CCBAR Newsletter – February-March, 2008

Editors:  Natalia Gavrilova and Stacy Tessler Lindau

CCBAR News: 2008 Biomeasures Workshop Update

Since 2003, the University of Chicago and NORC Center on Demography and Economics of Aging Core on Biomarkers in Population Based Health and Aging Research (CCBAR), has hosted a series of successful, annual interdisciplinary workshops bringing together predominantly senior and mid-career social scientists with biomedical researchers interested in the biological mechanisms through which social relationships and factors influence health and health behaviors.  Each year, attendance has grown and we have seen a core of recurring participants representing many NIA-funded research groups.  Participants have also included junior faculty and students as well as researchers funded by other NIH entities, predominantly NICHD.  Our 5th annual workshop, held in June, 2007, was our first internationally-focused meeting which attracted researchers from NIA-funded and other studies around the world.  Evaluations have been consistently positive with high ratings for likelihood of returning to future meetings.  Over time, other workshops and training opportunities have arisen that overlap with our reach to the relevant research community.  Participation from the other NIA-funded Centers on Aging, for example, has been lower than we would like.  With five years' experience under our belts, and a rapidly evolving research community, we have decided that a best next step would be to convene a small working group to plan for the next “generation” of workshops.  Two small group meetings have been organized to re-invigorate and possibly refocus the annual Biomeasures Workshop. These will be held in New Orleans, Thursday, April 17 between 3 and 5 pm and Friday, May 23, 2008 in Chicago. Please contact Jessica Schwartz at jschwartz@babies.bsd.uchicago.edu for more information.  
 

CCBAR Report: Using dried blood spots for detecting herpes simplex and varicella zoster viruses

by A. Gomero

Herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1), herpes simplex virus-2 (HSV-2), and varicella-zoster virus (VZV) are among viruses humans experience most commonly in populations of all ages. These are recognized by their pathology, including infection of cells, central nervous system infections, and life-threatening disease (Whitley 2004). Early diagnosis and treatment of these viruses is important to minimize effects of infection (Lewensohn-Fuchs et al 2003; Opstelten et al 2003). Assays using dried blood spots to diagnose infection by HSV-1, HSV-2, and VZV offer rapid diagnostic techniques (Lewensohn-Fuchs et al 2003) and diagnostic advantages in resource-limited locations (Opstelten et al 2003).

We were unable to identify any local laboratories that currently offer these assays. Studies have been conducted on the viability of using dried blood spots as a diagnostic method for HSV-1,  HSV-2, and VZV. A study conducted in Sweden used minimal essential medium extraction (MEM), available from Invitrogen lab, to detect HSV-1 and HSV-2 DNA by PCR in dried blood spots of neonates (Lewensohn-Fuchs et al 2003). The children had verified neonatal infection, as a result of maternal infection in 27 out of 28 cases. Infection was verified by PCR technique in CSF or serum, vesicle virus isolation, or serology. Maternal infections had been verified by sera analysis. Results suggest that in order for HSV to be detected in the blood spot, the child must be in a viremic period, 5 days before and 6 days after onset of herpes. This assay was highly sensitive in analysis of cytomegalovirus, also in Sweden (Fischler et al 1999). However, in the Lewensohn-Fuchs investigation it had low sensitivity of only 7 positive found out of 28. There was also a study in the Netherlands on diagnosis of herpes zoster from dried blood spots, compared to diagnosis based on clinical judgment (Opstelten et al 2003). The assay for this study was referenced as Enzygnost, Dade Behring, Marburg, Germany. Clinical diagnosis was confirmed in 90.8% of patients by the presence of VZV-IgM, VZV-IgA, or VZV-IgG antibodies. Specificity and sensitivity could not be assessed because the study only confirmed physician clinical diagnosis. Findings, however, suggest that for VZV, dried blood spots are a convenient method of serological investigation.

1. Fischler, B., P. Rodensjo, et al. (1999). "Cytomegalovirus DNA detection on Guthrie cards in patients with neonatal cholestasis." Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed 80(2): F130-4.
2. Lewensohn-Fuchs, I., P. Osterwall, et al. (2003). "Detection of herpes simplex virus DNA in dried blood spots making a retrospective diagnosis possible." J Clin Virol 26(1): 39-48.
3. Opstelten, W., A. M. van Loon, et al. (2007). "Clinical diagnosis of herpes zoster in family practice." Ann Fam Med 5(4): 305-9.
4. Whitley, R.J. (2004). Herpes Simplex Virus. Infections of the Central Nervous System. W. M. Scheld, R. J. Whitley and C. M. Marra: 123.

NSHAP News

The National Social Life Health and Aging Project (NSHAP) is proud to announce the *NSHAP Early Results Conference*, an NIA funded, competitive workshop to present findings on integrated health and aging research using the first wave of the NSHAP data. NSHAP data include detailed information on physical and mental health; social networks and support; and sexual and intimate partnerships.  Both interview and biomeasure data were collected from 3005 adults aged 57-85.

We invite you to submit research proposals using the NSHAP data. Proposals will be reviewed for relevance to aging and health, multi-disciplinary approach and scientific validity. Researchers with accepted proposals will be invited to present their results at the conference.  Travel and expenses will be reimbursed for presenters.

Workshop Dates:  January 28th and 29th, 2009
Deadline for submission: May 1, 2008
Obtaining the Data: The data are available through the National Archive of Computerized Data on Aging.  Data access requires human subjects approval.
Contact:  For proposal format and submission requirements, please contact Sara Leitsch at Leitsch-Sara@norc.org

News From the NEJM, Nature Journals, Science, BMJ and PNAS

• Vitamin E 'may ward off decline'
Vitamin E may play a role in warding off physical decline in elderly people, research suggests.
• Getting in Shape Reduces Death Risk
The more fit you are, the longer you're likely to live, according to a large study of veterans that applies to black men as well as white men. The Veterans Affairs researchers found that the "highly fit" men in the study had half the risk of death as those who were the least fit. Being "very highly fit" cut the risk even more, by 70 percent....
• Western Diet Ups Heart, Diabetes Risk
Indulging in a typical Western diet of burgers, fries, and diet soda boosts your risk of getting heart disease and diabetes, a study shows.
• Chronic Fatigue, Stress Hormone Linked
Women with chronic fatigue syndrome may have lower morning levels of the stress hormone cortisol than healthy women, experts report.
• Calcium: Heart Risk For Older Women?
Calcium supplements, generally thought to preserve both bone and heart health, may boost the risk of heart disease in healthy postmenopausal women, according to New Zealand researchers.
• Study Links Vitamin C To Stroke Risk
Though the science behind it continues to confound researchers, a new study shows clearly that getting a healthy dose of vitamin C through eating fruit and vegetables can greatly reduce the risk of stroke.
• On sex after prostate surgery, confusing data
One of the biggest fears for men undergoing prostate surgery is impotence, but research doesn't do much to clarify risk.
• Sedentary life 'speeds up ageing'
Leading a sedentary lifestyle may make us genetically old before our time, research suggests.
• Testosterone seen unrelated to prostate cancer risk
Natural levels of a man's testosterone do not affect his prostate cancer risk as some had thought, a finding that should spur scientists to rethink their approach to the disease, researchers said on Tuesday.
• Lead Linked to Aging in Older Brains
Could it be that the "natural" mental decline that afflicts many older people is related to how much lead they absorbed decades before?...
• Male Circumcision No Aid to Women in Study
Expectations that circumcision among men would reduce the risk of their female sexual partners becoming infected with AIDS were refuted by a new study.
• Addiction may be linked to hunger
People whose mothers lived through a famine during their first trimester of pregnancy appear to have a greater risk of addiction, ...
• Elderly Women Hard Hit By Depression
Older women are more likely to suffer from symptoms of depression and remain depressed for a longer period of time than men, a new study shows.
• Wealth 'may not lead to health'
Economic growth does not always lead to better health or lower child mortality, new research suggests.
• Being overweight may raise cancer risk
Being obese or even overweight may increase a person's risk of developing up to a dozen different types of cancer, European researchers ...
• More Heart Deaths In Nation's Future?
U.S. heart disease prevalence stopped going down in the mid-1990s -- and may now be going up in younger adults, a Mayo Clinic study shows.
• Living To 100 Is Easier Than You Think
Surprising new research suggests that even people who develop heart disease or diabetes late in life have a decent shot at reaching the century mark. It may be due to doctors who refuse to believe older people won't benefit from treatment.
• Mood Can Impact Heart Health
Research shows the mind-body connection is more than a myth. Moods, particularly bad moods, can affect our physical well-being. Taking steps to calm stress, or manage anger or depression can have positive long-term effects on heart health.
• Childhood Respiratory Disease Boosts Illness And Death Risks In Adulthood, St...
Respiratory disease, particularly bronchitis, in early childhood boosts the risks of illness and premature death in adulthood, indicates new research. The researchers base their findings on around 10,000 male graduates who went to Glasgow University between 1948 and 1968 and agreed to be part of a long term study to track their health.
• Race May Affect Macular Degeneration
Whites over the age of 65 may face a higher risk of losing their sight due to macular degeneration than African-Americans.
• Vital Signs: Antioxidants may reduce cataract risk in women
The antioxidants vitamin E and lutein, from both food and supplements, may reduce women's risk for cataracts, researchers report.
• Gentlemen, 5 easy steps to living long and well
Five behaviors in elderly men are associated not only with living into extreme old age, a new study has found, but also with good health and independent functioning.
• 'Testosterone link' to depression
Older men with less male sex hormone testosterone could be more prone to depression, research suggests.
• Too Old, Too Fast
Stem cell identity crisis might explain "accelerated aging" disease
• Psychological Distress, Not Depression, Linked To Increased Risk Of Stroke
Psychological distress, but not depression, may increase the risk of stroke, according to a new study published in Neurology. Previous studies have shown that stroke often leads to depression, but the evidence was mixed as to whether depression could lead to stroke.
• Good marriage may be good for blood pressure
A happy marriage is good for your blood pressure, but a stressed one can be worse than being single, a preliminary study suggests.
• Anxiety Advantage For Elderly Women?
Anxious elderly women, but not men, may live longer than their calmer peers, experts announce at the American Psychosomatic Society's annual meeting.
• Sense of Smell May Predict Parkinson's
A poor sense of smell may help predict Parkinson's disease in elderly men, researchers report in the journal Neurology.
• Will Whole Genome Research Result In Genetic Profiling?
Interest in whole-genome research has grown substantially over the past few months. But what are the ethics issues associated with this work? In whole-genome research, participants quickly lose control over access to their personal information, and they run the risk of "genetic profiling."
• Parents' High Blood Pressure Associated With Increased Risk Of Hypertension T...
Individuals who have one or two parents with hypertension appear to have a significantly increased risk of developing elevated blood pressure throughout their adult lives, according to a new report.


NIH Press Releases

Researchers Uncover New Piece to the Puzzle of Human Height
In studies involving more than 35,000 people and a survey across the entire human genome, an international team supported in part by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has found evidence that common genetic variants recently linked to osteoarthritis may also play a minor role in human height.
International Effort Finds New Genetic Variants Associated with Lipid Levels,...
Now, in an international collaboration supported primarily by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), scientists have discovered more than 25 genetic variants in 18 genes connected to cholesterol and lipid levels.
Heart Disease Deaths Continue to Decline in American Women
Heart disease deaths in American women continued to decline in 2005, and for the first time, have declined six years consecutively, covering the years 2000-2005, according to newly analyzed data announced today by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health.
Researchers Find Biological Factors that May Drive Prostate Tumor Aggressiven...
Researchers analyzing prostate tumors have identified differences in gene expression (the degree to which individual genes are turned on or off) between African-American and European-American men that show the existence of distinct tumor microenvironments (the area that includes the tumor and the surrounding non-cancerous tissue) in these two patient groups. These findings by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institute of Health, appeared online February 1, 2008, in "Cancer Research"
Newly Identified Genetic Variations May Affect Breast Cancer Risk
Researchers have identified genetic variations in a region of DNA that may be associated with risk for breast cancer. Women with the variation have a 1.4 times greater risk of developing breast cancer compared to those without this variation. The study is one of several genome-wide association studies looking for breast cancer genes to be published this year by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and their colleagues.
Modified Virus Vaccine Shows Promise in Mouse Model of Breast Cancer
Researchers have shown that vaccinating mice with a modified form of a virus containing proteins from breast cancer cells can kill large breast cancer tumors and tumors that have spread to the lungs. The rodent model of cancer used in this study closely resembles a type of breast cancer seen in humans called HER2-positive. Although other cancer vaccines have shown activity in the treatment of very small tumors, their ability to influence large, established tumors, such as many HER2-positive breast cancers, has proven difficult. The study, led by researchers at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, appeared in the March 15, 2008, issue of "Cancer Research".

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This Newsletter  is supported by a grant from the National Institute on Aging, National Institutes of Health (Grant No. 5 P30 AG012857)