Obesity and obesity related diseases represent a leading cause of mortality in the United States and worldwide. Our research is oriented towards the role of lipid metabolism in longevity. Adipose triglyceride lipase, or ATGL, is a rate limiting enzyme in the lipolytic pathway. The nematode, C. elegans has many conserved biologic pathways to mammals, and the lipolytic pathway is one of them. The homologues include the insulin receptor (DAF-2), FoxO1 (DAF-16), and ATGL (ATGL-1). In this study, we use C. elegans as a model to study the role of lipolysis in longevity. It has been previously shown in our lab that overexpression of ATGL-1::GFP increases lifespan. To confirm that the increase in longevity was due to the overexpression of ATGL-1, we have used RNA interference to downregulate expression of ATGL-1::GFP. We have corroborated that ATGL-1::GFP worms have longer lifespans, than wildtype N2 worms. We have also found that RNAi control diet does not affect lifespan of ATGL-1::GFP strains. However, ATGL-1::GFP strains on an RNAi GFP diet demonstrate reduced levels of ATGL-1::GFP and have shorter lifespans compared to their control counterparts. Our findings confirm that overexpression of ATGL-1 increases lifespan of C. elegans probably due to its role in reducing fat content.

This thesis discusses the modeling of uncertainty of red blood cell (RBC) lifespan distribution in patients suffering from Chronic Kidney Disease(CKD) patients, whose anemia is managed through periodic dosing of erythropoietin (EPO). In healthy individuals, RBCs containing hemoglobin (Hgb) are produced in the bone marrow. When oxygen carried by hemoglobin is transported to human tissues throughout the body, the kidneys sense reduced level of Hgb and secretes EPO that simulates proliferation of red cell precursors and eventually producing red blood cells. However, in CKD patients, their kidneys fail to secrete enough EPO, so that too few of RBCs are produced to maintain a sufficient Hgb level. As a result, artificial EPO dosing is required when the kidney loses this function to avoid anemia. To develop effective artificial EPO dosing schemes, it is important to have models of how EPO does dynamically affect hemoglobin levels. Since there is significant uncertainty in this process, it is equally valuable to have mathematical models of such uncertainties, and in this thesis we focus on uncertainty in the lifespan of red blood cells. In this thesis, we consider two different types of models for RBC lifespan uncertainty: the time-invariant and time-varying cases. In the former, we treat the probabilistic distribution of cell lifespans as fixed for a given patient, but variable (uncertain) over the population. In the latter case, the cell lifespan distribution can change from moment to moment for a given patient. Amongst several possible choices of RBC lifespan distributions, this thesis will focus on the gamma distribution. For the time-invariant model, a first-order gamma distribution is selected as the nominal distribution, and a multiplicative error model is proposed to analyze the impact of lifespan uncertainty on anemia management. In the time-varying case, the lifespan distribution is not fixed in time, but allowed to switch over a finite collection of gamma distributions. In other words, each newly-born RBC has a lifespan coming from a distribution chosen from a collection. Both of these models are analyzed so as to evaluate the impact of lifespan uncertainty on the performance of anemia management schemes; including stability and response time.

Since the mid-1980s, mortality rate improvements in urban areas have outpaced those in rural areas, leading to substantial urban-rural disparities in mortality. Research on urban-rural mortality disparities has focused exclusively on differences in mortality between urban and rural areas and has not examined differences in the amount of inequality in the length of life within these areas. Lifespan variation is an important dimension of health inequality that complements traditional metrics of mortality (i.e., mortality rates and life expectancy) by indicating the amount of inequality of lifespans within a population. This dissertation provides several contributions to our understanding of urban-rural differences in lifespan variation through three interrelated studies. First, I document trends in life expectancy and lifespan variation from 1990 to 2017 and show that nonmetropolitan populations have had smaller declines in lifespan variation than metropolitan populations. The urban-rural disparity in lifespan variation is mostly due to greater improvements in mortality in metropolitan areas but recent mortality increases among nonmetropolitan working-age adults have also contributed. Next, I investigate the extent of the rural mortality penalty among White and Black populations, an underexamined area in the rural mortality literature. Generally, I find that Black Americans living in rural places face an additional penalty; their lifespans are not only shorter but more variable. For Whites, improvements in large central metros are driving the urban-rural disparity. For Blacks, lower mortality rates in large suburbs are driving the disparity. This study underscores the importance of including Black Americans in studies of rural mortality. Finally, I show that most of the difference in lifespan variation between metro and nonmetro populations is due to preventable mortality among working-age adults (ages 25-64). Analyses of age and cause-specific mortality rates among working-age adults show that the largest disparities in preventable mortality are due to suicide and motor vehicle accidents in younger adults and heart disease and cancer in middle-aged adults. The results of these studies show that people living in rural places face an additional penalty; their lives are not only shorter, but the timing of death is more variable and uncertain.

Interpersonal Emotion Regulation (IER) in adulthood has been the area of attention in a growing number of studies over the last decade. Despite the normality of emotion regulation in social situations, focus has mainly been on pathology. Motivated by the lack of salutogenic perspectives, this cross-sectional study aims to shed light on associations between IER strategies and Quality of Life (QOL). Also, to explore age-related aspects, a developmental angle was taken. A non-clinical sample (N=73) residing in Sweden was recruited and responded to the self-assessments Interpersonal Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (IERQ) and WHOQOL-BREF. The respondents were divided into two age groups, younger (NY=35) and older (NO=38) adults. Furthermore, participants were divided into groups based on whether or not they were temporarily experiencing special circumstances affecting life quality. Multiple bivariate correlation analysis was performed on IER factors and QOL domains for the whole group and also for the two group conditions. All IER strategies represented in IERQ were positively associated with all domains of QOL in all conditions, although only some of them were significant correlations. The results indicated that Soothing and Social Modeling can be effective IER strategies in terms of psychological well-being. In the age condition, this was only valid for the younger adults. In addition, the findings supported Soothing as an effective strategy for those experiencing special circumstances. Hence, different correlational patterns emerged related to the specific conditions examined, giving support for context-dependency of Interpersonal Emotion Regulation.

This exploratory, qualitative study focuses on the transition from junior-to-senior sports. The purpose of the study was to outline the temporal structure of this transition. The aim was to do this by achieving the following three objectives: (1) to develop a working model showing transitional phases in the transition from junior-to-senior sports, (2) to examine demands, resources, barriers, coping strategies, and outcomes within each of the four transitional phases in the working model, (3) to validate the working model through external validation, i.e. through asking the study’s participants for their opinion on the model. There were 10 male participants in this study consisting of active ice hockey players, ice hockey coaches, and a former ice hockey player; preparation phase (n=1), orientation phase (n=1), stabilization phase (n=5), junior coach (n=1), senior coach (n=1), dropout (n=1). Seven instruments were used in this study, including six interview guides and one working model. Initially a working model, depicting four transitional phases, was developed, based on theoretical frameworks and personal experience. A total of 949 raw data units were extracted from the interviews, categorized as either demands, resources, barriers, coping strategies, or outcomes within a transitional phase, and then arranged into category profiles representing each transitional phase in the working model. Furthermore, an empirical model was developed based on the working model and the category profiles. The results are, among other things, discussed in relation to theoretical frameworks and previous research. / Denna undersökande, kvalitativa studie fokuserar på övergången från junior-till-senioridrott. Syftet med studien var att kartlägga denna övergångs tidsmässiga struktur. Målet var att göra detta genom att uppfylla följande tre delmål: (1) att utveckla en arbetsmodell som visar transaktionella faser i övergången från junior-till-senior idrott, (2) att undersöka krav, resurser, barriärer, coping strategier och utfall inom var och en av de fyra transaktionella faserna i arbetsmodellen, (3) att validera arbetsmodellen genom extern validering, d.v.s. genom att fråga studiens deltagare om deras åsikter kring modellen. Det var 10 manliga deltagare i denna studie bestående av aktiva hockeyspelare, hockeytränare och en föredetta hockeyspelare; förberedelsefasen (n=1), orienteringsfasen (n=1), stabiliseringsfasen (n=5), junior tränare (n=1), senior tränare (n=1), dropout (n=1). Sju instrument användes i studien; sex intervjuguider och en arbetsmodell. Inledningsvis utvecklades en arbetsmodell, föreställande fyra transaktionella faser, baserad på teoretiska ramverk och personlig erfarenhet. Totalt extraherades 949 rådata från intervjuerna, som sedan kategoriserades som antingen krav, resurser, barriärer, coping strategier eller utfall inom en transaktionell fas, och därefter ordnades de i kategoriprofiler som representerar varje transaktionella fas i arbetsmodellen. Vidare utvecklades en empirisk modell baserad på arbetsmodellen och kategoriprofilerna. Resultatet diskuteras bl.a. i relation till teoretiska ramverk och tidigare forskning.

Research suggests that the relationship between caregivers and their infants has a significant effect on development and well-being across the lifespan. There is a significant body of research into psychological interventions which focus on this relationship. However, there is only limited research into the impact of antenatal interventions which aim to promote the caregiver-foetus relationship, thus preventing later difficulties in the caregiver-infant relationship. Findings so far suggest that such interventions could be effective, and recommendations have been made for further studies exploring the effect antenatal interventions on the caregiver-foetus relationship. This pilot study explored the impact of a newly developed psychoeducational intervention entitled “Baby World” on the caregiver-foetal relationship. Seventy-nine females and 26 males who were expecting their first child were recruited from an NHS midwife service in London. They were randomly allocated to experimental or control groups. All participants completed questionnaires measuring antenatal attachment, mental health and childhood experiences of caregiving at baseline. Those in the experimental group then attended the Baby World class. All participants then completed the questionnaires for a second time, and then attended the standard antenatal classes. Following attendance at these classes, participants completed the questionnaires for a third time and gave anonymous responses to qualitative questions. Statistical analyses of the quantitative data indicated that the intervention did not have an impact on antenatal attachment. Results did show that antenatal attachment increased over time, whilst anxiety decreased. A significant correlation was found between recollections of maternal caring and antenatal attachment. Qualitative analysis suggested that the intervention did have an impact on aspects of the relationship. In the qualitative responses, the majority of participants wrote that the class had been a positive experience for them, and that it had increased their confidence about being a caregiver. Many of the responses indicated that the class had positively affected their skills in reflective functioning, caregiver sensitivity and attunement, and changed their perspective on how to interact with their infant. The results add to the literature regarding the impact of antenatal interventions on the caregiver-foetus relationship. Further research is needed to explore the impact of the intervention on the relationship more closely, in particular to understand which aspects of the relationship may be affected. There are several limitations of the study, in particular the small sample size and the limited number of expectant fathers who participated. Reasons for these limitations are discussed.

Life-stories offer an approach to understanding personality processes within a larger, developmental context. This study examines the role that one area of a person’s larger context (namely romantic relationships) plays in that person’s life-story. Specifically, the study examines whether this role changes over the lifespan. Nineteen students from a consortium of colleges in southern California, and an equal number of older adults living in a nearby retirement community, were interviewed about their romantic relationship history. The interview was semi-structured and asked participants about past and current relationships, and their most meaningful relationship overall. The interviews were coded for the themes of agency, redemption, and contamination, reported self-growth, and an additional variable called unprompted discussion of sexuality that was added based on a series of unexpected occurrences during the interviews. The results showed significant differences in both agency and unprompted discussion of sexuality between the romantic relationship narratives of young and older adults. However, no significant differences were found between the age groups on any of the other three variables, or between the sexes on any of the five variables. The results not only help us to better understand the ways in which our stories about our romantic relationships change across the lifespan, but also suggest significant differences between how younger and older adults think about love and sex.

Background: Approximately 1.4 million women are diagnosed with breast cancer worldwide annually. Most newly diagnosed women face multiple treatment decisions, and want information about their disease and its treatment when making these decisions. While prior research investigates the psychosocial impacts of breast cancer, little is known about those impacts on the experience of decision making or how age influences decision making. There is a need to conduct research exploring this experience. Purpose: To develop an understanding of the experience of decision making for women diagnosed with breast cancer across the lifespan. Specific objectives were to explore: 1) the meanings women assigned to decisions; 2) how psychosocial factors influenced the decision making experience, and; 3) similarities and differences in decision making across the lifespan. Method: The tenants of constructivist grounded theory were followed. Twenty-nine semi-structured interviews were conducted with 22 women with invasive breast cancer. Women ranged in age from 32 to 80 years of age (average=55 years). Participant data was grouped by age: younger women, under 45 years (N=7), middle aged women, aged 45-64 years (N=9), and older women, aged 65 and older (N=6). Data was analyzed using the constant comparison method of data analysis. Findings: Women with breast cancer described the experience of treatment decision making soon after diagnosis, and described their needs regarding information about cancer and its treatment. Main findings include a model depicting the process of the ways of learning in breast cancer. Two ways of learning were described by women, “learning by trusting the healthcare system” and “learning by trusting a system of connections.” Women reported barriers to information support, including emotional distress, patient-provider communication, provider-provider communication, making it personal, and access to information. Similarities and differences between age groups are presented. Conclusion: Diagnosed women want information about cancer and its treatment regardless of their ages. Ways of learning in the context of breast cancer guide women as they worked to make treatment decisions, yet barriers to information support exist in breast cancer, occurring at the patient, provider, and health system levels. / May 2016

John Rawls developed principles of justice to guide the fair allocation of resources in a society. However, his principles did not take into consideration a society’s differing health needs. Norman Daniels attempted to extend Rawlsian principles of justice to apply to the allocation of health resources. In Just Health, Daniels argued that, under certain circumstances, an age-based allocation of health resources can be prudent. He proposed the Prudential Lifespan Account (PLA) to defend age-rationing against claims that it would lead to favoring one age-group over another. In this paper, I analyze Daniels’s PLA and argue that societal aging poses a significant threat to its effectiveness. I then examine and critique alternate theories to extend Rawlsian principles of justice to account for health, specifically those proposed by Dennis McKerlie and Hugh Lazenby.

Les supercondensateurs présentent un intérêt grandissant pour des applications embarquées. De récentes études (Supercapacitors USA, 2013) montrent que leur intégration dans un véhicule hybridé électriquement peut contribuer à multiplier par deux la durée de vie des batteries. Cependant, leur vieillissement n’est pas totalement maîtrisé et suscite encore de nombreuses interrogations.L’étude menée dans le cadre de cette thèse aborde la problématique du vieillissement du supercondensateur, et sa mise en application dans une chaîne de propulsion électrique haute tension. Les travaux ont porté sur les modes de vieillissements accéléré par floating (tension et température constantes) et par cyclage (charge décharge à courant constant), et ont permis l’élaboration d’un protocole d’essai fiable et répétitif permettant de minimiser les perturbations lors des mesures en modes fréquentiel et continu dites respectivement AC et DC. Les études faites sur le vieillissement par floating ont permis non seulement d’aboutir à une estimation de la durée de vie des supercondensateurs mais aussi d’analyser certaines causes du vieillissement de ces éléments.Durant cette étude nous avons également intégré un pack de supercondensateurs dans une plateforme d’un véhicule électrique équipé d’un pack de batteries au lithium fer phosphate. Cette étude a permis de mettre expérimentalement en évidence l’apport des supercondensateurs lors de phases transitoires (accélération, freinage, sollicitations brusques) et la réduction induite des sollicitations dynamiques sur la batterie. / Ultracapacitors present a growing interesting in at various the embedded applications. Recently published studies show that different integrations of ultracapacitor in the Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) permits to increase the battery’s lifetime up to twice. In the meantime, the aging of ultracapacitor is not fully known and still waits many questions have to be responded.This thesis is studying the aging of the ultracapacitor and their integration in a HEV. The work focused on the accelerated aging in floating mode such as constant voltage and temperature and also in cycling mode such as charge-discharge for a constant current. This study permits us to find a reliable and a repeatable test protocol in order to minimize the noise during the measurement of a frequencial and a continuous mode. In the meantime, the floating mode allows to estimate the supercapacitors’ lifespan and also to determine some reasons of the aging.Besides, we have also included a pack of ultracapacitors in an EV platform based on a pack of lithium iron phosphate. The experimental test demonstrated clearly a contribution of the ultracapacitors during a transient phase (acceleration, braking, sudden stress) and the dynamic strain reduction on the battery.