Parental smoking and young adult offspring psychosis, depression and anxiety disorders and substance use disorder

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Parental smoking and young adult offspring psychosis, depression and anxiety disorders and substance use disorder

Background: To study the associations between maternal smoking during pregnancy and paternal smoking before pregnancy and adult offspring psychiatric disorders.Methods: Prospective general population cohort study in Northern Finland, with people from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986: 7259 subjects (77% of the original sample). Data on parental smoking were collected from parents during pregnancy using questionnaires. Outcomes were offspring's register-based diagnoses: any psychiatric disorder, any non-organic psychosis, mood disorder, anxiety disorder and substance use disorder (SUD) until the age of 29-30 years. Maternal smoking during pregnancy and paternal smoking before pregnancy were pooled to three-class variables: (i) none; (ii) 1-9 and (iii) ≥10 cigarettes/day. Information regarding both parents' alcohol use during pregnancy and at offspring age 15-16 years, maternal education level, family structure, parental psychiatric diagnoses and offspring gender, smoking, intoxication frequency and illicit substance use at the age of 15-16 years were investigated as covariates.Results: In the multivariable analyses, maternal smoking during pregnancy did not associate with the studied outcomes after adjusting for offspring smoking and other substance use at offspring age 15-16 years and parental psychiatric disorders. However, paternal smoking ≥10 cigarettes/day before pregnancy [hazard ratio (HR) = 5.5, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.7-11.2, P Conclusions: Information across the offspring life course is essential in exploring the association between parental smoking and offspring psychiatric disorders. Paternal smoking before pregnancy and paternal psychiatric disorders may act as modifiers in elevating the risk of substance-use-related problems among offspring.</p

Elongation of Scots pine seedlings under blue light depletion

Abstract The elongation response of Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) seedlings to the removal of blue light (400–500 nm) was studied in field experiments in northern Finland. The seedlings were grown in orange or transparent plexiglass chambers or in ambient control plots. The orange plexiglass removed the blue wavelengths from sunlight, while the others served as controls. The experiment was conducted at sub-arctic (69°N) and mid-boreal (64°N) latitudes with three- and two-year-old seedlings originating from 67°N latitude. The response to blue light depletion was also investigated at the 69°N latitude in the following plant subjects: one-year-old Scots pine seedlings of northern (67°N) and southern (62°N) provenances, deciduous Betula pubescens ssp. czerepanovii and Betula pubescens f. rubra seedlings and herbaceous Epilobium angustifolium and Glechoma hederacea plants. Additionally, diurnal change in light quality at the 69°N latitude during the summer was measured. The elongation of Scots pine seedlings was increased by the removal of blue wavelengths. The increase was more pronounced at the 69°N latitude, while at the 64°N latitude the response was smaller or absent. This is due to increased amount of scattered growth-inhibiting blue light during the nights at the high latitude. The removal of blue light increased stem elongation in northern origin Scots pine seedlings much more compared to the southern origin seedlings, which suggests that the northern provenance is more sensitive to blue light. Irrespective of that, southern origins also suffer from reduced elongation in the north as they migrate according to climatic change scenarios. However, it is obvious that they grow longer than local origins in the north. Morphological variables and photosynthetic pigments confirm that the increased elongation of Scots pine seedlings under blue light depletion is not a result of etiolation or it is only a marginal factor. Also, it was neither dependent on temperature nor photosynthesis and growth resources. Instead, the increased elongation is probably a photomorphogenic regulation response of metabolism. In addition, shade intolerant Scots pine, Betula seedlings and herbaceous Epilobium angustifolium responded stronger to blue light removal compared to the more shade-tolerant herbaceous Glechoma hederacea

Parental smoking and young adult offspring psychosis, depression and anxiety disorders and substance use disorder.

BACKGROUND To study the associations between maternal smoking during pregnancy and paternal smoking before pregnancy and adult offspring psychiatric disorders. METHODS Prospective general population cohort study in Northern Finland, with people from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986: 7259 subjects (77% of the original sample). Data on parental smoking were collected from parents during pregnancy using questionnaires. Outcomes were offspring's register-based diagnoses: any psychiatric disorder, any non-organic psychosis, mood disorder, anxiety disorder and substance use disorder (SUD) until the age of 29-30 years. Maternal smoking during pregnancy and paternal smoking before pregnancy were pooled to three-class variables: (i) none; (ii) 1-9 and (iii) ≥10 cigarettes/day. Information regarding both parents' alcohol use during pregnancy and at offspring age 15-16 years, maternal education level, family structure, parental psychiatric diagnoses and offspring gender, smoking, intoxication frequency and illicit substance use at the age of 15-16 years were investigated as covariates. RESULTS In the multivariable analyses, maternal smoking during pregnancy did not associate with the studied outcomes after adjusting for offspring smoking and other substance use at offspring age 15-16 years and parental psychiatric disorders. However, paternal smoking ≥10 cigarettes/day before pregnancy [hazard ratio (HR) = 5.5, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.7-11.2, P < 0.001] and paternal psychiatric disorders (HR = 1.7, 95% CI 1.1-2.8, P = 0.028) associated with offspring SUD after adjustments. CONCLUSIONS Information across the offspring life course is essential in exploring the association between parental smoking and offspring psychiatric disorders. Paternal smoking before pregnancy and paternal psychiatric disorders may act as modifiers in elevating the risk of substance-use-related problems among offspring

Monochromatic light increases anthocyanin content during fruit development in bilberry

BackgroundLight is one of the most significant environmental factors affecting to the accumulation of flavonoids in fruits. The composition of the light spectrum has been shown to affect the production of phenolic compounds during fruit ripening. However, specific information on the biosynthesis of flavonoids in fruits in response to different wavelengths of light is still scarce. In the present study bilberry (Vaccinium myrtillus L.) fruits, which are known to be rich with anthocyanin compounds, were illuminated with blue, red, far-red or white light during the berry ripening process. Following the illumination, the composition of anthocyanins and other phenolic compounds was analysed at the mature ripening stage of fruits.ResultsAll the three monochromatic light treatments had significant positive effect on the accumulation of total anthocyanins in ripe fruits compared to treatment with white light or plants kept in darkness. The elevated levels of anthocyanins were mainly due to a significant increase in the accumulation of delphinidin glycosides. A total of 33 anthocyanin compounds were detected in ripe bilberry fruits, of which six are novel in bilberry (cyanidin acetyl-3-O-galactose, malvidin acetyl-3-O-galactose, malvidin coumaroyl-3-O-galactose, malvidin coumaroyl-3-O-glucose, delphinidin coumaroyl-3-O-galactose, delphinidin coumaroyl-3-O-glucose).ConclusionsOur results indicate that the spectral composition of light during berry development has significant effect on the flavonoid composition of ripe bilberry fruit

Parental smoking and young adult offspring psychosis, depression and anxiety disorders and substance use disorder

Abstract Background: To study the associations between maternal smoking during pregnancy and paternal smoking before pregnancy and adult offspring psychiatric disorders. Methods: Prospective general population cohort study in Northern Finland, with people from the Northern Finland Birth Cohort 1986: 7259 subjects (77% of the original sample). Data on parental smoking were collected from parents during pregnancy using questionnaires. Outcomes were offspring’s register-based diagnoses: any psychiatric disorder, any non-organic psychosis, mood disorder, anxiety disorder and substance use disorder (SUD) until the age of 29–30 years. Maternal smoking during pregnancy and paternal smoking before pregnancy were pooled to three-class variables: (i) none; (ii) 1–9 and (iii) ≥10 cigarettes/day. Information regarding both parents’ alcohol use during pregnancy and at offspring age 15–16 years, maternal education level, family structure, parental psychiatric diagnoses and offspring gender, smoking, intoxication frequency and illicit substance use at the age of 15–16 years were investigated as covariates. Results: In the multivariable analyses, maternal smoking during pregnancy did not associate with the studied outcomes after adjusting for offspring smoking and other substance use at offspring age 15–16 years and parental psychiatric disorders. However, paternal smoking ≥10 cigarettes/day before pregnancy [hazard ratio (HR) = 5.5, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.7–11.2, P &lt; 0.001] and paternal psychiatric disorders (HR = 1.7, 95% CI 1.1–2.8, P = 0.028) associated with offspring SUD after adjustments. Conclusions: Information across the offspring life course is essential in exploring the association between parental smoking and offspring psychiatric disorders. Paternal smoking before pregnancy and paternal psychiatric disorders may act as modifiers in elevating the risk of substance-use-related problems among offspring

Frequent alcohol intoxication and high alcohol tolerance during adolescence as predictors of mortality:a birth cohort study

Abstract Purpose: Long-term prospective studies evaluating the health burden that is consequent to adolescent drinking are needed. The aim of this study was to examine the predictive associations between self-reported alcohol tolerance and frequent intoxication at age 15–16 years and the risk of death by age 33 years. Methods: A sample (n = 6,615; 49.3% males) of the Northern Finland Birth Cohort Study 1986 was studied. Self-reported alcohol tolerance (drinks needed to feel intoxicated) and frequency of alcohol intoxication at age 15–16 years were analyzed along with background variables and data regarding subsequent psychiatric diagnoses. Categories were formed for both predictive variables from self-reported tolerance and frequency of intoxication in mid-adolescence. Cox regression was used to calculate hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence interval (95% CI) for death by age 30 years. Results: By the age of 33 years, of all 6,615 participants, 53 (.8%) were deceased. The HR for death by age 33 years was 3.08 (95% CI 1.17–8.07) among adolescents with high alcohol tolerance compared with adolescents without alcohol use or intoxication. The frequency of alcohol intoxication was also associated with mortality; HR 2.05 (95% CI 1.01–4.16) for those who had been intoxicated one to two times and HR 3.02 (95% CI 1.21–7.54) for those who had been intoxicated three or more times in the past 30 days compared with adolescents without intoxication. Conclusions: High self-reported alcohol tolerance and frequent alcohol intoxication during mid-adolescence significantly predicted death by age 33 years. These behaviors carry long-term repercussions with respect to premature loss of life. Substantial efforts should be made to diminish this mortality risk