Loneliness and biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease, axonal damage, and astrogliosis: A coordinated analysis of two longitudinal cohorts.

Objectives: Loneliness is associated with an elevated risk of dementia. There is mixed evidence from imaging studies on whether loneliness is associated with neuropathology in dementia-free adults. This study tests whether loneliness is associated with plasma neurobiomarkers of amyloid (Aβ42/Aβ40), phosphorylated tau 181 (pTau181), neurofilament light chain (NfL), and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and imaging measures of amyloid and tau.

A Meta-analysis of Loneliness and Risk of Dementia using Longitudinal Data from >600,000 Individuals.

Loneliness is one critical risk factor for cognitive health. Combining data from ongoing aging studies and the published literature, we provided the largest meta-analysis on the association between loneliness and dementia ( = 21 samples, = 608,561) and cognitive impairment ( = 16, = 103,387). Loneliness increased risk for all-cause dementia (HR = 1.

Associations of personality traits with actigraphic sleep in middle-aged and older adults.

Although prior studies have examined associations of personality traits with sleep, most have investigated self-reported sleep, been cross-sectional, and focused on younger and middle-aged adults. We investigated associations of personality with actigraphic sleep parameters and changes in sleep in 398 cognitively normal adults aged 40-95 years (M ± SD = 70.1 ± 12.

Design and Test of a Calibration System for Avalanche Photodiodes Used in X-Ray Compton Polarimeters for Space.

The development and calibration of a measurement system designed for assessing the performance of the avalanche photodiodes (APDs) used in the Compton scattering polarimeter of the CUSP project is discussed in this work. The designed system is able to characterize the APD gain GAPD and energy resolution across a wide range of temperatures (from -20 °C to +60 °C) and bias voltages Vbias (from 260 V to 410 V). The primary goal was to experimentally determine the GAPD dependence on the and Vbias in order to establish a strategy for stabilizing GAPD by compensating for fluctuations, acting on Vbias.

Coping Styles as Mediators Between Purpose in Life and Cognitive Function: A Longitudinal Study.

This study tests associations between purpose in life and coping, and whether coping mediates the association between purpose and cognitive function. Longitudinal data from the Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) study were used to investigate associations between purpose at MIDUS I and coping at MIDUS II ( = 2386). Emotion-focused and problem-focused coping were tested as mediators between purpose and cognitive function (memory, executive function, global cognition) at MIDUS III.

Infantile epileptic spasms syndrome: When spasms come out of the blue.

Background: This study evaluates the electroclinical features of infantile epileptic spasms syndrome (IESS) suddenly appearing in previously normal patients, aiming to describe clinical outcomes and independent predictors.

Method: We retrospectively selected a homogeneous group of patients with IESS from two Italian centers. All patients had normal development prior to IESS onset and a follow-up period lasting at least one year.

Meaning in life and neurobiomarkers of brain health in the UK Biobank.

This study examines meaning in life and four neurobiomarkers implicated in dementia risk: amyloid-β 42 to 40 ratio, phosphorylated tau-181, neurofilament light, and glial fibrillary acidic protein. Adults without dementia (= 1150; = 59.89) from the UK Biobank reported their meaning in life; neurobiomarkers were assayed twice Meaning in life was unrelated to the biomarkers at either assessment (βs range -0.

Meaning in life and all-cause and cause-specific mortality in the UK Biobank.

Objective: To determine the association between meaning in life and all-cause and cause-specific mortality, and whether associations vary by depression or sociodemographic factors.

Methods: Participants were UK Biobank cohort members who reported on their meaning in life in the mental health assessment from October 2016 to July 2017 (N = 153,505). All-cause mortality and cause-specific mortality were identified from ICD-10 codes from national death registries through December 2022.

Daily relationship satisfaction and markers of health: Findings from a smartphone-based assessment.

Relationship satisfaction is associated consistently with better physical and mental health. Less is known about these associations in daily life, particularly the association between relationship satisfaction and cognitive health. This study examined the daily, within-person association between relationship satisfaction and subjective health markers, including cognitive health.

Purpose in life and grip strength: An individual-participant meta-analysis of 115,972 participants from 24 countries across four continents.

This research examines the replicability and generalizability of the association between purpose in life and grip strength. An individual-participant meta-analysis of 27 samples (total N=115,972) from 24 countries that spanned four continents (Asia, Europe, North and South America) with self-reported purpose in life and dynamometer-assessed grip strength. Purpose in life was associated with stronger grip strength in every sample and aggregated in a random-effects meta-analysis (meta-analytic estimate=.

Perception of one's social environment and loneliness: results of the nationally representative "Old age in Germany (D80+)" study.

Objectives: To examine the association between perception of one's social environment (in terms of residential attachment and neighborhood trust) and loneliness among the oldest old and whether these associations differ by living arrangement.

Methods: We used data from the nationally representative "Old Age in Germany (D80+)" study that included individuals residing in private households and institutionalized settings. The analytic sample was 9,621 individuals (average age: 85.

The mediational role of hearing acuity in the association between personality and memory: Evidence from the health and retirement study and the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing.

Objectives: Personality traits (i.e., the enduring patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors) are associated with cognition across adulthood.

Purpose in Life and Cognitive Function in the Malaysian Ageing and Retirement Study.

Objectives: Evidence for the association between purpose in life and cognitive health is primarily from North American and European samples. This study evaluates this association in a large sample from Malaysia, an upper-middle-income country in Southeast Asia.

Methods: Participants ( = 5,579) from the Malaysian Ageing and Retirement Study reported on their purpose in life and subjective memory and were administered tasks that measured episodic memory, verbal fluency, and overall cognitive function.

Momentary Associations Between Physical Activity, Affect, and Purpose in Life.

Background: Physical activity is associated with both the hedonic (e.g., affect) and eudaimonic (e.

POLR3B de novo variants are a rare cause of infantile myoclonic epilepsy.

Purpose: To report on a new phenotype in a patient carrying a novel, undescribed de novo variant in POLR3B, affected by generalized myoclonic epilepsy and neurodevelopmental disorder, without neuropathy. It is known that biallelic pathogenic variants in POLR3B cause hypomyelinating leukodystrophy-8, and heterozygous de novo variants are described in association to a phenotype characterized by predominantly demyelinating sensory-motor peripheral neuropathy, ataxia, spasticity, intellectual disability and epilepsy, in which the peripheral neuropathy is often the main clinical presentation.

Methods: We collected clinical, electrophysiological and neuroimaging data from the affected subject and performed a Trio-Clinical Exome Sequencing.

Perceived Weight Discrimination and General Coping Strategies.

Background: Perceived weight discrimination is associated consistently with worse health outcomes. Coping strategies may be one mechanism of this association. The present research examined the association between perceived weight discrimination and strategies used to cope with general stress (not weight-specific) and whether these strategies accounted for part of the association with markers of health.

Purpose in life and stress: Momentary associations from a micro-longitudinal study.

Purpose in life is an aspect of well-being associated with less subjective stress. The present research sought to expand this literature by testing the association between both dispositional and momentary purpose with stress in daily life using a micro-longitudinal study design. Participants (N = 303) reported their dispositional purpose at baseline and reported their momentary purpose and stress three times a day for 8 days.

Personality and Transition From Mild Cognitive Impairment to Normal Cognition vs Dementia.

Objectives: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is a critical stage preceding incident dementia, but not all individuals with MCI progress to dementia and some revert to normal cognition. This study examined whether personality is associated with the probability of transition from MCI to normal cognition or dementia.

Design: Longitudinal observational study.

Personality traits and measures of neuropsychiatric symptoms.

Objectives: Changes in personality and behavioral symptoms are a core clinical criterion for the diagnosis of dementia. This study examines the association between caregiver-rated personality traits and multiple measures of neuropsychiatric symptoms.

Method: Caregivers of individuals with dementia ( = 191) or cancer ( = 137) provided premorbid and concurrent personality trait ratings using the Big Five Inventory-2.

Life Events and Incident Dementia: A Prospective Study of 493,787 Individuals Over 16 Years.

Objectives: Life events can be stressful and have a detrimental impact on health, but evidence is inconclusive regarding life events and dementia risk. The present study tests whether life events are associated with incident dementia, whether experiencing multiple events has cumulative effects, and whether the associations vary across age, sex, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and genetic vulnerability.

Methods: UK Biobank participants (N = 493,787) reported on 6 life events that occurred within the past 2 years: serious illness, injury, assault to yourself or close relative, death of a spouse/partner or close relative, marital separation/divorce, and financial problems.