Editors:
Natalia Gavrilova and Stacy Tessler Lindau
Demography: Babies make a
comeback
The population
of some wealthy countries is shrinking because of a
declining birth rate. It comes as a surprise, and one with policy
implications, that after a certain point of development that trend can
reverse.
Sex
Hormone-Binding Globulin and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes in Women and Men
Circulating sex hormone-binding globulin levels are
inversely associated with insulin resistance, but whether these levels
can predict the risk of developing type 2 diabetes is uncertain.
ORIGINAL
CONTRIBUTION: Physical Activity, Diet, and Risk of Alzheimer Disease
Both higher adherence to a Mediterranean-type diet
and more physical activity have been independently associated with
lower Alzheimer disease (AD) risk but their combined association has
not been investigated.
ORIGINAL
CONTRIBUTION: Adherence to a Mediterranean Diet, Cognitive Decline, ...
Higher adherence to a Mediterranean-type diet is
linked to lower risk for mortality and chronic diseases, but its
association with cognitive decline is unclear.
REVIEW:
Sexual Abuse and Lifetime Diagnosis of Somatic Disorders: A Systemati...
Many patients presenting for general medical care have a history
of sexual abuse. The literature suggests an association between a
history of sexual abuse and somatic sequelae.
ORIGINAL
CONTRIBUTION: CSF Biomarkers and Incipient Alzheimer Disease in Pati...
Small single-center studies have shown that
cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers may be useful to identify
incipient Alzheimer disease (AD) in patients with mild cognitive
impairment (MCI), but large-scale multicenter studies have not been
conducted.
EDITORIAL:
Use of Alzheimer Disease Biomarkers: Potentially Yes for Clinical ...
Biomarkers
and Aging in the News Media
• Low-carb
diets 'damage arteries'
Low-carb
slimming diets may clog arteries, increasing the risk of heart attacks
and strokes, a study suggests.
• Basics:
Brain Is a Co-Conspirator in a Vicious Stress Loop
Chronic stress
changes the brain, but relaxation can change it back.
• Newsweek:
MRI test may help assess Alzheimer's risk
• Heart
Attack Survival Rates Rise
Americans aged
65 and older are becoming more likely to survive the
first month after heart attack hospitalization, new research shows.
• Cancer
Death Rate Is Going Down in U.S.
Death rates from
cancer have been decreasing in all age groups in
recent years, but the steepest declines have been among younger people,
a new study shows.
• Gene
Cuts Need for Sleep
Researchers have
found the first gene linked to sleep behavior. People
with the rare gene are truly refreshed by only 6 hours' sleep -- and no
naps -- each day.
• Sleep
Less, Get Diabetes
Sleeping too
little for too long raises the risk of diabetes, a University of
Chicago study suggests.
• Mediterranean
Diet Plus Exercise Cuts Alzheimer's Risk
New studies
confirm that the Mediterranean diet lowers risk of
Alzheimer's disease and dementia. A new finding: Exercise adds to this
benefit.
• Breastfeeding
May Cut Breast Cancer Risk
Women with a
family history of breast cancer who have ever breastfed
reduce their risk of getting premenopausal breast cancer by nearly 60%,
according to a new study.
• Fat
In The Liver -- Not The Belly -- May Be A Better Marker For Disease Risk
New findings
from nutrition researchers suggest that it's not whether
body fat is stored in the belly that affects metabolic risk factors for
diabetes, high blood triglycerides and cardiovascular disease, but
whether it collects in the liver.
• Cancer's
Break-in Tools Possibly Identified: Nematode Worm Provides Model Of ...
A single cell in
a one-millimeter nematode worm is providing valuable
new clues into cancer's deadliest behavior -- its ability to put down
roots in new tissues after spreading throughout the body.
• Link
Between Erectile Dysfunction And Obesity Explored In Obesity And Weight
...
Obese men are at
increased risk for erectile dysfunction, likely caused
by atherosclerosis-related hypertension and cardiovascular disease, as
well as hormonal changes associated with obesity.
• Higher
Level Of Testosterone In Women Linked To Choice Of Risky Careers
Higher levels of
testosterone are associated with a greater appetite
for risk in women. The link between risk aversion and testosterone
predicted career choice: individuals who were high in testosterone and
low in risk aversion chose riskier careers in finance.
• More
Obesity Blues: Obese People Are At Greater Risk For Developing
Alzheimer...
Researchers have
found that obese people had 8 percent less brain
tissue than people with normal weight, while overweight people had 4
percent less tissue in their frontal lobes.
• Why
'Thick' Blood Protects From A Heart Attack
"Thick" blood
can cause heart attack and stroke, but also prevent them.
Scientists have explained the mechanism of this clinical paradox for
the first time on an animal model. Mice with a greater tendency to form
blood clots have larger plaques in their vessels, but they are more
stable. Thus, there is less risk that these plaques will rupture and
obstruct circulation.
• Dementia
link to 'mid-life ills'
People who
smoke, have high blood pressure or diabetes in mid-life raise their
risk of developing dementia, experts say.
• Vital
Signs: Mildly High Cholesterol at Midlife Linked to Alzheimer's
Even a slight
elevation in cholesterol levels in a person's 40s raised the risk of
dementia decades later.
• Well:
Divorce, It Seems, Can Make You Ill
Even remarriage
can't relieve all the stress of a marital loss.
• Really?:
The Claim: Cold Temperatures Improve Sleep
Does sleeping in
a colder room help you sleep?
• Studies
Find Low Vitamin D Levels, Risk of Diseases in Children
Millions of U.S.
children have disturbingly low Vitamin D levels,
possibly increasing their risk for bone problems, heart disease,
diabetes and other ailments, according to two new studies that provide
the first national assessment of the crucial nutrient in young
Americans.
• Flustered
Rats Stuck in a Rut
Chronic stress
makes rodents bad decision-makers
• Mental
Stimulation From Puzzles, Games May Delay Memory Loss
A recent study
finds that increased participation in activities that
stimulate the brain may delay onset of dementia-related memory decline
in older seniors.
• Social
Stress Linked To Harmful Fat Deposits, Heart Disease
A new study
shows that social stress could be an important precursor to
heart disease by causing the body to deposit more fat in the abdominal
cavity, speeding the harmful buildup of plaque in blood vessels, a
stepping stone to the No. 1 cause of death in the world.
• Twin
Study Examines Associations Between Depression And Coronary Artery
Disease
Major depression
and coronary artery disease are only modestly related
throughout an individual's lifetime, but studying how the two interact
over time and in twin pairs paints a more complex picture of the
associations between the conditions, according to a new report. For
example, the association between coronary artery disease onset and
major depression risk is much stronger over time than vice versa.
NIH
Press Releases
Francis S.
Collins, M.D., Ph.D., Sworn in as NIH Director
Francis S.
Collins, M.D., Ph.D., today became the 16th director of the
National Institutes of Health. He was nominated to lead the NIH, the
nation's premiere biomedical research agency, by President Barack Obama
on July 8, and was unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate on August 7.
Hormone
Cycling Found to Affect Gene Activity
Intermittent
signaling by steroid hormones can affect the way genes are
expressed in rodents, according to research by scientists at the
National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of
Health, and the Henry Wellcome Laboratories for Integrative
Neuroscience and Endocrinology, Bristol, England.
Imitation
Promotes Social Bonding in Primates
Imitation, the
old saying goes, is the sincerest form of flattery. It
also appears to be an ancient interpersonal mechanism that promotes
social bonding and, presumably, sets the stage for relative strangers
to coalesce into groups of friends, according to a study by a team of
scientists at the National Institutes of Health and two Italian
research institutions.
Gene
Therapy One Year Later: Patients Healthy and Maintain Early Visual
Impro...
Three young
adults who received gene therapy for a blinding eye
condition remained healthy and maintained previous visual gains one
year later, according to an August online report in Human Gene Therapy.
One patient also noticed a visual improvement that helped her perform
daily tasks, which scientists describe in an Aug. 13 letter to the
editor in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Risk of
Pancreatic Cancer Linked to Variation in Gene that Determines Blood Type
Common variants
of the gene that determines human blood type are
associated with an increased risk of pancreatic cancer, according to a
study by scientists at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the
National Institutes of Health, and colleagues from many universities
and research institutions. The study, published online Aug. 2, 2009, in
Nature Genetics, is consistent with an observation first made more than
50 years ago.
NIH Study
Finds Low Short-term Risks After Bariatric Surgery for Extreme Obesity
Short-term
complications and death rates were low following bariatric
surgery to limit the amount of food that can enter the stomach,
decrease absorption of food or both, according to the Longitudinal
Assessment of Bariatric Surgery (LABS-1). The study was funded by the
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
(NIDDK), part of the National Institutes of Health. Results are
reported in the July 30 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Sun
Exposure May Trigger Certain Autoimmune Diseases in Women
Ultraviolet (UV)
radiation from sunlight may be associated with the
development of certain autoimmune diseases, particularly in women,
according to a study by researchers at the National Institute of
Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of the National Institutes
of Health.
NIH
Announcements
NIA
Intervention Testing Program Solicits Proposals for Compounds to Test
for Anti-Aging Activity in Mice
NOT-AG-09-007 Receipt for Proposals: December 18, 2009
Effects
of Gene-Social Environment Interplay on Health and Behavior in Later
Life (R01)
RFA-AG-10-006 Expiration date: 2009/11/10
Healthy
Aging through Behavioral Economic Analyses of Situations (R01)
RFA-AG-10-008 Expiration date: 2009/11/03
Network
Infrastructure Support for Emerging Behavioral and Social Research
Areas in Aging (R24)
PAR-09-233 Expiration date: 2010/09/28
Exploratory
Innovations in Biomedical Computational Science and Technology (R21)
PAR-09-219 Expiration date: 2012/09/08
Administrative
Supplements for Pilot Studies on Health Span Measurements in Mice
AG-09-006 Expiration date: 2009/09/02
Awards
to Support Research on the Biology of Aging in Invertebrates (R01)
RFA-AG-10-004 Expiration date: 2009/10/31
Building
Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (K12)
RFA-OD-09-006 Expiration date: 2009/10/23
The
Human Connectome Project (U54)
RFA-MH-10-020 Expiration date: 2009/11/25
Development
and Validation of Disease Biomarkers (R01)
(PA-09-204)
Identification and Characterization of
Sensitive Periods for Neurodevelopment...
Request for Applications from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
Innovations
in Biomedical Computational Science and Technology (R01)
Program
Announcement from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
Innovations
in Biomedical Computational Science and Technology Initiative (SB...
Program
Announcement from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
Innovations
in Biomedical Computational Science and Technology Initiative (ST...
Program
Announcement from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
Nutrition
and Physical Activity Research to Promote Cardiovascular and Pulmon...
Program
Announcement from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
Nutrition
and Physical Activity Research to Promote Cardiovascular and Pulmon...
Program
Announcement from the NIH Guide for Grants and Contracts
Events
Gerontological
Society of America Annual meeting will be held
November 18-22, 2009 in Hilton and Marriott Marquis,
This Newsletter is supported
by a grant from the National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of
Health (Grant No. 5 P30 AG012857)
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