The Heritability of Telomere Length Among the Elderly and Oldest-Old

2005 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 433-439 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claus Bischoff ◽  
Jesper Graakjaer ◽  
Hans Christian Petersen ◽  
Jacob v. B. Hjelmborg ◽  
James W. Vaupel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Culture ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Oldest Old ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Shared Environment ◽  
Associated Proteins ◽  
Cellular Turnover ◽  
Population Doublings

AbstractA tight link exists between telomere length and both population doublings of a cell culture and age of a given organism. The more population doublings of the cell culture or the higher the age of the organism, the shorter the telomeres. The proposed model for telomere shortening, called the end replication problem, explains why the telomere erodes at each cellular turnover. Telomere length is regulated by a number of associated proteins through a number of different signaling pathways. The determinants of telomere length were studied using whole blood samples from 287 twin pairs aged 73 to 95 years. Structural equation models revealed that a model including additive genetic effects and non- shared environment was the best fitting model and that telomere length was moderately heritable, with an estimate that was sensitive to the telomere length standardization procedure. Sex-specific analyses showed lower heritability in males, although not statistically significant, which is in line with our earlier finding of a sex difference in telomere dynamics among the elderly and oldest-old.

Assessment of Cognitively Stimulating Activity in a Spanish Population

Assessment ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 27 (6) ◽  
pp. 1310-1319 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel Morales Ortiz ◽  
Aaron Fernández
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Older Persons ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Hierarchical Regression ◽  
Active Ageing ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Effect Of Age

Theoretical models of active ageing and cognitive reserve emphasize the importance of leading an active life to delay age-related cognitive deterioration and maintain good levels of well-being and personal satisfaction in the elderly. The objective of this research was to construct a scale to measure cognitively stimulating activities (CSA) in the Spanish language. The sample consisted of a total of 453 older persons. The scale was constructed from a list of 28 items and validated using structural equation models. The scale obtained showed a negative correlation with age and a positive correlation with education and physical activity. Using hierarchical regression models, CSAs were found to have a significant effect on attention when controlling for the effect of age and education. Likewise, a significant interaction between age and CSA was found on the measure of episodic memory. The validated CSA scale will enable the relationships between changes in cognitive functions and stimulating activities to be studied.

Telomere Length Among the Elderly and Oldest-Old

2005 ◽  
Vol 8 (5) ◽  
pp. 425-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claus Bischoff ◽  
Jesper Graakjaer ◽  
Hans Christian Petersen ◽  
Bernard Jeune ◽  
Vilhelm A. Bohr ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Telomere Length ◽  
Oldest Old ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Specific Difference ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Telomere Shortening ◽  
Telomere Sequence ◽  
Age Dependent ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Telomere Loss

AbstractHuman chromosomes terminate in a number of repeats of the sequence TTAGGG. At birth, each chromosome end is equipped with approximately 15 kb of telomere sequence, but this sequence is shortened during each cell division. In cell cultures telomere shortening is associated with senescence, a phenomenon that has also been observed in normal adult tissues, indicating that telomere loss is associated with organismal ageing. Previous work has established that the rate of telomere loss in humans is age dependent, and recent work shows a sex-specific difference in telomere length and shortening in individuals over the age span of 20 to 75 years. Here, terminal restriction fragment lengths on DNA purified from whole blood were measured to examine the mean telomere length in a cross-sectional cohort of 816 Danish individuals of age 73 to 101 years. In this age group, females show a linear correlation between telomere length and age, whereas the pattern tends to be nonlinear (quadratic in age) for males. This difference in telomere length dynamics between the 2 sexes may be caused by several different mechanisms, including differences in selection by mortality, differences in leukocyte population or different telomerase expression pattern.

Pathways Between Acculturation and Health

2011 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 524-539 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Y. Miranda ◽  
Hector M. González ◽  
Wassim Tarraf
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Cognitive Function ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Depression Scale ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Population Based ◽  
Epidemiologic Studies ◽  
Functional Health ◽  
Cross Sectional

The purpose of this study was to assess the association between acculturation and functional health using multiple proxies of acculturation to examine explanatory pathways to clarify disparate health findings. A population-based cross-sectional, multistage probability sample from the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly ( N = 3,050) was used. The dependent variables of neuropsychiatric function were depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale [CES-D]) and cognitive function (mini-mental state examination [MMSE]) examined in separate multivariable regression and structural equation models to examine the pathways between acculturation proxies and neuropsychiatric function. Findings indicated that three acculturation proxies were associated with cognitive function but none were associated with depressive symptoms. English proficiency fully mediated the associations between other acculturation proxies and cognitive function. The findings suggest that language plays a central role in the pathway between acculturation and health among Mexican-origin populations.

Gender differences in heritability of depressive symptoms in the elderly

2004 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 471-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. JANSSON ◽  
M. GATZ ◽  
S. BERG ◽  
B. JOHANSSON ◽  
B. MALMBERG ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Antidepressant Medication ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Epidemiological Studies ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Environmental Variance ◽  
Depressed State ◽  
Heritability Estimates

Background. The present study aimed to investigate the relative importance of genetic and environmental influences on depressive symptoms in the elderly.Methods. Depressive symptoms were assessed through the Center for Epidemiological Studies – Depression (CES-D) scale. The CES-D scale was administered to 959 twin pairs (123 female MZs, 90 male MZs, 207 same-sex female DZs, 109 same-sex male DZs and 430 opposite-sex DZs) aged 50 years or older (mean age 72 years). A dichotomous depressed state variable was constructed based on CES-D cut-offs and self-reported use of antidepressant medication. Structural equation models were fitted to the data to dissect genetic and environmental variance components.Results. The sex-specific heritability estimates for depressive symptoms were 14% for males and 29% for females and 23% when constrained to be equal for men and women. The prevalence of clinically significant depressive symptoms was 16% for men and 24% for women. Heritability estimates for the dichotomous depressed state measure were 7% for males and 49% for females in the full model and 33% when constrained to be equal.Conclusion. Our results suggest that depressive symptoms in the elderly are moderately heritable, with a higher heritability for women than men, although differences in heritability estimates were not statistically significant.

The Differential Heritability of Regular Tobacco Use Based on Method of Administration

2005 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 60-62 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Eric Schmitt ◽  
Carol A. Prescott ◽  
Charles O. Gardner ◽  
Michael C. Neale ◽  
Kenneth S. Kendler
Keyword(s):  
Tobacco Use ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Genetic Influences ◽  
Shared Environment ◽  
Chewing Tobacco ◽  
Differential Heritability ◽  
Moist Snuff ◽  
Twin Resemblance

AbstractSeveral large studies have demonstrated that the liability to smoke cigarettes is strongly genetically influenced. However, the role of genetic and environmental risk factors in the use of other common forms of tobacco use has yet to be studied. Data on the regular use of cigarettes, cigars, pipes, dip (moist snuff), and chewing tobacco from 2634 male twins were analyzed with ACE structural equation models. Twin similarity for regular cigarette and dip use was largely genetic in origin. However, twin resemblance for chewing tobacco was just about equally the result of genes and shared environment, and twin similarity for use of pipes and cigars was entirely the result of shared environmental factors. Thus, the genetic influences on the liability for regular tobacco use appear to vary based on tobacco type. The causes for the use of different forms of tobacco are complex and worthy of further study.

No Association Between Telomere Length and Survival Among the Elderly and Oldest Old

Epidemiology ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 190-194 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claus Bischoff ◽  
Hans Christian Petersen ◽  
Jesper Graakjaer ◽  
Karen Andersen-Ranberg ◽  
James W. Vaupel ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Telomere Length ◽  
Oldest Old ◽  
The Elderly

M capacity as a lifespan construct: A study of its decrease in ageing subjects

2001 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 78-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sergio Morra ◽  
Gabriella Vigliocco ◽  
Bianca Penello
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Digit Span ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Similar Rate ◽  
Latent Construct ◽  
Rate Of Decline ◽  
Age Range

The performance of 93 ageing subjects (age range, 59-96) was studied in tests that had been proved to measure M capacity in children (Morra, 1994), (i.e. the Backward Digit Span, the Counting Span, and the Mr Cucumber Test). For the sake of comparison, the Forward Digit Span was also administered. Preliminary analyses showed that Backward Digit Span, Counting Span, and Mr Cucumber have a similar rate of decline with age, and are significantly correlated with one another. The goodness of ” t of three different linear structural equation models suggests that, also in the elderly, the scores in these three tests reflect the same latent construct (i.e. M capacity), which in turn is negatively affected by age and positively affected by education. In addition, the variance within each subject of these three scores is usually small. It is concluded that these three tests can also be used as measures of M capacity in ageing subjects.

scholarly journals Moderating Effect of Demographic Variables by Analyzing the Motivation and Satisfaction of Visitors to the Former Presidential Vacation Villa: Case Study of Cheongnam-Dae, South Korea

Societies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 104
Author(s):  
Bo-Hyun Seong ◽  
Chang-Yu Hong
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
The Elderly ◽  
Ecological Value ◽  
Motivation Factors ◽  
Gender And Age ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Positive Effect

This study aims to verify whether there is a difference in groups vis-à-vis gender and age in the relationship between the motivation and satisfaction of visiting the former presidential villa, Cheongnam-dae. Using structural equation models, we examined that Relaxation has a positive effect on satisfaction in all groups. However, the relationship between motivation and satisfaction, such as Convenience, Historicity, and Fellowship, reveals gender and age differences, while the relationship among three motivation factors differs by gender and age. Four motivational factors, i.e., Relaxation, Convenience, Historicity, and Satisfaction, significantly affected the youth (n = 171), while the three factors, i.e., Relaxation, Convenience, and Fellowship, significantly affected the elderly (n = 143). Our analysis encourages expanding ecotourism infrastructure to enhance the ecological value of Cheongnam-dae. It is also necessary to replenish related facilities and contents to enhance the effectiveness of ecological experiences and environmental education. Therefore, this work is significant as it contributes to the development of an analytic framework by discussing the difference between motivation and satisfaction.

scholarly journals Associations of Wellbeing Levels, Changes, and Within-Person Variability With Late-Life All-Cause Mortality Across 12 Years: Contrasting Hedonic vs. Eudaimonic Wellbeing Among Very Old Adults

2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oliver Karl Schilling ◽  
Markus Wettstein ◽  
Hans-Werner Wahl
Keyword(s):  
Old Age ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Oldest Old ◽  
Residual Lifetime ◽  
Very Old ◽  
Old Adults ◽  
All Cause Mortality ◽  
Mortality Predictors ◽  
Eudaimonic Wellbeing

Advanced old age has been characterized as a biologically highly vulnerable life phase. Biological, morbidity-, and cognitive impairment-related factors play an important role as mortality predictors among very old adults. However, it is largely unknown whether previous findings confirming the role of different wellbeing domains for mortality translate to survival among the oldest-old individuals. Moreover, the distinction established in the wellbeing literature between hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing as well as the consideration of within-person variability of potentially relevant mortality predictors has not sufficiently been addressed in prior mortality research. In this study, we examined a broad set of hedonic and eudaimonic wellbeing indicators, including their levels, their changes, as well as their within-person variability, as predictors of all-cause mortality in a sample of very old individuals. We used data from the LateLine study, a 7-year longitudinal study based on a sample of n = 124 individuals who were living alone and who were aged 87–97 years (M = 90.6, SD = 2.9) at baseline. Study participants provided up to 16 measurement occasions (mean number of measurement occasions per individual = 5.50, SD = 4.79) between 2009 and 2016. Dates of death were available for 118 individuals (95.2%) who had deceased between 2009 and 2021. We ran longitudinal multilevel structural equation models and specified between-person level differences, within-person long-term linear change trends, as well as the “detrended” within-person variability in three indicators of hedonic (i.e., life satisfaction and positive and negative affect) and four indicators of eudaimonic wellbeing (i.e., purpose in life, autonomy, environmental mastery, and self-acceptance) as all-cause mortality predictors. Controlling for age, gender, education, and physical condition and testing our sets of hedonic and eudaimonic indictors separately in terms of their mortality impact, solely one eudaimonic wellbeing indicator, namely, autonomy, showed significant effects on survival. Surprisingly, autonomy appeared “paradoxically” related with mortality, with high individual levels and intraindividual highly stable perceptions of autonomy being associated with a shorter residual lifetime. Thus, it seems plausible that accepting dependency and changing perceptions of autonomy over time in accordance with objectively remaining capabilities might become adaptive for survival in very old age.

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