Aging Clinical and Experimental Research最新文献

Background: Older adults were among the most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, facing greater vulnerability to infection, hospitalization, and post-infection sequelae. However, evidence on its multidimensional impact on healthy aging remains limited, particularly in Latin America. This study examined the association of COVID-19 infection, hospitalization, and vaccination with healthy aging and functional impairment among older Mexican adults.

Methods: We analyzed longitudinal data from the Mexican Health and Aging Study (MHAS), comparing pre-pandemic (2018) and post-pandemic (2021) waves. Two outcomes were assessed: the Healthy Aging Score (HAS), a composite indicator of physical, mental, and social functioning (mean = 50, SD = 10), and functional impairment, defined as any limitation in basic or multiple instrumental activities of daily living. Random-effects regression models estimated associations with self-reported COVID-19 infection, hospitalization, and vaccination, adjusting for sociodemographic and health covariates.

Results: The sample included 8,239 participants (mean age = 72.5 years; 55.9% women). Those reporting prior infection were younger and had higher BMI. COVID-19-related hospitalization was significantly associated with lower HAS (β = -1.96; 95% CI - 3.65 to - 0.26). Infection and vaccination were not significantly associated with HAS. However, vaccination was linked to a reduced likelihood of functional impairment (OR = 0.75; 95% CI 0.53 to 0.95).

Conclusions: Hospitalization due to COVID-19 was associated with poorer multidimensional aging outcomes, whereas vaccination appeared protective against functional decline. These findings highlight the importance of preventive strategies and sustained vaccination coverage to preserve functionality and promote healthy aging in post-pandemic populations.

Background: Despite established health benefits of the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) diet in older populations, its relationship with muscle health remains largely unexplored. This study investigated associations between adherence to a Chinese-modified MIND diet and both low muscle mass (LMM) and physical performance among community-dwelling older Chinese adults.

Methods: Data were drawn from the 2018 Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS), including 13,422 older adults. Muscle mass was assessed using a validated appendicular skeletal muscle mass (ASM) prediction formula. Physical performance was evaluated using a four-item functional assessment scale in reference to SARC-F. The associations between Chinese version of the MIND (cMIND) diet adherence and outcomes were examined using multivariable logistic regression for LMM and linear regression for physical performance. Comprehensive subgroup and sensitivity analyses were conducted to assess effect modification and result robustness.

Results: The prevalence of LMM was 45.2% among participants. Higher cMIND diet scores demonstrated significant inverse associations with LMM probability across all analytical models. After full adjustment for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and health-related confounders, participants in the highest tertile of cMIND adherence showed substantially lower odds of LMM compared to those in the lowest tertile (odds ratio [OR]: 0.79; 95% confidence intervals [CI]: 0.69-0.90). Similarly, better cMIND diet adherence was positively associated with higher physical performance score in multivariable models. These findings remained consistent across sensitivity analyses.

Conclusion: Greater adherence to the cMIND dietary pattern is independently associated with lower probability of LMM and better physical performance among older Chinese adults. These findings suggest potential benefits of promoting MIND diet principles for maintaining musculoskeletal health in aging populations.

Objective: To investigate the effects of prebiotics combined with β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB) on muscle function, intestinal barrier integrity, and inflammation in elderly patients with sarcopenia.

Methods: A randomized controlled trial was conducted on 78 elderly sarcopenic patients recruited from Tongji University Affiliated Tenth People's Hospital and Baoshan District Geriatric Care Hospital (Jan 2023 - Jan 2025). Participants were randomly assigned Group A (n = 32, standard diet + HMB-supplement), Group B (n = 31, standard diet + HMB + fructooligosaccharides), or Group C (n = 15, standard diet alone) for 30 days. Outcomes included muscle function (skeletal muscle mass index, grip strength, calf circumference), intestinal barrier markers (serum diamine oxidase, D-lactic acid, endotoxin), and inflammatory and nutritional markers (CRP, neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, systemic immune inflammation index, albumin, prealbumin).

Results: Baseline indicators did not differ among groups (P > 0.05). After intervention, skeletal muscle mass index and grip strength improved significantly in Groups A and B (P < 0.05), with higher grip strengths to Group B than C (adj. P = 0.017). Calf circumference decreased in all groups (P < 0.05), most in Group C (t = 4.461, P = 0.001). Group B exhibited lower diamine oxidase, D-lactic acid, and endotoxin levels than Groups A and C (P < 0.05) and the greatest reductions in CRP, NLR, and SII (P < 0.001). Albumin or prealbumin showed no significant changes (P > 0.05).

Conclusion: HMB improves muscle function in sarcopenic elderly, prebiotics combined with HMB further enhance intestinal barrier repair and reduce inflammation, offering a promising gut-muscle-targeted nutritional strategy.

Background: Age-related circulating factors are recognized as major contributors to the progression of sarcopenia. This network meta-analysis (NMA) aimed to compare the effects of various interventions on circulating factor responses among individuals with sarcopenia.

Methods: PubMed, Web of Science, MEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Scopus, and Chinese National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI) were searched from inception through April 2025 and updated in October 2025. Randomized clinical trials (RCTs) involving healthy individuals with sarcopenia were included if they reported circulating factors related to exercise, nutrition, or a combination of both interventions. Effect sizes were calculated as standardized mean difference (SMD) with 95% confidence interval (CI) using a frequentist NMA framework. The rank order of competing interventions was determined using the surface under the cumulative ranking curve (SUCRA). The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) framework was employed to evaluate the quality of evidence supporting each network estimate.

Results: A total of 24 RCTs involving 1,779 sarcopenia individuals were included. Seven distinct intervention strategies and control group were involved in this study. The C-reactive protein (CRP) network included 12 direct comparisons, while the insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) network encompassed 9 studies (n = 996 participants). Combined exercise (SMD = -2.24, 95%CI: -3.67 to -0.81) and Nutrition (SMD = 0.45, 95%CI: 0.04 to 0.86) were the most effective interventions for reducing CRP and improving the IGF-1 response in patients with sarcopenia, respectively. The certainty of evidence, on average, ranged from low to moderate in this study.

Conclusion: The findings suggest that Combined exercise may be optimal for CRP reduction in patients with sarcopenia, whereas Nutrition appears to be effective in improving IGF-1 response. These findings need to be validated and addressed in future large-scale, high-quality RCTs.

Aging is characterized by a progressive decline in physiological resilience and functional capacity, often accompanied by chronic, low-grade systemic inflammation, a phenomenon termed "inflammaging". This persistent inflammatory milieu contributes significantly to musculoskeletal degeneration, impaired neuromotor coordination, and reduced mobility, collectively diminishing quality of life, particularly among older adults. Key biological drivers of inflammaging include cellular senescence, immune system dysregulation, and mitochondrial dysfunction, which are orchestrated through complex molecular signaling pathways such as NF-κB, mTOR, JAK/STAT, MAPK, and NLRP3. These pathways facilitate the development of the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP), thereby perpetuating tissue damage and systemic inflammation. Mobility decline, frequently manifesting as sarcopenia, osteoarthritis (OA), and gait instability, is closely associated with these inflammatory processes. Early identification of individuals at risk for mobility decline using biomarkers and functional assessments enables timely and targeted interventions that can help extend 'mobility span'. Foundational strategies such as lifestyle modification remain critical in mitigating the effects of inflammaging however, emerging therapeutic modalities including nutraceuticals and pharmacological agents offer promising avenues for intervention. This review synthesizes current evidence on the interplay between inflammaging and mobility decline, emphasizing mechanistic insights, therapeutic approaches, and future research directions. Addressing these interconnected biological processes is essential for promoting healthy aging, preserving functional independence, and extending health span.

Background: There is limited knowledge regarding the association of loneliness or social exclusion with donation behavior.

Aims: Our aim was to investigate the association of loneliness and perceived social exclusion with donation behavior based on a longitudinal approach.

Methods: Longitudinal data were taken from wave 5 (year 2014) to wave 8 (year 2023) of the German Ageing Survey encompassing community-dwelling individuals aged 40 years and over. Established tools were used to quantify loneliness and perceived social exclusion. The willingness to donate and the total amount (in euros) of all donations (in the last 12 months) served as outcome measures. Fixed effects (FE) regressions with cluster-robust standard errors were used.

Results: FE regressions showed that increases in loneliness were significantly associated with lower odds of donation after adjusting for socioeconomic factors, but became insignificant when accounting for lifestyle and health-related covariates. Conversely, a significant association was found between increases in perceived social exclusion and lower odds of donation across all models. However, neither changes in loneliness nor perceived social exclusion were significantly associated with changes in log amount of donations. Sociodemographic factors (i.e., age, sex, and education) did not moderate the identified associations.

Discussion: Even after adjusting for a wide array of covariates, our longitudinal study showed a significant and robust association between increases in social exclusion and lower odds of donation.

Conclusions: Avoiding increases in perceived social exclusion could encourage the decision to donate, an important prosocial behavior, pending further longitudinal evidence. Cross-country comparisons are recommended.