Acylcarnitines are associated with lower depressive symptomatology in a mainland puerto rican cohort.

Introduction: Recent studies have implicated acetyl-L-carnitine as well as other acylcarnitines in depression. To our knowledge, no untargeted metabolomics studies have been conducted among US mainland Puerto Ricans.

Objectives: We conducted untargeted metabolomic profiling on plasma from 736 participants of the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study.

Gut Microbiome Multi-Omics and Cognitive Function in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos- Investigation of Neurocognitive Aging.

Introduction: conducted a study within the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos- Investigation of Neurocognitive Aging (HCHS/SOL-INCA) cohort to examine the association between gut microbiome and cognitive function.

Methods: We analyzed the fecal metagenomes of 2,471 HCHS/SOL-INCA participants to, cross-sectionally, identify microbial taxonomic and functional features associated with global cognitive function. Omnibus (PERMANOVA) and feature-wise analyses (MaAsLin2) were conducted to identify microbiome-cognition associations, and specific microbial species and pathways (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG modules) associated with cognition.

Prevalence of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer's Disease Identified in Veterans in the United States.

Background: Diagnostic codes can be instrumental for case identification in Alzheimer's disease (AD) research; however, this method has known limitations and cannot distinguish between disease stages. Clinical notes may offer more detailed information including AD severity and can complement diagnostic codes for case identification.

Objective: To estimate prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD using diagnostics codes and clinical notes available in the electronic healthcare record (EHR).

Metabolites and Cognitive Decline in a Puerto Rican Cohort.

Background: Recent studies have identified plasma metabolites associated with cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease; however, little research on this topic has been conducted in Latinos, especially Puerto Ricans.

Objective: This study aims to add to the growing body of metabolomics research in Latinos to better understand and improve the health of this population.

Methods: We assessed the association between plasma metabolites and global cognition over 12 years of follow-up in 736 participants of the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study (BPRHS).

Metabolites and MRI-Derived Markers of AD/ADRD Risk in a Puerto Rican Cohort.

Objective: Several studies have examined metabolomic profiles in relation to Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (AD/ADRD) risk; however, few studies have focused on minorities, such as Latinos, or examined Magnetic-Resonance Imaging (MRI)-based outcomes.

Methods: We used multiple linear regression, adjusted for covariates, to examine the association between metabolite concentration and MRI-derived brain age deviation. Metabolites were measured at baseline with untargeted metabolomic profiling (Metabolon, Inc).

Clinical and outcome comparison of genetically positive vs. negative patients in a large cohort of suspected familial hypocalciuric hypercalcemia.

Objective: Biochemical suspicion of familial hypocalciuric hypercalcemia (FHH) might provide with a negative (FHH-negative) or positive (FHH-positive) genetic result. Understanding the differences between both groups may refine the identification of those with a positive genetic evaluation, aid management decisions and prospective surveillance. We aimed to compare FHH-positive and FHH-negative patients, and to identify predictive variables for FHH-positive cases.

Sociocultural factors associated with persistent prescription opioid use (PPOU) among Puerto Rican adults in Massachusetts.

Background: Increasing numbers of opioid-overdose deaths have been witnessed among Hispanics and other underserved populations in Massachusetts. Puerto Rican adults (PRs) have a disproportionately higher prevalence of chronic diseases than non-Hispanic White adults-conditions linked to increased prescription opioid use and misuse. Stress indicators, including low acculturation, low social support, and perceived discrimination, have been recognized as correlates of chronic diseases.

Metabolomics and Self-Reported Depression, Anxiety, and Phobic Symptoms in the VA Normative Aging Study.

Traditional approaches to understanding metabolomics in mental illness have focused on investigating a single disorder or comparisons between diagnoses, but a growing body of evidence suggests substantial mechanistic overlap in mental disorders that could be reflected by the metabolome. In this study, we investigated associations between global plasma metabolites and abnormal scores on the depression, anxiety, and phobic anxiety subscales of the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) among 405 older males who participated in the Normative Aging Study (NAS). Our analysis revealed overlapping and distinct metabolites associated with each mental health dimension subscale and four metabolites belonging to xenobiotic, carbohydrate, and amino acid classes that were consistently associated across all three symptom dimension subscales.

Levodopa-refractory hyperprolactinemia and pituitary findings in inherited disorders of biogenic amine metabolism.

Elevated serum prolactin concentrations occur in inherited disorders of biogenic amine metabolism because dopamine deficiency leads to insufficient inhibition of prolactin secretion. This work from the International Working Group on Neurotransmitter Related Disorders (iNTD) presents the results of the first standardized study on levodopa-refractory hyperprolactinemia (LRHP; >1000 mU/L) and pituitary magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) abnormalities in patients with inherited disorders of biogenic amine metabolism. Twenty-six individuals had LRHP or abnormal pituitary findings on MRI.

EPPO ontology: a semantic-driven approach for plant and pest codes representation.

The agricultural industry and regulatory organizations define strategies and build tools and products for plant protection against pests. To identify different plants and their related pests and avoid inconsistencies between such organizations, an agreed and shared classification is necessary. In this regard, the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO) has been working on defining and maintaining a harmonized coding system (EPPO codes).

Metagenomics of the Gut Microbiome in Parkinson's Disease: Prodromal Changes.

Objective: Prior studies on the gut microbiome in Parkinson's disease (PD) have yielded conflicting results, and few studies have focused on prodromal (premotor) PD or used shotgun metagenomic profiling to assess microbial functional potential. We conducted a nested case-control study within 2 large epidemiological cohorts to examine the role of the gut microbiome in PD.

Methods: We profiled the fecal metagenomes of 420 participants in the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study with recent onset PD (N = 75), with features of prodromal PD (N = 101), controls with constipation (N = 113), and healthy controls (N = 131) to identify microbial taxonomic and functional features associated with PD and features suggestive of prodromal PD.

Association between Acid-Lowering Agents, Metformin, and Vitamin B12 among Boston-Area Puerto Ricans.

Background: Vitamin B12 involves several physiological functions, and malabsorption is reported with medication use.

Objectives: Studies have reported an inverse association between the use of metformin or acid-lowering agents (ALAs), such as proton pump inhibitors, histamine 2 receptor antagonists, and blood vitamin B12 concentration, because of malabsorption. The concomitant use of these medications is underreported.

The epidemiology of mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's disease and related dementia in U.S. veterans.

Introduction: US veterans have a unique dementia risk profile that may be evolving over time.

Methods: Age-standardized incidence and prevalence of Alzheimer's disease (AD), AD and related dementias (ADRD), and mild cognitive impairment (MCI) was estimated from electronic health records (EHR) data for all veterans aged 50 years and older receiving Veterans Health Administration (VHA) care from 2000 to 2019.

Results: The annual prevalence and incidence of AD declined, as did ADRD incidence.

Different risk factors distinguish myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome from severe fatigue.

Fatigue is a common reason that patients seek medical care. Only a fraction of these patients meet criteria for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS). To determine if ME/CFS is just a more extreme form of fatigue, or a qualitatively different condition, we assessed whether risk factors for ME/CFS and for Severe Fatigue were similar.

Co-occurrence of mutations in and other susceptibility genes in pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma.

Introduction: The percentage of patients diagnosed with pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma (altogether PPGL) carrying known germline mutations in one of the over fifteen susceptibility genes identified to date has dramatically increased during the last two decades, accounting for up to 35-40% of PPGL patients. Moreover, the application of NGS to the diagnosis of PPGL detects unexpected co-occurrences of pathogenic allelic variants in different susceptibility genes.

Methods: Herein we uncover several cases with dual mutations in NF1 and other PPGL genes by targeted sequencing.

Proton Pump Inhibitor Use and Cognitive Function in the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study.

Background: There is a lack of consensus among studies on the association between proton pump inhibitor (PPI) use and cognitive impairment. This association is not well studied among minority populations, including among Puerto Ricans. Therefore, we sought to examine this association among Boston-area Puerto Ricans.

Volumetric study of brain MRI in a cohort of patients with neurotransmitter disorders.

Purpose: Inborn errors of neurotransmitters are rare monogenic diseases. In general, conventional neuroimaging is not useful for diagnosis. Nevertheless, advanced neuroimaging techniques could provide novel diagnosis and prognosis biomarkers.

Association of Diabetes and Hypertension With Brain Structural Integrity and Cognition in the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study Cohort.

Background And Objectives: The Boston Puerto Rican Health Study (BPRHS) is a longitudinal study following self-identified Puerto Rican older adults living in the Greater Boston area. Studies have shown higher prevalence of hypertension (HTN) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) within this ethnic group compared to age-matched non-Hispanic White adults. In this study, we investigated the associations of HTN and T2D comorbidity on brain structural integrity and cognitive capacity in community-dwelling Puerto Rican adults and compared these measures with older adult participants (non-Hispanic White and Hispanic) from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) and National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center (NACC) databases.

Identity mediates inequity and flourishing among racially minoritized and international undergraduate college students.

Objective: Racially minoritized individuals can simultaneously experience both oppression and flourishing (ie, positive mental health). This study examines identity connection as a mediator of this relationship.

Participants: Undergraduates at a large, private university ( = 771), 59.

Adherence to Mediterranean Diet and Depressive Symptomatology Among Boston Area Puerto Ricans.

Background: Higher Mediterranean diet (MeD) adherence has been linked with lower depressive symptomatology, but research examining this association is limited, especially among Latinos, including mainland U.S. Puerto Ricans.

MIND Diet and Cognitive Function in Puerto Rican Older Adults.

Background: Healthy diets have been associated with better cognitive function. Socioeconomic factors including education, poverty, and job complexity may modify the relationship between diet and cognition.

Methods: We used adjusted linear mixed models to examine the association between long-term adherence to the Mediterranean-Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension - Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet and cognitive function over 8 years of follow-up in Puerto Rican adults residing in the Boston, MA area (aged 45-75 years at baseline).

Overview of the Microbiome Among Nurses study (Micro-N) as an example of prospective characterization of the microbiome within cohort studies.

A lack of prospective studies has been a major barrier for assessing the role of the microbiome in human health and disease on a population-wide scale. To address this significant knowledge gap, we have launched a large-scale collection targeting fecal and oral microbiome specimens from 20,000 women within the Nurses' Health Study II cohort (the Microbiome Among Nurses study, or Micro-N). Leveraging the rich epidemiologic data that have been repeatedly collected from this cohort since 1989; the established biorepository of archived blood, urine, buccal cell, and tumor tissue specimens; the available genetic and biomarker data; the cohort's ongoing follow-up; and the BIOM-Mass microbiome research platform, Micro-N furnishes unparalleled resources for future prospective studies to interrogate the interplay between host, environmental factors, and the microbiome in human health.