Heterogeneity between late-onset Parkinson’s disease (LOPD) and early-onset Parkinson’s disease (EOPD) is mainly reflected in the following aspects including genetics, disease progression, drug response, clinical manifestation, and neuropathological change. Although many studies have investigated these differences in relation to clinical significance, the functional processing circuits and underlying neural mechanisms have not been entirely understood. In this study, regional homogeneity (ReHo) and amplitude of low-frequency fluctuation (ALFF) maps were used to explore different spontaneous brain activity patterns in EOPD and LOPD patients. Abnormal synchronizations were found in the motor and emotional circuits of the EOPD group, as well as in the motor, emotional, and visual circuits of the LOPD group. EOPD patients showed functional activity change in the visual, emotional and motor circuits, and LOPD patients only showed increased functional activity in the emotional circuits. In summary, the desynchronization process in the LOPD group was relatively strengthened, and the brain areas with changed functional activity in the EOPD group were relatively widespread. The results might point out different impairments in the synchronization and functional activity for EOPD and LOPD patients. Copyright © 2020 Yue, Jiang, Shen, Pu, Lai and Zhang.Giant axonal neuropathy (GAN) is a very rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by abnormally large and dysfunctional neuronal axons. Mutations in the GAN gene have been identified as the cause of this disorder. In this report, we performed a detailed phenotypic assessment of a Chinese patient with GAN. An array-based exon capture test and targeted next-generation sequencing were used to detect the suspected mutation sites. Compound heterozygous mutations of p.S79L (c.236C > T) in the BTB domain and p.T489S (c.1466C > G) in the kelch domain were identified in the proband’s genome. S79L was a known mutation, and T489S was reported for the first time. The p.S79L and p.T489S were confirmed in the proband’s mother and father, respectively. Both mutations were located in highly conserved regions and affected the predicted protein crystal structures. The proband’s sural biopsy revealed the classical GAN phenotype of swollen axons filled with closely packed neurofilaments. The combined application of the next-generation sequencing platform and bioinformatics analyses was an effective method for diagnosing GAN. The novel compound mutations of S79L and T489S in the GAN gene were likely the cause of the patient’s GAN symptoms. Our findings enrich the spectrum of mutations associated with this rare type of axonopathy. Copyright © 2020 Xu, Yang, Su, Wang, Li, Sun, Wang, Chen, Zhang, Zhang, Jin and Zheng.Filling a gap in our understanding of how senior citizens use information and communication technologies (ICTs), we identified several profiles of technology communication use among European seniors (aged 65+). These profiles include Digitally immersed communicators, Asynchronous communicators and Phone enjoyers. We outline the importance of a broader distinction, one that surpasses the non-user and user dichotomy, and explores the singularities of the seniors who overcome the challenge of adopting and using ICT. We consider the digital divide concept as a starting point for the theoretical background that we reviewed in order to explain the process through which senior citizens accept and adopt this technology. Analysing data gathered within the Eurobarometer (Standard Eurobarometer 84 Autumn 2015-media use in the European Union. https//dbk.gesis.org/dbksearch/sdesc2.asp?no=6642, 2015), we applied K-Means Cluster analysis and discriminant analysis in order to identify three types of older Internet users. We run the analysis on a sample of 4404 respondents aged between 65 and 99 years. Our results help with increasing the adequacy of Digital Single Market policies for European seniors, as well as with more suitably targeting senior for social care and medical care programmes in the digital environment. Providing suggestions for further research, we argue for an in-depth classification of ICT users, based on characteristics such as gender, education, ethnicity or social class. © Springer Nature B.V. 2019.In times of demographic change, psychotherapists tend to stay longer in their jobs. Against the background of two contradictory age stereotypes (wise/generous versus senile/outdated old person), this analogue study investigates young adults’ preference for old over young psychotherapists, depending on presenting problem. In a within-subjects design, therapy-motivated young female participants (N = 79) received two kinds of hypothetical presenting problems, 'universal problems’ (addressing fundamental questions of life virulent across the adult life span) and 'young problems’ (life events that are developmentally close to and specific for young adulthood in today’s world). For each presenting problem, participants were presented with two naturalistic photographs of an old (55 + years) and a young ( less then  35 years) female psychotherapist; in a two-alternative forced choice decision task, participants were then asked to decide whom of the two psychotherapists they would prefer. Participants had neither an overall preference for old nor for young psychotherapists. As expected, we found a preference for old psychotherapists in case of 'universal problems’ (friend’s death, natural disaster, quarreling with one’s past). In turn, a preference for young psychotherapists was observed in case of 'young problems’ (cyberbullying, paternalizing parents, lovesickness). Effect size was medium-to-large. Organizations that provide services to younger people may want to inquire about a patient’s preference about age of a therapist prior to treatment. As catering to patient’s preferences for therapy has been shown to lead to better engagement and therapy outcomes, health care providers should try to meet the patient’s needs. © Springer Nature B.V. 2019.Typically, grandmothers are actively involved in the lives of their grandchildren, most frequently as care providers. At the same time, these individuals become grandparents while still employed. These two roles-of active grandparent and worker-might conflict, since both demand time and energy. This study examines whether the birth of the first grandchild leads to labour market withdrawal for women, and whether there are differences between grandmothers according to their work history and household economic resources. We considered the work history of women both as a measure of work-family preferences and a source of opportunities and constraints to labour market behaviour later in life. Our analyses of data from the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing (ELSA) 2002-2017 using hybrid logistic models show that the probability of labour market withdrawal increases after the birth of the first grandchild. Women who had continuous working careers, or short employment interruptions, were more likely to withdraw from the labour market after the birth of the first grandchild than their counterparts with non-continuous careers, as well as women living in wealthy households. The explanation lies in the lower opportunity cost these women encounter in withdrawing from the labour market. Our findings relate to policies aimed at increasing retirement ages all over Europe, advocating that these measures could conflict with grandmothers’ involvement in their grandchildren’s lives. © The Author(s) 2019.We use 2012 data on economically developed countries from the International Social Survey Program to examine variation in „cultural norms” (at the world region and country levels) and „attitudes” (at the individual level) regarding the appropriate roles of family members and formal providers in both the provision and financing of assistance with daily activities at home. Our analysis has two parts (1) a descriptive analysis of differences in cultural norms by world region and country (N = 25 countries) and (2) a multilevel multinomial logistic regression analysis of the importance of country-level factors in explaining individuals’ elder support attitudes (N = 21 countries). In the descriptive analysis, we find substantial variation in cultural norms both between world regions and between countries within all world regions except for the Nordic countries. The multilevel regression analysis points to the importance of two sets of country-level factors-„macrostructural factors” and „cultural-contextual factors”-in explaining individuals’ elder support attitudes. With regard to macrostructural factors, we find, consistent with our hypotheses, greater support for „publicly financed formal assistance” (i.e., the financing of formal assistance is supported by public funds) in countries with higher spending on services. The effects of the cultural-contextual factors are mostly consistent with our hypotheses and suggest the importance of taking into account the wider religious and political context in explaining individuals’ elder support attitudes. We conclude with a discussion of the social scientific and social policy implications of our findings. © The Author(s) 2019.With increased longevity and socio-structural as well as socio-cultural changes, ageing research has shown a growing diversity of patterns in retirement lifestyles (Scherger et al. in Ageing Soc 31146-172, 2011. 10.1017/s0144686x10000577). The transition from work to retirement is of particular interest to the study of the everyday lives, leisure activities and lifestyles of older adults, as questions on the meaning of work and leisure, activity and productivity are re-negotiated. This paper addresses the questions how are the everyday lives of older adults re-organised when work vanishes? Are there lifestyles that are more easily maintained through retirement, whereas others are more prone to change? And which patterns of social inequalities underlie these processes? Drawing on data from the GTUS, this paper discusses similarities and differences in the time allocation of older working and non-working adults aged 55+ years (matched sample). Results show that the time spent on work is primarily taken up by household chores, media use and personal activities. Hierarchical cluster analysis identifies four activity clusters resp. lifestyles among the 55+ (1) a passive leisure lifestyle, (2) an active leisure lifestyle, (3) a paid work-centred lifestyle and (4) a housework-centred lifestyle. None of the clusters, however, comprised exclusively working or non-working older adults. The active leisure cluster comprised an equal share of working and non-working persons, suggesting that this kind of lifestyle allows for stronger continuity across work and retirement. It was more easily obtained by higher educated women who live separated from their partners. © Springer Nature B.V. 2019.Women experience greater longevity than men, but have poorer health, although sex differences vary across health measures and geographical regions. We aim to examine sex differences in Activities of Daily Living (ADL) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADL) over age across European regions in a cross-sectional setting including 51,292 men and 62,007 women aged 50+ from a pooled sample of waves 1 (2004-2005) to 6 (2015) in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. ADL and IADL were dichotomised into no limitations and at least one limitation. Binomial regression models were used to estimate absolute and relative sex differences. Women had higher risk than men of ADL limitations (RR = 1.21, 95% CI 1.16; 1.27) and IADL limitations (RR = 1.54, 95% CI 1.48; 1.60), corresponding to risk differences of 1.3% and 5.7%, respectively. When we stratified by age groups and regions, sex differences in ADL were found in all age groups in Southern Europe, in the age groups 65-79 years and 80+ years in Western and Eastern Europe, and from the age of 80 in Northern Europe.