Sex-typical symptoms of depression and the importance of conditioning contexts in Austria

Background: Findings regarding the effect of sex on depression are inconclusive. The aim of this paper is to contribute to clarification concerning this effect by first disentangle the concept of depression and splitting it up into two sub-types. Second, we will address macro-level contexts as conditions of the sex-effect on depression.Methods: This study gives a comparative analysis of sex as a predictor of depression symptoms in various Austrian federal states. It offers a secondary data analysis of data collected from an online survey (CAWI) conducted in Austria as a quota sample of Austrian inhabitants (N=1229). Besides sex as a predictor of depression symptoms (measured by PHQ-9 items) we also consider four dimensions of social support, the retirement status, and the experience of a vocational gratification crisis.Results: By and large, sex is not associated with motivational deficit symptoms, but rather with somatic stress symptoms. Taking into account federal states as conditions, the sex-effect on depression symptoms turn out to be context-dependent.Limitations: Using some items from the PHQ-9 inventory for measuring depression symptoms was arbitrary, findings could be sensitive to operationalization. Furthermore, Austrian federal states are no substantial variables which could condition the sex-effect directly. The actual conditioning variables correlate with the Austrian federal states, but remain unobserved here. Conclusions: Depression symptoms are partly sex-typical, but this association is context-dependent. For diagnostics, therefore, the recommendation arises to take symptomatic sub-types of depression into account, instead of an in itself heterogeneous construct that expresses itself differently under certain conditions.

Seychelles warblers with silver spoons: juvenile condition is a lifelong predictor of annual survival, but not annual reproduction or senescence

1) The environment experienced during development, and its impact on intrinsic condition, can have lasting outcomes for adult phenotypes and could contribute to the individual variation in senescence trajectories. 2) However, the nature of this relationship in wild populations remains uncertain, owing to the difficulties in summarizing environmental complexity and long-term monitoring of individuals from free-roaming long-lived species. 3) In this study, we determine whether juvenile condition (derived from measures of body mass and size) is associated with senescence-related traits of a closely monitored population of Seychelles warblers (Acrocephalus sechellensis). 4) Juveniles with a higher condition index were more likely to survive to adulthood – suggesting these juveniles experienced better developmental conditions. Furthermore, these juveniles as adults were in better condition and had higher rates of annual survival, independently of age. In contrast, there was no association between juvenile condition and declines in adult telomere length (a measure of somatic stress) nor annual reproduction. 5) These results indicate that juvenile condition, while not associated with senescence trajectories, can influence the likelihood of surviving to old age due to silver-spoon effects. This study shows that measures of intrinsic condition in juveniles can provide important insights into long-term fitness of individuals in wild populations.

Heteromeric HSFA2/HSFA3 complexes drive transcriptional memory after heat stress in Arabidopsis

Adaptive plasticity in stress responses is a key element of plant survival strategies. For instance, moderate heat stress (HS) primes a plant to acquire thermotolerance, which allows subsequent survival of more severe HS conditions. Acquired thermotolerance is actively maintained over several days (HS memory) and involves the sustained induction of memory-related genes. Here we show that FORGETTER3/ HEAT SHOCK TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR A3 (FGT3/HSFA3) is specifically required for physiological HS memory and maintaining high memory-gene expression during the days following a HS exposure. HSFA3 mediates HS memory by direct transcriptional activation of memory-related genes after return to normal growth temperatures. HSFA3 binds HSFA2, and in vivo both proteins form heteromeric complexes with additional HSFs. Our results indicate that only complexes containing both HSFA2 and HSFA3 efficiently promote transcriptional memory by positively influencing histone H3 lysine 4 (H3K4) hyper-methylation. In summary, our work defines the major HSF complex controlling transcriptional memory and elucidates the in vivo dynamics of HSF complexes during somatic stress memory.

SKN-1 Is a Negative Regulator of DAF-16 and Somatic Stress Resistance in Caenorhabditis elegans

The transcription factor SKN-1, the C. elegans ortholog of mammalian Nrf protein, is a well-known longevity factor, and its activation is observed in several long-lived models. SKN-1 also plays essential roles in xenobiotic and oxidative stress responses. Here, we report deleterious functions of SKN-1 in somatic stress resistance that may impair lifespan. Constitutive SKN-1 activation impairs animal resistance to several stresses, including heat, ER stress and mitochondrial stress, which result from the suppression of DAF-16, another master regulator of longevity. SKN-1 activation abrogates DAF-16 nuclear import and downregulates DAF-16 target genes under stress conditions, while SKN-1 inhibition promotes the expression of DAF-16 targets, even in long-lived mutants. Further, SKN-1 activation induces the expression of vitellogenin proteins, which are required for SKN-1-mediated suppression of DAF-16 and stress resistance. Together, these findings identify detrimental roles for SKN-1 activation in animal health, and more importantly, inspire the rethinking of the complex roles for SKN-1 in aging regulation.

Drug-Induced Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy

Background: The most plausible hypothesis for takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TCM) is a catecholamine surge. Direct administration of catecholamines or medications causing catecholamine surge is frequently used in clinical practice. Methods: A Medline/PubMed database search was conducted for case reports or series of drug-induced TCM. All reported cases of drug-induced TCM were systemically identified and analyzed. Results: We identified 157 cases of drug-induced TCM. Fifty-seven (36.3%) cases were related to the administration of exogenous catecholamines. In 50 (31.9%) other cases, there was potential adrenergic effect. This included drugs with adrenergic vasoconstriction properties (3.2%), hyperadrenergic state due to alcohol or opioid withdrawal (7.7%), inhibitors of catecholamine reuptake (14.7%), anaphylactic reaction that is accompanied by catecholamine release (3.2%), and psychological or somatic stress coinciding with the administration of a drug that was thought to be the culprit (3.2%). Overall, 68.2% of these drug-induced TCM cases were catecholamine related. In 14 (8.9%) cases, the likely etiology of cardiomyopathy was chemotherapy-induced coronary vasospasm. Conclusion: Our systematic review showed that over two-thirds of drug-induced TCM cases were due to direct or indirect catecholamine stimulation. The lowest effective dose and shortest duration of catecholamines should be utilized, and alternative therapies should be considered if feasible.