Internal medicine
-
A lower frequency for the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ coactivator 1α (PPARGC1A) Ser482 allele has been reported in elite-level endurance athletes among Caucasians, although this gene polymorphism has not been found to be associated with aerobic capacity in German, Dutch or Chinese populations. The purpose of the current study was to examine the associations between the Gly482Ser polymorphism and aerobic fitness in 112 Japanese middle-aged men. ⋯ The current results suggest that the PPARGC1A Ser482 allele is associated with a higher aerobic capacity in Japanese middle-aged men.
-
Although a relationship between post-challenge hyperglycemia and arterial stiffness has been reported, the relationship between the postprandial glucose levels and cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) in non-diabetic subjects is not clear. This study thus evaluated the association between the postprandial glucose levels after a composite meal and the degree of arterial stiffness measured according to CAVI in non-diabetic subjects. ⋯ This study demonstrated that the 1-hour postprandial glucose levels are associated with increased CAVI values in non-diabetic men and older women 50 years of age or older.
-
The aim of this study was to clarify the indications for oral glucose tolerance tests (OGTT) in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) subjects with a HbA1c level of ≤6.4%, fasting plasma glucose (FPG) level of <126 mg/dL and no history of diabetes. ⋯ NAFLD subjects with IFG and an HbA1c level of 5.7-6.4% should undergo OGTT in order to determine whether they have diabetes and/or abnormal insulin dynamics.
-
Genetic variation is thought to contribute to the etiology of hypertension, and E-selectin is a candidate essential hypertension-associated gene. ⋯ Meanwhile, the haplotype TCC in the Han hypertensive patients and the haplotype GGC in the Mongolian patients had independent effects in increasing the risk for EH and maybe used as risk factors for predicting high blood pressure. However, the haplotype ACA had an independent effect in decreasing the risk of hypertension and may be protective in normotensive subjects in the Han population. Therefore, multiple SNPs in combination in SELE may confer a risk of hypertension.
-
Rapid eye movement (REM)-related sleep disordered breathing (SDB) is an entity in which the cessation or reduction of breathing occurs primarily during the REM period. Most studies have shown that REM-related SDB more frequently affects women, younger people and patients with mild or moderate SDB. The aim of this study was to prospectively investigate the prevalence and features of REM-related SDB in Japanese subjects compared with the findings of previous reports. ⋯ The present findings suggest that REM-related SDB may have different clinical characteristics in the Japanese population than that observed in previous reports.