The Spatio-Temporal Distribution of Suicide-related Emergency Calls in a European City: Age and Gender Patterns, and Neighborhood Influences.

Objective: The aim of this study was to conduct a comprehensive spatio-temporal analysis of suicide-related emergency calls in the city of Valencia (Spain) over a six-year period. To this end we first examined age and gender patterns and, second, the influence of neighborhood characteristics on general and gender-specific spatio-temporal patterns of suicide-related emergency calls. Method: Geocoded data on suicide-related emergency calls between 2017 and 2022 (N = 10,030) were collected from the 112 emergency service in Valencia. Data were aggregated at the census block group level, used as a proxy for neighborhoods, and trimesters were considered as the temporal unit. Two set of analyses were performed: (1) demographic (age and gender) and temporal descriptive analyses and (2) general and gender-specific Bayesian spatio-temporal autoregressive models. Results: Descriptive analyses revealed a higher incidence of suicide-related emergency calls among females and an increase in calls among the 18-23 age group from 2020 onwards. The general spatio-temporal model showed higher levels of suicide-related emergency calls in neighborhoods characterized by lower education levels and population density, and higher residential mobility, aging population, and immigrant concentration. Relevant gender differences were also observed. A seasonal effect was noted, with a peak in calls during spring for females and summer for males. Conclusions: These findings highlight the need for comprehensive mental health targeted interventions and preventive strategies that account for gender-specific disparities, age-related vulnerabilities, and the specific characteristics of neighborhoods.

Generalized anxiety disorder during COVID-19 in Canada: Gender-specific association of COVID-19 misinformation exposure, precarious employment, and health behavior change.

BACKGROUND: Growing evidence has demonstrated the mental health sequelae of the COVID-19 pandemic. Few studies have examined how pandemic-related stressors and resilience factors of anxiety affect women and men differently in Canada. METHODS: Population-based data from the Canadian Perspective Survey Series (CPSS-4: July 20 to 26, 2020) were analyzed to examine the relationship between Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale (GAD-7) with COVID-19 misinformation exposure, precarious employment, and health behavior changes, after adjusting for socio-demographic variables. Stratified by gender, two multinomial logistic regression were conducted to calculate the likelihood of having minimal-mild anxiety (1≤ GAD score <10) and moderate-severe anxiety (GAD score ≥10), compared to no anxiety symptoms (GAD=0). RESULTS: Overall, respondents (n = 3,779) were mainly Canadian-born (76.3%), aged >25 years (85.4%) and high school graduate (87.9%). The population prevalence of moderate-severe GAD was 13.6%, with women significantly higher than men (17.2% vs. 9.9%, p<0.001). For women (n = 2,016), GAD was associated with being absent from work due to COVID-19 reasons (OR=3.52, 99% CI:1.12-11.04), younger age (ORs range from 2.19 to 11.01, p's<0.01), being single/widowed (OR=2.26, 99% CI 1.18-4.33), no past-week contacts outside household (OR=2.81, 99% CI:1.24-6.37), no outdoor exercise (OR=1.86, 99% CI:1.13-3.07). For men (n = 1,753), GAD was associated with frequent fake news exposure (dose-response relations: ORs range from 3.14 to 6.55, p's<0.01), increased time of watching TV (OR=2.62, 99% CI: 1.31 - 5.27), no indoor exercise (OR=1.91, 99% CI:1.07-3.42). For both genders, GAD was associated with increased intake of alcohol, cannabis, and junk/sweet food (p's<0.01). LIMITATIONS: Cross-sectional data prohibits causal inferences; self-reporting biases of GAD symptoms requires confirmation with diagnostic records. CONCLUSION: The gendered impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was observed in the associations between clinically significant anxiety with COVID-19 misinformation exposure, job precarity, and addictive behaviors in Canada. Mental health interventions need to be gender responsive and should tackle upstream social determinants of health in this public health emergency.

Identification of Gender- and Subtype-Specific Gene Expression Associated with Patient Survival in Low-Grade and Anaplastic Glioma in Connection with Steroid Signaling.

Low-grade gliomas are rare primary brain tumors, which fatally evolve to anaplastic gliomas. The current treatment combines surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. If gender differences in the natural history of the disease were widely described, their underlying mechanisms remain to be determined for the identification of reliable markers of disease progression. We mined the transcriptomic and clinical data from the TCGA-LGG and CGGA databases to identify male-over-female differentially expressed genes and selected those associated with patient survival using univariate analysis, depending on molecular characteristics (IDH wild-type/mutated; 1p/19q codeleted/not) and grade. Then, the link between the expression levels (low or high) of the steroid biosynthesis enzyme or receptors of interest and survival was studied using the log-rank test. Finally, a functional analysis of gender-specific correlated genes was performed. HOX-related genes appeared to be differentially expressed between males and females in both grades, suggesting that a glioma could originate in perturbation of developmental signals. Moreover, aromatase, androgen, and estrogen receptor expressions were associated with patient survival and were mainly related to angiogenesis or immune response. Therefore, consideration of the tight control of steroid hormone production and signaling seems crucial for the understanding of glioma pathogenesis and emergence of future targeted therapies.

Exploring the Intersection Between Immigration and Gender in the Context of Troubled Sleep: Some Evidence from Canada.

This study explored the linkage between immigration status and troubled sleep among recent immigrants, established immigrants and native-born in Canada. In particular, it examined whether the role of immigration status on troubled sleep differs between females and males. Using the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey-Mental Health, logistic regression models were fitted to examine the relationship between troubled sleep and immigration status among a weighted sample of 12,932,829 women and 12,424,195 men. Findings indicate that female recent (OR 0.42, p < 0.01) and established immigrants (OR 0.74, p < 0.05) report fewer troubled sleep than their native-born counterparts. However, only male established immigrants report fewer troubled sleep (OR 0.42, p < 0.05), as male recent immigrants did not significantly differ from their native-born counterparts (OR 0.70, p > 0.05). Moreover, male recent immigrants were more likely to report troubled sleep than their female counterparts (OR 1.30, p < 0.05). Based on these findings, we discussed the potential gendered mechanisms in which immigrants' sleep is informed by social, cultural, and economic factors. We also provided several useful implications for policymakers.

Identification of Gender-Specific Molecular Differences in Glioblastoma (GBM) and Low-Grade Glioma (LGG) by the Analysis of Large Transcriptomic and Epigenomic Datasets.

Differences in the incidence and outcome of glioma between males and females are well known, being more striking for glioblastoma (GB) than low-grade glioma (LGG). The extensive and well-annotated data in publicly available databases enable us to analyze the molecular basis of these differences at a global level. Here, we have analyzed The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas (CGGA) databases to identify molecular indicators for these gender-based differences by different methods. Based on the nature of data available/accessible, the transcriptomic profile was studied in TCGA by using DeSeq2 and in CGGA by T-test, after correction based. Only IDH1 wild-type tumors were studied in CGGA. Using weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), network analysis was done, followed by the assessment of modular differential connectivity. Differentially affected signaling pathways were identified. The gender-based effects of differentially expressed genes on survival were determined. DNA methylation was studied as an indicator of gender-based epigenetic differences. The results clearly showed gender-based differences in both GB and LGG, whatever method or database was used. While there were differences in the results obtained between databases and methods used, some major signaling pathways such as Wnt signaling and pathways involved in immune processes and the adaptive immune response were common to different assessments. There was also a differential gender-based influence of several genes on survival. Also, the autosomal genes NOX, FRG1BP, and AL354714.2 and X-linked genes such as PUDP, KDM6A, DDX3X, and SYAP1 had differential DNA methylation and expression profile in male and female GB, while for LGG, these included autosomal genes such as CNIH3 and ANKRD11 and X-linked genes such as KDM6A, MAOB, and EIF2S3. Some, such as FGF13 and DDX3X, have earlier been shown to have a role in tumor behavior, though their dimorphic effects in males and females have not been identified. Our study thus identifies several crucial differences between male and female glioma, which could be validated further. It also highlights that molecular studies without consideration of gender can obscure critical elements of biology and emphasizes the importance of parallel but separate analyses of male and female glioma.