Distribution and Endocrine Morphology of Polypeptide YY (PYY) Containing Cells in the Human Gut

Using human materials, the distribution of PYY containing cells was determined by immunocytochemical methods and discussion was made on their morphological endocrinology. PYY cells were fairly numerous in the lower gastrointestinal tract of man, particularly in the colon and rectum. The cells were also present in the pancreas and duodenum but quite rarely. PYY cells were not observed at all in the lower part of the esophagus, stomach and gall bladder. Their peculiar and characteristic shapes as well as distribution suggest that PYY may have some action (probably specific) on the function of the distal gastrointestinal tract

Endocrine Profile in Rats with Postgastrectomy Malabsorption: a Pilot Study

Abnormal endocrine profile, especially in the enteropancreatic axis, was described in rats with malnutrition caused by malabsorption after total gastrectomy. Insulin, substance P and motilin concentrations at the fasting condition were significantly elevated in malnutritious rats after total gastrectomy when compared to those in control rats. A significant elevation of pancreatic glucagon and motilin was noted after intraduodenal fat administration in malnutritious rats. These data suggest that these peptides of many humoral factors may thus cause abnormal enteropancreatic axis and consequent malnutrition

Relationship between an Angiotensinogen Gene Polymorphism (M235T) and Serum Lipids: A Cross-Sectional Study among Japanese Workers

Angiotensinogen (AGT) is a component of the renin-angiotensin system, which plays a central role in blood pressure regulation. Although it is controversial, the association between AGT gene polymorphisms and hypertension, and coronary heart disease is suspected. In a case-control study on the metabolic syndrome, an association between AGT M235T polymorphism and serum total cholesterol (TC) level was demonstrated by Thomas et al. (2001). To reconfirm this relationship, a cross-sectional study among Japanese workers with 876 dyslipidemia and 1,158 non-dyslipidemia subjects was carried out. To evaluate the AGT M235T polymorphism, a PCR-mutant allele specific amplification (MASA) method was employed. No significant difference in the distribution of genetic variance was observed between the two groups. Although it was not significant, the T allele correlating to the lower TC of the present study occurred in a reversed manner to the previous report. In our results, no significant association between AGT M235T and TC was observed

An out-of-lab trial: a case example for the effect of intensive exercise on rhythms of human clock gene expression

Background: Although out-of-lab investigation of the human circadian clock at the clock gene expression level remains difficult, a recent method using hair follicle cells might be useful. While exercise may function as an entrainment cue for circadian rhythms, it remains unclear whether exercise affects human circadian clock gene expression. Methods: Efforts to observe apparent effects of exercise on clock gene expression require that several specific conditions be met: intense exercise should be habitually performed at a relatively uncommon time of day over an extended period; and any relative phase shift thereby observed should be validated by comparison of exercise and no-exercise periods. Wake-up and meal times should be kept almost constant over the experimental period. The present study was conducted using a professional fighter who met these strict criteria as subject. Facial hair samples were collected at 4-h intervals around the clock to ascertain rhythms of clock gene expression. Results: During a period in which nighttime training (from 20:00 to 22:00) was habitually performed, circadian clock gene expression was phase-delayed by 2 to 4 h compared with that during a no-exercise period. Maximum level and circadian amplitude of clock gene expression were not affected by the nighttime training. Conclusion: Our trial observations illustrate the possibility that heavy physical exercise might strongly affect the circadian phase of clock gene expression. Exercise might be therefore effective for the clinical care of circadian disorders. The results also suggest that athletes may require careful scheduling of heavy physical exercise to maintain normal circadian phase and ensure optimal athletic performance

Induction of Experimental Atrophic Gastritis by N-Methyl-N'-Nitro-N-Nitrosoguanidine or Taurocholic Acid in Donryu Rats

The morphology of the rat (Donryu) gastric mucosa was examined by light microscopy after administration of N-methyl-N'-nitro-N-nitrosoguanidine (MNNG) or taurocholic acid (TCA), a component of bile acids. MNNG was given to rats ad libitum from light-sealed bottles for 5 months and deionized water was given freely for 6 months thereafter. TCA was administered to rats freely for 11 months. Deionized water was given to rats as control (non-treated rats). Rats treated with MNNG or TCA and control rats were killed at 11 months after the beginning of the experiment. Using 3 micron tissue samples taken from the area of the gastric mucosa designated before the experiment, hematoxylin and eosin and azan stain were made for histopathological evaluation and fibrosis. Marked atrophic changes, such as reduction in the number of parietal cells, shortened mucosa! length, inflammaotry cell infiltration, and proliferation of fibrosis, were present in the gastric mucosa of rats treated with MNNG as well as TCA. These findings were typical for atrophic gastritis. Such atrophic changes were slight in the gastric mucosa of the control rats. The frequency of tumourous lesions was very low in MNNG-treated rats. We have concluded on the basis of the present data that MNNG as well as TCA can induce atrophic gastritis in Donryu rats

Gastrin and Somatostatin in Patients with Hyperchlorhydric Duodenal Ulcer

Hormonal and morphological studies were conducted to ascertain the role played by gastrin and somatostatin in the pathophysiology of duodenal ulcer, in particular hyperchlorhydric duodenal ulcer, using 35 patients with duodenal ulcer, of whom 15 were hyperchlorhydric and 20 were normochlorhydric. Twenty normal subjects with normochlorhydria were used as a control. In patients with hyperchlorhydric duodenal ulcer following significant findings were observed: 1. Basal and stimulated hyperchlorhydria, 2. Parietal cell hyperplasia, 3. Basal hypergastrinemia, 4. Increased concentration of gastrin and large number of G cells (G cell hyperplasia) in the antral mucosa. 5. Mucosal concentration of somatostatin and D cells in the antrum was reduced, but the former in patients with hyperchlorhydric duodenal ulcer was not different from that in patients with normoacidic duodenal ulcer. 6. A significant correlation in mucosal concentration was demonstrated between gastrin and somatostatin in control subjects but not in patients with duodenal ulcer. 7. There was a significant correlation in maximal acidity in gastric secretion and mucosal concentration of antral somatostatin in control subjects but not in patients with duodenal ulcer. 8. Concentration of plasma somatostatin in patients with duodenal ulcer was not different from that in control subjects. These findings indicate that gastrin and somatostatin may participate in the pathophysiology of duodenal ulcer, at least in the subgroup of duodenal ulcer associated with hyperchlorhydria, and the subgroup of duodenal ulcer may be an endocrine disorder

Association of the Trp64Arg Mutation of the β3-Adrenergic Receptor with Diabetes Mellitus, Impaired Glucose Tolerance and Lifestyle in Japanese Workers

In order to investigate whether the Trp64Arg (a missense mutation of tryptophan for arginine at position 64 codon) polymorphism of the β3-adrenergic receptor (β3-AR) gene is related to the incidence of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), a retrospective cohort study among Japanese workers was conducted. The subjects were Japanese workers at an occupational site in Shimane Prefecture. Informed consent was obtained from 492 workers. The baseline data were obtained at the regular health examination in 1992 and a retrospective cohort study was performed for analyzing the incidence of NIDDM and IGT in 1998. The Trp64Arg polymorphism β3-AR gene for each worker was detected by the single strand conformation polymerase analysis. Relative risks were calculated by the logistic regression analysis. The rates of Trp64Trp (TT), Trp64Arg (TA) and Arg64Arg (AA) genotypes were 66.3%, 31.1% and 2.6%, respectively. The relative risk of (TA + AA) against TT for the incidence of NIDDM and IGT by univariate analysis was 1.37 (95% incidence of NIDDM and IGT adjusted for confounders in a multiple logistic regression model including age, gender, family history, body mass index, alcohol consumption, eating habits and exercise was 1.31 (95% confidence interval, 0.65-2.67). The present findings suggested that a weak association between Trp64Arg polymorphism of the β3-AR gene and the incidence of NIDDM and IGT