Study reveals accelerated aging in women living with HIV

A Rutgers Health professor and other researchers examined how aging affects the bones and muscles of women diagnosed with HIV

2024-02-15

(Press-News.org) Women with HIV experience accelerated DNA aging, a phenomenon that can lead to poor physical function, according to a study led by Stephanie Shiau, an assistant professor in the Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology at the Rutgers School of Public Health.

Published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases, the study sheds light on the unique challenges faced by women with HIV as they age and opens avenues for tailored interventions to enhance health outcomes. Globally, over 50 percent of individuals living with HIV are women, and women accounted for an estimated 46 percent of all new infections in 2022.

Women with HIV experience higher rates of bone loss compared to women without the virus, which can place them at increased risk of fracture as they age, according to results from the Women’s Interagency HIV Study.

"Understanding the molecular mechanisms behind accelerated aging in people with HIV is crucial for developing targeted interventions and improving the quality of life for those living with the virus,” said Shiau.

Shiau said while accelerated aging has been reported in people with HIV, these studies have been primarily conducted among men and not women.

The study focused on a sample of 195 women with HIV ages 40 to 60, comparing them to a cohort of women without the virus, and conducted various analyses to explore how markers of aging measured in blood were related to bone mineral density and measurements of physical function, such as muscle strength, walking speed, balance and endurance.

Women with HIV were aging faster than their chronological age, according to the study findings.

In both groups, women who couldn’t hold a single leg stand for 30 seconds displayed increased aging, suggesting potential links between accelerated aging and certain aspects of physical function and emphasizing the need for further research to confirm and comprehend these associations over time.

"The work demonstrates that women living with HIV experience an accelerated aging process at the DNA level, and that this aging process may be linked to functional outcomes," said Shiau. “Future studies will need to see whether these findings are observed longitudinally.”

The research not only contributes insights into the challenges faced by women with HIV but provides a basis for further examination of long-term outcomes for those living with the virus.

Co-authors of the study include researchers from collaborating institutions in New York, Illinois and California.

END

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

How parents can help prevent the development of ADHD symptoms

2024-02-15

Parents of young children with an excitable or exuberant temperament could adapt their parenting style to help moderate their child’s potential development of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), according to a new study co-authored by a University of Waterloo researcher. Developmental psychologists know that temperament, parenting, and the brain’s executive functions are interconnected factors in developing ADHD symptoms throughout childhood. But, the study found specific factors that predict a higher chance of ADHD symptoms, pointing to the importance ...

Meow or rooaaar - exotic cats' ability to recognize familiar caregivers' voices

2024-02-15

In a recent PeerJ Life & Environment study, Professor Jennifer Vonk from Oakland University presents compelling evidence that exotic cats possess the remarkable ability to discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar human voices. The article - "Catcalls: Exotic Cats Discriminate the Voices of Familiar Caregivers" - delves into the often-overlooked realm of voice recognition among Felidae species. While much attention has been paid to domestication and early experiences in understanding animals' ability to differentiate between ...

Dementia researchers share recruitment strategies for pragmatic clinical trial

2024-02-15

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Feb. 15, 2024 – According to the Alzheimer’s Association, more than 6.5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease, and 1 in 3 older adults will die with the disease or another form of dementia. There’s also a growing need for improved care and support, not only for persons living with dementia but also for their caregivers. Underrepresented populations are disproportionally more likely to have Alzheimer’s disease compared to other Americans, so there’s ...

Mount Sinai named official medical service provider for International Sumo League

2024-02-15

For the first time, the Mount Sinai Health System has been named the official medical service provider for the International Sumo League—the world’s largest league of sumo wrestlers. Physicians from the Department of Rehabilitation and Human Performance are playing a key role in preparing the elite sumo wrestlers competing in international tournaments, including the upcoming World Championship Sumo at the Prudential Center in New Jersey on Sunday, February 18. “We are excited to partner with International Sumo League and offer comprehensive care and expert guidance ...

Nation's newest, most comprehensive blood cancer healing center to transform care landscape

2024-02-15

The Blood Cancer Healing Center, located at 3229 Burnet Avenue in Uptown Cincinnati, is poised to redefine care standards by offering comprehensive patient support and innovative treatments under one roof. With clinical services opening as part of a phased approach in the summer of 2024, this state-of-the-art facility will address the critical needs of the 1.6 million individuals affected by blood cancers, such as leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma, annually in the U.S. Other spaces within the facility are scheduled to open in 2025. Care will be given around the clock in both the inpatient ...

New ‘time travel’ study reveals future impact of climate change on coastal marshes

2024-02-15

A new Tulane University study published in Nature Communications offers a glimpse into the possible impact of climate change on coastal wetlands 50 years or longer into the future. Scientists are usually forced to rely on computer models to project the long-term effects of rising seas. But an unexpected set of circumstances enabled a real-world experiment along the Gulf Coast. An extensive network of nearly 400 monitoring sites was established along the Louisiana coast after hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Then the ...

Further funding for new device to improve treatment of anal fistula

2024-02-15

A consortium of Birmingham researchers, clinicians and industry partners has received a second £1.1m award from the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) for a three-year study supporting the further development of a novel device that could revolutionise the clinical management of anal fistula. In this intrusive and embarrassing condition, sufferers experience daily discomfort and smelly discharge from a tunnel between the bowel and skin around the anus. It affects mostly young people and has a significant impact on employment and family life due ...

Amsterdam UMC to use e-health tool to remotely monitor heart patients at home

2024-02-15

From today, patients and doctors at Amsterdam UMC's Heart Centre can make use of the app HartWacht (HeartGuard, in English) to supplement their care. Through the use of a small measurement instrument, around the size of a cereal bar, and a mobile app, patients can now have their blood pressure and arrythmias monitored at home. This means that patients need to visit their cardiologist less frequently. For doctors, this means they have more precise measurements and can act quicker where necessary. A ''win-win'' in the eyes of Michiel Winter, cardiologist at Amsterdam UMC and leader of this project. "HartWacht ...

Proteins guide electrons to the right place

2024-02-15

Cells need energy to function. Researchers at the University of Gothenburg can now explain how energy is guided in the cell by small atomic movements to reach its destination in the protein. Imitating these structural changes of the proteins could lead to more efficient solar cells in the future. The sun’s rays are the basis for all the energy that creates life on Earth. Photosynthesis in plants is a prime example, where solar energy is needed for the plant to grow. Special proteins absorb the sun’s rays, and the energy is transported as electrons inside the protein, in a process called charge transfer. In a new study, researchers show how ...

Language and culture may influence how our brain processes emotional faces

2024-02-15

Body language and the understanding thereof is a crucial part of communication. It is often assumed that humans can innately recognize other’s emotions, but there is growing evidence that the ability to decipher these emotions is not instinctive but shaped by people’s culturally shared understanding of emotions. A team of scientists in the US decided to investigate how cultural upbringing and access to emotion category words, which categorize and facilitate access to a complex set of emotional ideas, experiences, and responses ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Study shows alcohol-dependent men and women have different biochemistries, so may need different treatments

Researchers find that Antidepressants may improve brain function

Aviation can achieve Net-Zero by 2050 if immediate action is taken, says University of Cambridge report

Study shows psychedelic drug psilocybin gives comparable long-term antidepressant effects to standard antidepressants, but may offer additional benefits

Study finds symptoms of depression during pregnancy linked to specific brain activity: scientists hope to develop test for “baby blues” risk

Sexual health symptoms may correlate with poor adherence to adjuvant endocrine therapy in Black women with breast cancer

Black patients with triple-negative breast cancer may be less likely to receive immunotherapy than white patients

Affordable care act may increase access to colon cancer care for underserved groups

UK study shows there is less stigma against LGBTQ people than you might think, but people with mental health problems continue to experience higher levels of stigma