TY - JOUR A1 - Beurskens, Rainer A1 - Helmich, Ingo A1 - Rein, Robert A1 - Bock, Otmar L. T1 - Age-related changes in prefrontal activity during walking in dual-task situations: A fNIRS study JF - International journal of psychophysiology N2 - Background: Previous studies suggest that the human gait is under control of higher-order cognitive processes, located in the frontal lobes, such that an age-related degradation of cognitive capabilities has a negative impact on gait. Results: Our behavioral data partly confirm previous accounts on higher dual-task costs in stepping parameters (i.e., decreased step duration) in old age, particularly with a visual task and negative dual-task cost (i.e., improved performance) during the verbal task in young adults. Functional imaging data revealed little change of prefrontal activation from single- to dual-task walking in young individuals. In the elderly, however, prefrontal activation substantially decreased during dual-task walking with a complex visual task. Conclusion: We interpret these findings as evidence for a shift of processing resources from the prefrontal cortex to other brain regions when seniors face the challenge of walking and concurrently executing a visually demanding task. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. KW - fNIRS KW - Aging KW - Locomotion KW - Neural activation KW - Executive function KW - Dual-task walking Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2014.03.005 SN - 0167-8760 SN - 1872-7697 VL - 92 IS - 3 SP - 122 EP - 128 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hortobagyi, Tibor A1 - Uematsu, Azusa A1 - Sanders, Lianne A1 - Kliegl, Reinhold A1 - Tollar, Jozsef A1 - Moraes, Renato A1 - Granacher, Urs T1 - Beam Walking to Assess Dynamic Balance in Health and Disease BT - a Protocol for the "BEAM" Multicenter Observational Study JF - Gerontology N2 - Background: Dynamic balance keeps the vertical projection of the center of mass within the base of support while walking. Dynamic balance tests are used to predict the risks of falls and eventual falls. The psychometric properties of most dynamic balance tests are unsatisfactory and do not comprise an actual loss of balance while walking. Objectives: Using beam walking distance as a measure of dynamic balance, the BEAM consortium will determine the psychometric properties, lifespan and patient reference values, the relationship with selected “dynamic balance tests,” and the accuracy of beam walking distance to predict falls. Methods: This cross-sectional observational study will examine healthy adults in 7 decades (n = 432) at 4 centers. Center 5 will examine patients (n = 100) diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, stroke, and balance disorders. In test 1, all participants will be measured for demographics, medical history, muscle strength, gait, static balance, dynamic balance using beam walking under single (beam walking only) and dual task conditions (beam walking while concurrently performing an arithmetic task), and several cognitive functions. Patients and healthy participants age 50 years or older will be additionally measured for fear of falling, history of falls, miniBESTest, functional reach on a force platform, timed up and go, and reactive balance. All participants age 50 years or older will be recalled to report fear of falling and fall history 6 and 12 months after test 1. In test 2, seven to ten days after test 1, healthy young adults and age 50 years or older (n = 40) will be retested for reliability of beam walking performance. Conclusion: We expect to find that beam walking performance vis-à-vis the traditionally used balance outcomes predicts more accurately fall risks and falls. Clinical Trial Registration Number: NCT03532984. KW - Aging KW - Gait KW - Balance KW - Dual tasks KW - Falls Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1159/000493360 SN - 0304-324X SN - 1423-0003 VL - 65 IS - 4 SP - 332 EP - 339 PB - Karger CY - Basel ER - TY - JOUR A1 - von der Malsburg, Titus Raban A1 - Kliegl, Reinhold A1 - Vasishth, Shravan T1 - Determinants of Scanpath Regularity in Reading JF - Cognitive science : a multidisciplinary journal of anthropology, artificial intelligence, education, linguistics, neuroscience, philosophy, psychology ; journal of the Cognitive Science Society N2 - Scanpaths have played an important role in classic research on reading behavior. Nevertheless, they have largely been neglected in later research perhaps due to a lack of suitable analytical tools. Recently, von der Malsburg and Vasishth (2011) proposed a new measure for quantifying differences between scanpaths and demonstrated that this measure can recover effects that were missed with the traditional eyetracking measures. However, the sentences used in that study were difficult to process and scanpath effects accordingly strong. The purpose of the present study was to test the validity, sensitivity, and scope of applicability of the scanpath measure, using simple sentences that are typically read from left to right. We derived predictions for the regularity of scanpaths from the literature on oculomotor control, sentence processing, and cognitive aging and tested these predictions using the scanpath measure and a large database of eye movements. All predictions were confirmed: Sentences with short words and syntactically more difficult sentences elicited more irregular scanpaths. Also, older readers produced more irregular scanpaths than younger readers. In addition, we found an effect that was not reported earlier: Syntax had a smaller influence on the eye movements of older readers than on those of young readers. We discuss this interaction of syntactic parsing cost with age in terms of shifts in processing strategies and a decline of executive control as readers age. Overall, our results demonstrate the validity and sensitivity of the scanpath measure and thus establish it as a productive and versatile tool for reading research. KW - Eye movements KW - Reading KW - Scanpaths KW - Language understanding KW - Oculo-motor control KW - Individual differences KW - Aging KW - Development Y1 - 2015 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1111/cogs.12208 SN - 0364-0213 SN - 1551-6709 VL - 39 IS - 7 SP - 1675 EP - 1703 PB - Wiley-Blackwell CY - Hoboken ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Beijersbergen, Chantal M. I. A1 - Hortobagyi, Tibor A1 - Beurskens, Rainer A1 - Lenzen-Grossimlinghaus, Romana A1 - Gabler, Martijn A1 - Granacher, Urs T1 - Effects of Power Training on Mobility and Gait Biomechanics in Old Adults with Moderate Mobility Disability: Protocol and Design of the Potsdam Gait Study (POGS) JF - Gerontology N2 - Background: Walking speed decreases in old age. Even though old adults regularly participate in exercise interventions, we do not know how the intervention-induced changes in physical abilities produce faster walking. The Potsdam Gait Study (POGS) will examine the effects of 10 weeks of power training and detraining on leg muscle power and, for the first time, on complete gait biomechanics, including joint kinematics, kinetics, and muscle activation in old adults with moderate mobility disability. Methods/Design: POGS is a randomized controlled trial with two arms, each crossed over, without blinding. Arm 1 starts with a 10-week control period to assess the reliability of the tests and is then crossed over to complete 25-30 training sessions over 10 weeks. Arm 2 completes 25-30 exercise sessions over 10 weeks, followed by a 10-week follow-up (detraining) period. The exercise program is designed to improve lower extremity muscle power. Main outcome measures are: muscle power, gait speed, and gait biomechanics measured at baseline and after 10 weeks of training and 10 weeks of detraining. Discussion: It is expected that power training will increase leg muscle power measured by the weight lifted and by dynamometry, and these increased abilities become expressed in joint powers measured during gait. Such favorably modified powers will underlie the increase in step length, leading ultimately to a faster walking speed. POGS will increase our basic understanding of the biomechanical mechanisms of how power training improves gait speed in old adults with moderate levels of mobility disabilities. (C) 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel KW - Aging KW - Walking speed KW - Exercise KW - Muscle power KW - Gait kinematics KW - Gait kinetics Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1159/000444752 SN - 0304-324X SN - 1423-0003 VL - 62 SP - 597 EP - 603 PB - Karger CY - Basel ER - TY - GEN A1 - Herold, Fabian A1 - Theobald, Paula A1 - Gronwald, Thomas A1 - Rapp, Michael Armin A1 - Müller, Notger Germar T1 - Going digital – a commentary on the terminology used at the intersection of physical activity and digital health T2 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Gesundheitswissenschaftliche Reihe N2 - In recent years digital technologies have become a major means for providing health-related services and this trend was strongly reinforced by the current Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. As it is well-known that regular physical activity has positive effects on individual physical and mental health and thus is an important prerequisite for healthy aging, digital technologies are also increasingly used to promote unstructured and structured forms of physical activity. However, in the course of this development, several terms (e.g., Digital Health, Electronic Health, Mobile Health, Telehealth, Telemedicine, and Telerehabilitation) have been introduced to refer to the application of digital technologies to provide health-related services such as physical interventions. Unfortunately, the above-mentioned terms are often used in several different ways, but also relatively interchangeably. Given that ambiguous terminology is a major source of difficulty in scientific communication which can impede the progress of theoretical and empirical research, this article aims to make the reader aware of the subtle differences between the relevant terms which are applied at the intersection of physical activity and Digital Health and to provide state-of-art definitions for them. T3 - Zweitveröffentlichungen der Universität Potsdam : Gesundheitswissenschaftliche Reihe - 5 KW - Digital Health KW - Electronic Health KW - Mobile Health KW - Telehealth KW - Telemedicine KW - Physical activity KW - Physical training KW - Aging Y1 - 2023 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-581301 IS - 5 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Herold, Fabian A1 - Theobald, Paula A1 - Gronwald, Thomas A1 - Rapp, Michael Armin A1 - Müller, Notger Germar T1 - Going digital – a commentary on the terminology used at the intersection of physical activity and digital health JF - European review of aging and physical activity N2 - In recent years digital technologies have become a major means for providing health-related services and this trend was strongly reinforced by the current Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. As it is well-known that regular physical activity has positive effects on individual physical and mental health and thus is an important prerequisite for healthy aging, digital technologies are also increasingly used to promote unstructured and structured forms of physical activity. However, in the course of this development, several terms (e.g., Digital Health, Electronic Health, Mobile Health, Telehealth, Telemedicine, and Telerehabilitation) have been introduced to refer to the application of digital technologies to provide health-related services such as physical interventions. Unfortunately, the above-mentioned terms are often used in several different ways, but also relatively interchangeably. Given that ambiguous terminology is a major source of difficulty in scientific communication which can impede the progress of theoretical and empirical research, this article aims to make the reader aware of the subtle differences between the relevant terms which are applied at the intersection of physical activity and Digital Health and to provide state-of-art definitions for them. KW - Digital Health KW - Electronic Health KW - Mobile Health KW - Telehealth KW - Telemedicine KW - Physical activity KW - Physical training KW - Aging Y1 - 2022 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1186/s11556-022-00296-y SN - 1861-6909 VL - 19 PB - Springer CY - Berlin ; Heidelberg ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Franz, Kristina A1 - Ost, Mario A1 - Otten, Lindsey A1 - Herpich, Catrin A1 - Coleman, Verena A1 - Endres, Anne-Sophie A1 - Klaus, Susanne A1 - Müller-Werdan, Ursula A1 - Norman, Kristina T1 - Higher serum levels of fibroblast growth factor 21 in old patients with cachexia JF - Nutrition : the international journal of applied and basic nutritional sciences N2 - Objective: Fibroblast growth factor (FGF)21 is promptly induced by short fasting in animal models to regulate glucose and fat metabolism. Data on FGF21 in humans are inconsistent and FGF21 has not yet been investigated in old patients with cachexia, a complex syndrome characterized by inflammation and weight loss. The aim of this study was to explore the association of FGF21 with cachexia in old patients compared with their healthy counterparts. Methods: Serum FGF21 and its inactivating enzyme fibroblast activation protein (FAP)-cc were measured with enzyme-linked immunoassays. Cachexia was defined as >= 5% weight loss in the previous 3 mo and concurrent anorexia (Council on Nutrition appetite questionnaire). Results: We included 103 patients with and without cachexia (76.9 +/- 5.2 y of age) and 56 healthy controls (72.9 +/- 5.9 y of age). Cachexia was present in 16.5% of patients. These patients had significantly higher total FGF21 levels than controls (952.1 +/- 821.3 versus 525.2 +/- 560.3 pg/mL; P= 0.012) and the lowest FGF21 levels (293.3 +/- 150.9 pg/mL) were found in the control group (global P < 0.001). Although FAP-alpha did not differ between the three groups (global P = 0.082), bioactive FGF21 was significantly higher in patients with cachexia (global P = 0.002). Risk factor-adjusted regression analyses revealed a significant association between cachexia and total ((beta = 649.745 pg/mL; P < 0.001) and bioactive FGF21 (beta = 393.200 pg/mL; P <0.001), independent of sex, age, and body mass index. Conclusions: Patients with cachexia exhibited the highest FGF21 levels. Clarification is needed to determine whether this is an adaptive response to nutrient deprivation in disease-related cachexia or whether the increased FGF21 values contribute to the catabolic state. (C) 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. KW - Fibroblast growth factor 21 KW - Cachexia KW - Anorexia KW - Aging KW - Biomarker Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nut.2018.11.004 SN - 0899-9007 SN - 1873-1244 VL - 63-64 SP - 81 EP - 86 PB - Elsevier CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Gohlke, Sabrina A1 - Zagoriy, Vyacheslav A1 - Inostroza, Alvaro Cuadros A1 - Meret, Michael A1 - Mancini, Carola A1 - Japtok, Lukasz A1 - Schumacher, Fabian A1 - Kuhlow, Doreen A1 - Graja, Antonia A1 - Stephanowitz, Heike A1 - Jähnert, Markus A1 - Krause, Eberhard A1 - Wernitz, Andreas A1 - Petzke, Klaus-Juergen A1 - Schürmann, Annette A1 - Kleuser, Burkhard A1 - Schulz, Tim Julius T1 - Identification of functional lipid metabolism biomarkers of brown adipose tissue aging JF - Molecular Metabolism N2 - Objective: Aging is accompanied by loss of brown adipocytes and a decline in their thermogenic potential, which may exacerbate the development of adiposity and other metabolic disorders. Presently, only limited evidence exists describing the molecular alterations leading to impaired brown adipogenesis with aging and the contribution of these processes to changes of systemic energy metabolism. Methods: Samples of young and aged murine brown and white adipose tissue were used to compare age-related changes of brown adipogenic gene expression and thermogenesis-related lipid mobilization. To identify potential markers of brown adipose tissue aging, non-targeted proteomic and metabolomic as well as targeted lipid analyses were conducted on young and aged tissue samples. Subsequently, the effects of several candidate lipid classes on brown adipocyte function were examined. Results: Corroborating previous reports of reduced expression of uncoupling protein-1, we observe impaired signaling required for lipid mobilization in aged brown fat after adrenergic stimulation. Omics analyses additionally confirm the age-related impairment of lipid homeostasis and reveal the accumulation of specific lipid classes, including certain sphingolipids, ceramides, and dolichols in aged brown fat. While ceramides as well as enzymes of dolichol metabolism inhibit brown adipogenesis, inhibition of sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor 2 induces brown adipocyte differentiation. Conclusions: Our functional analyses show that changes in specific lipid species, as observed during aging, may contribute to reduced thermogenic potential. They thus uncover potential biomarkers of aging as well as molecular mechanisms that could contribute to the degradation of brown adipocytes, thereby providing potential treatment strategies of age-related metabolic conditions. KW - Brown adipose tissue KW - Aging KW - Ceramides KW - Sphingolipids KW - Dolichol lipids Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmet.2019.03.011 SN - 2212-8778 VL - 24 SP - 1 EP - 17 PB - Elsevier CY - Amsterdam ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Fernando, Raquel A1 - Drescher, Cathleen A1 - Nowotny, Kerstin A1 - Grune, Tilman A1 - Castro, Jose Pedro T1 - Impaired proteostasis during skeletal muscle aging JF - Free radical biology and medicine : the official journal of the Oxygen Society, a constituent member of the International Society for Free Radical Research N2 - Aging is a complex phenomenon that has detrimental effects on tissue homeostasis. The skeletal muscle is one of the earliest tissues to be affected and to manifest age-related changes such as functional impairment and the loss of mass. Common to these alterations and to most of tissues during aging is the disruption of the proteostasis network by detrimental changes in the ubiquitin-proteasomal system (UPS) and the autophagy-lysosomal system (ALS). In fact, during aging the accumulation of protein aggregates, a process mainly driven by increased levels of oxidative stress, has been observed, clearly demonstrating UPS and ALS dysregulation. Since the UPS and ALS are the two most important pathways for the removal of misfolded and aggregated proteins and also of damaged organelles, we provide here an overview on the current knowledge regarding the connection between the loss of proteostasis and skeletal muscle functional impairment and also how redox regulation can play a role during aging. Therefore, this review serves for a better understanding of skeletal muscle aging in regard to the loss of proteostasis and how redox regulation can impact its function and maintenance. KW - Skeletal muscle KW - Proteostasis KW - Proteasome and lysosome KW - Oxidative stress KW - Redox regulation KW - Aging Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2018.08.037 SN - 0891-5849 SN - 1873-4596 VL - 132 SP - 58 EP - 66 PB - Elsevier CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Fernando, Raquel A1 - Drescher, Cathleen A1 - Deubel, Stefanie A1 - Jung, Tobias A1 - Ost, Mario A1 - Klaus, Susanne A1 - Grune, Tilman A1 - Castro, Jose Pedro T1 - Low proteasomal activity in fast skeletal muscle fibers is not associated with increased age-related oxidative damage JF - Experimental gerontology N2 - The skeletal muscle is a crucial tissue for maintaining whole body homeostasis. Aging seems to have a disruptive effect on skeletal muscle homeostasis including proteostasis. However, how aging specifically impacts slow and fast twitch fiber types remains elusive. Muscle proteostasis is largely maintained by the proteasomal system. Here we characterized the proteasomal system in two different fiber types, using a non-sarcopenic aging model. By analyzing the proteasomal activity and amount, as well as the polyubiquitinated proteins and the level of protein oxidation in Musculus soleus (Sol) and Musculus extensor digitorum longus (EDL), we found that the slow twitch Sol muscle shows an overall higher respiratory and proteasomal activity in young and old animals. However, especially during aging the fast twitch EDL muscle reduces protein oxidation by an increase of antioxidant capacity. Thus, under adaptive non-sarcopenic conditions, the two fibers types seem to have different strategies to avoid age-related changes. KW - Proteasomal system KW - Skeletal muscle KW - Fast and slow fibers KW - Polyubiquitination KW - Oxidized proteins KW - Antioxidants KW - Aging KW - Mitochondrial respiration Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.exger.2018.10.018 SN - 0531-5565 SN - 1873-6815 VL - 117 SP - 45 EP - 52 PB - Elsevier CY - Oxford ER -