The relationship of social isolation and sleep in older adults: evidence from cross-sectional and longitudinal studies.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to explore the relationship between social isolation and sleep in later life and the role of loneliness in this relationship. METHODS: In Study 1, we conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the correlation between social isolation and sleep in community-dwelling older adults (N = 108). This relationship was assessed using subjective and objective measures. Moreover, we examined the mediating role of loneliness cross-sectionally (Study 1) and longitudinally (Study 2). Longitudinal study was based on three waves of data from the National Scale Life, Health, and Aging Project (N = 1, 554). RESULTS: The results showed that social isolation was robustly associated with sleep in the general population of older adults. Specifically, subjective social isolation was associated with subjective sleep, and objective social isolation was associated with objective sleep. The results of the longitudinal study showed that loneliness mediated the reciprocal link between social isolation and sleep across time after controlling for autoregressive effects and basic demographics. CONCLUSIONS: These findings address the gap in the literature on the link between social isolation and sleep in older adults, extending the understanding of improvement in older adults' social networks, sleep quality, and psychological well-being.

The Effect of Nighttime Snacking on Cognitive Function in Older Adults: Evidence from Observational and Experimental Studies.

Evidence shows that supplementary snacking could provide older adults with nutrients that cannot be obtained through three meals a day. However, whether and how supplementary snacking, especially nighttime snacking, affects older adults' cognitive function remain unclear. The present study examined the effect of nighttime snacking on cognitive function for older adults. In study 1, we investigated the association between nighttime snacking and cognitive function based on data from 2618 community-dwelling older adults from the China health and nutrition survey (CHNS). In study 2, we conducted an experiment (n = 50) to explore how nighttime acute energy intake influences older adults' performance on cognitive tasks (immediate recall, short-term delayed recall, and long-term delayed recall). Both the observational and experimental studies suggested that nighttime snacking facilitated older adults' cognitive abilities, such as memory and mathematical ability, as indicated by subjective measures (study 1) and objective measures (studies 1 and 2). Moreover, this beneficial effect was moderated by cognitive load. These findings bridge the gap in the literature on the relationships between older adults' nighttime snacking and cognitive function, providing insight into how to improve older adults' dietary behaviors and cognitive function.

Knockout of Toll-like receptor 4 improves survival and cardiac function in a murine model of severe sepsis.

Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) is a transmembrane pattern­recognition receptor expressed in immune cells and the heart. Activation of TLR4 signaling during sepsis results in the release of cardiac depression mediators that may impair heart function. The present study aimed to determine whether TLR4 contributes to development of severe sepsis­induced myocardial dysfunction. A cecum ligation and puncture (CLP) procedure was employed to establish severe sepsis models. Wild type (WT) and TLR4 knock­out (TLR4­KO) mice were divided into four groups: WT­sham, TLR4­KO­sham, WT­CLP, and TLR4­KO­CLP. Cardiac function of these animals was evaluated at various time points following the surgical procedure. The expression levels of proinflammatory cytokines in the heart tissues were detected by reverse transcription­semi quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT­PCR). Myocardial neutrophil and macrophage infiltration were investigated by histopathological examination, as well as a myeloperoxidase activity assay in heart tissue by RT­PCR. Myocardium Fas cell surface death receptor/Fas ligand and caspase­3 were also analyzed by RT­PCR. Additionally, myeloid differentiation primary response 88 M, toll or interleukin­1 receptor­domain­containing adapter­inducing interferon­ß and nuclear factor­κB expression levels were observed in the myocardium of all four groups. WT­CLP mice exhibited increased mortality rates, more severe cardiac dysfunction and had increased levels of interleukin (IL)­1ß, IL­6 and tumor necrosis factor­α in heart tissues and increased neutrophil infiltration compared with TRL4­KO­CLP mice. The present study reported that TLR4 aggravates severe sepsis­induced cardiac impairment by promoting the release of proinflammatory cytokines and neutrophil infiltration in hearts.

Co-occurrence of bronchial papilloma and pulmonary sclerosing hemangioma in a male.

INTRODUCTION: Bronchial papilloma and pulmonary sclerosing hemangioma (PSH) are rare tumors. The development of PSH combined with bronchial papilloma in lung is extremely rare. We herein presented a case of the co-occurrence of bronchial papilloma and PSH in a male. CASE DESCRIPTION: A 48-year-old man was referred to our department for further treatment of the productive purulent cough and fever. After bronchoscopy, the biopsy of the specimen showed a bronchial papilloma in the lumen of posterior segment of the right upper lobar bronchus. For computed tomography demonstrated a focal lesion with an air bubble in the posterior segment of the right upper lobe, a lobectomy was performed and PSH was diagnosed. DISCUSSION: The report emphasizes the fact that even though some of bronchial papilloma and PSH may have a low prevalence, nonetheless, the low prevalence of both diseases in a male has meant that it has not been possible to explore the depth of association between them. CONCLUSIONS: The paper reports a case of PSH in a male suffering from bronchial papilloma which is the exceptional concurrence of these two extremely infrequent events.

Expression of IL-17A and IL-17F in lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury and the counteraction of anisodamine or methylprednisolone.

Th17 cytokines IL-17A and IL-17F as pro-inflammatory cytokines played an important role in triggering inflammatory responses. However, little was known about the expression of IL-17A and IL-17F in acute lung injury (ALI). Therefore, the present study investigated the expression of IL-17A and IL-17F in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced ALI in rats and rat pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (PMVEC) by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay or reverse transcription-polymerase chains reaction. Anisodamine and methylprednisolone were also investigated as anti-inflammatory strategy in the process of LPS-induced ALI. Lung injury was evaluated by histological changes, right lung wet weight:body weight (LW/BW) ratios, and protein education and total leukocyte count of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Our findings showed that LPS exposure elevated the levels of leukocyte number, protein education in BALF and the ratios of LW/BW, increased the expression of IL-17A and IL-17F in the lung tissues homogenate, BALF and serum of ALI rats. Up-regulation of IL-17F expression was also observed after LPS challenge in rat PMVEC. Treatment with anisodamine or methylprednisolone significantly inhibited the increases of parameters of ALI induced by LPS, and markedly reduced the expression of IL-17A and IL-17F in rats and the IL-17F expression in PMVEC. These data suggested that IL-17A and IL-17F maybe play an important role in LPS-induced ALI via autocrine and paracrine mechanisms, and anisodamine is similar in extent to methylprednisolone that contributes to relieve LPS-induced ALI.