Loneliness, Circulating Endocannabinoid Concentrations, and Grief Trajectories in Bereaved Older Adults: A Longitudinal Study.

Background: Loneliness is one of the most distressing grief symptoms and is associated with adverse mental health in bereaved older adults. The endocannabinoid signaling (ECS) system is stress-responsive and circulating endocannabinoid (eCB) concentrations are elevated following bereavement. This study examined the association between loneliness and circulating eCB concentrations in grieving older adults and explored the role of eCBs on the association between baseline loneliness and grief symptom trajectories. Methods: A total of 64 adults [grief with high loneliness: n = 18; grief with low loneliness: n = 26; and healthy comparison (HC): n = 20] completed baseline clinical assessments for the UCLA loneliness scale. In grief participants, longitudinal clinical assessments, including the Inventory of Complicated Grief and 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating scales, were collected over 6 months. Baseline circulating eCB [N-arachidonoylethanolamine (AEA) and 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG)] concentrations were quantified in the serum using isotope dilution, liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry; cortisol concentrations were measured in the same samples using radioimmunoassay. Results: Circulating AEA concentrations were higher in severely lonely grieving elders than in HC group; cortisol concentrations were not different among the groups. Cross-sectionally, loneliness scores were positively associated with AEA concentrations in grievers; this finding was not significant after accounting for depressive symptom severity. Grieving individuals who endorsed high loneliness and had higher 2-AG concentrations at baseline showed faster grief symptom resolution. Conclusions: These novel findings suggest that in lonely, bereaved elders, increased circulating eCBs, a reflection of an efficient ECS system, are associated with better adaptation to bereavement. Circulating eCBs as potential moderators and mediators of the loneliness-grief trajectory associations should be investigated.

A Prospective Study of Acute Blood-Based Biomarkers for Sport-Related Concussion.

OBJECTIVE: Prospectively characterize changes in serum proteins following sport-related concussion and determine whether candidate biomarkers discriminate concussed athletes from controls and are associated with duration of symptoms following concussion. METHODS: High school and collegiate athletes were enrolled between 2015 and 2018. Blood was collected at preinjury baseline and within 6 hours (early acute) and at 24 to 48 hours (late acute) following concussion in football players (n = 106), matched uninjured football players (n = 84), and non-contact-sport athletes (n = 50). Glial fibrillary acidic protein, ubiquitin c-terminal hydrolase-L1, S100 calcium binding protein B, alpha-II-spectrin breakdown product 150, interleukin 6, interleukin 1 receptor antagonist, and c-reactive protein were measured in serum. Linear models assessed changes in protein concentrations over time. Receiver operating curves quantified the discrimination of concussed athletes from controls. A Cox proportional hazard model determined whether proteins were associated with symptom recovery. RESULTS: All proteins except glial fibrillary acidic protein and c-reactive protein were significantly elevated at the early acute phase postinjury relative to baseline and both control groups and discriminated concussed athletes from controls with areas under the curve of 0.68 to 0.84. The candidate biomarkers also significantly improved the discrimination of concussed athletes from noncontact controls compared to symptom severity alone. Glial fibrillary acidic protein was elevated postinjury relative to baseline in concussed athletes with a loss of consciousness or amnesia. Finally, early acute levels of interleukin 1 receptor antagonist were associated with the number of days to symptom recovery. INTERPRETATION: Brain injury and inflammatory proteins show promise as objective diagnostic biomarkers for sport-related concussion, and inflammatory markers may provide prognostic value. ANN NEUROL 2020;87:907-920.

Amygdala response to emotional faces in adolescents with persistent post-concussion symptoms.

Approximately 30% of adolescents with concussion develop persistent post-concussion symptoms (PPCS) that include emotional symptoms. Elevated amygdalae reactivity to emotional faces has been reported in a variety of psychopathologies characterized by emotional symptoms overlapping with those in PPCS. We tested the hypothesis that amygdalae reactivity to emotional faces in adolescents with PPCS+ is elevated compared to concussed adolescents without PPCS and healthy controls. Concussed adolescents (ages 14-18) with (PPCS+; n = 23) and without PPCS (PPCS-; n = 13) participated in visits at least 4 weeks post-injury. Adolescents without prior concussion served as controls (HC; n = 15). All participants completed a detailed clinical battery and a common emotional face processing task that involved matching of emotional faces or shapes. Compared to HC and PPCS-, adolescents with PPCS+ had elevated depression symptoms, anhedonia, general psychological symptoms, and anxiety symptoms. Contrary to our hypothesis, PPCS+ had lower amygdalae activity to the emotional faces versus shapes condition relative to HC and a trend for lower activity relative to PPCS-. There was a non-significant inverse association between anhedonia amygdalae activity in adolescents with PPCS. Results suggest that adolescents with PPCS have altered amygdalae activity during the processing of emotional face stimuli.

La comprensión verbal y la lectura en niños con y sin retraso lector / Verbal Comprehension and Reading in Children with Reading Delay / A compreensÃo verbal e a leitura em crianças com e sem retraso leitor

Objetivo. Describir diferencias entre el desempeño en tareas de lectura y de comprensión verbal en niños con y sin retraso lector, así como la relación entre ambos tipos de desempeños. Método. Se utilizaron tareas de lectura de la Evaluación neuropsicológica infantil (ENI) y el índice de Comprensión Verbal (ICV) de la escala de inteligencia Wechsler (WISC-IV) para niños. Los participantes fueron 40 niños de ambos sexos, entre 7 y 9 años de edad, quienes cursaban entre 2° y 4° grado de primaria en un colegio de estrato socioeconómico bajo de la ciudad de Cali, con un coeficiente intelectual (CI) promedio de 86. Los participantes fueron divididos en dos grupos, 20 niños que presentaban retraso lector y 20 niños con un desarrollo lector típico, según los puntajes obtenidos en las tareas de lectura de la ENI. Resultados. Se encontraron diferencias en el rendimiento de ambos grupos de niños evaluados, así como una correlación significativa entre el ICV y el subdominio de comprensión de la ENI. Conclusión. Estos resultados son acordes con la hipótesis de que el desarrollo del lenguaje oral es uno de los principales facilitadores en la adquisición del aprendizaje de la lectura, puesto que en la medida en que el niño comprende la semántica oral, estará con mejor preparación para dotar de significado lo leído.

Objective. This study aims to describe differences between performance in reading tasks and the level of verbal comprehension in subjects, with and without reading delay, as the relationship between both measures. Method. For this purpose, the reading subtests of the Evaluación Neuropsicológica Infantil (ENI) and the verbal comprehension index of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-IV) were used. The sample consisted of 40 children, aged from 7 to 9 years old, in 2nd to 4th grade, from a low socioeconomic strata school in Cali, and with an intelligence quotient (IQ) which averaged 86 Participants were divided into two groups; 20 with reading disabilities and 20 who were normal readers, according to the scores obtained in the ENI reading tasks. Results. The results showed differences between the perfomances of both groups of children, as well as a significant positive correlation between ICV and reading comprehension of the ENI. Conclusion. These results are in accordance with the hypothesis that states that oral language development is one of the most important facilitators of learning in reading acquisition, because while children understand what they say and what they are told, they will be able to make sense of what they read.

Escopo. Descrever as diferenças entre o desempenho em tarefas de leitura e compreensÃo verbal em crianças com e sem atraso, ea relaçÃo entre os dois tipos de performances. Metodologia. Foram utilizadas tarefas de leitura da AvaliaçÃo Neuropsicológica Infantil (ENI por suas siglas em espanhol) e o índice de CompreensÃo Verbal (ICV) da escada de inteligência Wechsler (WISC-IV) para crianças. Os participantes foram 40 crianças de ambos sexos, entre 7 e 9 anos de idade, que cursavam entre 2 e 4 grado de primária em um colégio de baixa extraçÃo socioeconómica na cidade de Cali, com um coeficiente intelectual (CI) com 86 como média. Os participantes foram divididos em dois grupos, 20 crianças que presentavam retraso leitor e 20 crianças com um desenvolvimento leitor típico, segundo as pontuações obtidas nas tarefas de leitura da ENI. Resultados. em grupos Mabos, ICV e compreensÃo do IPD foram encontrados. correlações foram achadas diferenças significativas entre o desempenho de ambos grupos das crianças avaliadas, e uma correlaçÃo significativa entre o ICV e subdomínio de compreensÃo de leitura da ENI. ConclusÃo. Estes resultados estÃo acordes com a hipótese de que o desenvolvimento da linguagem oral é um dos principais facilitadores a aquisiçÃo da aprendizagem da leitura, posto que na medida em que a criança compreende a semântica oral estará melhor preparada para dotar de sentido o que lê.