Browsing by Subject "Longevity"

Now showing 1 - 8 of 8
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    ADAR-mediated regulation of PQM-1 expression in neurons impacts gene expression throughout C. elegans and regulates survival from hypoxia
    (Public Library of Science, 2023-09-25) Mahapatra, Ananya; Dhakal, Alfa; Noguchi, Aika; Vadlamani, Pranathi; Hundley, Heather A.; Biology, School of Science
    The ability to alter gene expression programs in response to changes in environmental conditions is central to the ability of an organism to thrive. For most organisms, the nervous system serves as the master regulator in communicating information about the animal's surroundings to other tissues. The information relay centers on signaling pathways that cue transcription factors in a given cell type to execute a specific gene expression program, but also provide a means to signal between tissues. The transcription factor PQM-1 is an important mediator of the insulin signaling pathway contributing to longevity and the stress response as well as impacting survival from hypoxia. Herein, we reveal a novel mechanism for regulating PQM-1 expression specifically in neural cells of larval animals. Our studies reveal that the RNA-binding protein (RBP), ADR-1, binds to pqm-1 mRNA in neural cells. This binding is regulated by the presence of a second RBP, ADR-2, which when absent leads to reduced expression of both pqm-1 and downstream PQM-1 activated genes. Interestingly, we find that neural pqm-1 expression is sufficient to impact gene expression throughout the animal and affect survival from hypoxia, phenotypes that we also observe in adr mutant animals. Together, these studies reveal an important posttranscriptional gene regulatory mechanism in Caenorhabditis elegans that allows the nervous system to sense and respond to environmental conditions to promote organismal survival from hypoxia.
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    Alzheimer's disease genetic risk variants beyond APOE ε4 predict mortality
    (Elsevier, 2017-08-24) Mez, Jesse; Marden, Jessica R.; Mukherjee, Shubhabrata; Walter, Stefan; Gibbons, Laura E.; Gross, Alden L.; Zahodne, Laura B.; Gilsanz, Paola; Brewster, Paul; Nho, Kwangsik; Crane, Paul K.; Larson, Eric B.; Glymour, M. Maria; Radiology and Imaging Sciences, School of Medicine
    • A genetic risk score from 21 non-APOE late-onset Alzheimer's disease risk variants predicts mortality. • The genetic risk score likely confers risk for mortality through its effect on dementia incidence. • Late-onset Alzheimer's disease risk loci effect estimates from genome-wide association unlikely suffer from selection bias.
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    Factors associated with duration of breastfeeding in women giving birth for the first time
    (BMC, 2022-09-22) Haas, David M.; Yang, Ziyi; Parker, Corette B.; Chung, Judith; Parry, Samuel; Grobman, William A.; Mercer, Brian M.; Simhan, Hyagriv N.; Silver, Robert M.; Wapner, Ronald J.; Saade, George R.; Greenland, Philip; Merz, Noel Bairey; Reddy, Uma M.; Pemberton, Victoria L.; nuMoM2b study; nuMoM2b Heart Health Study; Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medicine
    Objective: To examine maternal, psychosocial, and pregnancy factors associated with breastfeeding for at least 6 months in those giving birth for the first time. Methods: We performed a planned secondary analysis of an observational cohort study of 5249 women giving birth for the first time. Women were contacted at least 6 months after delivery and provided information regarding breastfeeding initiation, duration, and exclusivity. Maternal demographics, psychosocial measures, and delivery methods were compared by breastfeeding groups. Results: 4712 (89.8%) of the women breastfed at some point, with 2739 (58.2%) breastfeeding for at least 6 months. Of those who breastfed, 1161 (24.7% of the entire cohort), breastfed exclusively for at least 6 months. In the multivariable model among those who ever breastfed, not smoking in the month prior to delivery (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 2.04, 95%CI 1.19-3.45), having a Master's degree of higher (aOR 1.89, 95%CI 1.51-2.36), having a planned pregnancy (aOR 1.48, 95%CI 1.27-1.73), older age (aOR 1.02, 95% CI, 1.01-1.04), lower BMI (aOR 0.96 95% CI 0.95-0.97), and having less anxiety measured during pregnancy (aOR 0.990, 95%CI 0.983-0.998) were associated with breastfeeding for at least 6 months. Compared to non-Hispanic White women, Hispanic women, while being more likely to breastfeed initially (aOR 1.40, 95%CI 1.02-1.92), were less likely to breastfeed for 6 months (aOR 0.72, 95%CI 0.59-0.88). While non-Hispanic Black women were less likely than non-Hispanic White women to initiate breastfeeding (aOR 0.68, 95%CI 0.51-0.90), the odds of non-Hispanic Black women of continuing to breastfeed for at least 6 months was similar to non-Hispanic White women (aOR 0.92, 95%CI 0.71-1.19). Conclusions: In this cohort of women giving birth for the first time, duration of breastfeeding was associated with several characteristics which highlight groups at greater risk of not breastfeeding as long as currently recommended.
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    Longevity of Immunoglobulin-G Antibody Response Against Nucleocapsid Protein Against SARS-CoV-2 Among Healthcare Workers
    (Dove Press, 2023-05-31) Mushcab, Hayat; Al-Tawfiq, Jaffar A.; Babgi, Amani; Ghamdi, Mohammed; Amir, Abdulrazack; Sheikh, Salwa S.; Darwisheh, Adel; AlObaid, Abrar; Masuadi, Emad; AlFattani, Areej; Qahtani, Saeed; Al Sagheir, Ahmed; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused the latest pandemic and the most significant challenge in public health worldwide. Studying the longevity of naturally developed antibodies is highly important clinically and epidemiologically. This paper assesses the longevity of antibodies developed against nucleocapsid protein amongst our health-care workers. Methods: This longitudinal cohort study was conducted at a tertiary hospital, Saudi Arabia. Anti-SARSsCoV-2 antibodies were tested among health-care workers at three-point intervals (baseline, eight weeks, and 16 weeks). Results: Of the 648 participants, 112 (17.2%) tested positive for Coronavirus (COVID-19) by PCR before the study. Of all participants, 87 (13.4%) tested positive for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, including 17 (2.6%) participants who never tested positive for COVID-19 using rt-PCR. Out of the 87 positive IgG participants at baseline, only 12 (13.7%) had remained positive for anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies by the end of the study. The IgG titer showed a significant reduction in values over time, where the median time for the confirmed positive rt-PCR subgroup from infection to the last positive antibody test was 70 (95% CI: 33.4-106.5) days. Conclusion: Health-care workers are at high risk of exposure to the SARS-CoV-2 virus, and contracting an asymptomatic infection is not unlikely. Developing and sustaining natural immunity differs from one person to another, while the rate of positive IgG anti-SARS-CoV-2 wanes over time.
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    Tequila Regulates Insulin-Like Signaling and Extends Life Span in Drosophila melanogaster
    (Oxford University Press, 2015-12) Huang, Cheng-Wen; Wang, Horng-Dar; Bai, Hua; Wu, Ming-Shiang; Yen, Jui-Hung; Tatar, Marc; Fu, Tsai-Feng; Wang, Pei-Yu; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, IU School of Medicine
    The aging process is a universal phenomenon shared by all living organisms. The identification of longevity genes is important in that the study of these genes is likely to yield significant insights into human senescence. In this study, we have identified Tequila as a novel candidate gene involved in the regulation of longevity in Drosophila melanogaster. We have found that a hypomorphic mutation of Tequila (Teq(f01792)), as well as cell-specific downregulation of Tequila in insulin-producing neurons of the fly, significantly extends life span. Tequila deficiency-induced life-span extension is likely to be associated with reduced insulin-like signaling, because Tequila mutant flies display several common phenotypes of insulin dysregulation, including reduced circulating Drosophila insulin-like peptide 2 (Dilp2), reduced Akt phosphorylation, reduced body size, and altered glucose homeostasis. These observations suggest that Tequila may confer life-span extension by acting as a modulator of Drosophila insulin-like signaling.