Int J Med Sci
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Objective: Due to high levels of serum gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), perimenopausal or menopausal women, girls with central precocious puberty, women of polycystic ovary syndrome, and females receiving long-term GnRH agonist (GnRHa) treatment are at substantially higher risk of developing obesity. However, it remains poorly understood how GnRH affects body weight. Here, we explored whether the gonadotropin-releasing hormone receptor (GnRHR) was expressed in adipocytes and how GnRHR mediated lipid accumulation and the development of obesity. ⋯ GnRHa stimulates the proliferation of HPA-s, promotes adipocyte maturation, increases the formation of lipid droplets in mature adipocytes, and inhibits the activation of the AMPK pathway in adipocytes. Our findings may elucidate the mechanism of obesity in these female populations and provide some evidence on how GnRH contributes to obesity. Additionally, these results provide theoretical support for further research on the mechanisms of obesity, thus enhancing our understanding of the functional diversity of GnRH and establishing a new theoretical basis for the impact of GnRH on metabolism.
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Vocal fold nodules (VFNs) are the most frequent cause of hoarseness. The management comprised medical, surgical and physical therapy but the effectiveness is not always satisfactory. In this study, we try to figure out an alternative treatment from our clinical experience summary. ⋯ In the MTT assay of PVFE cells, no adverse effects of our extracts were observed at doses of 1-200 µg/mL. Western blot analysis revealed downregulation of p65 and mitogen activated protein kinase pathway proteins. The results from both the clinical and in vitro aspects of this study revealed that the herbs G. glabra and P. grandiflorus may offer beneficial outcomes as alternative treatments for VFNs after precise diagnosis.
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Background: Few studies have investigated the association between muscle mass and bone mineral density (BMD) in patients undergoing peritoneal dialysis (PD). We aimed to investigate the association between muscle mass or strength and BMD in patients undergoing PD. Methods: The data of all prevalent PD cases at a tertiary medical center between September 2017 and November 2020 were collected. ⋯ The association between BMD and HGS was more definitive in female patients than in male patients (r = 0.357 and P = 0.001). Univariate and mutivariate linear regression and AUROC analyses showed similar trends those obtained in correlation analyses. Conclusion: The present study demonstrated that BMD is associated with the ALM index in male patients and with HGS in female patients undergoing PD.
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Background and aims: The miRNA-based post-transcription modification has been extensively studied in hypertension. It however remains elusive how miRNA expression is regulated in this pathological process. We hypothesize that hydroxymethylation in the promoter regions tightly controls the levels of key miRNAs, which in turn affects the development of hypertension. ⋯ Conclusions: Our study suggested that hydroxymethylation in the promoter regions controlled the level of miR-3571 and revealed the important roles of miR-3571 and CLDN1 in VSMCs during the development of hypertension. In addition, our results also indicated that miR-3571/CLDN1 axis regulated the functions of VSMCs via the ERK1/2 pathway. Taken together, our findings support miR-3571 as a novel biomarker for the diagnosis and prevention of hypertension.
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Esophageal cancer (EC) is a highly malignant gastrointestinal tumor, and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) is one of the most common histological types of EC. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs closely related to tumorigenesis and tumor progression. In addition, Nestin is an intermediate filament protein (class VI) and contributes to the progression of numerous tumors. ⋯ Moreover, miR-204-5p regulated Nestin to inhibit ESCC cell proliferation detected by the colony formation assay and promote ESCC cell apoptosis identified using the flow cytometry and TUNEL assay. Furthermore, miR-204-5p suppressed tumorigenesis in vivo evaluated by the murine xenograft tumor model. In conclusion, these results indicated that miR-204-5p inhibited cell proliferation and induced cell apoptosis in ESCC through targeting Nestin, which might provide novel therapeutic targets for ESCC therapy.