Reaction time in healthy elderly is associated with chronic low-grade inflammation and advanced glycation end product

A Role for Advanced Glycation End Products in Molecular Ageing

Ageing is a composite process that involves numerous changes at the cellular, tissue, organ and whole-body levels. These changes result in decreased functioning of the organism and the development of certain conditions, which ultimately lead to an increased risk of death. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are a family of compounds with a diverse chemical nature. They are the products of non-enzymatic reactions between reducing sugars and proteins, lipids or nucleic acids and are synthesised in high amounts in both physiological and pathological conditions. Accumulation of these molecules increases the level of damage to tissue/organs structures (immune elements, connective tissue, brain, pancreatic beta cells, nephrons, and muscles), which consequently triggers the development of age-related diseases, such as diabetes mellitus, neurodegeneration, and cardiovascular and kidney disorders. Irrespective of the role of AGEs in the initiation or progression of chronic disorders, a reduction in their levels would certainly provide health benefits. In this review, we provide an overview of the role of AGEs in these areas. Moreover, we provide examples of lifestyle interventions, such as caloric restriction or physical activities, that may modulate AGE formation and accumulation and help to promote healthy ageing.

Motor Reaction Time, Sarcopenia and Functional Skills in Elderly Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

IMPORTANCE

Aging generates changes over the years. Because of this, the musculoskeletal system is directly degraded and suffer deficits in its performance in elderly patients with Sarcopenia, as this condition is characterized by a decrease in muscle mass and function.

OBJECTIVE

Correlate the motor reaction time and functional skills of non-sarcopenic, pre-sarcopenic and sarcopenic elderly women, and analyze influence on the risk of falls.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional observational analytical study, following the methodological strategies of STROBE (Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology), carried out under the approval of the Research Ethics Committee of the Unievangélica University, no. 3.694.235/2019.

SETTING

Participants were evaluated regarding: cognitive status, level of physical activity, fear of falling, body composition, motor reaction time, static and dynamic balance, gait kinetics, strength and endurance of the lower limbs and finally handgrip strength.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 59 volunteer elderly women were assessed following the diagnostic criteria for sarcopenia proposed by the European Working Group on Sarcopenia in Older People (EWGSOP).

RESULTS

The results show that there was a greater difference in motor reaction time between the non-sarcopenic and sarcopenic elderly women due to the executing organ being damaged by the presence of sarcopenia, causing motor response to slowdown. Functional deficit, fear of falling and greater risk of falls were observed in the sarcopenic group, under the harmful influence of increased motor reaction time.

CONCLUSION

Sarcopenic elderly women present increased motor reaction time, that is, slowed motor responses due to decreased muscle mass, strength and impaired musculature, which generate functional deficits that contribute to an increased risk of falls.

Advanced glycation endproducts and bone quality: practical implications for people with type 2 diabetes

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Individuals with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are at increased risk of fracture, often despite normal bone density. This observation suggests deficits in bone quality in the setting of abnormal glucose homeostasis. The goal of this article is to review recent developments in our understanding of how advanced glycation end products (AGEs) are incorporated into the skeleton with resultant deleterious effects on bone health and structural integrity in patients with T2D.

RECENT FINDINGS

The adverse effects of skeletal AGE accumulation on bone remodeling and the ability of the bone to deform and absorb energy prior to fracture have been demonstrated both at the bench as well as in small human studies; however, questions remain as to how these findings might be better explored in large, population-based investigations.

SUMMARY

Hyperglycemia drives systemic, circulating AGE formation with subsequent accumulation in the bone tissue. In those with T2D, studies suggest that AGEs diminish fracture resistance, though larger clinical studies are needed to better define the direct role of longstanding AGE accumulation on bone strength in humans as well as to motivate potential interventions to reverse or disrupt skeletal AGE deposition with the goal of fracture prevention.

Dietary Weight Loss, Exercise, and Inflammation in Older Adults with Overweight or Obesity and Cardiometabolic Disease

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to examine exercise modality during weight loss on change in inflammation among older adults with overweight or obesity and cardiometabolic disease.

METHODS

A total of 222 older adults with a mean (SD) age of 66.9 (4.7) years and a mean (SD) BMI of 33.5 (3.5) kg/m2 were randomized to weight loss (WL; n = 68), WL plus aerobic training (WL + AT; n = 79), or WL plus resistance training (WL + RT; n = 75) for 18 months. C-reactive protein (CRP) and interleukin-6 were measured at baseline, 6 months, and 18 months.

RESULTS

All groups lost significant weight from baseline to 18 months, with average adjusted changes of -5.5% for WL, -9.0% for WL + AT, and -10.1% for WL + RT. WL + RT and WL + AT lost significantly more weight than WL (P < 0.05). At 18 months, CRP values in WL + RT were significantly lower than WL (2.25 pg/mL vs. 3.38 pg/mL; P = 0.004). The only difference in interleukin-6 was that at 18 months, WL + RT was lower than WL + AT (2.32 pg/mL vs. 2.75 pg/mL; P = 0.03).

CONCLUSIONS

The addition of RT during WL was more effective at reducing levels of CRP than WL. Although results were in the expected direction, there was no difference in CRP between WL and WL + AT.

Effect of resistance training on inflammatory markers of older adults: A meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION

Low-grade inflammation is associated with several deleterious health outcomes and may aggravate sarcopenia and dynapenia during aging. A strategy to alleviate these conditions is resistance training (RT). Thus, the aim was to critically examine the effects of regular RT on inflammatory markers of older adults from previous studies.

METHODS

The search was conducted on MEDLINE, July 2017. Only randomized controlled trials (RCTs) testing RT effects on C-reactive protein (CRP), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and/or interleukin-6 (IL-6) of adults over 50 years-of-age were selected by two independent reviewers.

RESULTS

The main meta-analyses showed RT reduced CRP in older adults (standard mean difference [SMD] = -0.61, 95%CI = -0.83; -0.31, p < 0.001), tended to reduce IL-6 (SMD = -0.19, 95%CI = -0.42; 0.02, p = 0.07) and did not change TNF-α. Further exploratory sub-group analyses showed a potential association of muscle mass for both CRP and TNF-α changes. Reductions in CRP and TNF-α only occurred in RCTs performing a higher number of exercises (>8), higher weekly frequency (3 times/week) and longer durations than 12 weeks.

CONCLUSIONS

Anti-inflammatory effects of RT were significant only for CRP with a tendency for a decrease in IL-6 as well. The exploratory analyses suggested the reduction in inflammatory markers could be dependent on increases in muscle mass and higher volume of RT protocols. These potential mediators of RT anti-inflammatory effects should be addressed in future meta-analyses to clarify the effects of RT on inflammatory markers of older adults with very specific conditions and larger numbers of studies.