Depression Earlier on in Life Predicts Frailty at 50 Years: Evidence from the 1958 British Birth Cohort Study

Frailty and depression in older ages have a bidirectional relationship, sharing some symptoms and characteristics. Most evidence for this has come from cross-sectional studies, or longitudinal studies with limited follow-up periods. We used data from the National Child Development Study (1958 Birth Cohort) to investigate the relationship between depression and early-onset frailty using a life course perspective. The primary outcome was frailty based on a 30-item inventory of physical health conditions, activities of daily living and cognitive function at 50 years. The main exposure was depression (based on a nine-item Malaise score ≥ 4) measured at 23, 33 and 42 years. We investigated this relationship using multiple logistic regression models adjusted for socio-demographic factors, early life circumstances and health behaviours. In fully adjusted models, when modelled separately, depression at each timepoint was associated with around twice the odds of frailty. An accumulated depression score showed increases in the odds of frailty with each unit increase (once: OR 1.92, 95%CI 1.65, 2.23; twice OR 2.33, 95%CI 1.85, 2.94; thrice: OR 2.95, 95%CI 2.11, 4.11). The public health significance of this finding is that it shows the potential to reduce the physical burden of disease later in life by paying attention to mental health at younger ages

Studies on the toxic elements and organic degradation products in aquatic bodies and sediments around Kennedy Space Center (KSC) Haulover Canal and Mosquito Lagoon

The work during the first year ending September, 1975, is reported. Indian River, Haulover Canal, Mosquito Lagoon, and other aquatic areas of discharge around Kennedy Space Center (KSC) were studied. The presentation and interpretation of data on water and sediment samples collected from Haulover Canal and Mosquito Lagoon are included. The field and laboratory data are presented and tentative conclusions were drawn in the various aspects of the study. An attempt was made to correlate the physical, chemical, and biological parameters

Studies on the toxic elements and organic degradation products in aquatic bodies and sediments around Kennedy Space Center (KSC) South Mosquito lagoon

A compilation was put together of research work performed on the aquatic systems around Kennedy Space Center (KSC). The report includes a brief description of the study area, field data and analytical results of all the samples collected during the five visits to KSC up to December 17, 1977. The aquatic area selected for the study is the Southern part of Mosquito Lagoon which extends from the Haulover Canal to the dead end boundary of this lagoon southwards

Regulation of Synaptic Pumilio Function by an Aggregation-Prone Domain

We identified Pumilio (Pum), a Drosophila translational repressor, in a computational search for metazoan proteins whose activities might be regulated by assembly into ordered aggregates. The search algorithm was based on evolutionary sequence conservation patterns observed for yeast prion proteins, which contain aggregation-prone glutamine/asparagine (Q/N)-rich domains attached to functional domains of normal amino acid composition. We examined aggregation of Pum and its nematode ortholog PUF-9 by expression in yeast. A domain of Pum containing the Q/N-rich sequence, denoted as NQ1, the entire Pum N terminus, and the complete PUF-9 protein localize to macroscopic aggregates (foci) in yeast. NQ1 and PUF-9 can generate the yeast Pin+ trait, which is transmitted by a heritable aggregate. NQ1 also assembles into amyloid fibrils in vitro. In Drosophila, Pum regulates postsynaptic translation at neuromuscular junctions (NMJs). To assess whether NQ1 affects synaptic Pum activity in vivo, we expressed it in muscles. We found that it negatively regulates endogenous Pum, producing gene dosage-dependent pum loss-of-function NMJ phenotypes. NQ1 coexpression also suppresses lethality and NMJ phenotypes caused by overexpression of Pum in muscles. The Q/N block of NQ1 is required for these phenotypic effects. Negative regulation of Pum by NQ1 might be explained by formation of inactive aggregates, but we have been unable to demonstrate that NQ1 aggregates in Drosophila. NQ1 could also regulate Pum by a "dominant-negative" effect, in which it would block Q/N-mediated interactions of Pum with itself or with cofactors required for translational repression