Hypertension and Cognitive Health Among Older Adults in India

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156445/2/jgs16741.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/156445/1/jgs16741_am.pd

Deep phenotyping and genomic data from a nationally representative study on dementia in India

The Harmonized Diagnostic Assessment of Dementia for the Longitudinal Aging Study in India (LASI-DAD) is a nationally representative in-depth study of cognitive aging and dementia. We present a publicly available dataset of harmonized cognitive measures of 4,096 adults 60 years of age and older in India, collected across 18 states and union territories. Blood samples were obtained to carry out whole blood and serum-based assays. Results are included in a venous blood specimen datafile that can be linked to the Harmonized LASI-DAD dataset. A global screening array of 960 LASI-DAD respondents is also publicly available for download, in addition to neuroimaging data on 137 LASI-DAD participants. Altogether, these datasets provide comprehensive information on older adults in India that allow researchers to further understand risk factors associated with cognitive impairment and dementia.Peer reviewe

Impact of environmental factors on maintaining water quality of Bakreswar reservoir, India

Reservoirs and dams are engineered systems designed to serve purposes like supply of drinking water as well as other commercial and industrial use. A thorough assessment of water quality for these systems is thus necessary. The present study is carried out at Bakreswar reservoir, in Birbhum district, which was created by the dam, built on Bakreswar River. The major purpose of the reservoir is the supply of drinking water to the surrounding villages and Bakreswar Thermal Power Station. Water samples were collected fortnightly from three different stations of the reservoir. Physical and chemical factors like dissolved oxygen, atmospheric temperature, pH, conductivity, salinity, solar radiation, water temperature, alkalinity, hardness, chloride, productivity etc. were analysed using standard procedure. Abundance data is calculated for four major groups of zooplanktons (Cladocera, Copepoda, Ostracoda, and Rotifera) with the software PAST 2.1. Multivariate statistical analysis like PCA, hierarchical cluster and CCA are performed in order to predict the temporal variation in the water quality factors using SPSS 20. Distinct seasonal variation was found for environmental factors and zooplankton groups. Bakreswar reservoir has good assemblage of zooplankton and distinct temporal variation of environmental factors and its association with zooplankton predicts water quality condition. These results could help in formulating proper strategies for advanced water quality management and conservation of reservoir ecosystem. Key elements for growth and sustenance of the system can then be evaluated and this knowledge can be further applied for management purposes

Middle-Aged Indians with Type 2 Diabetes Are at Higher Risk of Biological Ageing with Special Reference to Serum CDKN2A

Sedentary lifestyle and high visceral adiposity have elevated the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2DM) among Indians at younger age. In this study, we aimed to investigate the association of oxidative stress and chronic inflammatory mediators with ageing with special reference to the biological ageing marker cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor 2A (CDKN2A) among middle-aged (31-50 years) Indian healthy and T2DM subjects. Malondialdehyde (MDA), oxidized LDL (oxLDL), interleukin-6 (IL-6), interleukin 1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), and CDKN2A were measured in T2DM patients (n=80) and controls (n=80) aged 31-50 years, further grouped into G1: 31-40 years and G2: 41-50 years. IL-6, TNF-α, MCP-1, and CDKN2A showed a significant association with ageing among both T2DM patients and controls. But the strength of the association of MCP-1 and CKDN2A with ageing was significantly stronger in T2DM patients than the controls. All the oxidative stress and proinflammatory mediators showed nonsignificant associations with CDKN2A in the controls. However, IL-6, TNF-α, and MCP-1 showed a strong association with CDKN2A in T2DM patients. An increased risk of high levels of CDKN2A was found in G1 T2DM patients (OR: 3.484 (95% CI: 1.246-9.747) p=0.017) and G2 T2DM patients (OR: 5.000 (95% CI: 1.914-13.061), p=0.001) with reference to the respective control groups. Our study reveals that the middle-aged Indians with T2DM are at higher risk of biological ageing. The development of T2DM is more common among middle-aged Indians. T2DM may exacerbate the ageing process and may subsequently predispose Indians to various age-related complications at a much early age

The development of a nutrient database to analyse the dietary intake of older Indians in the Longitudinal Aging Study in India—Diagnostic Assessment of Dementia (LASI-DAD) †

Investigating diet-related disease in India’s ageing population is challenging due to poor dietary assessment infrastructure and limited capacity for nutritional analyses. We developed a semi-quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire (FFQ) to capture dietary intake among older Indian adults. Nutrient analysis of FFQ data requires linkage to a nutrient database preferably based on local food composition. However, the Indian Food Composition Tables (IFCT) provided only partial coverage for FFQ items, nutrient data for cooked foods were unavailable, and some important nutrients were missing, e.g., iodine and vitamin B12. The objective was to develop a nutrient database maximising the IFCT to allow for the analysis of FFQ data. The development of the nutrient database involved: (1) the creation of a core dataset within the Nutritics (2019) software platform comprising analytical data for matched foods in the IFCT reference database; (2) the selection of suitable matches for additional foods/beverages consumed in the FFQ informed by local dietetic expertise; (3) the import of nutrient profiles for additional foods/beverages from international food composition tables (UK, USA, and Singapore) to provide full coverage for all FFQ items; (4) the filling of nutrient data gaps in the core IFCT dataset to ensure all foods/beverages have a value for each nutrient; and (5) the generation of a conversion file for food frequencies to daily intakes (in servings and grams) to facilitate FFQ linkage with the nutrient database. The complete nutrient database provides full coverage of FFQ raw and cooked food/beverages and has the capability to analyse 53 nutrients. Overall, 53% of the FFQ items were matched to the IFCT, whilst 28% were matched from the UK (GB21-0), 15% from the USA (FNDDS), and 4% from the Singapore food tables. All FFQ items matched to the IFCT had missing nutrients mapped from matches in other databases, with GB21-0 being the first preference. For cooked FFQ items matched to the IFCT (n = 21), an appropriate cooking method was applied using established nutrient retention factors. The bespoke nutrient database developed through the integration of nutritional expertise and dietary assessment software will allow for the nutrient analysis of FFQ data. The next step is to automate the nutrient analysis process from computer-assisted FFQ data collection in Wave 2 of LASI-DAD

Trajectories and correlates of poor mental health in India over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic: a nationwide survey

Introduction The COVID-19 pandemic had large impacts on mental health; however, most existing evidence is focused on the initial lockdown period and high-income contexts. By assessing trajectories of mental health symptoms in India over 2 years, we aim to understand the effect of later time periods and pandemic characteristics on mental health in a lower-middle income context.Methods We used data from the Real-Time Insights of COVID-19 in India cohort study (N=3709). We used covariate-adjusted linear regression models with generalised estimating equations to assess associations between mental health (Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-4) score; range 0–12) and pandemic periods as well as pandemic characteristics (COVID-19 cases and deaths, government stringency, self-reported financial impact, COVID-19 infection in the household) and explored effect modification by age, gender and rural/urban residence.Results Mental health symptoms dropped immediately following the lockdown period but rose again during the delta and omicron waves. Associations between mental health and later pandemic stages were stronger for adults 45 years of age and older (p<0.001). PHQ-4 scores were significantly associated with all pandemic characteristics considered, including estimated COVID-19 deaths (PHQ-4 difference of 0.10 units; 95% CI 0.06 to 0.13), government stringency index (0.14 units; 95% CI 0.11 to 0.18), self-reported major financial impacts (1.20 units; 95% CI 1.09 to 1.32) and COVID-19 infection in the household (0.36 units; 95% CI 0.23 to 0.50).Conclusion While the lockdown period and associated financial stress had the largest mental health impacts on Indian adults, the effects of the pandemic on mental health persisted over time, especially among middle-aged and older adults. Results highlight the importance of investments in mental health supports and services to address the consequences of cyclical waves of infections and disease burden due to COVID-19 or other emerging pandemics

Liquids That Freeze When Mixed: Cocrystallization and Liquid–Liquid Equilibrium in Polyoxacyclobutane–Water Mixtures

We show that liquid polyoxacyclobutane −[CH₂–CH₂–CH₂–O]_<i>n</i>– when mixed with water at room temperature precipitates solid cocrystals of the polymer and water. Cocrystals can also be formed by simply exposing the liquid polymer to saturated humidity. This appears to be the only known example of nonreacting liquids combining to form a solid cocrystal, also known as a clatherate, at room temperature. At high temperatures, the same polymer–water mixtures phase separate into two coexisting liquid phases. This combination of cocrystal formation and LCST-type liquid–liquid equilibrium gives rise to an unusual, possibly unique, type of phase diagram