Heritability of brain volumes in older adults: the Older Australian Twins Study

The relative contributions of genetic and environmental factors to brain structure change throughout the lifespan. Brain structures have been reported to be highly heritable in middle-aged individuals and younger; however, the influence of genes on brain structure is less studied in older adults. We performed a magnetic resonance imaging study of 236 older twins, with a mean age of 71.4 ± 5.7 years, to examine the heritability of 53 brain global and lobar volumetric measures. Total brain volume (63%) and other volumetric measures were moderately to highly heritable in late life, and these genetic influences tended to decrease with age, suggesting a greater influence of environmental factors as age advanced. Genetic influences were higher in men and on the left hemisphere compared with the right. In multivariate models, common genetic factors were observed for global and lobar total and gray matter volumes. This study examined the genetic contribution to 53 brain global and lobar volumetric measures in older twins for the first time, and the influence of age, sex, and laterality on these genetic contributions, which are useful information for a better understanding of the process of brain aging and helping individuals to have a healthy aging.     

综合性医院抑郁症的特点及疗效分析

目的:了解综合性医院神经内科门诊抑郁症的临床特点及抗抑郁治疗的临床疗效.方法:对46例抑郁症患者的临床特点进行研究分析,同时对其中24例患者给予帕罗西汀治疗,对汉密尔顿抑郁评定表(HAMD)的平均总分数、汉密尔顿4因子及临床总体印象量表(CGI)评分在治疗前后进行比较.结果:46例抑郁症患者均以不同程度的躯体症状为主诉,临床表现多种多样,可涉及全身各系统;其中24例抑郁症患者给予帕罗西汀治疗后,汉密尔顿抑郁评定表的平均总分数、汉密尔顿4因子及临床总体印象量表评分分数在治疗后较治疗前显著减少(P＜0.01).结论:了解抑郁症患者躯体症状的临床特点,对于抑郁症的诊断和治疗至关重要.帕罗西汀对抑郁症患者具有明显的抗焦虑作用及早期改善睡眠的作用且整体抗抑郁疗效好.     

Twins,families, and the psychology of individual differences: The legacy of Steven G. Vandenberg

To honor the retirement of Steven G. Vandenberg, his contributions to multivariate behavioral genetics are reviewed. During Professor Vandenberg's prolific career, he made substantial contributions to three general areas: twin research, family studies, and research on individual differences. In the area of twin research, two large-scale studies, the Hereditary Abilities Study and the Louisville Twin Study, are reviewed. His contributions to the analysis of twin data, with particular reference to the canonical generalization of Bartlett'sF ratio, are also noted. In the area of family studies, Professor Vandenberg was principal or coprincipal investigator of the Boulder Family Study, the Hawaii Family Study of Cognition, the Colorado Adoption Project, and a twin-family study of smoking behavior; his papers on ethnic comparisons, assortative marriage, and kinship analyses are reviewed. In his research on individual differences, Professor Vandenberg conducted studies of the cross-ethnic factorial invariance of primary mental abilities in Chinese and South American students and took an early interest in automated methods for factor analysis. Over the course of his career, Professor Vandenberg has made a variety of tangible and intangible contributions to behavioral genetics, and his personal humility and scientific outlook have provided an important role model for his colleagues and students.     

Genetic and Environmental Influences on Decline in Biobehavioral Markers of Aging

Latent growth models were applied to longitudinal twin data on markers of aging to investigate genetic and environmental influences on the processes of change with age. The sample included 1957 participants aged 50 to 96 years. Five markers were assessed: forced expiratory volume, mean arterial pressure, grip strength, motor functioning, and well-being. Data were gathered at up to three follow-up occasions at intervals of 3 years. Results indicated monotonic changes with age for all but two variables. Performance on motor functioning and well-being was stable until age 65 or 70, followed by significant decline. Genetic influences on the level of performance were indicated for all five markers of aging. Genetic influences on the slope were found for only three of the variables: motor functioning, mean arterial pressure, and forced expiratory volume. Investigations of the aging process will differ depending on whether the focus is on static performance or change.     

抑郁症患者的应激与应激性激素

目的 :探讨应激在抑郁症发作中的作用 ,及对应激性激素的影响。方法 :对 43例抑郁症患者的应激量及应激性激素进行研究 ,并与正常人对照。结果 :抑郁症组发作前有诱因者占 62 79% ,LES评分12 0 3 9± 92 87,DST阳性率为 5 5 9%。与对照组比较 ,病人组的CRH、ACTH高 ,HGH低 ;病人组在不同病因、应激量及诊断间存在差异。病人组ACTH与HAMD (r =0 3 9,P =0 0 0 9) ,CORT与NDI (r =0 43 ,P =0 0 0 4)间存在相关系。结论 :抑郁症的发作及应激性激素变化与应激有一定关系 ,但这种变化是重大生活事件与其他因素共同作用的结果。     

银杏叶提取物联合盐酸文拉法辛对抑郁大鼠海马nNOS蛋白表达及NO水平的影响

目的 :探讨抑郁症脑损伤的机制 ,研究银杏叶提取物 (EGb)及合成抗抑郁药盐酸文拉法辛(Venlafaxine)对抑郁大鼠的抗脑损伤及神经元保护作用。方法 :慢性应激建立大鼠抑郁模型。将 84只雄性大鼠分为正常对照组、抑郁模型组和不同治疗组。快速断头法处死 ,取海马后一侧进行免疫组化反应 ,观察海马CA3区nNOS蛋白的表达 ;另一侧检测NO含量 ;同时测定血清中NO含量。结果 :抑郁模型组海马nNOS表达增加 ,海马及血清中NO含量增加 ,P <0 0 1;联合用药组海马nNOS表达下降 ,海马及血清中NO含量减少 ,P <0 0 1。结论 :慢性应激增加海马nNOS表达 ;EGb有减轻神经元损伤 ,保护神经元的作用 ,其与Venlafaxine合用可能会达到对抑郁进行多靶点、多层次的治疗 ,弥补单一用药的不足。     

Diabetes and Depression: The Role of Social Support and Medical Symptoms

Depression in people with diabetes is linked to poor physical health. Social support and physical health have been linked to each other and to depression. The present study examined three possible models of the interrelationship among depression, social support, and diabetes-related medical symptoms. Eighty-six diabetes patients completed measures of diabetes symptoms, depression, and diabetes-related social support. Depression, social support, and diabetes-related medical symptoms were significantly related to each other. Mediation analysis indicated that the effect of social support on diabetes-related medical symptoms was fully accounted for by social support’s adverse effect on depression. Consistent with theory and research on interpersonal aspects of depression, a bi-directional relationship between depression and social support was suggested. That is, while both diabetes-related medical symptoms and social support independently contributed to depression, depression also contributed to lower social support. Findings underscore the potential importance of interpersonal factors in the physical health of individuals with diabetes.     

抑郁症患者自动思维及应付方式特征的研究

目的 :探讨抑郁症患者自动思维、应付方式随抑郁症状严重程度变化的特点和规律。方法 :对 97例抑郁症患者分别在其入、出院时进行测评 ,测评工具包括自评抑郁量表 (SDS)、自动思维问卷(ATQ)和应付方式问卷 ,对 10 0例正常对照亦进行上述测评。结果 :1)治疗后SDS和ATQ得分显著下降 ,下降幅度分别为 2 4 99分和 3 1 97分 ;2 )治疗后“自责”得分显著下降 (P <0 0 5 ) ,“解决问题”得分显著增加 (P <0 0 5 ) ,“幻想、合理化”得分在治疗后无显著变化 (P >0 0 5 ) ;3 )SDS前后得分的差值与“ATQ、退避、自责”的前后差值呈显著正相关 ,Pearsonr为 0 2 1～ 0 61,与“解决问题”的差值呈显著负相关 (r为-0 2 5 ) ,ATQ前后得分的差值与“SDS、退避、自责”的前后差值呈显著正相关 (r为 0 2 5～ 0 61) ,与“解决问题”的前后差值呈显著负相关 (r为 -0 3 8) ,SDS前后差值与“幻想、合理化”治疗前后得分差值相关不显著 (P >0 0 5 )。结论 :“自动思维、自责、解决问题”的得分随抑郁症状的严重程度而变化 ,具有状态性特征 ;而“幻想、合理化”这两种应付方式则变化不显著 ,具有跨情境稳定性。     

The Effect of Telephone-Administered Psychotherapy on Symptoms of Depression and Attrition: A Meta-Analysis

Increasingly, the telephone is being used to deliver psychotherapy for depression, in part as a means to reduce barriers to treatment. Twelve trials of telephone-administered psychotherapies, in which depressive symptoms were assessed, were included. There was a significant reduction in depressive symptoms for patients enrolled in telephone-administered psychotherapy as compared to control conditions ( d  = 0.26, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.14–0.39, p  < .0001). There was also a significant reduction in depressive symptoms in analyses of pretreatment to posttreatment change ( d  = 0.81, 95% CI = 0.50–1.13, p  < .0001). The mean attrition rate was 7.56% (95% CI = 4.23–10.90). These findings suggest that telephone-administered psychotherapy can produce significant reductions in depressive symptoms. Attrition rates were considerably lower than rates reported in face-to-face psychotherapy.     

澳门老年人抑郁症状及其影响因素调查分析

目的：调查澳门老年人中抑郁症状及影响因素。方法：采用CES－D抑郁量表对662名55岁以上的澳门中老年人进行了评定,结果：有12．37％的老人有明显的抑郁症状;抑郁量表的得分女性显著高于男性,不同年龄组之间差异不显著。多元回归分析的结果显示,家庭结构,经济保障,与配偶及子女的关系,健身活动等是影响澳门老年人抑郁情绪的主要因素。结论：澳门老人中存有抑郁症状,其影响因素是多方面的。     

Recruitment bias in twin research: The rule of two-thirds reconsidered

A review of recent studies of adult volunteer twins confirms an earlier report that, in such studies, male and dizygotic twin pairs are underre-presented. The Martin and Wilson [(1982). Behav. Genet.12:467–472] model of recruitment bias assumes that individuals who are twins respond to recruitment in the same way that singletons do. It is argued that twins recruited for twin studies may be influenced by additional factors, and evidence in support of this view is presented. The consequences of the augmented model. illustrated by Monte Carlo methods, suggests the following conclusions: (1) recruitment bias can have unpredictable and sometimes large effects in the form of under- or, more likely, overestimation of the true twin correlations; (2) these effects will tend to be larger among dizygotic, than among monozygotic, twins; and (3) differential recruitment bias is likely to be accompanied by monozygotic (MZ): dizygotic (DZ) differences in the total variance of the traits measured. Showing that the dependent variable has as large a variance in the twin sample as in the reference population, or that the means and variances of the MZ and DZ samples are similar, provides considerable reassurance that the sample statistics may be representative.This work was supported in part by Grant MH37860 from the National Institute of Mental Health.     

电针、氟西汀治疗抑郁症前后血小板膜鸟苷酸结合蛋白含量的变化

目的:探讨电针与抗抑郁药治疗抑郁症对中枢神经系统信号传导通路G蛋白的作用.方法:符合DSM-IV 抑郁症诊断标准的抑郁症患者78例,分别接受电针、氟西汀和安慰剂治疗(例数分别为24,24,30)6周,对治疗前后患者血小板膜G蛋白各亚型的含量采用蛋白印记方法进行测定.结果:抑郁症患者治疗前Gαi、Gαq 含量均大于正常对照(P=0.001,P=0.000),Gαs含量与正常对照无差异(P=0.723).氟西汀、电针和安慰剂治疗不能改变抑郁症的Gαi,Gαq的高水平状态.三种治疗对Gαq蛋白的亚型的含量没有影响.结论:抑郁症患者的G蛋白存在异常,Gαi和Gαq高水平状态可能是抑郁症的特征性指标,而非状态性指标.     

文拉法辛缓释剂与阿米替林治疗老年抑郁症的随访研究

目的 比较文拉法辛缓释荆(博乐欣)与阿米替林对老年抑郁症的治疗效果.方法 将80例老年抑郁症患者按住院顺序分为两组,分别给予博乐欣和阿米替林进行为期8周的治疗,治疗结束后进行1年的随访.用汉密尔顿抑郁量表(HAMD)、抗抑郁药副反应量表(SERS)于治疗前、治疗中和出院后1年对患者进行疗效评估.结果 治疗结束后两组显效...     

Prevention of Pregnancy-Induced Hypertension in Twins by Early Administration of Low-Dose Aspirin: A Preliminary Report

PROBLEM: Effectiveness of early administered low-dose aspirin in prevention of pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH) and fetal growth retardation in twin pregnancies was investigated in a randomized placebo controlled, double-blind trial in 47 twin pregnancies. METHOD: Twenty-four women received 100 mg of aspirin daily from mean gestational age of 17.7 wk, and 23 women ingested placebo from a mean gestational age of 18 wk until delivery. The placebo and aspirin group were similar in age, weight gain, zygosity, gravidity, parity, and obstetrical antecedents. Treatment lasted for a mean period of 16.8 wk and 18.3 wk in the placebo and aspirin groups, respectively. The mean gestational age at birth was 35.0 wk and 36.4 wk in the placebo and aspirin groups, respectively. RESULTS: PIH was noted in six women (26%) in the placebo group, but in only one woman (4%) in the aspirin treated patients (P<.05). The mean combined fetal weights of both twins, and the mean weight of the second twin at delivery were significantly higher in the aspirin treated mothers than in the placebo treated gravidas (mean difference of 781 g, P<.02 and mean difference of 488 g, P < .005, respectively). Intrauterine growth retardation (< 10th percentile) concerned 11 (24%) and six (13%) fetuses in the placebo and aspirin groups, respectively. No adverse effects of treatment to either the mothers or the infants were noted. CONCLUSION: Low-dose aspirin reduces the incidence of PIH and has a beneficial effect on fetal growth in twin pregnancies. Additional clinical trials are needed in order to define and select subgroups of twins where aspirin treatment is recommended.     

Hostility in Marital Dyads: Associations with Depressive Symptoms

We examined the relations of hostility (of self and spouse) with self-ratings of depressive symptoms in 898 spouse pairs. Self-ratings of hostility were initially examined as predictors of depression. Next, spouse self-ratings of hostility were added to the model. Finally, the interaction of self × spouse hostility was investigated. These relations were explored for three components of hostility (Cynicism, Aggressive Responding, and Hostile Affect). Age and education were controlled in all models and effects were examined separately for women and men. Self-ratings of Hostile Affect were positively related to depressive symptoms for both women and men. Self-ratings of Cynicism were also significantly related to depression, but only for men. All three components of spouse's hostility were positively related to one's own symptoms of depression for women. For men, however, spouse's hostility was not related to symptoms of depression. These findings highlight the need to study psychosocial risk factors in social units and have potential implications for intervention.     

The Direction of Longitudinal Associations Between Sleep Problems and Depression Symptoms: A Study of Twins Aged 8 and 10 Years

Study Objectives:

To establish the direction and etiology of longitudinal associations between sleep problems and depression symptoms in children.

Design:

Data on twins aged 8 and 10 years were obtained. At assessments, parents completed the Child Sleep Habits Questionnaire, and twins completed the Children''s Depression Inventory.

Setting:

Participants were mainly interviewed at the Institute of Psychiatry, London.

Patients or Participants:

Three hundred twin pairs initially enrolled in the study.

Interventions:

N/A.

Measurements and Results:

A genetically informative cross-lagged model examined links between sleep and depression. Sleep problems at age 8 predicted depression at age 10 (partial regression coefficient [95% confidence intervals] = 0.10 [0.01-0.18]). The converse was not found. Stability of sleep problems across time was mainly due to genes (46% of the genetic influence on sleep at 10 was due to the same genetic influence on sleep aged 8). Stability of depression was mainly due to nonshared environmental influences (19% of the nonshared environmental influence on depression at 10 was due to the same nonshared environmental influence on depression at age 8). The cross-lagged association between sleep problems at 8 and depression at 10 years was largely due to genes, although this finding was nonsignificant.

Conclusions:

This study adds to our understanding of the temporal precedence of sleep problems and depression and the risks underlying their associations. There are implications regarding the value of specifying genes linked to sleep problems and potential opportunities for informing early intervention strategies in high-risk groups at key points in the progression to developing more serious problems.

Citation:

Gregory AM; Rijsdijk FV; Lau JYF; Dahl RE; Eley TC. The direction of longitudinal associations between sleep problems and depression symptoms: a study of twins aged 8 and 10 years. SLEEP 2009;32(2):189–199.     

The Application of a Random Effects Model to Censored Twin Data

The authors propose a random effects model to analyze the latent genetic and environmental effects on determining censored outcomes in twin studies. In this model, six normally distributed random effects are used to describe the correlation within twin pairs. The authors employ a Monte Carlo Expectation-Maximization approach for obtaining maximum likelihood estimates of fixed effects and the variances of random effects. The variances of the random effects are reparameterized to be equivalent to genetic and environmental effects in traditional twin models. The authors illustrate this model using data from the Vietnam Era Twin Registry to explore the magnitude of the genetic influence on twin similarity for the age of onset of alcohol abuse. Our results show genetic factors contribute about one third of twin similarity in the age of onset of alcohol abuse in male twins. The application of this model to twin data is discussed.     

Bias in correlations from selected samples of relatives: The effects of soft selection

Martin and Wilson (1982) describe two forms of sampling bias in twin studies. One is hard selection, where individuals above a threshold participate, and those below do not. The second is soft selection, where the probability of including a pair of relatives varies over the range of the character. We present an alternative model of soft selection which has strikingly different consequences for the resemblance between relatives. In general, the softer the threshold, the more the correlation resembles that in the underlying population. Results are presented where the probability of selection equals the cumulative distribution function of a normal distribution with 10% of the variance of the selected variable. In these circumstances, soft selection usually leads to less severely attenuated correlations than truncate selection.     

The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression: One Scale or Many?

The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD) has emerged as a standard in the study of depression. However, despite its extensive use and the assumption that it is a single measure, integration of data produced in studies utilising the HRSD is difficult for several reasons. After a review of 688 relevant articles, tt was determined that approximately 42% contained referencing errors resulting in confusion over which administration procedures were actually implemented. Since its introduction, several alternate versions of the scale have emerged and alternate scoring methods, ad hoc revisions, or derivative versions of the scale have been applied. These and related problems with the HRSD are detailed along with suggestions for reducing the ambiguities that result from its continued use in depression research.