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Brain Sciences
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New Frontiers in Aging Psychiatry
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New Frontiers in Aging Psychiatry

A special issue of Brain Sciences (ISSN 2076-3425). This special issue belongs to the section "Psychiatric Diseases".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2022) | Viewed by 8832

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Annalena Venneri

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Neuroscience, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
2. Department of Life Sciences, Brunel University London, Uxbridge, UK
Interests: biological bases of neuropsychiatric symptoms in neurodegenerative diseases; early detection of Alzheimer’s disease; cognitive correlates of neuropsychiatric symptoms in neurodegenerative diseases
Dr. Vanessa Raymont

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Guest Editor
Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
Interests: early biomarkers of dementia; clinical trials in cognitive impairment; head injury
Dr. Corinne Fischer

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
Interests: biomarker correlates of neuropsychiatric symptoms in dementia

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With an increasingly aging population, there is also an increased risk that older people may experience late-onset mental health issues as well as develop neurodegenerative conditions that might facilitate the emergence of neuropsychiatric symptoms. Some people have a greater predisposition than others to develop age-related conditions that might facilitate their experiencing of these symptoms. In addition, independent factors such as, for example, prolonged periods of isolation such as those due to the current COVID-19 pandemic have acted as a catalyst for latent symptoms, increasing older people’s chances for mental health distress.

In this Special Issue, we would like to focus on research that uses the most advanced methodology to provide a better understanding of psychiatric issues in aging, with a focus on understanding predisposing factors, biological factors, behavioral facilitators, and clinical phenomenology of psychiatric manifestations in aging.

The objective of this Special Issue is to act as a fulcrum for cutting-edge research based on advanced methodology, including genetics, advanced imaging, epidemiology, and behavioral measures to provide interested readers with the latest findings in aging psychiatry that might impact their clinical approach and their approach to treatment.

We are soliciting papers in the field of aging psychiatry that have approached the study of mental health disorders and neuropsychiatric manifestations in aging using state-of-the-art methodology, including but not limited to genetics, neuroimaging, epidemiology, pathology, and behavioral measures.

Prof. Dr. Annalena Venneri
Dr. Vanessa Raymont
Dr. Corinne Fischer
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Brain Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • ageing/aging
  • neuropsychiatric
  • mental health
  • psychiatry

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

17 pages, 1284 KiB  
Article
Macrostructural and Microstructural White Matter Alterations Are Associated with Apathy across the Clinical Alzheimer’s Disease Spectrum
by Riccardo Manca, Sarah A. Jones and Annalena Venneri
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(10), 1383; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12101383 - 13 Oct 2022
Viewed by 1699
Abstract
Apathy is the commonest neuropsychiatric symptom in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Previous findings suggest that apathy is caused by a communication breakdown between functional neural networks involved in motivational–affective processing. This study investigated the relationship between white matter (WM) damage and apathy in AD. [...] Read more.
Apathy is the commonest neuropsychiatric symptom in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Previous findings suggest that apathy is caused by a communication breakdown between functional neural networks involved in motivational–affective processing. This study investigated the relationship between white matter (WM) damage and apathy in AD. Sixty-one patients with apathy (AP-PT) and 61 without apathy (NA-PT) were identified from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) database and matched for cognitive status, age and education. Sixty-one cognitively unimpaired (CU) participants were also included as controls. Data on cognitive performance, cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers, brain/WM hyperintensity volumes and diffusion tensor imaging indices were compared across groups. No neurocognitive differences were found between patient groups, but the AP-PT group had more severe neuropsychiatric symptoms. Compared with CU participants, only apathetic patients had deficits on the Clock Drawing Test. AP-PT had increased WM damage, both macrostructurally, i.e., larger WM hyperintensity volume, and microstructurally, i.e., increased radial/axial diffusivity and reduced fractional anisotropy in the fornix, cingulum, anterior thalamic radiations and superior longitudinal and uncinate fasciculi. AP-PT showed signs of extensive WM damage, especially in associative tracts in the frontal lobes, fornix and cingulum. Disruption in structural connectivity might affect crucial functional inter-network communication, resulting in motivational deficits and worse cognitive decline. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Frontiers in Aging Psychiatry)
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10 pages, 893 KiB  
Article
Determining Whether Sex and Zygosity Modulates the Association between APOE4 and Psychosis in a Neuropathologically-Confirmed Alzheimer’s Disease Cohort
by Mila Valcic, Marc A. Khoury, Julia Kim, Luis Fornazzari, Nathan W. Churchill, Zahinoor Ismail, Vincenzo De Luca, Debby Tsuang, Tom A. Schweizer, David G. Munoz and Corinne E. Fischer
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(9), 1266; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12091266 - 19 Sep 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1793 | Correction
Abstract
Background: The APOE4 allele is a genetic risk factor for developing late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Previous work by our group revealed that female APOE4 homozygotes with Lewy body (LB) pathology were more likely to experience psychosis compared to female APOE4 non-carriers, whereas in [...] Read more.
Background: The APOE4 allele is a genetic risk factor for developing late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Previous work by our group revealed that female APOE4 homozygotes with Lewy body (LB) pathology were more likely to experience psychosis compared to female APOE4 non-carriers, whereas in males there was no APOE4 dose-dependent significant effect. The objective of this study was to refine our previous findings by adjusting for covariates and determining the probability of an APOE4 sex-mediated effect on psychosis. Methods: Neuropathologically confirmed AD patients with LB pathology (n = 491) and without LB pathology (n = 716) were extracted from the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center (NACC). Patients were classified as psychotic if they scored positively for delusions and/or hallucinations on the Neuropsychiatric Inventory. Analysis consisted of a preliminary unadjusted binary logistic regression and a Generalized Additive binary logistic regression Model (GAM) to predict the relationship between APOE4 status and sex on the presence of psychosis in both cohorts, adjusting for age, education and MMSE. Results: In the cohort with LB pathology, female APOE4 homozygotes were significantly more likely to experience psychosis compared to female APOE4 non-carriers (OR = 4.15, 95%CI [1.21, 14.2], p = 0.023). Female heterozygotes were also more likely to experience psychosis compared to female APOE4 non-carriers, but to a lesser extent (OR = 2.37, 95%CI [1.01, 5.59], p = 0.048). There was no significant difference in males with LB pathology or in any sex in the cohort without LB pathology. Conclusions: Sex and zygosity influence the effect of APOE4 on psychosis in neuropathologically confirmed AD patients, with the effect being limited to females with LB pathology. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Frontiers in Aging Psychiatry)
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14 pages, 585 KiB  
Article
The Relationship between Oxidative Stress and Subjective Sleep Quality in People with Coronary Artery Disease
by Vivian Feng, Shankar Tumati, Ruoding Wang, Kritleen K. Bawa, Damien Gallagher, Nathan Herrmann, Susan Marzolini, Paul Oh, Ana Andreazza and Krista L. Lanctôt
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(8), 1070; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12081070 - 12 Aug 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2012
Abstract
Background: (1) Sleep disorders are prevalent in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients and predict cardiac events and prognosis. While increased oxidative stress (OS) has been associated with sleep disorders, less is known about its relationship with sleep quality. Similarly, little is known of [...] Read more.
Background: (1) Sleep disorders are prevalent in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients and predict cardiac events and prognosis. While increased oxidative stress (OS) has been associated with sleep disorders, less is known about its relationship with sleep quality. Similarly, little is known of how this relationship might change with exercise, which can improve sleep quality. Factors of sleep quality, such as sleep duration and disturbances, are also important as they predict cardiovascular diseases better than a global score alone. This study investigated whether OS was associated with self-rated sleep quality and its factors before and after completing a 24-week exercise intervention. (2) Methods: CAD patients undergoing an exercise program were recruited. OS was measured at baseline by the concentrations of early- (lipid hydroperoxides, LPH) and late-stage (8-isoprostane, 8-ISO) lipid peroxidation products and their ratio. Sleep quality was measured by the self-reported Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) instrument at baseline and termination. Three sleep factors—perceived sleep quality, sleep efficiency, and daily disturbances—were derived from the PSQI. (3) Results: Among CAD patients (n = 113, 85.0% male, age = 63.7 ± 6.4 years, global PSQI = 5.8 ± 4.0), those with poor sleep (PSQI ≥ 5) had higher baseline 8-ISO levels (F(1, 111) = 6.212, p = 0.014, ηp2 = 0.053) compared to those with normal sleep. Concentrations of LPH (F(1, 105) = 0.569, p = 0.453, ηp2 = 0.005) and 8-ISO/LPH ratios (F(1, 105) = 2.173, p = 0.143, ηp2 = 0.020) did not differ between those with poor sleep and normal sleep. Among factors, perceived sleep quality was associated with 8-ISO and 8-ISO/LPH, and daily disturbances were associated with 8-ISO. (4) Conclusions: A marker of late-stage lipid peroxidation is elevated in CAD patients with poor sleep and associated with daily disturbances, but not with other factors or with sleep quality and its factors after exercise intervention. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Frontiers in Aging Psychiatry)
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14 pages, 1976 KiB  
Article
Delusional Severity Is Associated with Abnormal Texture in FLAIR MRI
by Marc A. Khoury, Mohamad-Ali Bahsoun, Ayad Fadhel, Shukrullah Shunbuli, Saanika Venkatesh, Abdollah Ghazvanchahi, Samir Mitha, Karissa Chan, Luis R. Fornazzari, Nathan W. Churchill, Zahinoor Ismail, David G. Munoz, Tom A. Schweizer, Alan R. Moody, Corinne E. Fischer and April Khademi
Brain Sci. 2022, 12(5), 600; https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci12050600 - 05 May 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2608
Abstract
Background: This study examines the relationship between delusional severity in cognitively impaired adults with automatically computed volume and texture biomarkers from the Normal Appearing Brain Matter (NABM) in FLAIR MRI. Methods: Patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI, n = 24) and Alzheimer’s Disease [...] Read more.
Background: This study examines the relationship between delusional severity in cognitively impaired adults with automatically computed volume and texture biomarkers from the Normal Appearing Brain Matter (NABM) in FLAIR MRI. Methods: Patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI, n = 24) and Alzheimer’s Disease (AD, n = 18) with delusions of varying severities based on Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Questionnaire (NPI-Q) (1—mild, 2—moderate, 3—severe) from the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) were analyzed for this task. The NABM region, which is gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) combined, was automatically segmented in FLAIR MRI volumes with intensity standardization and thresholding. Three imaging biomarkers were computed from this region, including NABM volume and two texture markers called “Integrity” and “Damage”. Together, these imaging biomarkers quantify structural changes in brain volume, microstructural integrity and tissue damage. Multivariable regression was used to investigate relationships between imaging biomarkers and delusional severities (1, 2 and 3). Sex, age, education, APOE4 and baseline cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) tau were included as co-variates. Results: Biomarkers were extracted from a total of 42 participants with longitudinal time points representing 164 imaging volumes. Significant associations were found for all three NABM biomarkers between delusion level 3 and level 1. Integrity was also sensitive enough to show differences between delusion level 1 and delusion level 2. A significant specified interaction was noted with severe delusions (level 3) and CSF tau for all imaging biomarkers (p < 0.01). APOE4 homozygotes were also significantly related to the biomarkers. Conclusion: Cognitively impaired older adults with more severe delusions have greater global brain disease burden in the WM and GM combined (NABM) as measured using FLAIR MRI. Relative to patients with mild delusions, tissue degeneration in the NABM was more pronounced in subjects with higher delusional symptoms, with a significant association with CSF tau. Future studies are required to establish potential tau-associated mechanisms of increased delusional severity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Frontiers in Aging Psychiatry)
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