11 results on '"Galea, Liisa A. M."'
Search Results
2. Sex and gender in health research: Intersectionality matters
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Subramaniapillai, Sivaniya, Galea, Liisa A. M., Einstein, Gillian, de Lange, Ann-Marie G., Subramaniapillai, Sivaniya, Galea, Liisa A. M., Einstein, Gillian, and de Lange, Ann-Marie G.
- Abstract
Research policies aiming to integrate sex and gender in scientific studies are receiving increased attention in academia. Incorporating these policies into health research is essential for improving targeted and equitable healthcare outcomes, by considering both disparities and similarities between individuals relating to sex and gender. Although these efforts are both urgent and critical, only an intersectional approach, which considers broad and multidimensional aspects of an individual's identity, can provide a complete understanding of the factors that impact health. In this commentary, we emphasize that in order to approach health equity, it is crucial to examine how sex and gender intersect with factors such as culture, ethnicity, minority status, and socioeconomic conditions to influence health outcomes. To facilitate evidence-based health interventions with tangible impact, we must consider disparities linked to both biological and environmental factors.
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- 2024
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3. Estrogens dynamically regulate neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus of adult female rats.
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Yagi, Shunya, Mohammad, Ahmad, Wen, Yanhua, Batallán Burrowes, Ariel A., Blankers, Samantha A., and Galea, Liisa A. M.
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GLIAL fibrillary acidic protein , *DENTATE gyrus , *SUBCUTANEOUS injections , *YOUNG adults , *DNA synthesis - Abstract
Estrone and estradiol differentially modulate neuroplasticity and cognition. How they influence the maturation of new neurons in the adult hippocampus, however, is not known. The present study assessed the effects of estrone and estradiol on the maturation timeline of neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus (DG) of ovariectomized (a model of surgical menopause) young adult Sprague–Dawley rats using daily subcutaneous injections of 17β‐estradiol, estrone or vehicle. Rats were injected with a DNA synthesis marker, 5‐bromo‐2‐deoxyuridine (BrdU), and were perfused 1, 2, or 3 weeks after BrdU injection and daily hormone treatment. Brains were sectioned and processed for various markers including: sex‐determining region Y‐box 2 (Sox2), glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), antigen kiel 67 (Ki67), doublecortin (DCX), and neuronal nuclei (NeuN). Immunofluorescent labeling or co‐labelling of BrdU with Sox2 (progenitor cells), Sox2/GFAP (neural progenitor cells), Ki67 (cell proliferation), DCX (immature neurons), NeuN (mature neurons) was used to examine the trajectory and maturation of adult‐born neurons over time. Estrogens had early (1 week of exposure) effects on different stages of neurogenesis (neural progenitor cells, cell proliferation and early maturation of new cells into neurons) but these effects were less pronounced after prolonged treatment. Estradiol enhanced, whereas estrone reduced cell proliferation after 1 week but not after longer exposure to either estrogen. Both estrogens increased the density of immature neurons (BrdU/DCX‐ir) after 1 week of exposure compared to vehicle treatment but this increased density was not sustained over longer durations of treatments to estrogens, suggesting that the enhancing effects of estrogens on neurogenesis were short‐lived. Longer duration post‐ovariectomy, without treatments with either of the estrogens, was associated with reduced neural progenitor cells in the DG. These results demonstrate that estrogens modulate several aspects of adult hippocampal neurogenesis differently in the short term, but may lose their ability to influence neurogenesis after long‐term exposure. These findings have potential implications for treatments involving estrogens after surgical menopause. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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- 2024
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4. Pregnancy history and estradiol influence spatial memory, hippocampal plasticity, and inflammation in middle-aged rats.
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Puri TA, Lieblich SE, Ibrahim M, and Galea LAM
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- Animals, Female, Pregnancy, Rats, Inflammation metabolism, Maze Learning drug effects, Maze Learning physiology, Aging physiology, Parity physiology, Hippocampus drug effects, Hippocampus metabolism, Neuronal Plasticity drug effects, Neuronal Plasticity physiology, Spatial Memory drug effects, Spatial Memory physiology, Estradiol pharmacology
- Abstract
Pregnancy and motherhood can have long-term effects on cognition and brain aging in both humans and rodents. Estrogens are related to cognitive function and neuroplasticity. Estrogens can improve cognition in postmenopausal women, but the evidence is mixed, partly due to differences in age of initiation, type of menopause, dose, formulation and route of administration. Additionally, past pregnancy influences brain aging and cognition as a younger age of first pregnancy in humans is associated with poorer aging outcomes. However, few animal studies have examined specific features of pregnancy history or the possible mechanisms underlying these changes. We examined whether maternal age at first pregnancy and estradiol differentially affected hippocampal neuroplasticity, inflammation, spatial reference cognition, and immediate early gene activation in response to spatial memory retrieval in middle-age. Thirteen-month-old rats (who were nulliparous (never mothered) or previously primiparous (had a litter) at three or seven months) received daily injections of estradiol (or vehicle) for sixteen days and were tested on the Morris Water Maze. An older age of first pregnancy was associated with impaired spatial memory but improved performance on reversal training, and increased number of new neurons in the ventral hippocampus. Estradiol decreased activation of new neurons in the dorsal hippocampus, regardless of parity history. Estradiol also decreased the production of anti-inflammatory cytokines based on age of first pregnancy. This work suggests that estradiol affects neuroplasticity and neuroinflammation in middle age, and that age of first pregnancy can have long lasting effects on hippocampus structure and function., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no conflict to declare., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
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- 2024
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5. Exploring the parity paradox: Differential effects on neuroplasticity and inflammation by APOEe4 genotype at middle age.
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Lee BH, Cevizci M, Lieblich SE, Ibrahim M, Wen Y, Eid RS, Lamers Y, Duarte-Guterman P, and Galea LAM
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- Animals, Female, Rats, Pregnancy, Alzheimer Disease genetics, Alzheimer Disease metabolism, Neurons metabolism, Memory, Short-Term physiology, Parity, Neuronal Plasticity genetics, Apolipoprotein E4 genetics, Apolipoprotein E4 metabolism, Hippocampus metabolism, Genotype, Inflammation metabolism, Inflammation genetics
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Female sex and Apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 genotype are top non-modifiable risk factors for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Although female-unique experiences like parity (pregnancy and motherhood) have positive effects on neuroplasticity at middle age, previous pregnancy may also contribute to AD risk. To explore these seemingly paradoxical long-term effects of parity, we investigated the impact of parity with APOEε4 genotype by examining behavioural and neural biomarkers of brain health in middle-aged female rats. Our findings show that primiparous (parous one time) hAPOEε4 rats display increased use of a non-spatial cognitive strategy and exhibit decreased number and recruitment of new-born neurons in the ventral dentate gyrus of the hippocampus in response to spatial working memory retrieval. Furthermore, primiparity and hAPOEε4 genotype synergistically modulate inflammatory markers in the ventral hippocampus. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that previous parity in hAPOEε4 rats confers an added risk to present with reduced activity and engagement of the hippocampus as well as elevated pro-inflammatory signaling, and underscore the importance of considering female-specific factors and genotype in health research., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
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- 2024
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6. The effects of estrogens on spatial learning and memory in female rodents - A systematic review and meta-analysis.
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Lymer J, Bergman H, Yang S, Mallick R, Galea LAM, Choleris E, and Fergusson D
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- Animals, Female, Estradiol pharmacology, Estradiol administration & dosage, Maze Learning drug effects, Maze Learning physiology, Memory drug effects, Memory physiology, Ovariectomy, Rodentia physiology, Estrogens pharmacology, Estrogens administration & dosage, Spatial Learning drug effects, Spatial Learning physiology, Spatial Memory drug effects, Spatial Memory physiology
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Estrogens have inconsistent effects on learning and memory in both the clinical and preclinical literature. Preclinical literature has the advantage of investigating an array of potentially important factors contributing to the varied effects of estrogens on learning and memory, with stringently controlled studies. This study set out to identify specific factors in the animal literature that influence the effects of estrogens on cognition, for possible translation back to clinical practice. The literature was screened and studies meeting strict inclusion criteria were included in the analysis. Eligible studies included female ovariectomized rodents with an adequate vehicle for the estrogen treatment, with an outcome of spatial learning and memory in the Morris water maze. Training days of the Morris water maze were used to assess acquisition of spatial learning, and the probe trial was used to evaluate spatial memory recall. Continuous outcomes were pooled using a random effects inverse variance method and reported as standardized mean differences with 95 % confidence intervals. Subgroup analyses were developed a priori to assess important factors. The overall analysis favoured treatment for the later stages of training and for the probe trial. Factors including the type of estrogen, route, schedule of administration, age of animals, timing relative to ovariectomy, and duration of treatment were all found to be important. The subgroup analyses showed that chronic treatment with 17β-estradiol, either cyclically or continuously, to young animals improved spatial recall. These results, observed in animals, can inform and guide further clinical research on hormone replacement therapy for cognitive benefits., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
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- 2024
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7. Canadian Health Research Funding Patterns for Sexual and Gender Minority Populations Reflect Exclusion of Women.
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Namchuk AB, Stranges TN, Splinter TFL, Moore KN, Logie CH, and Galea LAM
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Purpose: We explored the funding areas of Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (trans), queer or questioning, and intersex individuals (2S/LGBTQI)-specific health research funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) mentioned in the grant abstracts. Methods: We analyzed the publicly available database of grant abstracts funded by CIHR from 2009-2020 to examine what types of 2S/LGBTQI-specific health outcomes would be studied and in what populations. Results: We found that 58% of awarded grant abstracts mentioned studying sexually transmitted diseases, the majority of which was on human immunodeficiency virus. Of the funded 2S/LGBTQI grant abstracts that specified the gender of the population to be studied (n=23), less then 9% mentioned studying cisgender women. Almost 40% mentioned including trans women/girls, and 30% mentioned including trans men/boys. None of the studies examined mentioned work with the Two-Spirit community. Conclusion: These results reflect larger social and health inequities that require structural level changes in research to support the 2S/LGBTQI community.
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- 2024
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8. Mental Health Outcomes of Endometriosis Patients during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Impact of Pre-pandemic Central Nervous System Sensitization.
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Liu YD, Noga H, Allaire C, Bedaiwy MA, Lee CE, Williams C, Booth A, Galea LAM, Kaida A, Ogilvie GS, Brotto LA, and Yong PJ
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- Humans, Female, Adult, Comorbidity, Chronic Pain epidemiology, Chronic Pain psychology, Prospective Studies, Pelvic Pain epidemiology, Pelvic Pain psychology, Pelvic Pain etiology, Middle Aged, Mental Health, Endometriosis psychology, Endometriosis epidemiology, Endometriosis complications, COVID-19 epidemiology, COVID-19 psychology, Central Nervous System Sensitization physiology, Depression epidemiology, Depression etiology, Anxiety epidemiology, Anxiety etiology
- Abstract
To correlate pain-related phenotyping for central nervous system sensitization in endometriosis-associated pain with mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic, the prospective Endometriosis and Pelvic Pain Interdisciplinary Cohort (ClinicalTrials.gov #NCT02911090) was linked to the COVID-19 Rapid Evidence Study of a Provincial Population-Based Cohort for Gender and Sex (RESPPONSE) dataset. The primary outcomes were depression (PHQ-9) and anxiety (GAD-7) scores during the pandemic. The explanatory variables of interest were the Central Sensitization Inventory (CSI) score (0-100) and endometriosis-associated chronic pain comorbidities/psychological variables before the pandemic. The explanatory and response variables were assessed for correlation, followed by multivariable regression analyses adjusting for PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores pre-pandemic as well as age, body mass index, and parity. A higher CSI score and a greater number of chronic pain comorbidities before the pandemic were both positively correlated with PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores during the pandemic. These associations remained significant in adjusted analyses. Increasing the CSI score by 10 was associated with an increase in pandemic PHQ-9 by .74 points (P < .0001) and GAD-7 by .73 points (P < .0001) on average. Each additional chronic pain comorbidity/psychological variable was associated with an increase in pandemic PHQ-9 by an average of .63 points (P = .0004) and GAD-7 by .53 points (P = .0002). Endometriosis patients with a history of central sensitization before the pandemic had worse mental health outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a risk factor for mental health symptoms in the face of major stressors, clinical proxies for central sensitization can be used to identify endometriosis patients who may need additional support. PERSPECTIVE: This article adds to the growing literature of the clinical importance of central sensitization in endometriosis patients, who had more symptoms of depression and anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic. Clinical features of central sensitization may help clinicians identify endometriosis patients needing additional support when facing major stressors., (Copyright © 2024 United States Association for the Study of Pain, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
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- 2024
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9. Associations Between Age at Menopause, Vascular Risk, and 3-Year Cognitive Change in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging.
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Wood Alexander M, Wu CY, Coughlan GT, Puri T, Buckley RF, Palta P, Swardfager W, Masellis M, Galea LAM, Einstein G, Black SE, and Rabin JS
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- Female, Humans, Male, Aging, Canada epidemiology, Cognition, Estrogens therapeutic use, Longitudinal Studies, Menopause, Middle Aged, Aged, Alzheimer Disease drug therapy, Cognitive Dysfunction drug therapy
- Abstract
Background and Objectives: Mounting evidence supports sex differences in Alzheimer disease (AD) risk. Vascular and hormonal factors may together contribute to AD risk in female adults. We investigated whether age at menopause, vascular risk, and history of hormone therapy (HT) containing estrogens together influence cognition over a 3-year follow-up period. We hypothesized that earlier menopause and elevated vascular risk would have a synergistic association with lower cognitive scores at follow-up and that HT containing estrogens would attenuate this synergistic association to preserve cognition., Methods: We used data from postmenopausal female participants and age-matched male participants in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging. Vascular risk was calculated using a summary score of elevated blood pressure, antihypertensive medications, elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, diabetes, smoking, and obesity. Cognition was measured with a global cognitive composite at baseline and 3-year follow-up. Linear models tested independent and interactive associations of age at menopause, vascular risk, and HT history with cognition at 3-year follow-up, adjusting for baseline cognition, baseline age, years of education, and test language (English/French)., Results: We included 8,360 postmenopausal female participants (mean age at baseline = 65.0 ± 8.53 years, mean age at menopause = 50.1 ± 4.62 years) and 8,360 age-matched male participants for comparison. There was an interaction between age at menopause and vascular risk, such that earlier menopause and higher vascular risk were synergistically associated with lower cognitive scores at follow-up (β = 0.013, 95% CI 0.001-0.025, p = 0.03). In stratified analyses, vascular risk was associated with lower cognitive scores in female participants with earlier menopause (menopausal ages 35-48 years; β = -0.044, 95% CI -0.066 to -0.022, p < 0.001), but not average (ages 49-52 years; β = -0.007, 95% CI -0.027 to 0.012, p = 0.46) or later menopause (ages 53-65 years; β = 0.003, 95% CI -0.020 to 0.025, p = 0.82). The negative association of vascular risk with cognition in female participants with earlier menopause was stronger than the equivalent association in age-matched male participants. HT history did not further modify the synergistic association of age at menopause and vascular risk with follow-up cognition (β = -0.005, 95% CI -0.032 to 0.021, p = 0.69)., Discussion: Endocrine and vascular processes may synergistically contribute to increased risk of cognitive decline in female adults. These findings have implications for the development of sex-specific dementia prevention strategies.
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- 2024
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10. Menopausal hormone therapy and the female brain: leveraging neuroimaging and prescription registry data from the UK Biobank cohort.
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Barth C, Galea LAM, Jacobs EG, Lee BH, Westlye LT, and de Lange AG
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Background and Objectives: Menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) is generally thought to be neuroprotective, yet results have been inconsistent. Here, we present a comprehensive study of MHT use and brain characteristics in middle- to older aged females from the UK Biobank, assessing detailed MHT data, APOE ε4 genotype, and tissue-specific gray (GM) and white matter (WM) brain age gap (BAG), as well as hippocampal and white matter hyperintensity (WMH) volumes., Methods: A total of 19,846 females with magnetic resonance imaging data were included (current-users = 1,153, 60.1 ± 6.8 years; past-users = 6,681, 67.5 ± 6.2 years; never-users = 12,012, mean age 61.6 ± 7.1 years). For a sub-sample (n = 538), MHT prescription data was extracted from primary care records. Brain measures were derived from T1-, T2- and diffusion-weighted images. We fitted regression models to test for associations between the brain measures and MHT variables including user status, age at initiation, dosage and duration, formulation, route of administration, and type (i.e., bioidentical vs synthetic), as well as active ingredient (e.g., estradiol hemihydrate). We further tested for differences in brain measures among MHT users with and without a history of hysterectomy ± bilateral oophorectomy and examined associations by APOE ε4 status., Results: We found significantly higher GM and WM BAG (i.e., older brain age relative to chronological age) as well as smaller left and right hippocampus volumes in current MHT users, not past users, compared to never-users. Effects were modest, with the largest effect size indicating a group difference of 0.77 years (~9 months) for GM BAG. Among MHT users, we found no significant associations between age at MHT initiation and brain measures. Longer duration of use and older age at last use post menopause was associated with higher GM and WM BAG, larger WMH volume, and smaller left and right hippocampal volumes. MHT users with a history of hysterectomy ± bilateral oophorectomy showed lower GM BAG relative to MHT users without such history. Although we found smaller hippocampus volumes in carriers of two APOE ε4 alleles compared to non-carriers, we found no interactions with MHT variables. In the sub-sample with prescription data, we found no significant associations between detailed MHT variables and brain measures after adjusting for multiple comparisons., Discussion: Our results indicate that population-level associations between MHT use, and female brain health might vary depending on duration of use and past surgical history. Future research is crucial to establish causality, dissect interactions between menopause-related neurological changes and MHT use, and determine individual-level implications to advance precision medicine in female health care., Competing Interests: Declaration of interests We declare no conflicts of interest.
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- 2024
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11. Celebrating 60 years of neuroendocrinology.
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Galea LAM
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- Humans, History, 21st Century, History, 20th Century, Animals, Periodicals as Topic history, Neuroendocrinology history
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- 2024
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