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Each stage of the human life course is characterised by a distinctive pattern of social relations. We study how the intensity and importance of the closest social contacts vary across the life course, using a large database of mobile communication from a European country. We first determine the most likely social relationship type from these mobile phone records by relating the age and gender of the caller and recipient to the frequency, length, and direction of calls. We then show how communication patterns between parents and children, romantic partner, and friends vary across the six main stages of the adult family life course. Young adulthood is dominated by a gradual shift of call activity from parents to close friends, and then to a romantic partner, culminating in the period of early family formation during which the focus is on the romantic partner. During middle adulthood call patterns suggest a high dependence on the parents of the ego, who, presumably often provide alloparental care, while at this stage female same-gender friendship also peaks. During post-reproductive adulthood, individuals and especially women balance close social contacts among three generations. The age of grandparenthood brings the children entering adulthood and family formation into the focus, and is associated with a realignment of close social contacts especially among women, while the old age is dominated by dependence on their children.

Background Obesity has been longitudinally associated with depression but only few studies take a life course approach. This longitudinal study investigates whether being overweight or obese at age 8 and 13 years is associated with depressive symptoms more than 60 years later and whether this association is independent of late-life body mass index (BMI). We also investigated the association of being overweight/obese at age 8 or 13 years with ever having major depressive disorder (lifetime MDD). Method This analysis is based on a sub-sample of 889 AGES-Reykjavik participants with measured BMI data from early life. Late-life depressive symptoms were measured with the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and lifetime MDD was assessed at late-life using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. Logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the relationships between BMI (continuous and categorical) at age 8 or 13 years, and late-life depressive symptoms (measured as GDS ≥ 5) or lifetime MDD, adjusted for sex, education, physical activity, smoking status and alcohol use. In a separate model, additional adjustments were made for late-life BMI. Results One hundred and one subjects (11%) had depressive symptoms at late-life (GDS ≥ 5), and 39 subjects (4.4%) had lifetime MDD. Being overweight or obese at age 8 or 13 years was not associated with higher depressive symptoms during late-life, irrespective of late-life BMI. Being overweight or obese at age 8 years, but not age 13 years was associated with an increased risk of lifetime MDD (Odds Ratio (OR) (95% confidence interval [CI]) for age 8 = 4.03[1.16–13.96] P  = 0.03 and age 13 = 2.65[0.69–10.26] P  = 0.16, respectively). Conclusion Being overweight in childhood was associated with increased odds of lifetime MDD, although the magnitude of the risk is uncertain given the small numbers of participants with lifetime MDD. No clear association was observed between childhood and adolescent overweight/obesity and late-life depressive symptoms irrespective of late life BMI.

The dentate gyrus of the hippocampus is a brain region in which neurogenesis persists into adulthood; however, the relationship between developmental and adult dentate gyrus neurogenesis has not been examined in detail. Here we used single-cell RNA sequencing to reveal the molecular dynamics and diversity of dentate gyrus cell types in perinatal, juvenile, and adult mice. We found distinct quiescent and proliferating progenitor cell types, linked by transient intermediate states to neuroblast stages and fully mature granule cells. We observed shifts in the molecular identity of quiescent and proliferating radial glia and granule cells during the postnatal period that were then maintained through adult stages. In contrast, intermediate progenitor cells, neuroblasts, and immature granule cells were nearly indistinguishable at all ages. These findings demonstrate the fundamental similarity of postnatal and adult neurogenesis in the hippocampus and pinpoint the early postnatal transformation of radial glia from embryonic progenitors to adult quiescent stem cells.

Background Increasing life expectancy has made understanding the mechanisms underlying late-life health and function more important. We set out to investigate whether trajectories of change in psychosocial working conditions are associated with late-life physical function. Methods Two Swedish surveys, linked at the individual level, were used ( n  = 803). A psychosocial job exposure matrix was used to measure psychosocial working conditions during people’s first occupation, as well as their occupation every five years thereafter until baseline in 1991. Physical function was measured in 2014. Random effects growth curve models were used to calculate intraindividual trajectories of working conditions. Predictors of physical function were assessed with ordered logistic regression. Results A more active job at baseline was associated with increased odds of late-life physical function (OR 1.15, CI 1.01–1.32). Higher baseline job strain was associated with decreased odds of late-life physical function (OR 0.75, CI 0.59–0.96). A high initial level followed by an upward trajectory of job strain throughout working life was associated with decreased odds of late-life physical function (OR 0.32, CI 0.17–0.58). Conclusions Promoting a healthier workplace by reducing chronic stress and inducing intellectual stimulation, control, and personal growth may contribute to better late-life physical function.

This article provides further study of a family-centred design approach model established in previous studies, which aims to correspond to the limitations and needs of modern families using information and communication technology (ICT) solutions for common activities, communication and organisation of family time. The ambition is to systematically define and design features (functionalities) of a prototype solution that connects family members; provides proper communication; promotes active quality family time, active life, a health-friendly lifestyle and well-being; and uses various sensor- and user-based data sources through a smart city ecosystem platform. The original approach model was applied in designing the MyFamily progressive web application prototype solution as part of the EkoSmart: Active Living and Well-Being Project (RRP3) funded by the Republic of Slovenia and the European Regional Development Fund Investing in Your Future program. Extensive testing of the prototype solution used and the triangulation method used within thematic analysis for user interviews provide new insights and proposals for the change of the family-centred design approach model in the form of distinct developmental goals narrative for each generation to enhance motivation and relevance of content to different generations of users of such digital solutions.

Background There is inconsistent evidence on the association between physical activity and pancreatic cancer risk and few studies have investigated early life or life-course physical activity. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between trajectories of physical activity across the life-course and pancreatic cancer risk. Methods A population-based case-control study was conducted (2011–2013) using cases ( n  = 315) from the Ontario Pancreas Cancer Study and controls ( n  = 1254) from the Ontario Cancer Risk Factor Study. Self-reported recall of moderate and vigorous physical activity was measured at three time points: young adulthood (20s–30s), mid-adulthood (40s–50s) and older-adulthood (1 year prior to questionnaire completion). Physical activity trajectories were identified using latent class analysis. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated from multivariable logistic regression adjusted for covariates: age, sex, race, alcohol, smoking, vegetable, fruit and meat consumption, and family history of pancreatic cancer. Results Six life-course physical activity trajectories were identified: inactive at all ages (41.2%), low activity at all ages (31.9%), increasingly active (3.6%), high activity in young adulthood with substantial decrease (13.0%), high activity in young adulthood with slight decrease (5.0%), and persistent high activity (5.3%). Compared to the inactive at all ages trajectory, the associations between each trajectory and pancreatic cancer after confounder adjustment were: low activity at all ages (OR: 1.11; 95% CI: 0.75, 1.66), increasingly active (OR: 1.11; 95% CI: 0.56, 2.21), high activity in young adulthood with substantial decrease in older adulthood (OR: 0.76; 95% CI: 0.47, 1.23), high activity in young adulthood with slight decrease in older adulthood (OR: 0.98; 95% CI: 0.62, 1.53), and persistently high activity (OR: 1.50; 95% CI: 0.86, 2.62). When time periods were evaluated separately, the OR for the association between high moderate activity in the 20s–30s and pancreatic cancer was 0.89 (95% CI: 0.64, 1.25) and some sex differences were observed. Conclusion Distinct life-course physical activity trajectories were identified, but there was no evidence that any of the trajectories were associated with pancreatic cancer. Future studies with larger sample sizes are needed to understand the associations between physical activity trajectories over the life-course and pancreatic cancer risk.

Modeling spatially explicit data provides a powerful approach to identify the effects of exogenous features associated with biological processes, including recruitment of stream fishes. However, the complex spatial and temporal dynamics of the stream and the species' reproductive and early life stage behaviors present challenges to drawing valid inference using traditional regression models. In these settings it is often difficult to ensure the spatial independence among model residuals-a key assumption that must be met to ensure valid inference. We present statistical models capable of capturing complex residual anisotropic patterns through the addition of spatial random effects within an inferential framework that acknowledges uncertainty in the data and parameters. Proposed models are used to explore the impact of environmental variables on Lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) reproduction, particularly questions about patterns in egg deposition. Our results demonstrate the need to apply valid statistical methods to identify relationships between response variables, e.g., egg counts, across locations, and environmental covariates in the presence of strong and anisotropic autocorrelation in stream systems. The models may be applied to other settings where gamete distribution or, more generally, other biotic phenomena may be associated with spatially dynamic and anisotropic processes.

The goal of this study was to evaluate the relationship between early change in psychosocial function independent of depression severity and longer-term symptomatic remission. Participants of Combining Medications to Enhance Depression Outcomes trial were randomly selected for model selection (n = 334) and validation (n = 331). Changes in psychosocial function (Work and Social Adjustment Scale, WSAS) from baseline to week 6 were assessed and two data-driven sub-groups of WSAS change were identified in the randomly selected model selection half. Results of analyses to predict symptomatic remission at 3 and 7 months were validated for these sub-groups in the second half (validation sample). From baseline to week 6, psychosocial function improved significantly even after adjusting for depression severity at each visit and select baseline variables (age, gender, race, ethnicity, education, income, employment, depression onset before age 18, anxious features, and suicidal ideation), treatment-arm, and WSAS score. The WSAS change patterns identified two (early improvement and gradual change) subgroups. After adjusting for baseline variables and remission status at week 6, participants with early improvement in the second half (validation sample) had greater remission rates than those with gradual change at both 3 (3.3 times) and 7 months (2.3 times) following acute treatment initiation. In conclusion, early improvement in psychosocial function provides a clinically meaningful prediction of longer-term symptomatic remission, independent of depression symptom severity.

Quantified computed tomography (qCT) is known for correlations with airflow obstruction and fibrotic changes of the lung. However, as qCT studies often focus on diseased and elderly subjects, current literature lacks physiological qCT values during body development. We evaluated chest CT examinations of a healthy cohort, reaching from infancy to adulthood, to determine physiological qCT values and changes during body development. Dose-optimized chest CT examinations performed over the last 3 years using a dual-source CT were retrospectively analysed. Exclusion criteria were age >30 years and any known or newly diagnosed lung pathology. Lung volume, mean lung density, full-width-at-half-maximum and low attenuated volume (LAV) were semi-automated quantified in 151 patients. qCT values between different age groups as well as unenhanced (Group 1) and contrast-enhanced (Group 2) protocols were compared. Models for projection of age-dependant changes in qCT values were fitted. Significant differences in qCT parameters were found between the age groups from 0 to 15 years (p < 0.05). All parameters except LAV merge into a plateau level above this age as shown by polynomial models (r2 between 0.85 and 0.67). In group 2, this plateau phase is shifted back around five years. Except for the volume, significant differences in all qCT values were found between group 1 and 2 (p < 0.01). qCT parameters underly a specific age-dependant dynamic. Except for LAV, qCT parameters reach a plateau around adolescence. Contrast-enhanced protocols seem to shift this plateau backwards.

This research investigates the merits of the “social causation” and “health selection” explanations for associations between socioeconomic status and self-reported overall health, musculoskeletal health and depression. Using data that include information about individuals' SES and health from childhood through late adulthood, I employ structural equation models that account for errors in measured variables and that allow for explicit tests of various hypotheses about how SES and health are related. For each outcome and for both women and men the results provide no support for the health selection hypothesis. SES affects each health outcome at multiple points in the life course, but the reverse is not true.