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Accumulation of affective symptoms and midlife cognitive function: The role of inflammation

John, A; Rusted, J; Richards, M; Gaysina, D; (2020) Accumulation of affective symptoms and midlife cognitive function: The role of inflammation. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity , 84 pp. 164-172. 10.1016/j.bbi.2019.11.021. Green open access

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Abstract

BACKGROUND: The aim of the present study was to test whether C-Reactive Protein (CRP), a proxy measure of inflammation, is elevated in people with higher childhood and adulthood affective symptoms and whether elevated CRP predicts midlife cognitive function. METHODS: Data were used from the National Child Development Study (n = 6276). Measures of memory, verbal fluency, information processing speed and accuracy were available in midlife (age 50). Affective symptoms were assessed in childhood (ages 7, 11, 16) and in adulthood (ages 23, 33, 42, 50). The level of plasma CRP was measured at age 44. Pathway models, unadjusted and fully adjusted for sex, education, childhood socioeconomic position, childhood cognitive ability and affective symptoms at age 50, were fitted to test direct associations between affective symptoms and midlife cognitive function, and indirect associations via the inflammatory pathway (CRP level). RESULTS: In a fully adjusted model, there were significant indirect associations between adulthood affective symptoms and immediate memory (β = -0.01, SE = 0.003, p = .03) and delayed memory (β = -0.01, SE = 0.004, p = .03) via CRP. In addition, there were significant indirect associations between affective symptoms in childhood and immediate memory (β = -0.001, SE = 0.00, p = .03) and delayed memory (β = -0.001, SE = 0.001, p = .03), via adulthood affective symptoms and associated CRP. Independent of CRP, there was a significant direct association between adulthood affective symptoms and information processing errors (β = 0.47, SE = 0.21, p = .02). There were no direct or indirect associations between affective symptoms and verbal fluency or information processing speed. CONCLUSIONS: CRP at age 44 is elevated in people with higher affective symptoms from age 7 to 42, and elevated CRP is associated with poorer immediate and delayed memory at age 50.

Type: Article
Title: Accumulation of affective symptoms and midlife cognitive function: The role of inflammation
Location: Netherlands
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2019.11.021
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2019.11.021
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Affective symptoms, Birth cohort, Cognitive function, Epidemiology, Inflammation, Longitudinal
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences > Clinical, Edu and Hlth Psychology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Cardiovascular Science
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Cardiovascular Science > Population Science and Experimental Medicine
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Cardiovascular Science > Population Science and Experimental Medicine > MRC Unit for Lifelong Hlth and Ageing
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10090706
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