodic primary headache according to International Classification of Headache Disorders 2nd edition criteria, seen for the first time in 2005-2006 at the Headache Centre of the University Hospital of Modena (Italy), and at least one of their parents. The duration of the follow-up ranged from 1 to 3 years. For the purpose of the study, a specific questionnaire was created and administered by a telephone interview. Results., We enrolled 84 patients (38 females, 45%; 46 males, 55%; mean age ± SD: 12.9 ± 2.9 years) with primary headache: migraine without aura 66%, episodic tension-type headache 23%, migraine with aura 11%. At the follow-up, 70% of the patients reported that headache had improved; frequency had decreased significantly more than severity (P = .000, Fisher's exact test), both in those who had followed a prophylactic treatment and in those who had not. A high percentage of the children and parents could precisely indicate trigger factors for headache: especially excessive worrying and studying. The patients reporting an improvement attributed it to pharmacological prophylactic treatment, but also to other factors: first of all, better school results and more happiness than before. Seventy-seven percent of the parents thought that the Headache Centre's intervention had helped them to better understand and manage their children's headache. Conclusions., Children's and adolescents' headache has in most cases a favorable prognosis; the Headache Centre's intervention is considered effective by most parents. We must increase and focus therapeutic efforts addressed to the few patients with worsening headaches in spite of treatment, since these children's/adolescents' headache also is at risk to progress in the adult age. [source] Skeletal evidence for morbidity and mortality in Copper Age samples from northeastern HungaryINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OSTEOARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 1 2009D. H. Ubelaker Abstract Analysis of 183 human skeletons representing the Copper Age in northeastern Hungary indicates slightly less morbidity and mortality than found in previous studies of later Bronze Age and Iron Age samples from the same area. Mean adult age at death was 33.4 years for males and 32.9 years for females. Life table reconstruction revealed a life expectancy at birth of about 28 years, and at age 15 of about 17 years. Frequencies of dental hypoplasia (<1%) and carious lesions (2.3%) were relatively low. Comparisons of the Copper Age data reported here with previously published studies of later Bronze Age and Iron Age samples from the same area revealed little or no change in life expectancy at age 15, long bone diaphyseal circumference, estimated living stature, frequencies of dental hypoplasia, alveolar abscesses, tooth loss, adult porotic hyperostosis or trauma. Temporal increases were detected in life expectancy at birth, dental caries frequency, cribra orbitalia, subadult periosteal lesions and vertebral osteoarthritis. The study is part of a larger effort to examine long-term temporal changes in skeletal samples from that region. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] The necropolis of Vallerano (Rome, 2nd,3rd century AD): an anthropological perspective on the ancient Romans in the SuburbiumINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OSTEOARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 2 2006A. Cucina Abstract The present study investigates the skeletal remains of individuals who were part of a Roman suburban community, in order to assess lifestyle and living conditions in the town's outskirts during the Roman Imperial age. The existence of the community was linked to the functioning of one of the many villas that surrounded the town of Rome at that time. In order to assess health, several indicators were explored, including mortality, oral pathologies and specific (cribra orbitalia) and aspecific (linear enamel hypoplasia) indicators of nutritional and physiological impairment. The sample, which probably represents the labour force of the villa, shows a high number of individuals dying in the early adult age and very few living beyond 50. Subadults were frequently affected by pathological conditions which may indicate anaemia and/or inflammations and infections, as witnessed by the frequency of cribra orbitalia. Growth was also impaired, as the individuals suffered from systemic disturbances during the early years of life that led to the formation of linear enamel hypoplasia (LEH) in their teeth. Frequency of LEH is very high, as well as its multiple occurrence through time (2.44 defects per individual) and its onset occurs from the earliest age classes. Diet, on the other hand, does not seem to have been particularly carbohydrate based. Oral pathologies are very low, which is consistent with meat consumption complementing a diet rich in low-calorific products of agriculture and seemingly low in refined carbohydrates. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] A possible case of spondyloarthropathy in a prehistoric Japanese skeletonINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF OSTEOARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 3 2005K. Inoue Abstract Palaeopathology helps to define the migration of past diseases. Genetic and environmental factors play a role in the development of spondyloarthropathy (SpA). We report skeletal remains with SpA from the Jomon period in Japan. The skeleton is of a female who died at a young adult age. The skeleton had characteristic features seen in SpA as follows: (1) polyarticular arthritis; (2) erosions accompanying some bone formation; (3) enthesial ossification; and (4) periostitis in lower long bones. The findings suggest that SpA was present in prehistoric Japan before contact with European civilisation, and the present example of SpA is the oldest in Asia and the Old World. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Predictors and outcomes of persistent or age-limited registered criminal behavior: a 30-year longitudinal study of a Swedish urban populationAGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR, Issue 2 2009Lars R. Bergman Abstract This study uses data from the longitudinal research program Individual Development and Adaptation, where an entire school-grade cohort of children in a middle-size Swedish city (n,1.300) has been followed from ages 10 to 43 and 48 for women and men, respectively. Our findings indicate that the patterns of offending across the life-course differ between genders, where males seem to initiate their offending earlier than females. Further, there are very few women on a persistent offending-trajectory. Focusing on precursors to as well as consequences of offending as indexed in official registers, our results indicate that individuals in the persistent offender group have the most pronounced adjustment problems in school- as well as in middle age. Individual characteristics and behaviors (e.g., aggression, hyperactivity, antisocial behavior) vary systematically between individuals with different developmental offending patterns. The combination of an unstable upbringing and own antisocial behavior seems to be especially predictive for criminality. For persistent offenders, the prevalence of alcohol and psychiatric problems at adult age is high for males and extremely high for females (nine out of ten and six out of ten for each of the two problem types for females). Further, the importance for adjustment of the two-dimensional variation in the number of crimes committed during adolescence and adult age seems to have been surprisingly well captured by the "crude" division into the four offender groups that were used. Aggr. Behav. 35:164,178, 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Application of Three Dental Methods of Adult Age Estimation from Intact Single Rooted Teeth to a Peruvian SampleJOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES, Issue 3 2008Douglas H. Ubelaker Ph.D. Abstract:, Methods of estimating adult age at death from such dental features as root translucency, root length, and the extent of periodontosis in intact single rooted teeth have proven useful in studies of modern individuals, especially in estimating age in older adults. Questions remain however, concerning the impact of regional and population variation on accuracy. To examine this issue, three approaches to age estimation were applied to a diverse sample of 100 individuals from Peru. Mean errors of estimation for all three approaches were similar to those originally reported, suggesting minimal impact of population variation of the features measured. A new regression equation, specifically for Peruvian samples, is provided. [source] Estimation of Age-at-Death for Adult Males Using the Acetabulum, Applied to Four Western European Populations,JOURNAL OF FORENSIC SCIENCES, Issue 4 2007Carme Rissech Ph.D. Abstract:, Methods to estimate adult age from observations of skeletal elements are not very accurate and motivate the development of better methods. In this article, we test recently published method based on the acetabulum and Bayesian inference, developed using Coimbra collection (Portugal). In this study, to evaluate its utility in other populations, this methodology was applied to 394 specimens from four different documented Western European collections. Four strategies of analysis to estimate age were outlined: (a) each series separately; (b) on Lisbon collection, taken as a reference Coimbra collection; (c) on Barcelona collection, taken as a reference both Portuguese collections; and (d) on London collection taken as reference the three Iberian collections combined. Results indicate that estimates are accurate (83,100%). As might be expected, the least accurate estimates were obtained when the most distant collection was used as a reference. Observations of the fused acetabulum can be used to make accurate estimates of age for adults of any age, with less accurate estimates when a more distant reference collection is used. [source] Public Special Services Provided to People With Intellectual Disabilities in Sweden: A Life-Span PerspectiveJOURNAL OF POLICY AND PRACTICE IN INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES, Issue 4 2008Őie Umb-Carlsson ABSTRACT This study describes public special services, support, and health care provided to an administratively defined county sample of people with intellectual disabilities from early childhood to adult age. Comparisons were made on the variables year of birth, sex, and assessed level of intellectual disabilities in 1974. Information was obtained from case files and included the period from year of birth of the participants (between 1959 and 1974) to 2005. All participants were provided public special services, support, and health care either periodically or throughout the study period. Changes in legislation were reflected in the type of services, support, and health care provided to the target group. Type and amount of special services and support were related to year of birth. Only a few differences were related to sex and level of intellectual disabilities. These results indicate that public special services, support, and health care provided to people with intellectual disabilities reflect disability policy, legislation, and professional attitudes over different periods. It is suggested that measures were tailored to meet general needs considered to be shared by all people with intellectual disabilities rather than individual choices and wishes. The interaction among professionals emerged only to a limited extent. However, deficient information in the case files does not imply absence of contact between professional groups, but, if continuity in services, support, and health care is to be attained, significant improvement in documentation is required. [source] Antivirals and antibiotics for influenza in the United States, 1995,2002PHARMACOEPIDEMIOLOGY AND DRUG SAFETY, Issue 8 2005Jeffrey A. Linder MD Abstract Purpose To measure the rates of antiviral and antibiotic prescribing for patients diagnosed with influenza in the United States. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis of visits to ambulatory clinics and emergency departments in the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) and the National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS) with a diagnosis of influenza that occurred in seven influenza seasons between 1 October 1995 and 31 May 2002 (n,=,1216). Results There were an estimated 22 million visits (95%CI, 17,26 million visits) with a diagnosis of influenza to community ambulatory clinics (88% of visits), hospital ambulatory clinics (3%) and emergency departments (9%) in the United States between the 1995,1996 and the 2001,2002 influenza seasons, inclusive. The sample was 63% adults, 44% male and 84% white. Physicians prescribed antivirals in 19% of visits and antibiotics not associated with an antibiotic-appropriate diagnosis in 26% of visits. In multivariable modeling, independent predictors of antiviral prescribing were adult age (OR, 2.1; 95%CI, 1.1,4.0) and Medicare insurance (OR, 0.1 compared to private insurance; 95%CI, 0.0,0.6). Antiviral prescribing was marginally associated with influenza season (OR, 1.2 per influenza season; 95%CI, 1.0,1.4). Independent predictors of antibiotic prescribing were influenza season (OR, 0.8 per influenza season; 95%CI, 0.7,0.9), male sex (OR, 0.6; 95%CI, 0.4,0.9), adult age (OR, 2.3; 95%CI, 1.2,4.2) and emergency department visits (OR, 0.5 compared to community ambulatory visits; 95%CI, 0.3,0.8). Conclusions Physicians prescribed antiviral medications to 19% of patients they diagnosed with influenza; the proportion that would have been clinically appropriate is unknown. In contrast, physicians prescribed apparently inappropriate antibiotics to 26% of these same patients, a rate that, encouragingly, decreased over time. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Revisiting the Developmental Stage and Age-at-Death of the "Mrs.THE ANATOMICAL RECORD : ADVANCES IN INTEGRATIVE ANATOMY AND EVOLUTIONARY BIOLOGY, Issue 12 2008Ples" (Sts 5), Sts 14 Specimens from Sterkfontein (South Africa): Do They Belong to the Same Individual? Abstract During the 1947 fieldwork season, Member 4 (2-3 My) of the South African Sterkfontein site yielded two important Australopithecus africanus fossils: a cranium popularly nicknamed "Mrs. Ples" (Sts 5), and a partial skeleton (Sts 14). Previous reports have proposed that Sts 5 was a nonfully grown adolescent individual (Thackeray et al., S Afr J Sci 2002a;98:21,22), and that Sts 14 was a sub-adult specimen (according to various signs of immaturity in the skeleton) (Berge and Gommery, C R Acad Sci Paris, Sciences de la terre et des plančtes 1999;329:227,232; Häusler and Berger, J Hum Evol, 2001;40:411,417; Thackeray et al., S Afr J Sci, 2002b;98:211,212). It was subsequently proposed that these fossils actually belonged to the same individual (Thackeray et al., S Afr J Sci, 2002b;98:211,212), a proposition supported by their spatial positions within the site. The present work attempts to revise these different assertions. The results obtained: (i) show that the Sts 5 fossil represents a fully grown adult cranium; (ii) provide new evidence of immaturity in the Sts 14 skeletal elements (sustaining the proposed young adult age of this specimen), and (iii) suggest that although the revised ages-at-death for these fossils are partially compatible, there is no evidence to support the idea that they represent a single individual. Finally, the encephalization quotient associated with a hypothetical union of Sts 5 and Sts 14 (calculated using data from both specimens) lies between the upper and lower limits of the currently estimated range for this species and H. habilis, respectively. Anat Rec, 2008. © 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Sex, age, and family differences in the chemical composition of owl monkey (Aotus nancymaae) subcaudal scent secretionsAMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 1 2008Edith A. MacDonald Abstract Numerous behavioral studies have shown that animals use olfactory cues as inbreeding avoidance or kin avoidance mechanisms, implying that scent is unique to families. However, few studies have analyzed the chemical profile of a scent and ascertained the messages that are conveyed in scent secretions. Owl monkeys (Aotus nancymaae) are socially monogamous primates that utilize scent when interacting with foreign conspecifics. This suggests there is a difference in the chemical composition of scent marks. We chemically analyzed sub-caudal gland samples from three families of captive owl monkeys (Aotus nancymaae). Samples were analyzed by capillary GC-MS and relative retention time and fragment pattern was compared with known standards. Gland samples were high in large plant-based shikikate metabolites and fatty ketones; alcohols, acids, and acetates were virtually absent. Gender, age, and family could be reliably classified using discriminant analysis (92.9, 100, and 100%, respectively). Female scent profiles were greater in concentration of aromatic plant metabolites, possibly the result of a different diet or physiological differences in female metabolism as compared to male. Offspring of adult age still living in their natal group showed a less complex chemical profile than their parents. Finally, each family had its own unique and complex chemical profile. The presence of family scent may play a role in mediating social interactions. Am. J. Primatol. 70:12,18, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] CHARGE syndrome as unusual cause of hypogonadism: endocrine and molecular evaluationANDROLOGIA, Issue 5 2010L. Foppiani Summary Coloboma, heart defect, atresia choanae, retarded growth and development, genital hypoplasia, ear anomalies (CHARGE) syndrome is a genetic syndrome in which hypogonadism is a frequent feature. A causative mutation within the chromodomain helicase DNA-binding protein-7 gene, which plays an important role in the embryonic development, is present in 2/3 of affected patients. We describe the clinical, hormonal and molecular characteristics of a young man from Ecuador who was diagnosed as having CHARGE syndrome at an adult age. The patient showed several phenotypic features of the syndrome, associated with a prepubertal state and cryptorchidism; hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism with undetectable testosterone levels not responsive to hCG testing and severe osteoporosis were ascertained. Molecular evaluation of the CHD7 gene showed the novel frameshift truncating heterozygous mutation p.Tyr1046Glyfs*23 in exon 12. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed mild hypoplasia of the pituitary gland and hypoplasia of the posterior cranial fossa. Parenteral testosterone therapy led to sexual development over time and, in combination with diphophonate therapy and calcium,vitamin D supplementation, significantly improved bone mineralisation. Early proper hormonal treatment of hypogonadism in patients with complex genetic syndromes is important to achieve normal sexual maturation, improve quality of life and avoid significant comorbidities, such as osteoporosis. [source] Diabetic rat testes: morphological and functional alterationsANDROLOGIA, Issue 6 2009G. Ricci Summary Reproductive dysfunction is a consequence of diabetes, but the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. This study investigated the histological and molecular alterations in the testes of rats injected with streptozotocin at prepuperal (SPI rats) and adult age (SAI rats) to understand whether diabetes affects testicular tissue with different severity depending on the age in which this pathological condition starts. The testes of diabetic animals showed frequent abnormal histology, and seminiferous epithelium cytoarchitecture appeared altered as well as the occludin distribution pattern. The early occurrence of diabetes increased the percentage of animals with high number of damaged tubules. The interstitial compartment of the testes was clearly hypertrophic in several portions of the organs both in SPI and SAI rats. Interestingly, fully developed Leydig cells were present in all the treated animals although abnormally distributed. Besides the above-described damages, we found a similar decrease in plasma testosterone levels both in SPI and SAI rats. Oxidative stress (OS) is involved in the pathogenesis of various diabetic complications, and in our experimental models we found that manganese superoxide dismutase was reduced in diabetic animals. We conclude that in STZ-induced diabetes, the altered spermatogenesis, more severe in SPI animals, is possibly due to the effect of OS on Leydig cell function which could cause the testosterone decrease responsible for the alterations found in the seminiferous epithelium of diabetic animals. [source] Prostanoid release and constrictor responses to noradrenaline in the rat mesenteric vascular bed in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitusAUTONOMIC & AUTACOID PHARMACOLOGY, Issue 3 2001H. A. Peredo 1,The administration of streptozotocin (STZ) to 2-day old rats induced a non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM)-like state, with mild hyperglycaemia and no alterations in body weight at the adult age. 2,In the isolated and perfused mesenteric vascular bed of NIDDM animals, the constrictor responses to either noradrenaline (NA) or potassium chloride (KCl) were not modified as compared with age-matched non-diabetic controls. 3,The reduction in NA contractions induced by the cyclooxygenase inhibitor, 10 ,M indomethacin in the control group was absent in the NIDDM rats. 4,The increase in the NA-induced contractions caused by endothelium removal was suppressed by indomethacin in the controls but not in the NIDDM group. 5,The prostanoid release from the mesenteric vascular beds of NIDDM rats was markedly reduced as compared with non-diabetic controls. Noradrenaline increased production of the constrictor prostaglandin (PG) F2, in control but not in NIDDM rats. 6,In summary, these results show that in STZ-induced NIDDM rats, there is an impairment of the prostanoid production, as well as a suppression of the role of prostanoids in the contractile effects of NA in the mesenteric vascular bed. These alterations are more severe than those previously observed in a model of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), in which hyperglycaemia and reduction of body weight were more marked. The conclusion is that, in these models of diabetes and in the preparation studied, vascular alterations and modifications of glycaemia and body weight are not closely related. [source] Daily ingestion of green tea catechins from adulthood suppressed brain dysfunction in aged miceBIOFACTORS, Issue 4 2008Keiko Unno Abstract Oxidative damage is believed to be an important cause of senescence. We have previously found that green tea catechins (GT-catechin), potent antioxidants, decrease oxidative damage to DNA and suppress brain dysfunction in aged senescence-accelerated mice (SAMP10) when ingested from the age of 1 month to the age of 12 months. To clarify the effect of GT-catechin on suppression of brain senescence, we investigated the effect of starting period to ingest GT-catechin. Six- or 9-month-old SAMP10 mice were allowed free access to water containing 0.02% GT-catechin. SAMP10 mice exhibit senescence characteristics such as shortened life span, atrophied forebrain and lowered learning and memory abilities. Learning ability was significantly higher in mice that ingested GT-catechin from the age of 6 months to 12 months when compared with same-aged control mice drank water without GT-catechin. Starting GT-catechin intake from the age of 9 months tended to improve learning ability. The ages of 6 and 9 months are thought to be adult and middle ages, respectively in SAMP10 mice. This result suggested that GT-catechin was helpful in suppressing brain dysfunction with aging even when ingestion started at the adult age. [source] White matter disorders with autosomal dominant heredity: a review with personal clinical case studies and their MRI findingsACTA NEUROLOGICA SCANDINAVICA, Issue 5 2010C. Sundal Sundal C, Ekholm S, Andersen O. White matter disorders with autosomal dominant heredity: a review with personal clinical case studies and their MRI findings. Acta Neurol Scand: 2010: 121: 328,337. © 2009 The Authors Journal compilation © 2009 Blackwell Munksgaard. Background,,, Leukoencephalopathies are a heterogeneous group of severe encephalopathy syndromes with myelin, axonal or vascular pathology, typically with extensive white matter lesions on MRI T2-FSE and/or -FLAIR sequences. Objectives,,, This review is restricted to leukoencephalopathies with onset in adult age and a dominant inheritance. These diseases are generally severe and often lethal and present with an exacerbating or insidiously progressive course. Material and methods,,, The focus is on four syndromes with pure leukoencephalopathies, however, leukoencephalopathies with associated clinical features are included. Results,,, T2 weighted MR imaging often show features common for leukoencephalopathies, yet shows distinguishing features in transthyretin amyloidosis. Conclusion,,, The diagnosis within the group of leukoencephalopathies thus characterized by MRI relies mainly upon clinical and genetic analysis. The differential diagnosis against treatable leukoencephalopathies is increasingly relevant. [source] Prolonged effect of a single serotonin treatment in adult age on the serotonin and histamine content of white blood cells and mast cells of ratsCELL BIOCHEMISTRY AND FUNCTION, Issue 2 2003G. Csaba Abstract Hormonal imprinting was provoked by serotonin treatment in adult age. Three weeks after treatment with 100,,g serotonin, the serotonin and histamine content of peritoneal cells (mast cells, lymphocytes and the monocyte,macrophage,granulocyte group), white blood cells (lymphocytes, granulocytes and monocytes) and thymic lymphocytes was studied by flow cytometry. The content of both amines was significantly higher in the mast cells of males and lower in females. Blood lymphocytes contained a higher serotonin and histamine level in males, and a lower serotonin level in females. The peritoneal monocyte,macrophage,granulocyte group contained less serotonin in both males and females. Thymocytes contained higher levels of both amines in females and higher histamine level in males. The experiments demonstrate that a single treatment at adult age can provoke imprinting, which alters,in the present case,the serotonin and histamine content of immune cells durably. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Oculometry findings in high myopia at adult age: considerations based on oculometric follow-up data over 28 years in a cohort-based Danish high-myopia seriesACTA OPHTHALMOLOGICA, Issue 4 2010Hans C. Fledelius Abstract. Purpose:, To present and discuss oculometry data in a series of adults with high myopia followed between the ages of 26 and 54 years. Emphasis is on axial length (AL) findings and corneal curvature radius (Crad). Methods:, Thirty-four out of the 39 individuals recruited as teenagers from a Copenhagen 1948 birth cohort with myopia of at least 6 D have had current follow-up exams, to include AL measurements (by ultrasound, 1974,2002; the latter year also with the Zeiss IOLMaster) and keratometry. The cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses are based primarily on the eyes with high myopia; however, the fellow eye is also assessed in unilateral cases. Results:, At age 54 years, the maximum myopia in the series was ,26 D; the highest AL value was 35.4 mm. The myopia had increased in most, with an increase from the 26-year oculometry baseline averaging 1.0 D [standard deviation (SD) 1.84]. Ultrasound measurements over the 28 years gave a significant correlation between axial eye elongation and myopia progression of adult age (r = 0.65). The regression line was y = 0.43 + 0.36x, with myopia increase on the x-axis. Throughout sessions, the association between AL and refraction was given by correlation coefficients numerically above 0.8, whereas AL and Crad had r -values of 0.3,0.5. However, a mean Crad in the sample of 7.66 (SD 0.28) mm meant that the more general expectancy of rather flat corneas in high myopia was not fulfilled. Our data further suggested a reduction in lens power over the study period. Conclusion:, In relation to refraction, AL and Crad remain the two main oculometry parameters. Apparently the correlation patterns regarding the cornea that are broadly valid for axial ametropia in the population cannot be extended to the marginal high myopia tail of the distribution. A significant proportion of eyes with high myopia thus had steeper corneas than expected, as a so-called index contribution (albeit a small one) to the marginal refractive error. [source] Glucocorticoid receptor gene variant is associated with increased body fatness in youngstersCLINICAL ENDOCRINOLOGY, Issue 4 2009Paul G. Voorhoeve Summary Objective, Sensitivity to glucocorticoids is known to be highly variable between individuals and is partly determined by polymorphisms in the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) gene. We investigated the relationship between four GR gene polymorphisms and body composition during puberty and at young adult age. Design, An observational study with repeated measurements. Patients, Two comparable young Dutch cohorts with a generational difference of about 20 years were investigated. The first cohort consisted of 284 subjects born between 1961 and 1965. Measurements were performed from 13 to 36 years of age. The second cohort consisted of 235 subjects born between 1981 and 1989. Measurements were performed from 8 to 14 years of age. Measurements, Associations between height, weight, BMI, fat mass (FM) and fat-free mass and four well-known functional polymorphisms were investigated. Results, In boys in the younger cohort, the G-allele of the BclI polymorphism (haplotype 2) was associated with a higher body weight, weight-SDS, BMI, BMI-SDS and FM. These associations were not observed in the older cohort. Irrespective of genotype, the younger cohort showed a significantly higher total FM, body weight and BMI compared with the older cohort. Conclusions, Because the associations between the G-allele of the BclI polymorphism in the GR gene and body FM in boys were only found in a healthy young population, but not in a comparable, generally leaner cohort from an older generation, it is suggested that carriers of this polymorphism are likely to be more vulnerable to fat accumulation in today's obesity promoting environment, than noncarriers. [source] Caloric Restriction Inhibits Seizure Susceptibility in Epileptic EL Mice by Reducing Blood GlucoseEPILEPSIA, Issue 11 2001Amanda E. Greene Summary: ,Purpose: Caloric restriction (CR) involves underfeeding and has long been recognized as a dietary therapy that improves health and increases longevity. In contrast to severe fasting or starvation, CR reduces total food intake without causing nutritional deficiencies. Although fasting has been recognized as an effective antiseizure therapy since the time of the ancient Greeks, the mechanism by which fasting inhibits seizures remains obscure. The influence of CR on seizure susceptibility was investigated at both juvenile (30 days) and adult (70 days) ages in the EL mouse, a genetic model of multifactorial idiopathic epilepsy. Methods: The juvenile EL mice were separated into two groups and fed standard lab chow either ad libitum (control, n = 18) or with a 15% CR diet (treated, n = 17). The adult EL mice were separated into three groups; control (n = 15), 15% CR (n = 6), and 30% CR (n = 3). Body weights, seizure susceptibility, and the levels of blood glucose and ketones (,-hydroxybutyrate) were measured over a 10-week treatment period. Simple linear regression and multiple logistic regression were used to analyze the relations among seizures, glucose, and ketones. Results: CR delayed the onset and reduced the incidence of seizures at both juvenile and adult ages and was devoid of adverse side effects. Furthermore, mild CR (15%) had a greater antiepileptogenic effect than the well-established high-fat ketogenic diet in the juvenile mice. The CR-induced changes in blood glucose levels were predictive of both blood ketone levels and seizure susceptibility. Conclusions: We propose that CR may reduce seizure susceptibility in EL mice by reducing brain glycolytic energy. Our preclinical findings suggest that CR may be an effective antiseizure dietary therapy for human seizure disorders. [source] Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor-subunit mRNAs in the mouse superior cervical ganglion are regulated by development but not by deletion of distinct subunit genesJOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE RESEARCH, Issue 5 2008G. Putz Abstract Mice with deletions of nicotinic ACh receptor (nAChR) subunit genes are valuable models for studying nAChR functions. We could previously show in the mouse superior cervical ganglion (SCG) that the absence of distinct subunits affects the functional properties of receptors. Here, we have addressed the question of whether deletions of the subunits ,5, ,7, or ,2 are compensated at the mRNA level, monitored by reverse transcription and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Relative to our reference gene, ,3, which is expressed in all SCG nAChRs, mRNA levels of ,4 showed little change from birth until adult ages in intact ganglia of wild-type mice. In contrast, ,4 declined sharply after birth and was barely detectable in adult animals. ,5, ,7, and ,2 subunit message levels also declined, though more slowly and less completely than ,4. The subunits ,6 and ,3 were detected by conventional polymerase chain reaction at very low levels, if at all, whereas ,2 was never seen in any of our samples. The developmental profile of nAChR mRNA levels in the three knockout strains did not differ markedly from that of wild-type mice. Likewise, message levels of nAChR subunits were similar in cultures prepared from either wild-type or knockout animals. Our observations indicate a developmental regulation of nAChR subunit mRNAs in the SCG of mice after birth that was not affected by the three knockouts under investigation. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Causes of Male Excess Mortality: Insights from Cloistered PopulationsPOPULATION AND DEVELOPMENT REVIEW, Issue 4 2003Marc Luy The degree to which biological factors contribute to the existence and the widening of mortality differences by sex remains unclear. To address this question, a mortality analysis for the years 1890 to 1995 was performed comparing mortality data on more than 11,000 Catholic nuns and monks in Bavarian communities living in very nearly identical behavioral and environmental conditions with life table data for the general German population. While the mortality differences between women and men in the general German population increased considerably after World War II, they remained almost constant among the members of Bavarian religious orders during the entire observation period, with slight advantages for nuns. Thus, the higher differences observable in the general population cannot be attributed to biological factors. The different trends in sex-specific mortality between the general and the cloistered populations are caused exclusively by men in the general population who were unable to follow the trend in mortality reduction of women, nuns, and especially monks. Under the special environmental conditions of nuns and monks, biological factors appear to confer a maximum survival advantage for women of no more than one year in remaining life expectancy at young adult ages. [source] Population density of migratory and resident brown trout (Salmo trutta) in relation to altitude: evidence for a migration costJOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY, Issue 1 2001T. Bohlin Abstract 1For anadromous salmonids, the positive relations found in previous studies between adult size/age and stream characteristics suggest that the migration cost increases with stream length, water discharge and the altitude of the spawning site. In this study we hypothesized that the altitude of the spawning site is positively related to the migration effort. 2Life-history theory predicts (i) that the equlibrium egg density, which is a fitness measure, thereby will decline more rapidly with altitude in migratory than in stream-resident populations, and therefore (ii) that residency will be selected for at large enough altitudes. 3As the density of juveniles is a function of egg density, we hypothesized that (a) altitude has stronger effect on juvenile density in migratory than in resident populations, and (b) juvenile density is larger in migratory than in resident populations. 4We tested (a) and (b) using multivariate methods for electrofishing data from 164 sea-migratory and 167 stream-resident populations of brown trout Salmotrutta L. in Sweden. Both predictions were supported; the juvenile density was larger and declined more rapidly with altitude in migratory than in resident populations. 5The results are further evidence that migration costs reduce fitness in anadromous salmonids. [source] Panic and suicidal ideation and suicide attempts: results from the National Comorbidity SurveyDEPRESSION AND ANXIETY, Issue 3 2006M.P.H., Renee D. Goodwin Ph.D. Abstract Our objective was to determine the association between panic attacks (PAs) and panic disorder (PD), and suicidal ideation (SI) and suicide attempts (SAs) in a nationally representative sample of adults in the community. Data were drawn from the National Comorbidity Survey (n=5,877), a representative household sample of adults ages 15,54 in the United States. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between current and lifetime PA and PD and SI and SA, adjusting for differences in demographic characteristics, comorbid mental disorders (major depression, alcohol dependence, and substance dependence), childhood trauma (physical and sexual abuse), and number of lifetime mental disorders. Past-year and lifetime PA and PD were associated with increased SI (both past year and lifetime), and persisted after adjusting for comorbidity and early trauma. Associations between PA and SA were no longer statistically significant after adjusting for comorbidity. Past-year and lifetime PD were associated with lifetime SA, but these associations were no longer statistically significant after adjusting for comorbidity. Past-year and lifetime PD were associated with past-year SA, and this association persisted after adjusting for demographics, comorbidity, and number of lifetime mental disorders. These findings are consistent with previous results, and further help to clarify the relationships between panic and suicide behavior by identifying potential methodological reasons for inconsistencies in results from previous studies. Depression and Anxiety 23:124,132, 2006. © 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] fMRI study of language lateralization in children and adultsHUMAN BRAIN MAPPING, Issue 3 2006Jerzy P. Szaflarski Abstract Language lateralization in the brain is dependent on family history of handedness, personal handedness, pathology, and other factors. The influence of age on language lateralization is not completely understood. Increasing left lateralization of language with age has been observed in children, while the reverse has been noted in healthy young adults. It is not known whether the trend of decreasing language lateralization with age continues in the late decades of life and at what age the inflection in language lateralization trend as a function of age occurs. In this study, we examined the effect of age on language lateralization in 170 healthy right-handed children and adults ages 5,67 using functional MRI (fMRI) and a verb generation task. Our findings indicate that language lateralization to the dominant hemisphere increases between the ages 5 and 20 years, plateaus between 20 and 25 years, and slowly decreases between 25 and 70 years. Hum Brain Mapp, 2005. © 2005 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||