51
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Johnson KVA, Watson KK, Dunbar RIM, Burnet PWJ. Sociability in a non-captive macaque population is associated with beneficial gut bacteria. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:1032495. [PMID: 36439813 PMCID: PMC9691693 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.1032495] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The relationship between social behaviour and the microbiome is known to be reciprocal. Research in wild animal populations, particularly in primate social groups, has revealed the role that social interactions play in microbial transmission, whilst studies in laboratory animals have demonstrated that the gut microbiome can affect multiple aspects of behaviour, including social behaviour. Here we explore behavioural variation in a non-captive animal population with respect to the abundance of specific bacterial genera. Social behaviour based on grooming interactions is assessed in a population of rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta), and combined with gut microbiome data. We focus our analyses on microbiome genera previously linked to sociability and autistic behaviours in rodents and humans. We show in this macaque population that some of these genera are also related to an individual's propensity to engage in social interactions. Interestingly, we find that several of the genera positively related to sociability, such as Faecalibacterium, are well known for their beneficial effects on health and their anti-inflammatory properties. In contrast, the genus Streptococcus, which includes pathogenic species, is more abundant in less sociable macaques. Our results indicate that microorganisms whose abundance varies with individual social behaviour also have functional links to host immune status. Overall, these findings highlight the connections between social behaviour, microbiome composition, and health in an animal population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katerina V.-A. Johnson
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom,Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom,*Correspondence: Katerina V.-A. Johnson,
| | - Karli K. Watson
- Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, United States
| | - Robin I. M. Dunbar
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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52
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Shanahan MJ, Cole SW, Ravi S, Chumbley J, Xu W, Potente C, Levitt B, Bodelet J, Aiello A, Gaydosh L, Harris KM. Socioeconomic inequalities in molecular risk for chronic diseases observed in young adulthood. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2103088119. [PMID: 36252037 PMCID: PMC9621370 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2103088119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Many common chronic diseases of aging are negatively associated with socioeconomic status (SES). This study examines whether inequalities can already be observed in the molecular underpinnings of such diseases in the 30s, before many of them become prevalent. Data come from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), a large, nationally representative sample of US subjects who were followed for over two decades beginning in adolescence. We now have transcriptomic data (mRNA-seq) from a random subset of 4,543 of these young adults. SES in the household-of-origin and in young adulthood were examined as covariates of a priori-defined mRNA-based disease signatures and of specific gene transcripts identified de novo. An SES composite from young adulthood predicted many disease signatures, as did income and subjective status. Analyses highlighted SES-based inequalities in immune, inflammatory, ribosomal, and metabolic pathways, several of which play central roles in senescence. Many genes are also involved in transcription, translation, and diverse signaling mechanisms. Average causal-mediated effect models suggest that body mass index plays a key role in accounting for these relationships. Overall, the results reveal inequalities in molecular risk factors for chronic diseases often decades before diagnoses and suggest future directions for social signal transduction models that trace how social circumstances regulate the human genome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J. Shanahan
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zürich, Zürich, CH 8050
- Department of Sociology, University of Zürich, Zürich, CH 8050
| | - Steven W. Cole
- School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Sudharshan Ravi
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zürich, Zürich, CH 8050
| | - Justin Chumbley
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zürich, Zürich, CH 8050
| | - Wenjia Xu
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zürich, Zürich, CH 8050
| | - Cecilia Potente
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zürich, Zürich, CH 8050
| | - Brandt Levitt
- Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27516
| | - Julien Bodelet
- Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, University of Zürich, Zürich, CH 8050
| | - Allison Aiello
- Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27516
| | - Lauren Gaydosh
- Department of Sociology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712
| | - Kathleen Mullan Harris
- Carolina Population Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27516
- Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3210
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53
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Lea AJ, Peng J, Ayroles JF. Diverse environmental perturbations reveal the evolution and context-dependency of genetic effects on gene expression levels. Genome Res 2022; 32:1826-1839. [PMID: 36229124 PMCID: PMC9712631 DOI: 10.1101/gr.276430.121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 09/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
There is increasing appreciation that, in addition to being shaped by an individual's genotype and environment, most complex traits are also determined by poorly understood interactions between these two factors. So-called "genotype × environment" (G×E) interactions remain difficult to map at the organismal level but can be uncovered using molecular phenotypes. To do so at large scale, we used TM3'seq to profile transcriptomes across 12 cellular environments in 544 immortalized B cell lines from the 1000 Genomes Project. We mapped the genetic basis of gene expression levels across environments and revealed a context-dependent genetic architecture: The average heritability of gene expression levels increased in treatment relative to control conditions, and on average, each treatment revealed new expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) at 11% of genes. Across our experiments, 22% of all identified eQTLs were context-dependent, and this group was enriched for trait- and disease-associated loci. Further, evolutionary analyses suggested that positive selection has shaped G×E loci involved in responding to immune challenges and hormones but not to man-made chemicals. We hypothesize that this reflects a reduced opportunity for selection to act on responses to molecules recently introduced into human environments. Together, our work highlights the importance of considering an exposure's evolutionary history when studying and interpreting G×E interactions, and provides new insight into the evolutionary mechanisms that maintain G×E loci in human populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda J. Lea
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA;,Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
| | - Julie Peng
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA;,Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
| | - Julien F. Ayroles
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA;,Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA
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54
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Castell N, Guerrero-Martin SM, Rubin LH, Shirk EN, Brockhurst JK, Lyons CE, Najarro KM, Queen SE, Carlson BW, Adams RJ, Morrell CN, Gama L, Graham DR, Zink C, Mankowski JL, Clements JE, Metcalf Pate KA. Effect of Single Housing on Innate Immune Activation in Immunodeficiency Virus-Infected Pigtail Macaques ( Macaca nemestrina ) as a Model of Psychosocial Stress in Acute HIV Infection. Psychosom Med 2022; 84:966-975. [PMID: 36162063 PMCID: PMC9553260 DOI: 10.1097/psy.0000000000001132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2021] [Revised: 07/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) infection of macaques recapitulates many aspects of HIV pathogenesis and is similarly affected by both genetic and environmental factors. Psychosocial stress is associated with immune system dysregulation and worse clinical outcomes in people with HIV. This study assessed the impact of single housing, as a model of psychosocial stress, on innate immune responses of pigtailed macaques ( Macaca nemestrina ) during acute SIV infection. METHODS A retrospective analysis of acute SIV infection of 2- to si6-year-old male pigtailed macaques was performed to compare the innate immune responses of socially ( n = 41) and singly ( n = 35) housed animals. Measures included absolute monocyte count and subsets, and in a subset ( n ≤ 18) platelet counts and activation data. RESULTS SIV infection resulted in the expected innate immune parameter changes with a modulating effect from housing condition. Monocyte number increased after infection for both groups, driven by classical monocytes (CD14 + CD16 - ), with a greater increase in socially housed animals (227%, p < .001, by day 14 compared with preinoculation time points). Platelet numbers recovered more quickly in the socially housed animals. Platelet activation (P-selectin) increased by 65% ( p = .004) and major histocompatibility complex class I surface expression by 40% ( p = .009) from preinoculation only in socially housed animals, whereas no change in these measures occurred in singly housed animals. CONCLUSIONS Chronic psychosocial stress produced by single housing may play an immunomodulatory role in the innate immune response to acute retroviral infection. Dysregulated innate immunity could be one of the pathways by which psychosocial stress contributes to immune suppression and increased disease severity in people with HIV.
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Graf GH, Li X, Kwon D, Belsky DW, Widom CS. Biological aging in maltreated children followed up into middle adulthood. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2022; 143:105848. [PMID: 35779342 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2022.105848] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2022] [Revised: 06/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Childhood adversity has been linked to many indicators of shorter healthy lifespan, including earlier onset of disease and disability as well as early mortality. These observations suggest the hypothesis that childhood maltreatment may accelerate aging. OBJECTIVE To characterize the relationship between childhood maltreatment and accelerated biological aging in a prospective cohort of 357 individuals with documented cases of childhood maltreatment and 250 controls matched on demographic and socioeconomic factors. METHODS Cases were drawn from juvenile and adult court records from the years 1967 through 1971 in a large Midwest metropolitan geographic area. Cases were defined as having court-substantiated cases of childhood physical or sexual abuse, or neglect occurring at age 11 or younger. Controls were selected from the same schools and hospitals of birth and matched on age, sex, race, and approximate socioeconomic status. We compared biological aging in these two groups using two blood-chemistry algorithms, the Klemera-Doubal method Biological Age (KDM BA) and the PhenoAge. Algorithms were developed and validated in data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) using published methods and publicly available software. RESULTS Participants (55% women, 49% non-White) had mean age of 41 years (SD=4). Those with court substantiated childhood maltreatment history exhibited more advanced biological aging as compared with matched controls, although this difference was statistically different for only the KDM BA measure (KDM BA Cohen's D=0.20, 95% CI=[0.03,0.36], p = 0.02; PhenoAge Cohen's D=0.09 95% CI=[-0.08,0.25], p = 0.296). In subgroup analyses, maltreatment effect sizes were larger for women as compared to men and for White participants as compared to non-White participants, although these differences were not statistically significant at the α= 0.05 level. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE As of midlife, effects of childhood maltreatment on biological aging are small in magnitude but discernible. Interventions to treat psychological and behavioral sequelae of exposure to childhood maltreatment, including in midlife adults, have potential to protect survivors from excess burden of disease, disability, and mortality in later life.
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Affiliation(s)
- G H Graf
- Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY 10032, USA; Robert N Butler Columbia Aging Center, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY 10032, USA.
| | - X Li
- Psychology Department, John Jay College, City University of New York, New York, USA; Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, USA
| | - D Kwon
- Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY 10032, USA; Robert N Butler Columbia Aging Center, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - D W Belsky
- Department of Epidemiology, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY 10032, USA; Robert N Butler Columbia Aging Center, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY 10032, USA.
| | - C S Widom
- Psychology Department, John Jay College, City University of New York, New York, USA; Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, USA.
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56
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Clougherty JE, Humphrey JL, Kinnee EJ, Remigio R, Sheffield PE. What Is "Socioeconomic Position (SEP)," and How Might It Modify Air Pollution-Health Associations? Cohering Findings, Identifying Challenges, and Disentangling Effects of SEP and Race in US City Settings. Curr Environ Health Rep 2022; 9:355-365. [PMID: 35511352 PMCID: PMC9363384 DOI: 10.1007/s40572-022-00359-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW Environmental epidemiology has long considered socioeconomic position (SEP) to be an important confounder of pollution effects on health, given that, in the USA, lower-income and minority communities are often disproportionately exposed to pollution. In recent decades, a growing literature has revealed that lower-SEP communities may also be more susceptible to pollution. Given the vast number of material and psychosocial stressors that vary by SEP, however, it is unclear which specific aspects of SEP may underlie this susceptibility. As environmental epidemiology engages more rigorously with issues of differential susceptibility, it is pertinent to define SEP more clearly, to disentangle its many aspects, and to move towards identifying causal components. Myriad stressors and exposures vary with SEP, with effects accumulating and interacting over the lifecourse. Here, we ask: In the context of environmental epidemiology, how do we meaningfully characterize"SEP"? RECENT FINDINGS In answering this question, it is critical to acknowledge that SEP, stressors, and pollution are differentially distributed by race in US cities. These distributions have been shaped by neighborhood sorting and race-based residential segregation rooted in historical policies and processes (e.g., redlining), which have served to concentrate wealth and opportunities for education and employment in predominantly-white communities. As a result, it is now profoundly challenging to separate SEP from race in the urban US setting. Here, we cohere evidence from our recent and on-going studies aimed at disentangling synergistic health effects among SEP-related stressors and pollutants. We consider an array of SEP-linked social stressors, and discuss persistent challenges in this epidemiology, many of which are related to spatial confounding among multiple pollutants and stressors. Combining quantitative results with insights from qualitative data on neighborhood perceptions and stress (including violence and police-community relations), we offer a lens towards unpacking the complex interplay among SEP, community stressors, race, and pollution in US cities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jane E Clougherty
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
| | - Jamie L Humphrey
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Center for Health Analytics, Media & Policy, RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27709, USA
| | - Ellen J Kinnee
- University Center for Social and Urban Research (UCSUR), University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Richard Remigio
- Maryland Institute for Applied Environmental Health, School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Perry E Sheffield
- Environmental Medicine and Public Health, and Pediatrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
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57
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Vilgalys TP, Fogel AS, Anderson JA, Mututua RS, Warutere JK, Siodi IL, Kim SY, Voyles TN, Robinson JA, Wall JD, Archie EA, Alberts SC, Tung J. Selection against admixture and gene regulatory divergence in a long-term primate field study. Science 2022; 377:635-641. [PMID: 35926022 PMCID: PMC9682493 DOI: 10.1126/science.abm4917] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Genetic admixture is central to primate evolution. We combined 50 years of field observations of immigration and group demography with genomic data from ~9 generations of hybrid baboons to investigate the consequences of admixture in the wild. Despite no obvious fitness costs to hybrids, we found signatures of selection against admixture similar to those described for archaic hominins. These patterns were concentrated near genes where ancestry is strongly associated with gene expression. Our analyses also show that introgression is partially predictable across the genome. This study demonstrates the value of integrating genomic and field data for revealing how "genomic signatures of selection" (e.g., reduced introgression in low-recombination regions) manifest in nature; moreover, it underscores the importance of other primates as living models for human evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tauras P. Vilgalys
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA,Section of Genetic Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Arielle S. Fogel
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA,University Program in Genetics and Genomics, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Jordan A. Anderson
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | | | | | - Sang Yoon Kim
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Tawni N. Voyles
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | - Jeffrey D. Wall
- Institute for Human Genetics, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Elizabeth A. Archie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN, USA
| | - Susan C. Alberts
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA,Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA,Duke University Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA,Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA,Duke University Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA,Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, Canada,Department of Primate Behavior and Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany,Corresponding author
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58
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Bartolomucci A. Adaptive/innate immunity balance in a complex social world. Brain Behav Immun 2022; 104:16-17. [PMID: 35580791 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2022.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Bartolomucci
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA; Department of Medicine, University of Parma, Parma 43100, Italy.
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59
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Brinkworth JF, Shaw JG. On race, human variation, and who gets and dies of sepsis. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2022. [PMCID: PMC9544695 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica F. Brinkworth
- Department of Anthropology University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Urbana Illinois USA
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Urbana Illinois USA
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behavior University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Urbana Illinois USA
| | - J. Grace Shaw
- Department of Anthropology University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Urbana Illinois USA
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Urbana Illinois USA
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60
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Cooper EB, Brent LJN, Snyder-Mackler N, Singh M, Sengupta A, Khatiwada S, Malaivijitnond S, Qi Hai Z, Higham JP. The natural history of model organisms: the rhesus macaque as a success story of the Anthropocene. eLife 2022; 11:78169. [PMID: 35801697 PMCID: PMC9345599 DOI: 10.7554/elife.78169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Of all the non-human primate species studied by researchers, the rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta) is likely the most widely used across biological disciplines. Rhesus macaques have thrived during the Anthropocene and now have the largest natural range of any non-human primate. They are highly social, exhibit marked genetic diversity, and display remarkable niche flexibility (which allows them to live in a range of habitats and survive on a variety of diets). These characteristics mean that rhesus macaques are well-suited for understanding the links between sociality, health and fitness, and also for investigating intra-specific variation, adaptation and other topics in evolutionary ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eve B Cooper
- Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, United States
| | | | | | - Mewa Singh
- Biopsychology Laboratory, University of Mysore, Mysuru, India
| | | | - Sunil Khatiwada
- Institute of Genetics and Animal Biotechnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Garbatka, Poland
| | | | - Zhou Qi Hai
- Key Laboratory of Ecology of Rare and Endangered Species and Environmental Protection, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin, China
| | - James P Higham
- Department of Anthropology, New York University, New York, United States
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61
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Lee W, Milewski TM, Dwortz MF, Young RL, Gaudet AD, Fonken LK, Champagne FA, Curley JP. Distinct immune and transcriptomic profiles in dominant versus subordinate males in mouse social hierarchies. Brain Behav Immun 2022; 103:130-144. [PMID: 35447300 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2022.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2021] [Revised: 03/31/2022] [Accepted: 04/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Social status is a critical factor determining health outcomes in human and nonhuman social species. In social hierarchies with reproductive skew, individuals compete to monopolize resources and increase mating opportunities. This can come at a significant energetic cost leading to trade-offs between different physiological systems. In particular, changes in energetic investment in the immune system can have significant short and long-term effects on fitness and health. We have previously found that dominant alpha male mice living in social hierarchies have increased metabolic demands related to territorial defense. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that high-ranking male mice favor adaptive immunity, while subordinate mice show higher investment in innate immunity. We housed 12 groups of 10 outbred CD-1 male mice in a social housing system. All formed linear social hierarchies and subordinate mice had higher concentrations of plasma corticosterone (CORT) than alpha males. This difference was heightened in highly despotic hierarchies. Using flow cytometry, we found that dominant status was associated with a significant shift in immunophenotypes towards favoring adaptive versus innate immunity. Using Tag-Seq to profile hepatic and splenic transcriptomes of alpha and subordinate males, we identified genes that regulate metabolic and immune defense pathways that are associated with status and/or CORT concentration. In the liver, dominant animals showed a relatively higher expression of specific genes involved in major urinary production and catabolic processes, whereas subordinate animals showed relatively higher expression of genes promoting biosynthetic processes, wound healing, and proinflammatory responses. In spleen, subordinate mice showed relatively higher expression of genes facilitating oxidative phosphorylation and DNA repair and CORT was negatively associated with genes involved in lymphocyte proliferation and activation. Together, our findings suggest that dominant and subordinate animals adaptively shift immune profiles and peripheral gene expression to match their contextual needs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Won Lee
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Department of In Vivo Pharmacology Services, The Jackson Laboratory, Sacramento, CA, USA
| | - Tyler M Milewski
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Madeleine F Dwortz
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Institute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Rebecca L Young
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Andrew D Gaudet
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Department of Neurology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Laura K Fonken
- Division of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | | | - James P Curley
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.
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62
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Lee W, Dwortz MF, Milewski TM, Champagne FA, Curley JP. Social status mediated variation in hypothalamic transcriptional profiles of male mice. Horm Behav 2022; 142:105176. [PMID: 35500322 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2022.105176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Animals of different social status exhibit variation in aggression, territorial and reproductive behavior as well as activity patterns, feeding, drinking and status signaling. This behavioral and physiological plasticity is coordinated by underlying changes in brain gene transcription. Using Tag-based RNA sequencing (Tag-seq), we explore RNA transcriptomes from the medial preoptic area (mPOA) and ventral hypothalamus (vHYP) of male mice of different social ranks in a dominance hierarchy and detect candidate genes and cellular pathways that underlie status-related plasticity. Within the mPOA, oxytocin (Oxt) and vasopressin (Avp) are more highly expressed in subdominant mice compared to other ranks, while nitric oxide synthase (Nos1) has lower expression in subdominant mice. Within the vHYP, we find that both orexigenic and anorexigenic genes involved in feeding behavior, including agouti-related peptide (Agrp), neuropeptide-Y (Npy), galanin (Gal), proopiomelanocortin (Pomc), and Cocaine- and Amphetamine-Regulated Transcript Protein prepropeptide (Cartpt), are less expressed in dominant animals compared to more subordinate ranks. We suggest that this may represent a reshaping of feeding circuits in dominant compared to subdominant and subordinate animals. Furthermore, we determine several genes that are positively and negatively associated with the level of despotism (aggression) in dominant males. Ultimately, we identify hypothalamic genes controlling feeding and social behaviors that are differentially transcribed across animals of varying social status. These changes in brain transcriptomics likely support phenotypic variation that enable animals to adapt to their current social status.
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Affiliation(s)
- W Lee
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Department of In Vivo Pharmacology Services, The Jackson Laboratory, Sacramento, CA, USA
| | - M F Dwortz
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Institute for Neuroscience, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - T M Milewski
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - F A Champagne
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - J P Curley
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.
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63
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Capitanio JP, Sommet N, Del Rosso L. The relationship of maternal rank, 5-HTTLPR genotype, and MAOA-LPR genotype to temperament in infant rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta). Am J Primatol 2022; 84:e23374. [PMID: 35322905 PMCID: PMC10461592 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.23374] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2021] [Revised: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 02/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Temperament is a construct whose manifestations are quantifiable from an early age, and whose origins have been proposed as "biological." Our goal was to determine whether maternal rank and infant genotype are associated with five measures of temperament in 3- to 4-month old rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta), all of whom were born and reared by their mothers in large, outdoor, half-acre cages. Maternal rank was defined as the proportion of animals outranked by each female, and the two genes of interest to us were monoamine oxidase and serotonin transporter, both of which are polymorphic in their promoter regions (MAOA-LPR and 5-HTTLPR, respectively), with one allele of each gene considered a "plasticity" allele, conferring increased sensitivity to environmental events. Our large sample size (n = 2014-3140) enabled us to examine the effects of individual genotypes rather than combining genotypes as is often done. Rank was positively associated with Confident temperament, but only for animals with the 5-repeat allele for MAOA-LPR. Rank had no other effect on temperament. In contrast, genotype had many different effects, with 5-HTTLPR associated with behavioral inhibition, and MAOA-LPR associated with ratings-based measures of temperament. We also examined the joint effect of the two genotypes and found some evidence for a dose-response: animals with the plasticity alleles for both genes were more likely to be behaviorally inhibited. Our results suggest phenotypic differences between animals possessing alleles for MAOA-LPR that show functional equivalence based on in vitro tests, and our data for 5-HTTLPR revealed differences between short/short homozygotes and long/short heterozygotes, strongly suggesting that combining genotypes for statistical analysis should be avoided if possible. Our analysis also provides evidence of sex differences in temperament, and, to our knowledge, the only evidence of differences in temperament based on specific pathogen-free status. We suggest several directions for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- John P. Capitanio
- Neuroscience and Behavior Unit, California National Primate Research CenterUniversity of CaliforniaDavisCaliforniaUSA
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of CaliforniaDavisCaliforniaUSA
| | - Nicolas Sommet
- LIVES Center, Faculty of Social and Political SciencesUniversity of LausanneLausanneSwitzerland
| | - Laura Del Rosso
- Neuroscience and Behavior Unit, California National Primate Research CenterUniversity of CaliforniaDavisCaliforniaUSA
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Selvaskandan H, Hull KL, Adenwalla S, Ahmed S, Cusu MC, Graham-Brown M, Gray L, Hall M, Hamer R, Kanbar A, Kanji H, Lambie M, Lee HS, Mahdi K, Major R, Medcalf JF, Natarajan S, Oseya B, Stringer S, Tabinor M, Burton J. Risk factors associated with COVID-19 severity among patients on maintenance haemodialysis: a retrospective multicentre cross-sectional study in the UK. BMJ Open 2022; 12:e054869. [PMID: 35636784 PMCID: PMC9152624 DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-054869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To assess the applicability of risk factors for severe COVID-19 defined in the general population for patients on haemodialysis. SETTING A retrospective cross-sectional study performed across thirty four haemodialysis units in midlands of the UK. PARTICIPANTS All 274 patients on maintenance haemodialysis who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 on PCR testing between March and August 2020, in participating haemodialysis centres. EXPOSURE The utility of obesity, diabetes status, ethnicity, Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) and socioeconomic deprivation scores were investigated as risk factors for severe COVID-19. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Severe COVID-19, defined as requiring supplemental oxygen or respiratory support, or a C reactive protein of ≥75 mg/dL (RECOVERY trial definitions), and its association with obesity, diabetes status, ethnicity, CCI, and socioeconomic deprivation. RESULTS 63.5% (174/274 patients) developed severe disease. Socioeconomic deprivation associated with severity, being most pronounced between the most and least deprived quartiles (OR 2.81, 95% CI 1.22 to 6.47, p=0.015), after adjusting for age, sex and ethnicity. There was no association between obesity, diabetes status, ethnicity or CCI with COVID-19 severity. We found no evidence of temporal evolution of cases (p=0.209) or clustering that would impact our findings. CONCLUSION The incidence of severe COVID-19 is high among patients on haemodialysis; this cohort should be considered high risk. There was strong evidence of an association between socioeconomic deprivation and COVID-19 severity. Other risk factors that apply to the general population may not apply to this cohort.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haresh Selvaskandan
- John Walls Renal Unit, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Katherine L Hull
- John Walls Renal Unit, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Sherna Adenwalla
- John Walls Renal Unit, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Safa Ahmed
- Department of Renal Transplantation and Nephrology, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK
| | - Maria-Cristina Cusu
- Department of Renal Medicine, Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust, Northampton, UK
| | - Matthew Graham-Brown
- John Walls Renal Unit, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Laura Gray
- Department of Health Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Matt Hall
- Nottingham Renal and Transplant Unit, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham, UK
| | - Rizwan Hamer
- Department of Renal Transplantation and Nephrology, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK
| | - Ammar Kanbar
- Department of Renal Medicine, Royal Stoke University Hospital, Stoke-on-Trent, UK
| | - Hemali Kanji
- Department of Renal Transplantation and Nephrology, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Coventry, UK
| | - Mark Lambie
- School of Medicine, Keele University, Keele, UK
| | - Han Sean Lee
- Nottingham Renal and Transplant Unit, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, Nottingham, UK
| | - Khalid Mahdi
- Department of Renal Medicine, Lincoln County Hospital, Lincoln, UK
| | - Rupert Major
- John Walls Renal Unit, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK
- Department of Health Sciences, University Hospital of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - James F Medcalf
- John Walls Renal Unit, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | | | - Boavojuvie Oseya
- Department of Renal Medicine, Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust, Northampton, UK
| | - Stephanie Stringer
- Department of Renal Medicine, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK
| | - Matthew Tabinor
- Department of Renal Medicine, University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK
| | - James Burton
- John Walls Renal Unit, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, Leicester, UK
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
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Hamilton A, Rizzo R, Brod S, Ono M, Perretti M, Cooper D, D'Acquisto F. The immunomodulatory effects of social isolation in mice are linked to temperature control. Brain Behav Immun 2022; 102:179-194. [PMID: 35217174 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2022.02.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2021] [Revised: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 02/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Living in isolation is considered an emerging societal problem that negatively affects the physical wellbeing of its sufferers in ways that we are just starting to appreciate. This study investigates the immunomodulatory effects of social isolation in mice, utilising a two-week program of sole cage occupancy followed by the testing of immune-inflammatory resilience to bacterial sepsis. Our results revealed that mice housed in social isolation showed an increased ability to clear bacterial infection compared to control socially housed animals. These effects were associated with specific changes in whole blood gene expression profile and an increased production of classical pro-inflammatory cytokines. Interestingly, equipping socially isolated mice with artificial nests as a substitute for their natural huddling behaviour reversed the increased resistance to bacterial sepsis. Together these results suggest that the control of body temperature through social housing and huddling behaviour are important factors in the regulation of the host immune response to infection in mice and might provide another example of the many ways by which living conditions influence immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice Hamilton
- William Harvey Research Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Raffaella Rizzo
- William Harvey Research Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Samuel Brod
- William Harvey Research Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Masahiro Ono
- University of London Imperial College Science Technology & Medicine, Department of Life Science, Faculty of Natural Science, London SW7 2AZ, England
| | - Mauro Perretti
- William Harvey Research Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Dianne Cooper
- William Harvey Research Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Fulvio D'Acquisto
- William Harvey Research Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK; School of Life and Health Science, University of Roehampton, London SW15, 4JD, UK.
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Friend virus severity is associated with male mouse social status and environmental temperature. Anim Behav 2022; 187:221-231. [PMID: 35602411 PMCID: PMC9119425 DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Pathogen virulence is highly variable within populations, and although many factors contributing to virulence differences are known, there is still much variation left unexplained. Identifying and characterizing environmental conditions associated with different virulence levels is therefore an important undertaking in infectious disease research. One factor considered to be a major determinant of overall health and susceptibility to disease in social animals is social status. Health differences associated with social status are thought to be caused by different levels of chronic stress in higher- versus lower-status individuals. There is considerable evidence that these effects extend to the standing immune profile and that social status directly influences susceptibility to pathogens. Here we examined the association between dominance status in male wild-derived house mice, Mus musculus, and susceptibility to Friend virus complex in the context of seminatural populations with intense male-male competition and no predation. Due to an interruption in our facility's heating system, we were unexpectedly presented with the opportunity to assess how reduced ambient temperature influences the association of host social status and pathogen virulence. Environmental temperature has been implicated as a contributor to pathogen virulence, giving us a unique chance to examine its role in a previously unexamined pathogen system, while the added context of social status can expand our understanding of how the interaction of different environmental conditions affects virulence. We found that pathogen virulence and replication were lower in socially dominant hosts compared to nondominant hosts. When temperature was reduced, cool enclosure-housed dominant males were more susceptible to infection than their warm enclosure-housed counterparts. The mechanistic underpinnings that link infectious disease and social status remain difficult to disentangle from their associated factors, but this study opens the door for future experiments using a novel approach in the most well-studied mammalian model available.
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Bégay V, Cirovic B, Barker AJ, Klopfleisch R, Hart DW, Bennett NC, Lewin GR. Immune competence and spleen size scale with colony status in the naked mole-rat. Open Biol 2022; 12:210292. [PMID: 35382566 PMCID: PMC8984379 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.210292] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Naked mole-rats (NM-R; Heterocephalus glaber) live in multi-generational colonies with a social hierarchy, and show low cancer incidence and long life-spans. Here we asked if an immune component might underlie such extreme physiology. The largest lymphoid organ is the spleen, which plays an essential role in responding to immunological insults and may participate in combating cancer and slowing ageing. We investigated the anatomy, molecular composition and function of the NM-R spleen using RNA-sequencing and histological analysis in healthy NM-Rs. Spleen size in healthy NM-Rs showed considerable inter-individual variability, with some animals displaying enlarged spleens. In all healthy NM-Rs, the spleen is a major site of adult haematopoiesis under normal physiological conditions. However, myeloid-to-lymphoid cell ratio is increased and splenic marginal zone showed markedly altered morphology when compared to other rodents. Healthy NM-Rs with enlarged spleens showed potentially better anti-microbial profiles and were much more likely to have a high rank within the colony. We propose that the anatomical plasticity of the spleen might be regulated by social interaction and gives immunological advantage to increase the lifespan of higher-ranked animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valérie Bégay
- Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Laboratory for Molecular Physiology of Somatic Sensation, Robert-Rössle Straße 10, D-13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Branko Cirovic
- Division of Cellular Immunology, German Cancer Research Center, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Alison J. Barker
- Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Laboratory for Molecular Physiology of Somatic Sensation, Robert-Rössle Straße 10, D-13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Robert Klopfleisch
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Free University Berlin, Robert von Ostertag Strasse 15, 14163 Berlin, Germany
| | - Daniel W. Hart
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, Republic of South Africa
| | - Nigel C. Bennett
- Mammal Research Institute, Department of Zoology and Entomology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, Republic of South Africa
| | - Gary R. Lewin
- Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), Laboratory for Molecular Physiology of Somatic Sensation, Robert-Rössle Straße 10, D-13125 Berlin, Germany
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Ghoneem A, Osborne MT, Abohashem S, Naddaf N, Patrich T, Dar T, Abdelbaky A, Al-Quthami A, Wasfy JH, Armstrong KA, Ay H, Tawakol A. Association of Socioeconomic Status and Infarct Volume With Functional Outcome in Patients With Ischemic Stroke. JAMA Netw Open 2022; 5:e229178. [PMID: 35476065 PMCID: PMC9047646 DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.9178] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Long-term disability after stroke is associated with socioeconomic status (SES). However, the reasons for such disparities in outcomes remain unclear. OBJECTIVE To assess whether lower SES is associated with larger admission infarct volume and whether initial infarct volume accounts for the association between SES and long-term disability. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS This cohort study was conducted in a prospective, consecutive population (n = 1256) presenting with acute ischemic stroke who underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) within 24 hours of admission. Patients were recruited in Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, from May 31, 2009, to December 31, 2011. Data were analyzed from May 1, 2019, until June 30, 2020. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Initial stroke severity (within 24 hours of presentation) was determined using clinical (National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale [NIHSS]) and imaging (infarct volume by diffusion-weighted MRI) measures. Stroke etiologic subtypes were determined using the Causative Classification of Ischemic Stroke algorithm. Long-term stroke disability was measured using the modified Rankin Scale. Socioeconomic status was estimated using zip code-derived median household income and census block group-derived area deprivation index (ADI). Regression and mediation analyses were performed. RESULTS A total of 1098 patients had imaging and SES data available (mean [SD] age, 68.1 [15.7] years; 607 men [55.3%]). Income was inversely associated with initial infarct volume (standardized β, -0.074 [95% CI, -0.127 to -0.020]; P = .007), initial NIHSS (standardized β, -0.113 [95% CI, -0.171 to -0.054]; P < .001), and long-term disability (standardized β, -0.092 [95% CI, -0.149 to -0.035]; P = .001), which remained significant after multivariable adjustments. Initial stroke severity accounted for 64% of the association between SES and long-term disability (standardized β, -0.063 [95% CI, -0.095 to -0.029]; P < .05). Findings were similar when SES was alternatively assessed using ADI. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE The findings of this cohort study suggest that lower SES is associated with larger infarct volumes on presentation. These SES-associated differences in initial stroke severity accounted for most of the subsequent disparities in long-term disability in this study. These findings shift the culpability for SES-associated disparities in poststroke disability from poststroke factors to those that precede presentation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmed Ghoneem
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Michael T. Osborne
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
- Cardiology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
- Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Shady Abohashem
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
- Cardiology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Nicki Naddaf
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Tomas Patrich
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Tawseef Dar
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
- Cardiology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Amr Abdelbaky
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Adeeb Al-Quthami
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Jason H. Wasfy
- Cardiology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
- Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Katrina A. Armstrong
- Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
| | - Hakan Ay
- Anithoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
- Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited, Cambridge, Massachusetts
| | - Ahmed Tawakol
- Cardiovascular Imaging Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
- Cardiology Division, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
- Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston
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West TN, Zhou J, Brantley MM, Kim SL, Brantley J, Salzberg S, Cole SW, Fredrickson BL. Effect of Mindfulness Versus Loving-kindness Training on Leukocyte Gene Expression in Midlife Adults Raised in Low-Socioeconomic Status Households. Mindfulness (N Y) 2022; 13:1185-1196. [PMID: 36278141 PMCID: PMC9585929 DOI: 10.1007/s12671-022-01857-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Objectives People raised in low socio-economic status (SES) households are at an increased risk for physical illness in adulthood. A shift in gene expression profiles in the immune system is one biological mechanism thought to account for elevated disease susceptibility, with a frequently-investigated profile being the conserved transcriptional response to adversity (CTRA), characterized by increased expression of proinflammatory genes and decreased expression of antiviral and antibody-related genes. Methods The present study investigated, in a sample of at-risk midlife adults (N = 88), whether those randomized to learn loving-kindness meditation (LKM) in a 6-week workshop, would show a reduction in CTRA gene expression, compared to those randomized to learn mindfulness meditation (MM). We assessed emotions daily and hypothesized positive emotions to account for the expected effect of LKM on gene expression. Results Results showed significant group differences from pre- to post-intervention, yet in the opposite direction as hypothesized: Participants randomized to the MM group showed significant declines in CTRA gene expression, whereas those in the LKM group showed significant increases in CTRA gene expression. Both groups showed increases over the 6 weeks in daily reports of positive emotions, b=.007, p <.001 alongside decreases in negative emotions b=-.005, p <.001. Thus, positive emotions were not pursued as a candidate mediator of observed group effects. Conclusion This study is the first to examine whether the biological impact of childhood low-SES can be reversed in mid-life through meditation interventions. Results suggest mindfulness meditation may be a viable option for improving health outcomes in this at-risk population. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02400593.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor N. West
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB #3270, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
| | - Jieni Zhou
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB #3270, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
| | | | - Sumi L. Kim
- Chaplain’s Office, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Jeffrey Brantley
- Duke Integrative Medicine, Duke University, Durham , NC, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | - Steve W. Cole
- Department of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry & Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
| | - Barbara L. Fredrickson
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB #3270, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
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Cortina LM, Sandy Hershcovis M, Clancy KBH. The Embodiment of Insult: A Theory of Biobehavioral Response to Workplace Incivility. JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT 2022; 48:738-763. [PMID: 35299898 PMCID: PMC8918878 DOI: 10.1177/0149206321989798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
This article builds a broad theory to explain how people respond, both biologically and behaviorally, when targeted with incivility in organizations. Central to our theorizing is a multifaceted framework that yields four quadrants of target response: reciprocation, retreat, relationship repair, and recruitment of support. We advance the novel argument that these behaviors not only stem from biological change within the body but also stimulate such change. Behavioral responses that revolve around affiliation and produce positive social connections are most likely to bring biological benefits. However, social and cultural features of an organization can stand in the way of affiliation, especially for employees holding marginalized identities. When incivility persists over time and employees lack access to the resources needed to recover, we theorize, downstream consequences can include harms to their physical health. Like other aspects of organizational life, this biobehavioral theory of incivility response is anything but simple. But it may help explain how seemingly "small" insults can sometimes have large effects, ultimately undermining workforce well-being. It may also suggest novel sites for incivility intervention, focusing on the relational and inclusive side of work. The overarching goal of this article is to motivate new science on workplace incivility, new knowledge, and ultimately, new solutions.
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71
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Simons ND, Michopoulos V, Wilson M, Barreiro LB, Tung J. Agonism and grooming behaviour explain social status effects on physiology and gene regulation in rhesus macaques. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210132. [PMID: 35000435 PMCID: PMC8743879 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2021] [Accepted: 10/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Variation in social status predicts molecular, physiological and life-history outcomes across a broad range of species, including our own. Experimental studies indicate that some of these relationships persist even when the physical environment is held constant. Here, we draw on datasets from one such study-experimental manipulation of dominance rank in captive female rhesus macaques-to investigate how social status shapes the lived experience of these animals to alter gene regulation, glucocorticoid physiology and mitochondrial DNA phenotypes. We focus specifically on dominance rank-associated dimensions of the social environment, including both competitive and affiliative interactions. Our results show that simple summaries of rank-associated behavioural interactions are often better predictors of molecular and physiological outcomes than dominance rank itself. However, while measures of immune function are best explained by agonism rates, glucocorticoid-related phenotypes tend to be more closely linked to affiliative behaviour. We conclude that dominance rank serves as a useful summary for investigating social environmental effects on downstream outcomes. Nevertheless, the behavioural interactions that define an individual's daily experiences reveal the proximate drivers of social status-related differences and are especially relevant for understanding why individuals who share the same social status sometimes appear physiologically distinct. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah D. Simons
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Vasiliki Michopoulos
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Mark Wilson
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Luis B. Barreiro
- Genetics Section, Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
- Committee on Genetics, Genomics, and Systems Biology, University of Chicago, Chicago IL 60637, USA
- Committee on Immunology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Duke Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, Canada M5G 1M1
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Milewski TM, Lee W, Champagne FA, Curley JP. Behavioural and physiological plasticity in social hierarchies. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20200443. [PMID: 35000436 PMCID: PMC8743892 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Individuals occupying dominant and subordinate positions in social hierarchies exhibit divergent behaviours, physiology and neural functioning. Dominant animals express higher levels of dominance behaviours such as aggression, territorial defence and mate-guarding. Dominants also signal their status via auditory, visual or chemical cues. Moreover, dominant animals typically increase reproductive behaviours and show enhanced spatial and social cognition as well as elevated arousal. These biobehavioural changes increase energetic demands that are met via shifting both energy intake and metabolism and are supported by coordinated changes in physiological systems including the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal and hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axes as well as altered gene expression and sensitivity of neural circuits that regulate these behaviours. Conversely, subordinate animals inhibit dominance and often reproductive behaviours and exhibit physiological changes adapted to socially stressful contexts. Phenotypic changes in both dominant and subordinate individuals may be beneficial in the short-term but lead to long-term challenges to health. Further, rapid changes in social ranks occur as dominant animals socially ascend or descend and are associated with dynamic modulations in the brain and periphery. In this paper, we provide a broad overview of how behavioural and phenotypic changes associated with social dominance and subordination are expressed in neural and physiological plasticity. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'.
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Affiliation(s)
- T. M. Milewski
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - W. Lee
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - F. A. Champagne
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - J. P. Curley
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
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Anderson JA, Lea AJ, Voyles TN, Akinyi MY, Nyakundi R, Ochola L, Omondi M, Nyundo F, Zhang Y, Campos FA, Alberts SC, Archie EA, Tung J. Distinct gene regulatory signatures of dominance rank and social bond strength in wild baboons. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20200441. [PMID: 35000452 PMCID: PMC8743882 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 08/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The social environment is a major determinant of morbidity, mortality and Darwinian fitness in social animals. Recent studies have begun to uncover the molecular processes associated with these relationships, but the degree to which they vary across different dimensions of the social environment remains unclear. Here, we draw on a long-term field study of wild baboons to compare the signatures of affiliative and competitive aspects of the social environment in white blood cell gene regulation, under both immune-stimulated and non-stimulated conditions. We find that the effects of dominance rank on gene expression are directionally opposite in males versus females, such that high-ranking males resemble low-ranking females, and vice versa. Among females, rank and social bond strength are both reflected in the activity of cellular metabolism and proliferation genes. However, while we observe pronounced rank-related differences in baseline immune gene activity, only bond strength predicts the fold-change response to immune (lipopolysaccharide) stimulation. Together, our results indicate that the directionality and magnitude of social effects on gene regulation depend on the aspect of the social environment under study. This heterogeneity may help explain why social environmental effects on health and longevity can also vary between measures. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan A. Anderson
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Amanda J. Lea
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Carl Icahn Laboratory, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
| | - Tawni N. Voyles
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Mercy Y. Akinyi
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Ruth Nyakundi
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Lucy Ochola
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Martin Omondi
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Fred Nyundo
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi 00502, Kenya
| | - Yingying Zhang
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Fernando A. Campos
- Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78249, USA
| | - Susan C. Alberts
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
| | - Elizabeth A. Archie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Duke Population Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA
- Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, Toronto, Canada M5G 1M1
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74
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Wallace KJ, Choudhary KD, Kutty LA, Le DH, Lee MT, Wu K, Hofmann HA. Social ascent changes cognition, behaviour and physiology in a highly social cichlid fish. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20200448. [PMID: 35000445 PMCID: PMC8743896 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0448] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
When an individual ascends in dominance status within their social community, they often undergo a suite of behavioural, physiological and neuromolecular changes. While these changes have been extensively characterized across a number of species, we know much less about the degree to which these changes in turn influence cognitive processes like associative learning, memory and spatial navigation. Here, we assessed male Astatotilapia burtoni, an African cichlid fish known for its dynamic social dominance hierarchies, in a set of cognitive tasks both before and after a community perturbation in which some individuals ascended in dominance status. We assayed steroid hormone (cortisol, testosterone) levels before and after the community experienced a social perturbation. We found that ascending males changed their physiology and novel object recognition preference during the perturbation, and they subsequently differed in social competence from non-ascenders. Additionally, using a principal component analysis we were able to identify specific cognitive and physiological attributes that appear to predispose certain individuals to ascend in social status once a perturbation occurs. These previously undiscovered relationships between social ascent and cognition further emphasize the broad influence of social dominance on animal decision-making. This article is part of the theme issue 'The centennial of the pecking order: current state and future prospects for the study of dominance hierarchies'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly J. Wallace
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Kavyaa D. Choudhary
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Layla A. Kutty
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Don H. Le
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Matthew T. Lee
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Karleen Wu
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
| | - Hans A. Hofmann
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA,Institute for Neuroscience, The University of Texas, Austin, TX 78712, USA
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75
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Natural disaster and immunological aging in a nonhuman primate. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:2121663119. [PMID: 35131902 PMCID: PMC8872742 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2121663119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Survivors of extreme adverse events, including natural disasters, often exhibit chronic inflammation and early onset of age-related diseases. Adversity may therefore accelerate aging via the immune system, which is sensitive to lived experiences. We tested if experiencing a hurricane was associated with immune gene expression in a population of free-ranging macaques. Exposure to Hurricane Maria broadly recapitulated age-associated molecular changes, including disruptions of protein folding genes, greater inflammatory immune cell marker gene expression, and older biological aging by an average of 2 y—approximately 7 to 8 y of the human lifespan. Together, our findings suggest that experiencing an extreme hurricane is associated with alterations in immune cell gene regulation similar to aging, potentially accelerating aspects of the aging process. Weather-related disasters are increasing in frequency and severity, leaving survivors to cope with ensuing mental, financial, and physical hardships. This adversity can exacerbate existing morbidities, trigger new ones, and increase the risk of mortality—features that are also characteristic of advanced age—inviting the hypothesis that extreme weather events may accelerate aging. To test this idea, we examined the impact of Hurricane Maria and its aftermath on immune cell gene expression in large, age-matched, cross-sectional samples from free-ranging rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) living on an isolated island. A cross section of macaques was sampled 1 to 4 y before (n = 435) and 1 y after (n = 108) the hurricane. Hurricane Maria was significantly associated with differential expression of 4% of immune-cell-expressed genes, and these effects were correlated with age-associated alterations in gene expression. We further found that individuals exposed to the hurricane had a gene expression profile that was, on average, 1.96 y older than individuals that were not—roughly equivalent to an increase in 7 to 8 y of a human life. Living through an intense hurricane and its aftermath was associated with expression of key immune genes, dysregulated proteostasis networks, and greater expression of inflammatory immune cell-specific marker genes. Together, our findings illuminate potential mechanisms through which the adversity unleashed by extreme weather and potentially other natural disasters might become biologically embedded, accelerate age-related molecular immune phenotypes, and ultimately contribute to earlier onset of disease and death.
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76
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Escoda T, Jourde-Chiche N, Cornec D, Chiche L. [Toward a better clinical stratification of patients with autoimmune diseases to improve research and care within its biopsychosocial dimensions]. Rev Med Interne 2022; 43:71-74. [PMID: 35000766 DOI: 10.1016/j.revmed.2021.10.337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2021] [Accepted: 10/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- T Escoda
- Service de médecine interne, hôpital Européen, Marseille, France
| | - N Jourde-Chiche
- Service de néphrologie, hôpital de la Conception, Marseille, France
| | - D Cornec
- Service de rhumatologie, hôpital de la Cavale Blanche, Brest, France
| | - L Chiche
- Service de médecine interne, hôpital Européen, Marseille, France.
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77
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Snyder-Mackler N, Snyder-Mackler L. Holistic Rehabilitation: Biological Embedding of Social Adversity and Its Health Implications. Phys Ther 2022; 102:pzab245. [PMID: 34718801 PMCID: PMC8754369 DOI: 10.1093/ptj/pzab245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2021] [Revised: 08/30/2021] [Accepted: 09/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Human health is affected by lived experiences, both past and present. The environments we encounter throughout our lives, therefore, shape how we respond to new challenges, how we maintain a healthy immune system, and even how we respond to treatment and rehabilitation. Early in life and throughout adulthood, social experiences-such as exposure to various forms of adversity-can alter how cells in our body function, with far-reaching consequences for human health, disease, and treatment. This Perspective highlights studies from an ever-growing body of literature on the social determinants of health, with a focus on exposure to social adversities, such as social isolation, discrimination, or low social status, experienced both early in life and adulthood and how they variably impact health. By focusing on recent observational studies in humans and experimental studies on social nonhuman animals, this article details how social adversity can become biologically embedded in our cells at the molecular level. Given that humans are social animals, it is no surprise that social adversity can negatively impact our health, and experimental animal studies have helped us to uncover some of the causal mechanistic pathways underlying the link between social adversity and health outcomes. These molecular consequences can have far-reaching implications and, when combined with our growing knowledge on the social determinants of health, should inform how we approach treatment and rehabilitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah Snyder-Mackler
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
- Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
- School for Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Lynn Snyder-Mackler
- Department of Physical Therapy, University of Delaware, Wilmington, Delaware, USA
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78
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Killen SS, Cortese D, Cotgrove L, Jolles JW, Munson A, Ioannou CC. The Potential for Physiological Performance Curves to Shape Environmental Effects on Social Behavior. Front Physiol 2021; 12:754719. [PMID: 34858209 PMCID: PMC8632012 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2021.754719] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
As individual animals are exposed to varying environmental conditions, phenotypic plasticity will occur in a vast array of physiological traits. For example, shifts in factors such as temperature and oxygen availability can affect the energy demand, cardiovascular system, and neuromuscular function of animals that in turn impact individual behavior. Here, we argue that nonlinear changes in the physiological traits and performance of animals across environmental gradients—known as physiological performance curves—may have wide-ranging effects on the behavior of individual social group members and the functioning of animal social groups as a whole. Previous work has demonstrated how variation between individuals can have profound implications for socially living animals, as well as how environmental conditions affect social behavior. However, the importance of variation between individuals in how they respond to changing environmental conditions has so far been largely overlooked in the context of animal social behavior. First, we consider the broad effects that individual variation in performance curves may have on the behavior of socially living animals, including: (1) changes in the rank order of performance capacity among group mates across environments; (2) environment-dependent changes in the amount of among- and within-individual variation, and (3) differences among group members in terms of the environmental optima, the critical environmental limits, and the peak capacity and breadth of performance. We then consider the ecological implications of these effects for a range of socially mediated phenomena, including within-group conflict, within- and among group assortment, collective movement, social foraging, predator-prey interactions and disease and parasite transfer. We end by outlining the type of empirical work required to test the implications for physiological performance curves in social behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shaun S Killen
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Daphne Cortese
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Lucy Cotgrove
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Jolle W Jolles
- Center for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF), Campus de Bellaterra (UAB), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Amelia Munson
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Christos C Ioannou
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
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79
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Bai H, Capitanio JP, Miller LA, Clougherty JE. Social status and susceptibility to wildfire smoke among outdoor-housed female rhesus monkeys: A natural experiment. Heliyon 2021; 7:e08333. [PMID: 34816037 PMCID: PMC8591456 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e08333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2021] [Revised: 09/30/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Wildfire smoke (WFS) exposure is a growing threat to human health, and lower socioeconomic position (SEP) has been shown to increase pollution susceptibility. Studies of SEP-related susceptibility, however, are often compromised due to spatial confounding between lower-SEP and pollution. Here we examine outdoor-housed nonhuman primates, living in natural social hierarchy in a common location, born during years of high vs. low WFS, to examine the separate and combined effects of WFS and social rank, an analog to SEP, on lung and immune function. Methods Twenty-one females were born during extreme WFS events in summer 2008; 22 were born in summer 2009, during low WFS. Pulmonary function and circulating cytokines were measured three years later, in adolescence. We estimated fine particulate (PM2.5) and ozone exposures during each animal's first 90 days and three years of age using regulatory data. Early-life social status was estimated using maternal rank at birth, as rank in females is relatively stable throughout life, and closely approximates mother's rank. We tested associations among WFS exposure, rank, and endpoints using linear regression and ANOVA. Results Higher WFS exposure in infancy was, on average, associated with lower functional residual capacity (FRC), residual volume (RV), tissue compliance (Ct), and IL-8 secretion in adolescence. Higher social rank conferred significantly higher expiratory reserve volume (ERV) and functional residual capacity (FRC) solely among those born in the high-WFS year (2008). Differences in effects of rank between years were not significant after adjustment for multiple comparisons. Conclusions Exposure to WFS in infancy generally conferred lower adolescent respiratory volumes and inflammatory cytokines. Higher rank conferred higher respiratory volumes only among females born during WFS, suggesting the possibility that the health benefits of rank may be more apparent under environmental challenge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heng Bai
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - John P Capitanio
- California National Primate Research Center, Davis, CA, USA.,Department of Psychology, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Lisa A Miller
- California National Primate Research Center, Davis, CA, USA.,Department of Anatomy, Physiology, and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Jane E Clougherty
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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80
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Choate LA, Barshad G, McMahon PW, Said I, Rice EJ, Munn PR, Lewis JJ, Danko CG. Multiple stages of evolutionary change in anthrax toxin receptor expression in humans. Nat Commun 2021; 12:6590. [PMID: 34782625 PMCID: PMC8592990 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26854-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2020] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The advent of animal husbandry and hunting increased human exposure to zoonotic pathogens. To understand how a zoonotic disease may have influenced human evolution, we study changes in human expression of anthrax toxin receptor 2 (ANTXR2), which encodes a cell surface protein necessary for Bacillus anthracis virulence toxins to cause anthrax disease. In immune cells, ANTXR2 is 8-fold down-regulated in all available human samples compared to non-human primates, indicating regulatory changes early in the evolution of modern humans. We also observe multiple genetic signatures consistent with recent positive selection driving a European-specific decrease in ANTXR2 expression in multiple tissues affected by anthrax toxins. Our observations fit a model in which humans adapted to anthrax disease following early ecological changes associated with hunting and scavenging, as well as a second period of adaptation after the rise of modern agriculture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren A Choate
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - Gilad Barshad
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - Pierce W McMahon
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - Iskander Said
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - Edward J Rice
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - Paul R Munn
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - James J Lewis
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA.
| | - Charles G Danko
- Baker Institute for Animal Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA.
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81
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Resting parasympathetic nervous system activity is associated with greater antiviral gene expression. Brain Behav Immun 2021; 98:310-316. [PMID: 34461235 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2021.08.229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2021] [Revised: 07/28/2021] [Accepted: 08/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Parasympathetic nervous system activity can downregulate inflammation, but it remains unclear how parasympathetic nervous system activity relates to antiviral activity. The present study examined associations between parasympathetic nervous system activity and cellular antiviral gene regulation in 90 adolescents (Mage = 16.28, SD = 0.73; 51.1% female) who provided blood samples and measures of cardiac respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), twice, five weeks apart. Using a multilevel analytic framework, we found that higher RSA (an indicator of higher parasympathetic nervous system activity)-both at rest and during paced breathing-was associated with higher expression of Type I interferon (IFN) response genes in circulating leukocytes, even after adjusting for demographic and biological covariates. RSA was not associated with a parallel measure of inflammatory gene expression. These results identify a previously unrecognized immunoregulatory aspect of autonomic nervous system function and highlight a potential biological pathway by which parasympathetic nervous system activity may relate to health.
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82
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Pavez-Fox MA, Negron-Del Valle JE, Thompson IJ, Walker CS, Bauman SE, Gonzalez O, Compo N, Ruiz-Lambides A, Martinez MI, Platt ML, Montague MJ, Higham JP, Snyder-Mackler N, Brent LJN. Sociality predicts individual variation in the immunity of free-ranging rhesus macaques. Physiol Behav 2021; 241:113560. [PMID: 34454245 PMCID: PMC8605072 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2021.113560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2021] [Revised: 08/13/2021] [Accepted: 08/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Social integration and social status can substantially affect an individual’s health and survival. One route through which this occurs is by altering immune function, which can be highly sensitive to changes in the social environment. However, we currently have limited understanding of how sociality influences markers of immunity in naturalistic populations where social dynamics can be fully realized. To address this gap, we asked if social integration and social status in free-ranging rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) predict anatomical and physiological markers of immunity. We used data on agonistic interactions to determine social status, and social network analysis of grooming interactions to generate measures of individual variation in social integration. As measures of immunity, we included the size of two of the major organs involved in the immune response, the spleen and liver, and counts of three types of blood cells (red blood cells, platelets, and white blood cells). Controlling for body mass and age, we found that neither social status nor social integration predicted the size of anatomical markers of immunity. However, individuals that were more socially connected, i.e., with more grooming partners, had lower numbers of white blood cells than their socially isolated counterparts, indicating lower levels of inflammation with increasing levels of integration. These results build upon and extend our knowledge of the relationship between sociality and the immune system in humans and captive animals to free-ranging primates, demonstrating generalizability of the beneficial role of social integration on health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa A Pavez-Fox
- Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, University of Exeter, United Kingdom.
| | | | - Indya J Thompson
- Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, NC, United States
| | - Christopher S Walker
- Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, NC, United States
| | - Samuel E Bauman
- Caribbean Primate Research Center, University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico
| | - Olga Gonzalez
- Texas Biomedical Research Institute, TX, United States
| | | | | | - Melween I Martinez
- Caribbean Primate Research Center, University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico
| | - Michael L Platt
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, PA, United States; Department of Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, PA, United States; Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, PA, United States; Department of Marketing, University of Pennsylvania , PA, United States
| | - Michael J Montague
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania, PA, United States
| | - James P Higham
- Department of Anthropology, New York University, NY, United States
| | - Noah Snyder-Mackler
- Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, AZ, United States; School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, AZ, United States
| | - Lauren J N Brent
- Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, University of Exeter, United Kingdom
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83
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Chen S, Chen K, Xu J, Li F, Ding J, Ma Z, Li G, Li H. Insights Into mRNA and Long Non-coding RNA Profiling RNA Sequencing in Uterus of Chickens With Pink and Blue Eggshell Colors. Front Vet Sci 2021; 8:736387. [PMID: 34692811 PMCID: PMC8529033 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.736387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2021] [Accepted: 08/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The blue egg is both of biological interest and economic importance for consumers, egg retailers, and scientists. To date, the genetic mechanisms underlying pigment have mainly focused on protein-coding genes. However, the underpinning mechanism of non-coding RNAs on the pigment deposition among different eggshell colors remains unknown. In this study, RNA sequencing was employed to profile the uterine gland transcriptome (lncRNA and mRNA) of 15 Changshun blue eggshell layers, to better understand the genetic mechanisms of deposition of blue eggshell color. Results showed that differentially expressed mRNAs, GO terms, and KEGG pathways among pink-eggshell and blue-eggshell chickens were mainly targeting immune- and transporter-related terms with the SLC family, IgJ, CD family, and MTMR genes. Furthermore, the progesterone-mediated oocyte maturation and cortisol synthesis and secretion pathway with targeted gene PGR and Pbx1 were significantly enriched between blue- and pink-eggshell chickens. Integrating analysis of lncRNA and mRNA profiles predicted 4 and 25 lncRNA–gene pairs by antisense and cis analysis. They were relative to immune, nerve, and lipids and amino acid metabolisms, porphyrin, and chlorophyll metabolism with targeted gene FECH and oxidative phosphorylation and cardiac muscle contraction pathways with targeted gene COX6A1. Within blue-eggshell chickens, the GO terms hindbrain tangential cell migration and phosphatidylinositol monophosphate phosphatase activity with targeted gene Plxna2 and MTRM1 were identified. Integrating analysis of lncRNA and mRNA profiles predicted 8 and 22 lncRNA–gene pairs. Most pathways were mainly enriched on lipid-related metabolisms as found in mRNA sequencing. The lncRNAs did exert similar functions in color formation by modulating pigment disposition and immune- and lipid-related metabolisms. Our results provide a catalog of chicken uterine lncRNAs and genes worthy of further studies to understand their roles in the selection for blue eggshell color layers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siyu Chen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, China
| | - Kecheng Chen
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, China
| | - Jiaming Xu
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, China
| | - Fangwei Li
- Guizhou Changshun Tiannong Green Shell Laying Hen Industrial Co. Ltd, Chang Shun City, China
| | - Jinlong Ding
- Guizhou Changshun Tiannong Green Shell Laying Hen Industrial Co. Ltd, Chang Shun City, China
| | - Zheng Ma
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, China
| | - Gen Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, China
| | - Hua Li
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding, Key Laboratory of Animal Molecular Design and Precise Breeding of Guangdong Higher Education Institutes, School of Life Science and Engineering, Foshan University, Foshan, China
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84
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Funnell TR, Fialkowski RJ, Dijkstra PD. Social dominance does not increase oxidative stress in a female dominance hierarchy of an African cichlid fish. Ethology 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.13232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Tyler R. Funnell
- Department of Biology Central Michigan University Mount Pleasant MI USA
- Quantitative Fisheries Center Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Michigan State University East Lansing MI USA
| | | | - Peter D. Dijkstra
- Department of Biology Central Michigan University Mount Pleasant MI USA
- Neuroscience Program Central Michigan University Mount Pleasant MI USA
- Institute for Great Lakes Research Central Michigan University Mount Pleasant MI USA
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Walsh CP, Bovbjerg DH, Marsland AL. Glucocorticoid resistance and β2-adrenergic receptor signaling pathways promote peripheral pro-inflammatory conditions associated with chronic psychological stress: A systematic review across species. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 128:117-135. [PMID: 34116126 PMCID: PMC8556675 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.06.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2020] [Revised: 03/11/2021] [Accepted: 06/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Activation of the HPA-axis and SNS are widely accepted to link chronic stress with elevated levels of peripheral pro-inflammatory markers in blood. Yet, empirical evidence showing that peripheral levels of glucocorticoids and/or catecholamines mediate this effect is equivocal. Recent attention has turned to the possibility that cellular sensitivity to these ligands may contribute to inflammatory mediators that accompany chronic stress. We review current evidence for the association of chronic stress with glucocorticoid receptor (GR) and β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR) signaling sensitivity. Across 15 mouse, 7 primate, and 19 human studies, we found that chronic stress reliably associates with downregulation in cellular GR sensitivity, alterations in intracellular β-AR signaling, and upregulation in pro-inflammatory biomarkers in peripheral blood. We also present evidence that alterations in GR and β-AR signaling may be specific to myeloid progenitor cells such that stress-related signaling promotes release of cells that are inherently less sensitive to glucocorticoids and differentially sensitive to catecholamines. Our findings have broad implications for understanding mechanisms by which chronic stress may contribute to pro-inflammatory phenotypes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Dana H Bovbjerg
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, United States; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, United States.
| | - Anna L Marsland
- Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, United States.
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86
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Tamura K, Curlin K, Neally SJ, Vijayakumar NP, Mitchell VM, Collins BS, Gutierrez-Huerta C, Troendle JF, Baumer Y, Osei Baah F, Turner BS, Gray V, Tirado BA, Ortiz-Chaparro E, Berrigan D, Mehta NN, Vaccarino V, Zenk SN, Powell-Wiley TM. Geospatial Analysis of Neighborhood Environmental Stress in Relation to Biological Markers of Cardiovascular Health and Health Behaviors in Women: Protocol for a Pilot Study. JMIR Res Protoc 2021; 10:e29191. [PMID: 34292168 PMCID: PMC8367127 DOI: 10.2196/29191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Revised: 06/07/2021] [Accepted: 06/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Innovative analyses of cardiovascular (CV) risk markers and health behaviors linked to neighborhood stressors are essential to further elucidate the mechanisms by which adverse neighborhood social conditions lead to poor CV outcomes. We propose to objectively measure physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior, and neighborhood stress using accelerometers, GPS, and real-time perceived ecological momentary assessment via smartphone apps and to link these to biological measures in a sample of White and African American women in Washington, DC, neighborhoods. Objective The primary aim of this study is to test the hypothesis that living in adverse neighborhood social conditions is associated with higher stress-related neural activity among 60 healthy women living in high or low socioeconomic status neighborhoods in Washington, DC. Sub-aim 1 of this study is to test the hypothesis that the association is moderated by objectively measured PA using an accelerometer. A secondary objective is to test the hypothesis that residing in adverse neighborhood social environment conditions is related to differences in vascular function. Sub-aim 2 of this study is to test the hypothesis that the association is moderated by objectively measured PA. The third aim of this study is to test the hypothesis that adverse neighborhood social environment conditions are related to differences in immune system activation. Methods The proposed study will be cross-sectional, with a sample of at least 60 women (30 healthy White women and 30 healthy Black women) from Wards 3 and 5 in Washington, DC. A sample of the women (n=30) will be recruited from high-income areas in Ward 3 from census tracts within a 15% of Ward 3’s range for median household income. The other participants (n=30) will be recruited from low-income areas in Wards 5 from census tracts within a 15% of Ward 5’s range for median household income. Finally, participants from Wards 3 and 5 will be matched based on age, race, and BMI. Participants will wear a GPS unit and accelerometer and report their stress and mood in real time using a smartphone. We will then examine the associations between GPS-derived neighborhood variables, stress-related neural activity measures, and adverse biological markers. Results The National Institutes of Health Institutional Review Board has approved this study. Recruitment will begin in the summer of 2021. Conclusions Findings from this research could inform the development of multilevel behavioral interventions and policies to better manage environmental factors that promote immune system activation or psychosocial stress while concurrently working to increase PA, thereby influencing CV health. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) PRR1-10.2196/29191
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Affiliation(s)
- Kosuke Tamura
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Kaveri Curlin
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Sam J Neally
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Nithya P Vijayakumar
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Valerie M Mitchell
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Billy S Collins
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Cristhian Gutierrez-Huerta
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - James F Troendle
- Office of Biostatistics Research, Division of Intramural Research, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Yvonne Baumer
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Foster Osei Baah
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Briana S Turner
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Veronica Gray
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Brian A Tirado
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Erika Ortiz-Chaparro
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - David Berrigan
- Health Behaviors Research Branch, Behavioral Research Program, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Shady Grove, MD, United States
| | - Nehal N Mehta
- Section of Inflammation and Cardiometabolic Diseases, Cardiovascular Branch, Division of Intramural Research, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Viola Vaccarino
- Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States.,Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Shannon N Zenk
- National Institute of Nursing Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Tiffany M Powell-Wiley
- Social Determinants of Obesity and Cardiovascular Risk Laboratory, Cardiovascular Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States.,Intramural Research Program, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
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87
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Cavigelli S, Leips J, Jenny Xiang QY, Lemke D, Konow N. Next Steps in Integrative Biology: Mapping Interactive Processes Across Levels of Biological Organization. Integr Comp Biol 2021; 61:2066-2074. [PMID: 34259855 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icab161] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Revised: 07/02/2021] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Emergent biological processes result from complex interactions within and across levels of biological organization, ranging from molecular to environmental dynamics. Powerful theories, database tools, and modeling methods have been designed to characterize network connections within levels, such as those among genes, proteins, biochemicals, cells, organisms and species. Here, we propose that developing integrative models of organismal function in complex environments can be facilitated by taking advantage of these methods to identify key nodes of communication across levels of organization. Mapping key drivers or connections among levels of organization will provide data and leverage to model potential rule-sets by which organisms respond and adjust to perturbations at any level of biological organization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonia Cavigelli
- Department of Biobehavioral Health, Pennsylvania State University, University Park PA 16802
| | - Jeff Leips
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Maryland Baltimore County, Baltimore MD 21250
| | - Qiu-Yun Jenny Xiang
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh NC 27695
| | - Dawn Lemke
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Alabama A&M University, Huntsville AL 35811
| | - Nicolai Konow
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Massachusetts Lowell, Lowell MA 01854
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88
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Clougherty JE, Humphrey JL, Kinnee EJ, Robinson LF, McClure LA, Kubzansky LD, Reid CE. Social Susceptibility to Multiple Air Pollutants in Cardiovascular Disease. Res Rep Health Eff Inst 2021; 2021:1-71. [PMID: 36004603 PMCID: PMC9403800] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in the United States, and substantial research has linked ambient air pollution to elevated rates of CVD etiology and events. Much of this research identified increased effects of air pollution in lower socioeconomic position (SEP) communities, where pollution exposures are also often higher. The complex spatial confounding between air pollution and SEP makes it very challenging, however, to disentangle the impacts of these very different exposure types and to accurately assess their interactions. The specific causal components (i.e., specific social stressors) underlying this SEP-related susceptibility remain unknown, because there are myriad pathways through which poverty and/or lower-SEP conditions may influence pollution susceptibility - including diet, smoking, coexposures in the home and occupational environments, health behaviors, and healthcare access. Growing evidence suggests that a substantial portion of SEP-related susceptibility may be due to chronic psychosocial stress - given the known wide-ranging impacts of chronic stress on immune, endocrine, and metabolic function - and to a higher prevalence of unpredictable chronic stressors in many lower-SEP communities, including violence, job insecurity, and housing instability. As such, elucidating susceptibility to pollution in the etiology of CVD, and in the risk of CVD events, has been identified as a research priority. This interplay among social and environmental conditions may be particularly relevant for CVD, because pollution and chronic stress both impact inflammation, metabolic function, oxidative stress, hypertension, atherosclerosis, and other processes relevant to CVD etiology. Because pollution exposures are often spatially patterned by SEP, disentangling their effects - and quantifying any interplay - is especially challenging. Doing so, however, would help to improve our ability to identify and characterize susceptible populations and to improve our understanding of how community stressors may alter responses to multiple air pollutants. More clearly characterizing susceptible populations will improve our ability to design and target interventions more effectively (and cost-effectively) and may reveal greater benefits of pollution reduction in susceptible communities, strengthening cost-benefit and accountability analyses, ultimately reducing the disproportionate burden of CVD and reducing health disparities. METHODS In the current study, we aimed to quantify combined effects of multiple pollutants and stressor exposures on CVD events, using a number of unique datasets we have compiled and verified, including the following. 1. Poverty metrics, violent crime rates, a composite socioeconomic deprivation index (SDI), an index of racial and economic segregation, noise disturbance metrics, and three composite spatial factors produced from a factor analysis of 27 community stressors. All indicators have citywide coverage and were verified against individual reports of stress and stressor exposure, in citywide focus groups and surveys. 2. Spatial surfaces for multiple pollutants from the New York City (NYC) Community Air Survey (NYCCAS), which monitored multiple pollutants year-round at 150 sites and used land use regression (LUR) modeling to estimate fine-scale (100-m) intra-urban spatial variance in fine particles (PM2.5), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), sulfur dioxide (SO2), and ozone (O3). 3. Daily data and time-trends derived from all U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Air Quality System (AQS) monitors in NYC for 2005-2011, which we combined with NYCCAS surfaces to create residence- and day-specific spatiotemporal exposure estimates. 4. Complete data on in- and out-patient unscheduled CVD events presented in NYC hospitals for 2005-2011 (n = 1,113,185) from the New York State (NYS) Department of Health's Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS). In the study, we quantified relationships between multiple pollutant exposures and both community CVD event rates and individual risk of CVD events in NYC and tested whether pollution-CVD associations varied by community SEP and social stressor exposures. We hypothesized (1) that greater chronic community-level SEP, stressor, and pollution exposures would be associated with higher community CVD rates; (2) that spatiotemporal variations in multiple pollutants would be associated with excess risk of CVD events; and (3) that pollution-CVD associations would be stronger in communities of lower SEP or higher stressor exposures. RESULTS To first understand the separate and combined associations with CVD for both stressors and pollutants measured at the same spatial and temporal scale of resolution, we used ecological cross-sectional models to examine spatial relationships between multiple chronic pollutant and stressor exposures and age-adjusted community CVD rates. Using census-tract-level annual averages (n = 2,167), we compared associations with CVD rates for multiple pollutant concentrations and social stressors. We found that associations with community CVD rates were consistently stronger for social stressors than for pollutants, in terms of both magnitude and significance. We note, however, that this result may be driven by the relatively greater variation (on a proportional basis) for stressors than for pollutants in NYC. We also tested effect modification of pollutant-CVD associations by each social stressor and found evidence of stronger associations for NO2, PM2.5, and wintertime SO2 with CVD rates, particularly across quintiles of increasing community violence or assault rates (P trend < 0.0001). To examine individual-level associations between spatiotemporal exposures to multiple pollutants and the risk of CVD events, across multiple lag days, we examined the combined effects of multiple pollutant exposures, using spatiotemporal (day- and residence-specific) pollution exposure estimates and hospital data on individual CVD events in case-crossover models, which inherently adjust for nontime-varying individual confounders (e.g., sex and race) and comorbidities. We found consistent significant relationships only for same-day pollutant exposures and the risk of CVD events, suggesting very acute impacts of pollution on CVD risk. Associations with CVD were positive for NO2, PM2.5, and SO2, as hypothesized, and we found inverse associations for O3 (a secondary pollutant chemically decreased ["scavenged"] by fresh emissions that, in NYC, displays spatial and temporal patterns opposite those of NO2). Finally, to test effect modification by chronic community social stressors on the relationships between spatiotemporal pollution measures and the risk of CVD events, we used individual-level case-crossover models, adding interaction terms with categorical versions of each social stressor. We found that associations between NO2 and the risk of CVD events were significantly elevated only in communities with the highest exposures to social stressors (i.e., in the highest quintiles of poverty, socioeconomic deprivation, violence, or assault). The largest positive associations for PM2.5 and winter SO2 were generally found in the highest-stressor communities but were not significant in any quintile. We again found inverse associations for O3, which were likewise stronger for individuals living in communities with greater stressor exposures. CONCLUSIONS In ecological models, we found stronger relationships with community CVD rates for social stressors than for pollutant exposures. In case-crossover analyses, higher exposures to NO2, PM2.5, and SO2 were associated with greater excess risk of CVD events but only on the case day (there were no consistent significant lagged-day effects). In effect-modification analyses at both the community and individual level, we found evidence of stronger pollution-CVD associations in communities with higher stressor exposures. Given substantial spatial confounding across multiple social stressors, further research is needed to disentangle these effects in order to identify the predominant social stressors driving this observed differential susceptibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- J E Clougherty
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - J L Humphrey
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - E J Kinnee
- University of Pittsburgh Center for Social & Urban Research, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
| | - L F Robinson
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - L A McClure
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - L D Kubzansky
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - C E Reid
- University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado
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89
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Hajat A, MacLehose RF, Rosofsky A, Walker KD, Clougherty JE. Confounding by Socioeconomic Status in Epidemiological Studies of Air Pollution and Health: Challenges and Opportunities. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2021; 129:65001. [PMID: 34124937 PMCID: PMC8202292 DOI: 10.1289/ehp7980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2020] [Revised: 05/01/2021] [Accepted: 05/19/2021] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Despite a vast air pollution epidemiology literature to date and the recognition that lower-socioeconomic status (SES) populations are often disproportionately exposed to pollution, there is little research identifying optimal means of adjusting for confounding by SES in air pollution epidemiology, nor is there a strong understanding of biases that may result from improper adjustment. OBJECTIVE We aim to provide a conceptualization of SES and a review of approaches to its measurement in the U.S. context and discuss pathways by which SES may influence health and confound effects of air pollution. We explore bias related to measurement and operationalization and identify statistical approaches to reduce bias and confounding. DISCUSSION Drawing on the social epidemiology, health geography, and economic literatures, we describe how SES, a multifaceted construct operating through myriad pathways, may be conceptualized and operationalized in air pollution epidemiology studies. SES varies across individuals within the contexts of place, time, and culture. Although no single variable or index can fully capture SES, many studies rely on only a single measure. We recommend examining multiple facets of SES appropriate to the study design. Furthermore, investigators should carefully consider the multiple mechanisms by which SES might be operating to identify those SES indicators that may be most appropriate for a given context or study design and assess the impact of improper adjustment on air pollution effect estimates. Last, exploring model contraction and expansion methods may enrich adjustment, whereas statistical approaches, such as quantitative bias analysis, may be used to evaluate residual confounding. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP7980.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anjum Hajat
- Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Richard F. MacLehose
- Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Anna Rosofsky
- Health Effects Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Jane E. Clougherty
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
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90
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Jaeggi AV, Blackwell AD, von Rueden C, Trumble BC, Stieglitz J, Garcia AR, Kraft TS, Beheim BA, Hooper PL, Kaplan H, Gurven M. Do wealth and inequality associate with health in a small-scale subsistence society? eLife 2021; 10:59437. [PMID: 33988506 PMCID: PMC8225390 DOI: 10.7554/elife.59437] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2020] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
In high-income countries, one’s relative socio-economic position and economic inequality may affect health and well-being, arguably via psychosocial stress. We tested this in a small-scale subsistence society, the Tsimane, by associating relative household wealth (n = 871) and community-level wealth inequality (n = 40, Gini = 0.15–0.53) with a range of psychological variables, stressors, and health outcomes (depressive symptoms [n = 670], social conflicts [n = 401], non-social problems [n = 398], social support [n = 399], cortisol [n = 811], body mass index [n = 9,926], blood pressure [n = 3,195], self-rated health [n = 2523], morbidities [n = 1542]) controlling for community-average wealth, age, sex, household size, community size, and distance to markets. Wealthier people largely had better outcomes while inequality associated with more respiratory disease, a leading cause of mortality. Greater inequality and lower wealth were associated with higher blood pressure. Psychosocial factors did not mediate wealth-health associations. Thus, relative socio-economic position and inequality may affect health across diverse societies, though this is likely exacerbated in high-income countries. Poverty is bad for health. People living in poverty are more likely to struggle to afford nutritious food, lack access to health care, or be overworked or stressed. This may make them susceptible to chronic diseases, contribute to faster aging, and shorten their lifespans. In high-income countries, there is growing evidence to suggest that a person’s ‘rank’ in society also impacts their health. For example, individuals who have a lower position in the social hierarchy report worse health outcomes, regardless of their incomes. But it is unclear why living in an unequal society or having a lower social status contributes to poorer health. One possibility is that inequalities in society are creating a stressful environment that leads to worse physical and mental outcomes. It is thought that this stress largely comes from how humans evolved to prioritize reaching a higher social status over having a long and healthy life. If this is the case, this would mean that the link between social status and health would also be present in non-industrialized communities where social hierarchies tend to be less pronounced. To test this, Jaeggi, Blackwell et al. studied the Indigenous Tsimane population in Bolivia who live in small communities and forage and farm their own food. The income and relative wealth of 870 households from 40 Tsimane communities were compared against various outcomes, including symptoms associated with depression, stress hormone levels, blood pressure, self-rated health and several diseases. Jaeggi, Blackwell et al. found poverty and inequality did not negatively impact all of the health outcomes measured as has been previously reported for industrialized societies. However, blood pressure was higher among people with lower incomes or those who lived in more unequal communities. But because the Tsimane people generally have low blood pressure, the differences were too small to have much effect on their health. People who lived in more unequal communities were also three times more likely to have respiratory infections, but the reason for this was unclear. This shows that social determinants such as a person’s wealth or inequality can affect health, even in communities with less rigid social hierarchies. In industrial societies the effect may be worse in part because they are compounded by lifestyle factors, such as diets rich in fat and sugar, and physical inactivity which can also increase blood pressure. This information may help policy makers reduce health disparities by addressing some of the social determinants of health and the lifestyle factors that cause them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrian V Jaeggi
- Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.,Department of Anthropology, Emory University, Atlanta, United States
| | - Aaron D Blackwell
- Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Pulman, United States
| | | | - Benjamin C Trumble
- School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, United States.,Center for Evolution and Medicine, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, United States
| | | | - Angela R Garcia
- Department of Anthropology, Emory University, Atlanta, United States.,School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, United States.,Center for Evolution and Medicine, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, United States
| | - Thomas S Kraft
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - Bret A Beheim
- Department of Human Behavior, Ecology and Culture, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Paul L Hooper
- Economic Science Institute, Chapman University, Irvine, United States.,Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, United States
| | - Hillard Kaplan
- Economic Science Institute, Chapman University, Irvine, United States
| | - Michael Gurven
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
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91
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Krasnov BR, Vinarski MV, Korallo-Vinarskaya NP, Shenbrot GI, Khokhlova IS. Spatial and temporal variation of compositional, functional, and phylogenetic diversity in ectoparasite infracommunities harboured by small mammals. Parasitology 2021; 148:685-695. [PMID: 33583440 PMCID: PMC11010129 DOI: 10.1017/s0031182021000299] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2020] [Revised: 01/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
We studied patterns of compositional, functional, and phylogenetic α- and β-diversity in flea and gamasid mite infracommunities of small Siberian mammals, taking into account host-associated (species) and environmental (biome or sampling period) factors. We asked: (a) How do these factors and their interactions affect infracommunity diversity? (b) Does infracommunity composition, in terms of species, traits, and phylogenetic lineages, deviate from random? (c) Are species, traits, and phylogenetic lineages in infracommunities clustered or overdispersed?, and (d) Do patterns of diversity differ between the three diversity facets and/or the two ectoparasite taxa? We found that the α-diversity of infracommunities was strongly affected by host species, biome, and sampling period. The highest proportion of infracommunity diversity in both taxa was associated with the interaction between either host species and biome or host species and sampling period. Infracommunities of both taxa within, as well as between, host species, biomes, and sampling periods were characterized by the clustering of species, traits and lineages. The patterns of the effects of host species, biome, and sampling period on infracommunity diversity were congruent among the three diversity facets in both fleas and mites. We conclude that the assembly patterns in ectoparasite infracommunities mirror those characteristics of component and compound communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boris R. Krasnov
- Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental and Energy Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, 8499000Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Maxim V. Vinarski
- Laboratory of Macroecology and Biogeography of Invertebrates, Saint-Petersburg State University, 7/9 University Emb., 199034Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation
- Omsk State University, 11 Neftezavodskaya str., 644053Omsk, Russian Federation
| | - Natalia P. Korallo-Vinarskaya
- Laboratory of Arthropod-Borne Viral Infections, Omsk Research Institute of Natural Foci Infections, Mira str. 7, 644080Omsk, Russian Federation
- Omsk State Pedagogical University, 14 Tukhachevskogo Emb., 644099 Omsk, Russian Federation
| | - Georgy I. Shenbrot
- Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Swiss Institute for Dryland Environmental and Energy Research, Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, 8499000Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Irina S. Khokhlova
- Wyler Department of Dryland Agriculture, French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sede Boqer Campus, 8499000Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
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92
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Pincus M, Godfrey JR, Feczko E, Earl E, Miranda-Dominguez O, Fair D, Wilson ME, Sanchez MM, Kelly C. Chronic psychosocial stress and experimental pubertal delay affect socioemotional behavior and amygdala functional connectivity in adolescent female rhesus macaques. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2021; 127:105154. [PMID: 33647571 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2021.105154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Revised: 12/24/2020] [Accepted: 01/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
In females, pubertal onset appears to signal the opening of a window of increased vulnerability to the effects of stress on neurobehavioral development. What is the impact of pubertal timing on this process? We assessed the effects of pubertal timing and stress on behavior and amygdala functional connectivity (FC) in adolescent female macaques, whose social hierarchy provides an ethologically valid model of chronic psychosocial stress. Monkeys experienced puberty spontaneously (n = 34) or pubertal delay via Lupron treatment from age 16-33 months (n = 36). We examined the effects of stress (continuous dimension spanning dominant/low-stress to subordinate/high-stress) and experimental pubertal delay (Lupron-treated vs. Control) on socioemotional behavior and FC at 43-46 months, after all animals had begun puberty. Regardless of treatment, subordinate monkeys were more submissive and less affiliative, and exhibited weaker FC between amygdala and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and stronger FC between amygdala and temporal pole. Regardless of social rank, Lupron-treated monkeys were also more submissive and less affiliative but were less anxious and exhibited less displacement behavior in a "Human Intruder" task than untreated monkeys; they exhibited stronger FC between amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex. No interactions between rank and Lupron treatment were observed. These similar behavioral outcomes may reflect the common factor of delayed puberty - whether this is stress-related (untreated subordinate animals) or pharmacologically-induced (treated animals). In the brain, however, delayed puberty and subordination stress had separable effects, suggesting that the overlapping socioemotional outcomes may be mediated by distinct neuroplastic mechanisms. To gain further insights, additional longitudinal studies are required.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie Pincus
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Jodi R Godfrey
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Eric Feczko
- Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain (MIDB), University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Institute of Child Development, College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota Medical School, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Eric Earl
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Oscar Miranda-Dominguez
- Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain (MIDB), University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Institute of Child Development, College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota Medical School, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Damien Fair
- Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain (MIDB), University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Institute of Child Development, College of Education and Human Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA; Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota Medical School, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Mark E Wilson
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA; Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, USA
| | - Mar M Sanchez
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Clare Kelly
- School of Psychology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland; Department of Psychiatry at the School of Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland; Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
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93
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Anderson JA, Johnston RA, Lea AJ, Campos FA, Voyles TN, Akinyi MY, Alberts SC, Archie EA, Tung J. High social status males experience accelerated epigenetic aging in wild baboons. eLife 2021; 10:e66128. [PMID: 33821798 PMCID: PMC8087445 DOI: 10.7554/elife.66128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2020] [Accepted: 03/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Aging, for virtually all life, is inescapable. However, within populations, biological aging rates vary. Understanding sources of variation in this process is central to understanding the biodemography of natural populations. We constructed a DNA methylation-based age predictor for an intensively studied wild baboon population in Kenya. Consistent with findings in humans, the resulting 'epigenetic clock' closely tracks chronological age, but individuals are predicted to be somewhat older or younger than their known ages. Surprisingly, these deviations are not explained by the strongest predictors of lifespan in this population, early adversity and social integration. Instead, they are best predicted by male dominance rank: high-ranking males are predicted to be older than their true ages, and epigenetic age tracks changes in rank over time. Our results argue that achieving high rank for male baboons - the best predictor of reproductive success - imposes costs consistent with a 'live fast, die young' life-history strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan A Anderson
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
| | - Rachel A Johnston
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
| | - Amanda J Lea
- Department of Biology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
- Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Carl Icahn Laboratory, Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton UniversityPrincetonUnited States
| | - Fernando A Campos
- Department of Biology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
- Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at San AntonioSan AntonioUnited States
| | - Tawni N Voyles
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
| | - Mercy Y Akinyi
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of KenyaNairobiKenya
| | - Susan C Alberts
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
- Department of Biology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
| | - Elizabeth A Archie
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre DameNotre DameUnited States
| | - Jenny Tung
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
- Department of Biology, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
- Duke Population Research Institute, Duke UniversityDurhamUnited States
- Canadian Institute for Advanced ResearchTorontoCanada
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94
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Sapolsky RM. Glucocorticoids, the evolution of the stress-response, and the primate predicament. Neurobiol Stress 2021; 14:100320. [PMID: 33869683 PMCID: PMC8040328 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2021.100320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The adrenocortical stress-response is extraordinarily conserved across mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians, suggesting that it has been present during the hundreds of millions of years of vertebrate existence. Given that antiquity, it is relatively recent that primate social complexity has evolved to the point that, uniquely, life can be dominated by chronic psychosocial stress. This paper first reviews adrenocortical evolution during vertebrate history. This produces a consistent theme of there being an evolutionary tradeoff between the protective effects of glucocorticoids during an ongoing physical stressor, versus the adverse long-term consequences of excessive glucocorticoid secretion; how this tradeoff is resolved depends on particular life history strategies of populations, species and vertebrate taxa. This contrasts with adrenocortical evolution in socially complex primates, who mal-adaptively activate the classic vertebrate stress-response during chronic psychosocial stress. This emphasizes the rather unique and ongoing selective forces sculpting the stress-response in primates, including humans.
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95
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Ravi M, Miller AH, Michopoulos V. The Immunology of Stress and the Impact of Inflammation on the Brain and Behavior. BJPSYCH ADVANCES 2021; 27:158-165. [PMID: 34055387 DOI: 10.1192/bja.2020.82] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Exposure to acute versus chronic stressors and threats activates the immune system in adaptive and maladaptive manners, respectively. While acute activation of the immune system in response to threat is homeostatically regulated by glucocorticoid negative feedback, chronic activation of the immune system arising from persistent stress exposure can contribute to an allostatic load with an inflammatory diathesis that has been implicated in stress-related psychopathology, including of depression and anxiety. Increased inflammation in the periphery and in the brain arising from chronic stress exposure can alter neurotransmitter metabolism and impact activation of brain regions to increase adverse behavioral health symptoms (e.g. anhedonia, anxiety, fatigue) and emotion dysregulation. While interventions targeting the immune system and its downstream effects on the brain for the treatment of depression and other psychiatric disorders has been of great interest as they have shown some efficacy in treating stress-related behavioral health disorders, future studies are necessary to better characterize the contexts under which anti-inflammatory agents should be used to treat stress-related psychopathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meghna Ravi
- Emory University Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Andrew H Miller
- Emory University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Vasiliki Michopoulos
- Emory University School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Atlanta, Georgia.,Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia
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96
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Lea AJ, Waigwa C, Muhoya B, Lotukoi F, Peng J, Henry LP, Abhyankar V, Kamau J, Martins D, Gurven M, Ayroles JF. Socioeconomic status effects on health vary between rural and urban Turkana. Evol Med Public Health 2021; 9:406-419. [PMID: 34987823 PMCID: PMC8697843 DOI: 10.1093/emph/eoab039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Background and objectives Understanding the social determinants of health is a major goal in evolutionary biology and human health research. Low socioeconomic status (often operationalized as absolute material wealth) is consistently associated with chronic stress, poor health and premature death in high-income countries. However, the degree to which wealth gradients in health are universal—or are instead made even steeper under contemporary, post-industrial conditions—remains poorly understood. Methodology We quantified absolute material wealth and several health outcomes among a population of traditional pastoralists, the Turkana of northwest Kenya, who are currently transitioning toward a more urban, market-integrated lifestyle. We assessed whether wealth associations with health differed in subsistence-level versus urban contexts. We also explored the causes and consequences of wealth-health associations by measuring serum cortisol, potential sociobehavioral mediators in early life and adulthood, and adult reproductive success (number of surviving offspring). Results Higher socioeconomic status and greater material wealth predicts better self-reported health and more offspring in traditional pastoralist Turkana, but worse cardiometabolic health and fewer offspring in urban Turkana. We do not find robust evidence for either direct biological mediators (cortisol) or indirect sociobehavioral mediators (e.g. adult diet or health behaviors, early life experiences) of wealth–health relationships in either context. Conclusions and implications While social gradients in health are well-established in humans and animals across a variety of socioecological contexts, we show that the relationship between wealth and health can vary within a single population. Our findings emphasize that changes in economic and societal circumstances may directly alter how, why and under what conditions socioeconomic status predicts health. Lay Summary High socioeconomic status predicts better health and more offspring in traditional Turkana pastoralists, but worse health and fewer offspring in individuals of the same group living in urban areas. Together, our study shows that under different economic and societal circumstances, wealth effects on health may manifest in very different ways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda J Lea
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Charles Waigwa
- Mpala Research Centre, Nanyuki, Kenya
- Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Benjamin Muhoya
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Mpala Research Centre, Nanyuki, Kenya
| | | | - Julie Peng
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Lucas P Henry
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Varada Abhyankar
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Joseph Kamau
- Department of Biochemistry, School of Medicine, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
- Institute of Primate Research, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya
| | - Dino Martins
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Mpala Research Centre, Nanyuki, Kenya
| | - Michael Gurven
- Department of Anthropology, University of California: Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Julien F Ayroles
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
- Lewis Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
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97
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Blackwell AD, Garcia AR, Keivanfar RL, Bay S. A field method for cryopreservation of whole blood from a finger prick for later analysis with flow cytometry. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2021; 174:670-685. [PMID: 33595836 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2020] [Revised: 01/06/2021] [Accepted: 01/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Flow cytometry is a powerful tool for investigating immune function, allowing for the quantification of leukocytes by subtype. Yet it has not been used extensively for field work due to perishable reagents and the need for immediate analysis of samples. To make flow cytometry more accessible, we devise and evaluate a field protocol for freezing capillary blood. MATERIALS AND METHODS We collected finger prick blood samples from 110 volunteers, age 18 to 42. Blood samples were analyzed immediately for 18 cell surface markers. Aliquots of whole blood were frozen in the vapor phase of a liquid nitrogen tank with 10% dimethyl sulfoxide in medium. Samples were analyzed on a Guava EasyCyte HT flow cytometer after 2, 4, or 14 weeks. RESULTS Major lymphocyte fractions in frozen samples were correlated with fresh values (T-cells: r = 0.82; Natural Killer [NK] cells: r = 0.64; CD4: r = 0.67; CD8: r = 0.82; Naïve CD4: r = 0.73, Naïve CD8: r = 0.71; B-cells: r = 0.73; all p < 0.001), and mean values were similar to those from fresh samples. However, correlations for smaller subsets of CD4 and B cells were generally poor. Some differences resulted from changes in non-specific binding for some antibody-conjugate pairs. Cryopreservation also resulted in a reduction in granulocytes more than lymphocytes. DISCUSSION Our results suggest that antibody/fluorochrome combinations should be validated before use on frozen samples, and that functional changes in cells may affect some cell markers. However, this simple freezing protocol utilizing finger pricks, whole blood, and a liquid nitrogen shipping tank is viable for obtaining samples for flow cytometry under field conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron D Blackwell
- Department of Anthropology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA.,Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA
| | - Angela R Garcia
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA.,Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Ryan L Keivanfar
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA.,Center for Computational Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA
| | - Sarah Bay
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Barbara, California, USA
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98
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Gene regulation contributes to explain the impact of early life socioeconomic disadvantage on adult inflammatory levels in two cohort studies. Sci Rep 2021; 11:3100. [PMID: 33542415 PMCID: PMC7862626 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-82714-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2020] [Accepted: 01/20/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Individuals experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage in childhood have a higher rate of inflammation-related diseases decades later. Little is known about the mechanisms linking early life experiences to the functioning of the immune system in adulthood. To address this, we explore the relationship across social-to-biological layers of early life social exposures on levels of adulthood inflammation and the mediating role of gene regulatory mechanisms, epigenetic and transcriptomic profiling from blood, in 2,329 individuals from two European cohort studies. Consistently across both studies, we find transcriptional activity explains a substantive proportion (78% and 26%) of the estimated effect of early life disadvantaged social exposures on levels of adulthood inflammation. Furthermore, we show that mechanisms other than cis DNA methylation may regulate those transcriptional fingerprints. These results further our understanding of social-to-biological transitions by pinpointing the role of gene regulation that cannot fully be explained by differential cis DNA methylation.
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99
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Lee W, Dowd HN, Nikain C, Dwortz MF, Yang ED, Curley JP. Effect of relative social rank within a social hierarchy on neural activation in response to familiar or unfamiliar social signals. Sci Rep 2021; 11:2864. [PMID: 33536481 PMCID: PMC7859216 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-82255-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2020] [Accepted: 12/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Competent social functioning of group-living species relies on the ability of individuals to detect and utilize conspecific social cues to guide behavior. Previous studies have identified numerous brain regions involved in processing these external cues, collectively referred to as the Social Decision-Making Network. However, how the brain encodes social information with respect to an individual's social status has not been thoroughly examined. In mice, cues about an individual's identity, including social status, are conveyed through urinary proteins. In this study, we assessed the neural cFos immunoreactivity in dominant and subordinate male mice exposed to familiar and unfamiliar dominant and subordinate male urine. The posteroventral medial amygdala was the only brain region that responded exclusively to dominant compared to subordinate male urine. In all other brain regions, including the VMH, PMv, and vlPAG, activity is modulated by a combination of odor familiarity and the social status of both the urine donor and the subject receiving the cue. We show that dominant subjects exhibit robust differential activity across different types of cues compared to subordinate subjects, suggesting that individuals perceive social cues differently depending on social experience. These data inform further investigation of neurobiological mechanisms underlying social-status related brain differences and behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Won Lee
- Department of Psychology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Hollie N Dowd
- School of Public Health, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Cyrus Nikain
- Department of Psychology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Eilene D Yang
- Department of Psychology, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - James P Curley
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA.
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100
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Umans BD, Battle A, Gilad Y. Where Are the Disease-Associated eQTLs? Trends Genet 2021; 37:109-124. [PMID: 32912663 PMCID: PMC8162831 DOI: 10.1016/j.tig.2020.08.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 136] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2020] [Revised: 08/07/2020] [Accepted: 08/14/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Most disease-associated variants, although located in putatively regulatory regions, do not have detectable effects on gene expression. One explanation could be that we have not examined gene expression in the cell types or conditions that are most relevant for disease. Even large-scale efforts to study gene expression across tissues are limited to human samples obtained opportunistically or postmortem, mostly from adults. In this review we evaluate recent findings and suggest an alternative strategy, drawing on the dynamic and highly context-specific nature of gene regulation. We discuss new technologies that can extend the standard regulatory mapping framework to more diverse, disease-relevant cell types and states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin D Umans
- Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
| | - Alexis Battle
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA; Department of Computer Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - Yoav Gilad
- Department of Medicine, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Human Genetics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
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