Publications

142 Publications visible to you, out of a total of 142

Abstract (Expand)

Sex hormones have been implicated in neurite outgrowth, synaptogenesis, dendritic branching, myelination and other important mechanisms of neural plasticity. Here we review the evidence from animal experiments and human studies reporting interactions between sex hormones and the dominant neurotransmitters, such as serotonin, dopamine, GABA and glutamate. We provide an overview of accumulating data during physiological and pathological conditions and discuss currently conceptualized theories on how sex hormones potentially trigger neuroplasticity changes through these four neurochemical systems. Many brain regions have been demonstrated to express high densities for estrogen- and progesterone receptors, such as the amygdala, the hypothalamus, and the hippocampus. As the hippocampus is of particular relevance in the context of mediating structural plasticity in the adult brain, we put particular emphasis on what evidence could be gathered thus far that links differences in behavior, neurochemical patterns and hippocampal structure to a changing hormonal environment. Finally, we discuss how physiologically occurring hormonal transition periods in humans can be used to model how changes in sex hormones influence functional connectivity, neurotransmission and brain structure in vivo.

Authors: C. Barth, A. Villringer, J. Sacher

Date Published: 10th Mar 2015

Publication Type: Not specified

Abstract (Expand)

BACKGROUND: Reference intervals for leukocyte subsets from peripheral blood are helpful for the understanding of disease states and therapy effects. METHODS: We performed in-depth immunophenotyping for 608 healthy German adults from the Leipzig region from 40 to 79 years by 10-color flow cytometry (FCM) to gain reference information for various leukocyte subsets including subsets of granulocytes, monocytes and lymphocytes. RESULTS: First, we derived gender- and age-specific reference intervals for males and females from 40 to 59 and from 60 to 79 years, respectively. Second, we further investigated the influence of gender and age on leukocyte counts. We found significantly higher cell counts for monocytes (P < 0.001) and NK cells (P < 0.001) in men, whereas women had higher counts for B cells (P < 0.001), Th cells (P < 0.001) and regulatory T cells (P = 0.008). Furthermore, with increasing age, a decrease in Tc cells (about 8% within 5 years) and an increase in NK cells (<4% within 5 years) were observed. CONCLUSION: In future research, it should be investigated whether these are real ageing effects that can be confirmed in longitudinal studies. Furthermore, it is important to understand if the Tc cell count drop is functionally compensated by the increase of NK cells.

Authors: S. Melzer, S. Zachariae, J. Bocsi, C. Engel, M. Loffler, A. Tarnok

Date Published: 24th Feb 2015

Publication Type: Not specified

Abstract (Expand)

OBJECTIVE: Research consistently shows a negative view of individuals with obesity in the general public and in various other settings. Stigma and discrimination can be considered chronic stressors, as these factors have a profound impact on the psychological well-being of the affected individuals. This article proposes a framework that entails a mediation of the adverse effects of discrimination and stigmatization on mental well-being through elevated psychological risk factors that are not unique to weight but that could affect overweight and normal-weight individuals alike. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted to assess the prevalence of psychological risk factors, such as self-esteem and coping, in individuals with obesity. RESULTS: Forty-six articles were assessed and included for detailed analysis. The number of studies on these topics is limited to certain dimensions of psychological processes. The best evaluated association of obesity and psychosocial aspects is seen for self-esteem. Most studies establish a negative association of weight and self-esteem in children and adults. All studies with mediation analysis find a positive mediation through psychological risk factors on mental health outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: This review shows that elevated psychological risk factors are existent in individuals with obesity and that they may be a mediator between weight discrimination and pathopsychological outcomes.

Authors: C. Sikorski, M. Luppa, T. Luck, S. G. Riedel-Heller

Date Published: 29th Jan 2015

Publication Type: Not specified

Abstract (Expand)

LIFE is an epidemiological study determining thousands of Leipzig inhabitants with a wide spectrum of interviews, questionnaires, and medical investigations. The heterogeneous data are centrally integrated into a research database and are analyzed by specific analysis projects. To semantically describe the large set of data, we have developed an ontological framework. Applicants of analysis projects and other interested people can use the LIFE Investigation Ontology (LIO) as central part of the framework to get insights, which kind of data is collected in LIFE. Moreover, we use the framework to generate queries over the collected scientific data in order to retrieve data as requested by each analysis project. A query generator transforms the ontological specifications using LIO to database queries which are implemented as project-specific database views. Since the requested data is typically complex, a manual query specification would be very timeconsuming, error-prone, and is, therefore, unsuitable in this large project. We present the approach, overview LIO and show query formulation and transformation. Our approach runs in production mode for two years in LIFE.

Authors: Toralf Kirsten, A. Uciteli

Date Published: 2015

Publication Type: Not specified

Abstract (Expand)

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a risk factor of dementia. The effect of T2DM treatment quality on dementia risk, however, is unclear. 1,342 elderly individuals recruited via general practitioner registries (AgeCoDe cohort) were analyzed. This study analyzed the association between HbA1c level and the incidence of all-cause dementia (ACD) and of Alzheimer's disease dementia (referred to here as AD). HbA1c levels >/=6.5% were associated with 2.8-fold increased risk of incident ACD (p = 0.027) and for AD (p = 0.047). HbA1c levels >/=7% were associated with a five-fold increased risk of incident ACD (p = 0.001) and 4.7-fold increased risk of incident AD (p = 0.004). The T2DM diagnosis per se did not increase the risk of either ACD or AD. Higher levels of HbA1c are associated with increased risk of ACD and AD in an elderly population. T2DM diagnosis was not associated with increased risk if HbA1c levels were below 7%.

Authors: A. Ramirez, S. Wolfsgruber, C. Lange, H. Kaduszkiewicz, S. Weyerer, J. Werle, M. Pentzek, A. Fuchs, S. G. Riedel-Heller, T. Luck, E. Mosch, H. Bickel, B. Wiese, J. Prokein, H. H. Konig, C. Brettschneider, M. M. Breteler, W. Maier, F. Jessen, M. Scherer

Date Published: 20th Dec 2014

Publication Type: Not specified

Human Diseases: diabetes mellitus, dementia, Alzheimer's disease

Abstract (Expand)

Life Child is an epidemiological study running at the LIFE Research Center for Civilization Diseas-es (University of Leipzig) since 2011. It aims at monitoring the development in children and adolescents by examining thousands of children in and around Leipzig. Of particular interest in this study are motor skills and physical activities of children between 6 and 18 years. There are multiple examinations including interviews, self-completed questionnaires and physical examinations (e.g., sport tests) to generate data describing the determined child as well her lifestyle and environment. The goal is to find causes for low to non physical activity and unincisive motor skills and capabilities since they are commonly attended with diseases, such as obesity and diabetes. As a first step in this direction, we analyzed data of specific sport tests, such as pushups, side steps and long jumps, according to the body mass index (BMI) of participants. We found that participants with high BMI achieve a similar number of pushups in early years like the normal BMI group, while in later years the pushup number of participants with normal BMI exceeds the pushup number of high BMI group. Surprisingly, the number of side steps is indifferent over age categories (6-18, yearly) between both groups. Conversely, the normal BMI group achieve higher distances through-out all age categories than the high BMI group. In future, we will associate these results with socio-economic and lifestyle indicators, e.g., interest in sport and physical activities of child and parents.

Authors: J. Lang, C. Warnatsch, M. Vogel, Toralf Kirsten, W. Kiess

Date Published: 17th Dec 2014

Publication Type: Not specified

Abstract (Expand)

Soziodemographische Merkmale gelten in den Humanwissenschaften als globale Einflussfaktoren in fast allen Forschungsgebieten und bilden das Basiselement von Kohortenstudien. Darüber hinaus wurde in vielen Bereichen ein direkter Zusammenhang zwischen sozialen Faktoren und Gesundheit nachgewiesen. Insbesondere im Kindes- und Jugendalter nimmt der sozioökonomische Status einer Familie entscheidenden Einfluss auf die physische sowie mentale Entwicklung. Derartige und weitere Forschungsfragen stehen im Blickpunkt des Projektes LIFE Child.

Authors: L. Meißner, C. Bucher, M. Vogel, Toralf Kirsten, S. Nerlich, U. Igel, W. Kiess, A. Hiemisch

Date Published: 17th Dec 2014

Publication Type: Not specified

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