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Abstract TU106: Lipid metabolites associated with cognitive function among general Japanese men: SESSA-MWAS

Introduction: The biomarkers and the mechanisms underlying the cognitive decline in ageing are not fully clarified although they might be effective for dementia prevention. We comprehensively explore metabolites associated with cognitive function by conducting metabolomics analysis in a cohort study of general Japanese men. Methods: The study population was 672 Japanese men aged 46-83 years without stroke, who were randomly selected for the SESSA study from Kusatsu City, Japan. Metabolomics using liquid chromatography mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was conducted on plasma samples, focusing on lipid metabolism. The 442 metabolites were identified. The cognitive function was assessed by Cognitive Abilities Screening Instrument (CASI), and CASI score less than 82 was defined as having mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We examined the metabolites among groups with and without MCI using principal component analysis and partial least squares regression (PLS) or PLS rank order of groups. Multivariable adjusted logistic regression estimated the odds ratios (ORs) and 95%CI of MCI for the extracted metabolites per standard deviation. The 9 domain specific MCI using median value of each domain specific CASI score as cutoff points were also examined. KEGG pathway analysis was done to clarify the linked pathway for the extracted metabolites. Results: The prevalence of MCI was 5.5%. The 22 metabolites were statistically significantly associated with CASI score (q <0.05 in PLS, 21 metabolites in the positive direction and 1 metabolite in the negative direction). Phosphatidylcholines (PC) and Lysophosphatidylcholines (LPC) were associated with low risk of MCI (OR(95%CI): PC16:0/20:3; 0.51(0.32-0.51), LPC18:2/0.0; 0.59 (0.36-0.96), LPC20:3/0.0; 0.48(0.28-0.82)), phenacetylcarnitine was associated with the high risk of MCI (OR (95%CI); 1.33 (1.01-1.75)) (q <0.05). The analysis for domain specific MCI extracted the metabolites for short term memory, language abilities and category fluency. The Linoleic acid metabolism pathway was statistically significantly associated with CASI score. Conclusion: Glycerophosphocolines such as PC16:0/20:3, LPC18:2/0.0 and LPC20:3/0.0 were reduced in participants with MCI, and those metabolites associated with low risk of MCI. Linoleic acid metabolism might be important for prevention of dementia among Japanese.

Abstract WE516: Ultra-processed food consumption and risk of obesity: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study

Background: Small, short-term feeding trials show that ultra-processed food consumption promotes moderate weight gain. However, the long-term consequences of ultra-processed food consumption on obesity risk in the general population are not well characterized. Methods: We conducted a prospective cohort analysis in middle-aged adults without obesity in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study. Body mass index (BMI) was assessed at baseline (1987-1989) and 3 subsequent visits (1990-1992, 1993-1995, and 1996-1998). Ultra-processed food was defined according to the Nova classification from a 66-item self-reported food frequency questionnaire. We used complementary log-log models to examine the association between ultra-processed food consumption (modeled as residual-adjusted quartiles and as continuous linear exposure) and incident obesity (BMI ≧ 30 kg/m 2 ). We also used a restricted cubic spline to more flexibly model the association between ultra-processed food and obesity. Results: Among 10,171 participants (mean age of 54 years, 17% Black adults, 53% female), there were 1,716 cases of incident obesity over a median follow-up of 9 years. Greater ultra-processed food consumption was associated with a higher risk of obesity (Figure A) . Each additional serving of ultra-processed food was associated with 4% higher risk of incident obesity (HR = 1.04, 95% CI: 1.01 – 1.06). After adjustment for covariates, individuals in the highest quartile of ultra-processed food consumption had a 22% higher risk of obesity compared to those in the lowest quartile (HR = 1.22, 95% CI: 1.06 – 1.40, p-trend=0.01). Associations between subgroups of ultra-processed food and obesity were strongest for sugar-sweetened beverages followed by reconstituted meat ( Figure B) . Conclusion: Excess ultra-processed food consumption, particularly sugar-sweetened beverages and reconstituted meat, was associated with a substantially higher risk of obesity. Policies and strategies aimed at limiting consumption of harmful ultra-processed food are critical for obesity prevention.

A unified time series classification framework via adaptive Gaussian image representation

Gaps and ways forward in atmospheric blocking and extreme weather research

Abstract WE402: Combining Data Sources to Determine Causes of Out-of-Hospital Sudden Unexpected Deaths

Objective: To describe disease-specific, ill-defined, and discordant causes of death among screened and adjudicated working-age, sudden death victims in Wake County, NC, from 2013–2015. Background: Atherosclerosis is often assumed to be the most common disease-specific cause of sudden death. However, preliminary evidence suggests that sudden death in younger adults may arise from heterogeneous causes. To better characterize these causes, we conducted a descriptive analysis of underlying causes of death among working-age adults in one diverse North Carolina county, using data from death certificates, EMS trip reports, medical records, and autopsy reports. Methods: Out-of-hospital sudden deaths among adults aged 18–64 were identified by EMS screening and adjudicated by three cardiologists as sudden, unexpected, out-of-hospital deaths between 2013 and 2015. Demographic and clinical characteristics were abstracted from death certificates, EMS and medical records, and autopsy reports. Primary causes of death were determined from death certificates and autopsy findings. Results: Among 399 sudden death victims (68% male, 63% White, median age 53.5 ± 9.2 years), half were certified by a medical examiner and half by a physician on the victim’s care team, and 72 (18%) had an autopsy performed. Cardiovascular disease was the underlying cause in 204 cases (51%), of which 144 (71.0%) were attributed to atherosclerosis. Only 56 (15%) had a coronary artery disease diagnosis prior to death, with an additional 6 (1.5%) identified at autopsy. Eighty cases (20%) involved non-natural causes, pre-existing terminal illness (e.g., trauma or malignancy), or imprecise/invalid cause-of-death classifications (e.g., “natural death,” “sudden death,” or “unknown”). There were 42 (11%) victims that died of endocrine-related causes and 32 (8%) that died of pulmonary causes. Twelve cases (3.0%) showed lethal tissue drug levels on autopsy despite normal blood toxicology and no documented drug use in medical records. Conclusion: The underlying causes of sudden death in working-age adults are diverse and not limited to atherosclerosis. Integrating autopsy, clinical, and EMS data can supplement death certificates to help identify sudden death victims and better understand causes of death which is essential to inform prevention strategies aimed at mitigating sudden death.

Abstract TH980: Proteomic Architecture of Early Menopause and Association with Cardiometabolic and Mortality Risk

Background: Early menopause is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease among women. However, the mechanisms underlying this association are not well-understood. We aimed to comprehensively evaluate the proteomic architecture of early menopause and examine the association of a derived proteomic signature with cardiometabolic and mortality risk. Methods: This cohort study included 14,774 post-menopausal women from the UK Biobank. Multivariate-adjusted linear regression was used to identify proteins associated with early menopause (defined as natural or surgical menopause occurring before 45 years of age). A proteomic signature was constructed using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) regression. Associations with incident cardiometabolic diseases [cardiovascular disease (CVD, which included coronary artery disease, stroke, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and peripheral artery disease), diabetes, chronic kidney disease (CKD), and metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD)] and mortality were assessed using multivariable-adjusted Cox models. Results: Among 14,774 postmenopausal women (mean age 59.8 years), 2,964 (20.1%) experienced early menopause. Of 2,911 proteins examined, 67 were significantly associated with early menopause after correcting for multiple testing, mainly involved in pathways and processes related to cellular adhesion, extracellular matrix organization, and tissue remodeling. The proteomic signature of early menopause was associated with greater cardiometabolic risk and mortality (HR ranged from 1.14 to 1.46), with most associations remaining statistically significant even after adjustment for self-reported history of early menopause. Addition of the proteomic signature to clinical models modestly improved their predictive abilities (ΔHarrell’s C-index ranged from +0.003 to +0.013). Conclusions: Early menopause is associated with significant changes in the circulating proteome, which may in turn mediate its relationship with long-term cardiometabolic and mortality risks. Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms underlying these associations and to identify potential novel pathways for personalized prevention and therapeutics in this population.

Optimising pandemic response through vaccination strategies using neural networks

Sweat-pumping cooling fabric for enhanced power generation and comfort

Creating a responsible authorship culture in science: Anchoring authorship practices in principles of transparency, credit, and accountability

Authorship remains the primary currency of academic credit and a cornerstone of research integrity, yet current practices often fail to reflect the collaborative and interdisciplinary nature of modern science and questionable authorship practices persist. We argue that addressing these shortcomings is a collective responsibility shared by researchers, journals, research funders, scholarly societies, and research institutions. We examined authorship guidelines issued by journals and research institutions and found that their recommendations to researchers are highly variable. We propose that fostering a responsible authorship culture requires a shared, principle-based framework grounded in transparency, credit, and accountability. These three interconnected principles highlight when authorship practices are questionable and offer a framework for constructive reflection on the meaning of authorship. We outline practical ways research leaders can embed these principles into everyday practice by initiating early, inclusive, and fair authorship discussions and ensuring transparent description of contributions. Research institutions have a unique opportunity to inculcate good practices and lead this culture change with harmonized guidance, education, fair conflict resolution, and reform of researcher assessment. Anchoring authorship in transparency, credit, and accountability will strengthen the credibility of individual research, the fairness of recognition systems, and, ultimately, the trustworthiness of science itself.

Abstract MPTH62: Midlife Resistance Exercise Behaviors and Incident Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study

Introduction: Heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is now the predominant HF subtype, largely driven by the syndemic of physical inactivity and overweight/obesity in an aging population. Deranged skeletal muscle energetics and regional ectopic adipose depots are key cardiometabolic pathways in the pathogenesis of HFpEF, both of which may be favorably modified by 1-2 hours/week of resistance exercise (RE). However, its association with HFpEF risk has not been thoroughly examined. We investigated the association between midlife RE behaviors and incident HFpEF in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study. Hypothesis: Participation in RE at midlife is inversely associated with the risk of incident HFpEF. Methods: Our exposure (RE)—including weightlifting and bodyweight resistance exercises—was assessed using the validated Baecke questionnaire and reported weekly RE duration was averaged across Visits 1 and 3 (1987-1995). We dichotomized averaged RE as 0 hr/wk (‘No RE’, reference) and >0 hr/wk (‘Any RE’). Our outcome (incident HFpEF) was identified through committee-adjudicated HF hospitalizations (January 1, 2005 to December 31, 2023) using medical chart abstraction. Participants with prevalent HF, death, or loss to follow-up before January 1, 2005 were excluded. We constructed Cox regression models to evaluate the association between midlife RE and incident HFpEF. Model 1 adjusted for age, sex, race, field center, education, smoking status, alcohol consumption, and non-RE physical activity. Given that adiposity may lie on the causal pathway, waist-height ratio (WHtR; both measured in cm) was added in Model 2. Results: 10,751 Black and White participants (803 incident HFpEF cases) were analyzed over a median follow-up time of 14.4 years (mean±SD Visit 1 age, 53.3±5.6 years; average Visit 1 and 3 WHtR, 0.58±0.08; 24.7% Black; 57.4% female). 1,217 participants (11.3%) reported engaging in RE at Visits 1 and/or 3, with a median duration of 0.84 hr/wk (IQR, 0.50-1.61). Compared to No RE, the fully adjusted hazard ratio (HR) for Model 1 for Any RE was: 0.78 (95% CI, 0.61-1.00, P = 0.05). The association was attenuated after adjustment for WHtR: HR = 0.84 (0.65-1.07, P = 0.16). Conclusion: Participation in RE at midlife is associated with a 22% lower risk of incident HFpEF. To inform public health and clinical guidelines, further studies are needed to clarify the role of RE in HFpEF prevention.

Abstract WE486: Cost-Effective Analysis of a Louisiana Community Program Addressing Food Insecurity

The Geaux Get Healthy Clinical Program (GGH) is a program addressing food insecurity through nutritional education and access to resources. Prior studies have shown that GGH is effective in improving food insecurity in an underserved population. The purpose of this research is to conduct an analysis of GGH to determine if it is a cost-effective means for improving food insecurity. Data was collected over 3 years on a subset of GGH participants to screen for food insecurity. 431 participants were enrolled in GGH, 141 were enrolled in the research study, and 79 completed the study. Participants completed USDA long form to determine food insecurity status at enrollment and at 12 weeks upon completion of the program. Success was defined as any individual moving from above 2 to 2 or less. Total GGH program costs were $79,333 annually. A cost-effectiveness model was created to estimate the costs and savings associated with addressing food insecurity via medically tailored meal programs using prior research on food insecurity and its associated monetary impacts on healthcare costs. Over the course of 3 years, the GGH program incurred a total cost of $237,999. Analysis of participant data revealed that 54% of individuals demonstrated success with food insecurity improvement. Over the 3-year study period, 132 completed the program, indicating that 71 of these participants successfully transitioned to a food secure status with a predicted cost of $89,964 or $0.38 per dollar invested. Given the predictive model parameters, it can be calculated that an increase in program participation to 212 participants completing GGH over a 3-year period would allow the program to break even. This means that there is healthcare savings if greater than 70.7 participants complete the program annually. Further, increasing to 292 participants completing GGH over a 3-year period (97.3 participants per year) would engender a net gain in healthcare savings of $90,763. (Figure 1) This data shows that if 71 participants complete the program annually, GGH is a cost-effective means of improving food insecurity. Based on the nominal cost per GGH participant in comparison to cost savings, increasing overall program participation may have a large impact on financial return. Addressing the various barriers that limit program participation (transportation/scheduling issues, healthcare skepticism, low health literacy, etc.) may lead to increased healthcare savings and thus financial success.

Enhancing thermo-mechanical properties of Honckenya fiber-reinforced polypropylene composites: a comparative study of novel potash salt and NaOH treatments

CO2 radiative forcing induces summer cooling over India

Abstract TU164: Educational Attainment and Systolic Blood Pressure Trajectories Among Midlife Women in the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation

Introduction: Hypertension is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Compared to men, women often experience a larger rise in systolic blood pressure (SBP) throughout life and an increased cardiovascular risk at lower SBP. Social factors are associated with blood pressure, but how educational attainment (EA) influences SBP remains unclear. We aimed to examine the association between EA and SBP trajectories in midlife women. Methods: We utilized data from the Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation, an ongoing cohort study with up to 27 years of follow-up. We used locally estimated scatterplot smoothing to plot SBP trajectories, according to levels of EA (≤ high school, > high school and < college degree, and ≥ college degree). We compared baseline SBP and changes in SBP by EA over time using linear mixed models adjusted for baseline age, race/ethnicity, and study site. We assessed the statistical interaction between EA and follow-up time using likelihood ratio tests. Finally, we conducted mediation analyses to evaluate pathways through which EA might influence SBP. Results: We included 3,271 participants with a mean ± SD age of 46.3 ± 2.7 years at baseline; 47.1% were White race, and 42.8% had ≥ college degree ( Table ). EA was inversely related to baseline SBP, and these differences were preserved throughout follow-up ( Figure ). Compared to individuals with ≥ college degree, baseline SBP was 3.7 mm Hg higher [95% CI: (2.6, 4.9), P <0.001] for those with > high school and < college degree, and 4.0 mm Hg higher [95% CI: (2.7, 5.3), P <0.001] for those with ≤ high school degree in adjusted models. Overall, SBP increased by 5.8 mm Hg per 10 years [95% CI: (5.5, 6.1), P <0.001]; however, interaction analysis demonstrated a similar rate of change in SBP across EA groups ( P =0.50). In separate mediation models, income accounted for 15.1% of the association between EA and baseline SBP [95% CI: (3.0, 27.2), P =0.01], BMI 27.2% [95% CI: (11.1, 43.4), P =0.001], and physical activity 8.6% [95% CI: (2.0, 15.3), P =0.01]. Conclusion: In this longitudinal analysis of midlife women, EA was inversely associated with baseline SBP – partly through income, BMI, and physical activity -- but the rate of change was similar over time. These results suggest that the contribution of EA to SBP manifests early in life and persists throughout midlife. Interventions to control blood pressure in early adulthood are essential to reduce disparities in hypertension by EA.

Abstract TU272: When "Enough" Sleep Isn't Enough: Low Concordance and Hidden Sleep Deficits among Parents and Children

Introduction: Parental sleep quality (total duration and latency - the duration it takes to fall asleep) can affect parental health and their child’s sleep behaviors. However, most studies fail to measure sleep latency and have not looked at the concordance of sleep quality between parent-child dyads. This study examined parental and child sleep behaviors, the concordance of these behaviors, and evaluated the associations between sleep health and other health indicators in families from low-income households. Hypotheses: We hypothesized that most parents and children met sleep quality recommendations, dyads were highly concordant in meeting guidelines, and parents who met guidelines had optimal cardiovascular health (CVH). Methods: Data from 195 parents and their 6–11-year-olds recruited from a pediatric academic medical center were analyzed. Sleep health was measured via parent report through the validated RU-SATED and Life's Essential 8 survey. Concordance was met if both parent and child dyads met sleep duration and latency guidelines for their age. CVH was measured through the AHA’s Life's Essentials 8 metric. Pearson chi-squared tests were used to determine the association between parental sleep latency, duration, and CVH indices. Results: Most parents were female (n= 192) with a mean (±SD) age of 32.0 (±7.8) years. About half (54%) of the parents reported sleeping 7–9 hours and reported taking <30 minutes to fall asleep nightly (latency, 56.6%). Among children, 83% met their recommended sleep duration; 30% met the recommended latency. However, parental-child concordance was low: Only 12% and 43% of dyads met guidelines for sleep duration and latency, respectively (Table 2). There were no statistically significant associations between parent meeting sleep duration and latency recommendations and self-reported CVH metrics or family history of cardiovascular disease (Table 3). Conclusion: Few parents and children met sleep guidelines, both in terms of duration and latency. While our study did not show a relationship between parental sleep duration or latency and CVH metrics, this may be due to the small sample size. Providers should consider screening for all metrics of sleep quality to optimize sleep health. Future studies should use objective measures, follow participants longitudinally, and examine contextual factors to address systemic barriers to healthy sleep.

Intradiscal platelet-rich plasma for discogenic low back pain: a prospective cohort study of early clinical outcomes and quantitative MRI findings

Text embedding models yield detailed conceptual knowledge maps derived from short multiple-choice quizzes

Abstract Real-world conceptual knowledge is complex, multifaceted, and substantially over-simplified in most laboratory studies. Here we develop a mathematical framework, based on natural language processing models, for tracking and characterizing the acquisition of real-world conceptual knowledge. Our approach embeds each concept in a high-dimensional representation space where nearby coordinates reflect similar or related concepts. We test our approach using behavioral data from participants who answered small sets of multiple-choice quiz questions interleaved between watching two Khan Academy course videos. We apply our framework to the videos’ transcripts and the text of the quiz questions to quantify the content of each moment of video and each quiz question. We use these embeddings, along with participants’ quiz responses, to track how the learners’ knowledge changed after watching each video and predict their success on individual quiz questions. Our findings show how a small set of quiz questions may be used to obtain rich and meaningful insights into what each learner knows, and how their knowledge changes over time as they learn.

Abstract TU223: Factors Associated with Mother’s Sleep Duration and Quality at 6-8 Weeks, and 4, 6 and 12 Months Postpartum

During the first year postpartum, women experience suboptimal sleep duration and poor sleep quality. Most previous studies examining factors influencing sleep did not consider the dynamic nature in this period. We hypothesize that factors associated with the mother’s sleep change during this period. Methods: Women who gave birth to a singleton infant at ≥37 weeks gestation participated in the study (n=81). Participants wore an Actiwatch Spectrum Plus on their wrist at 6-8 weeks, 4 months, 6 months, and 12 months postpartum for one week to assess sleep. Covariates were assessed at each time point including sociodemographic and psychosocial variables, factors related to providing night care, physical activity (by hip-worn actigraphy), and weight retention (weight minus pre-pregnancy weight). Multiple linear regression models with night sleep duration (TSTnt) or percent sleep (Psleep, percentage of epochs scored as sleep in the night sleep interval) as the dependent variable were run for each time point. The initial model included covariates with moderate or stronger bivariate association with the dependent variable. The independent variable with the weakest correlation was subsequently eliminated, and the model was re-run until no variables can be dropped (p ≥ 0.15). Results: TSTnt was 410±62 (mean±SD), 404±54, 408±53 and 414±47 minutes at the four timepoints, respectively. Associated factors included weight retention, sleep start time, Psleep, chronotype, and whether back to work at 6-8 weeks, race and sleep start time at 4 months, race, total activity, sedentary time, and self-reported sleep quality at 6 months, and race, sleep start time, and whether providing night care at 12 months. Psleep at night was 86.6±4.8, 89.4±4.0, 89.7±4.2, and 91.1±3.7% at the four timepoints, respectively. Associated factors included TSTnt, sedentary time, household income, first time giving birth, infant wake ups at night, housing type, environmental noise, relationship status, and breastfeeding at night at 6-8 weeks, nighttime sleep, environmental noise, and breastfeeding at night at 4 months, and night sleep time, infant wakeups at night, and housing type at 6 months, and none at 12 months. Conclusions: Factors associated with TSTnt and Psleep are dynamic in the postpartum period, with different factors influencing sleep duration versus quality. Behavioral factors, such as time going to sleep and sedentary time could be intervention targets to improve postpartum women’s sleep.

Abstract WE575: Trends and Disparities in Influenza Vaccination Among Adults with Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease in the United States, 2005-2024

Background: Individuals with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) have an increased risk of cardiovascular morbidity, mortality, and hospitalization from influenza infection. Despite current guidelines recommending the annual influenza vaccine in those with established ASCVD, national estimates of contemporary trends and disparities in this high-risk group remain understudied. Methods: Using 20 years (2005-2024) of serial, cross-sectional data from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), we included adults aged ≥18 years with a self-reported history of ASCVD (including prior myocardial infarction, stroke, angina, or coronary heart disease) and complete data on receipt of influenza vaccination (yes/no) within the past year. We used multivariable logistic regression to examine the association between influenza vaccination status and selected sociodemographic characteristics and produced adjusted odds ratios (aOR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Survey weights were applied to ascertain nationally representative estimates. Results: The sample included 56,551 adults with ASCVD (median age: 69.0 years; 44.1% female), of which 39.1% lacked influenza vaccination, representing approximately 7.5 million individuals annually. While vaccination rates increased 9.5 percentage points (from 50.8% to 60.3%) during the 20-year study period, significant disparities persisted over time. Specifically, non-Hispanic Black individuals (aOR, 1.27 [95% CI, 1.20-1.35]), those with a lower level of education (aOR, 1.16 [95% CI, 1.11-1.20]), low income (aOR, 1.24 [95% CI, 1.19-1.29]), no insurance (aOR, 2.38 [95% CI, 2.15-2.64]), non-US-born immigrant status (aOR, 1.25 [95% CI, 1.15-1.35]), and without a usual source of care (aOR, 2.74 [95% CI, 2.45-3.07]) had an increased adjusted odds of lacking influenza vaccination compared to the respective reference groups. In 2024, the groups with the highest proportion of individuals lacking the influenza vaccine were adults aged 45-54 years (65.0%), those without insurance coverage (73.0%), and without a usual source of care (73.5%). Conclusions: Despite modest progress over the last two decades, more than 1 in 3 adults with ASCVD lack influenza vaccination with significant disparities persisting over time. Further public health policies and interventions are needed to improve equitable access to influenza vaccines and enhance the implementation of vaccination programs among high-risk populations experiencing disparities.

Optimizing water use efficiency of sprouting broccoli through irrigation and nitrogen management under drip irrigation in semi-arid condition