Proteogenomic Evaluation of Cerebrospinal Fluid in Alzheimer's Disease.

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a complex disorder with a strong genetic component, yet many genetic risk factors remain unknown. Integrating genome‐wide association studies (GWAS) and high‐throughput proteomic platforms is a useful strategy to evaluate protein quantitative trait loci (pQTLs) and to detect candidate genes and pathways involved in AD. Due to the novelty of these techniques, the identification of reliable protein measures through a comprehensive quality control is mandatory.

Circulating stress hormones and multimodal measures of brain and cognition in older adults: Cross‐sectional findings from the AGE‐WELL cohort.

Background: Increased stress, a proposed risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease (AD), is associated with increased brain and cognitive vulnerabilities in older populations, which may be different in women and men.

Objective: To examine cross‐sectional associations between circulating stress hormones (epinephrine, norepinephrine, cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS), and DHEAS/cortisol ratio) and multimodal measures of brain health and cognition sensitive to AD.

Method: 132 cognitively unimpaired older participants without clinical depression (age = 74.

Sex‐specific risk profiles associated with Alzheimer’s disease markers in cognitively unimpaired older adults.

Background: Despite evidence that sex can modulate Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk, whether risk factors are similarly related to AD markers in women and men remains largely unexplored. We aimed to assess how a combination of potentially modifiable risk factors are associated with cognitive and pathological markers of AD in older women and men.

Method: We included 135 cognitively unimpaired older adults (≥65 years old, 83 women; Table 1) from the Age‐Well trial (NCT02977819; baseline data) with multidomain assessments of modifiable risk factors, including cardiovascular (body mass index, systolic blood pressure, LDL cholesterol), lifestyle (complex mental activity throughout life, physical activity, diet), and psychological (quality of life, depressive and anxiety symptoms, rumination, worry).

Loneliness and Alzheimer’s disease: Testing associations using univariable and multivariable Mendelian randomisation models.

Background: Social isolation, encompassing factors like living alone and limited social contact, is associated with increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). One theory is that loneliness, which is the negative psychological affect often associated with social isolation, mediates the relationship between social isolation and AD. Mendelian randomization (MR) approaches that have thus far been used to investigate causal relationships between loneliness and dementia risk have not supported results from observation studies.

Association between digital biomarkers and anxiety: a systematic review and meta‐analysis.

Background: Anxiety, both generalised anxiety disorder and anxiety symptoms, has been recognised as a risk factor and prodromal symptom of dementia. Digital biomarkers are gaining interest as proxy markers for mental health because they enable passive and continuous data collection, allowing for early detection. However, the association between digital biomarkers and anxiety remains unknown.

Sex‐specific risk profiles associated with Alzheimer’s disease markers in cognitively unimpaired older adults.

Background: Despite evidence that sex can modulate Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk, whether risk factors are similarly related to AD markers in women and men remains largely unexplored. We aimed to assess how a combination of potentially modifiable risk factors are associated with cognitive and pathological markers of AD in older women and men.

Method: We included 135 cognitively unimpaired older adults ( = 65 years old, 83 women; Table 1) from the Age‐Well trial (NCT02977819; baseline data) with multidomain assessments of modifiable risk factors, including cardiovascular (body mass index, systolic blood pressure, LDL cholesterol), lifestyle (complex mental activity throughout life, physical activity, diet), and psychological (quality of life, depressive and anxiety symptoms, rumination, worry).

Depressive symptoms in older adults are associated with changes in stress-related markers, functional connectivity and brain volume.

Background: Subclinical depressive symptoms increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD). The neurobiological mechanisms underlying this link may involve stress system dysfunction, notably related to the hippocampus which is particularly sensitive to AD. We aimed to investigate the links between blood stress markers and changes in brain regions involved in the stress response in older adults with or without subclinical depressive symptoms.

Decoding meditation mechanisms underlying brain preservation and psycho-affective health in older expert meditators and older meditation-naive participants.

Meditation is a mental training approach that can improve mental health and well-being in aging. Yet the underlying mechanisms remain unknown. The Medit-Ageing model stipulates that three mechanisms - attentional, constructive, and deconstructive - upregulate positive psycho-affective factors and downregulate negative ones.

Effect of an 18-Month Meditation Training on Telomeres in Older Adults: A Secondary Analysis of the Age-Well Randomized Controlled Trial.

Background: Shorter telomeres are associated with increased risk of cognitive decline and age-related diseases. Developing interventions to promote healthy aging by preserving telomere integrity is of paramount importance. Here, we investigated the effect of an 18-month meditation intervention on telomere length (TL) measures in older people without cognitive impairment.

Meditation dosage predicts self- and teacher-perceived responsiveness to an 18-month randomised controlled trial.

Understanding the factors that predict why some individuals perceive to respond more to meditation training than others could impact the development, efficacy, adherence levels, and implementation of meditation-based interventions. We investigated individual-level variables associated with self- and teacher-perceived responsiveness to longer-term meditation training. This study presents a secondary analysis of the Age-Well trial (NCT02977819, 30/11/2016) and includes 90 healthy older adults (65-84 years) that were randomised to an 18-month meditation training or a non-native language (English) training.

Effectiveness of psychological therapies for depression and anxiety in atypical dementia.

Introduction: People with dementia may benefit from psychological therapies for depression or anxiety, but evidence of their effectiveness in atypical dementia is limited.

Methods: Using electronic health-care records of > 2 million people who attended psychological therapy services in England between 2012 and 2019, we examined pre-post therapy symptom changes and compared therapy outcomes among 523 people with atypical dementia, a matched cohort without dementia, and 1157 people with typical dementia.

Results: People with atypical dementia experienced reductions in depression (Cohen d = -0.

Relative Uptake of Tomato Carotenoids by In Vitro Intestinal and Prostate Cancer Cells.

Background: Consumption of tomatoes and tomato carotenoids is associated with a reduced risk of prostate cancer. Prostate tissue accumulates tomato carotenoids, including lycopene, β-carotene, and phytoene. Phytoene accumulation is relatively greater in the prostate than that of lycopene, but the metabolic determinants of tissue carotenoid profiles are poorly understood.

Punishment-resistant alcohol intake is mediated by the nucleus accumbens shell in female rats.

Alcohol use is widespread across many societies. While most people can control their alcohol use, a vulnerable sub-population develops alcohol use disorder, characterized by continued alcohol use despite negative consequences. We used a rat model of alcohol self-administration despite negative consequences to identify brain activity associated with this addiction-like behaviour.

Worry and ruminative brooding: associations with cognitive and physical health in older adults.

Introduction: Mental health conditions are associated with cognition and physical function in older adults. We examined whether worry and ruminative brooding, key symptoms of certain mental health conditions, are related to subjective and/or objective measures of cognitive and physical (cardiovascular) health.

Methods: We used baseline data from 282 participants from the SCD-Well and Age-Well trials (178 female; age = 71.

The evolution of subjective cognition after meditation training in older people: a secondary analysis of the three-arm age-well randomized controlled trial.

Aging is associated with cognitive changes, even in the absence of brain pathology. This study aimed to determine if meditation training, by comparison to active and passive control groups, is linked to changes in the perception of cognitive functioning in older adults. One hundred thirty-four healthy older participants from the Age-Well Randomized Clinical Trial were included: 45 followed a meditation training, 45 a non-native language training and 44 had no intervention.

The criteria used to rule out mild cognitive impairment impact dementia incidence rates in subjective cognitive decline.

Background: The research criteria for subjective cognitive decline (SCD) exclude mild cognitive impairment (MCI), but do not stipulate the use of specific MCI criteria. This study compared different approaches to defining (i.e.

Impacts of fire and prospects for recovery in a tropical peat forest ecosystem.

Uncontrolled fires place considerable burdens on forest ecosystems, compromising our ability to meet conservation and restoration goals. A poor understanding of the impacts of fire on ecosystems and their biodiversity exacerbates this challenge, particularly in tropical regions where few studies have applied consistent analytical techniques to examine a broad range of ecological impacts over multiyear time frames. We compiled 16 y of data on ecosystem properties (17 variables) and biodiversity (21 variables) from a tropical peatland in Indonesia to assess fire impacts and infer the potential for recovery.

Associations Between Repetitive Negative Thinking and Objective and Subjective Sleep Health in Cognitively Healthy Older Adults.

Objective: Poor sleep and high levels of repetitive negative thinking (RNT), including future-directed (ie, worry) and past-directed (ie, brooding) negative thoughts, have been associated with markers of dementia risk. The relationship between RNT and sleep health in older adults is unknown. This study aimed to investigate this association and its specificities including multiple dimensions of objective and subjective sleep.

Impact of mindfulness-based and health self-management interventions on mindfulness, self-compassion, and physical activity in older adults with subjective cognitive decline: A secondary analysis of the SCD-Well randomized controlled trial.

Introduction: Older adults experiencing subjective cognitive decline (SCD) have a higher risk of dementia. Reducing this risk through behavioral interventions, which can increase emotional well-being (mindfulness and compassion) and physical activity, is crucial in SCD.

Methods: SCD-Well is a multicenter, observer-blind, randomized, controlled, superiority trial.

Lateral hypothalamic GABAergic neurons encode alcohol memories.

In alcohol use disorder, the alcohol memories persist during abstinence, and exposure to stimuli associated with alcohol use can lead to relapse. This highlights the importance of investigating the neural substrates underlying not only relapse but also encoding and expression of alcohol memories. GABAergic neurons in the lateral hypothalamus (LH-GABA) have been shown to be critical for food-cue memories and motivation; however, the extent to which this role extends to alcohol-cue memories and motivations remains unexplored.

Predictors of primary care psychological therapy outcomes for depression and anxiety in people living with dementia: evidence from national healthcare records in England.

Background: Psychological therapies can be effective in reducing symptoms of depression and anxiety in people living with dementia (PLWD). However, factors associated with better therapy outcomes in PLWD are currently unknown.

Aims: To investigate whether dementia-specific and non-dementia-specific factors are associated with therapy outcomes in PLWD.

Neurocognitive correlates of semantic memory navigation in Parkinson's disease.

Cognitive studies on Parkinson's disease (PD) reveal abnormal semantic processing. Most research, however, fails to indicate which conceptual properties are most affected and capture patients' neurocognitive profiles. Here, we asked persons with PD, healthy controls, and individuals with behavioral variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD, as a disease control group) to read concepts (e.