Plasma homocysteine and folate are related to arterial blood pressure in type 2 diabetes mellitus

The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between homocysteine (tHcy), folate and vitamin B12levels, urinary albumin excretion, and arterial blood pressure in patients with noninsulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM). Our study was carried out in 33 NIDDM patients (16 men, 17 women) and 16 healthy volunteers as controls (seven men, nine women). Fasting and postmethionine load plasma tHcy levels were assessed, together with folate, vitamin B12, and urinary albumin excretion levels. In NIDDM patients, there were correlations between folate and mean arterial pressure (r = -0.352, P = .046), folate and systolic blood pressure (r = -0.437, P = .013), folate and vitamin B12(r = 0.499, P = .004), tHcy and vitamin B12(r = -0.348, P = .04), In tHcy and In folate (r = -0.404, P = .01), and, lastly, between tHcy, either fasting or postload, and urinary albumin excretion. Patients with elevated tHcy levels had significantly higher diastolic blood pressure (P = .04) and mean arterial pressure (P = .03). Otherwise, higher folate values were associated with lower systolic blood pressure (P = .004) and mean arterial pressure (P = .02). In addition, NIDDM patients with complications presented higher tHcy basal values than the group without complications (P = .003). A particular propensity of such patients towards endothelial dysfunction could explain the presence of correlations between these metabolic parameters and arterial blood pressure

Revista de estilos de aprendizaje

Resumen basado en el de la publicaciónSe analizan algunas variables que permiten aportar elementos con vista a una aproximación del perfil socio-académico y cognitivo de los alumnos que cursan la asignatura Bioestadística. Además, la Teoría de los Estilos de Aprendizaje de C. M. Alonso, D. J. Gallego y P. Honey y la aplicación de su instrumento de diagnóstico: el CHAEA (Cuestionario Honey-Alonso de Estilos de Aprendizaje) ha permitido vincular los Estilos de Aprendizaje con variables tales como: género, rendimiento académico y formación obtenida en el ciclo medio. Del análisis resulta la individualización de grupos de alumnos con características similares en las distintas variables consideradas.MadridES

Anthropometric or ultrasonic measurements in assessment of visceral fat. A comparative study

The main aim of the study (study 1) was to compare the accuracy of anthropometric and ultrasonic measurements in assessing the amount of visceral adipose tissue. An additional aim (study 2) was to verify ultrasound technique precision. Study 1: using computed tomography (CT) L4-L5 adipose tissue area as a gold standard we compared the accuracy of waist/hip circumference ratio, sagittal diameter and ultrasonic measurements of intra-abdominal depth in assessing the amount of visceral adipose tissue. Study 2: ultrasonic measurements of the intra-abdominal muscle-vertebra distance were made in triplicate by three different operators. In study 1, 24 volunteers were used; body mass index (BMI): 19-43. In study 2, 22 volunteers were used; BMI 20-42. In study 1, ultrasonic measurements of the abdominal depth correlated best with CT visceral adipose tissue area (r = 0.89-0.91). In study 2, inter-operator and intra-operator mean variation coefficients were about 7% and 5% respectively. We concluded that using a well standardized technique and properly trained operators, ultrasonic measurement of intra-abdominal depth is a valid method in assessing the amount of visceral adipose tissue

Soluble antiapoptotic molecules and immune activation in chronic heart failure and unstable angina pectoris

Programmed myocyte cell death and activation of the immune system have been shown to occur in patients with congestive heart failure. Besides, unstable angina episodes are likely to be associated with immune activation. Our aim was to evaluate the role of changes in circulating levels of soluble Fas (sFas), suggestive of an enhanced inhibitory response to ongoing apoptosis, and soluble IL2 receptor (sIL2-R), indicative of T-lymphocyte activation, in chronic heart failure and unstable angina pectoris. Thirty patients affected by chronic heart failure (20 idiopathic and 10 ischemic cardiomyopathy) and 13 patients with unstable angina were evaluated. Twenty healthy individuals matched for age and gender were used as controls. A complete biochemical determination of indexes of myocardial damage including cardiac troponin I (cTnI) and creatine kinase (MB/CK) was performed. The results demonstrated that mean levels of sFas and sIL2-R were significantly increased in patients affected by chronic heart failure and unstable angina and were not associated with changes in renal function or with serum levels of cTnI. Highest values of sFas were found in NYHA class IV patients (IV NYHA class = 7.39 +/- 0.52 vs. controls = 1.34 +/- 0.12 ng/ml; P < 0.01) and more elevated in idiopathic than in ischemic cardiomyopathy (3.64 +/- 0.40 vs. 1.82 +/- 0.37 ng/ml; P < 0.01). Moreover, in chronic heart failure patients sFas and ejection fraction were negatively correlated (P = 0.01), whereas sFas and sIL2-R were positively correlated (P < 0.01). In unstable angina patients too, sFas and sIL2-R appeared to be correlated (P = 0.03); whereas sFas (angina group = 3.18 +/- 0.39 vs. controls = 1.34 +/- 0.12 ng/ml; P < 0.01) and sIL2-R (angina group = 0.46 +/- 0.11 vs. controls = 0.00 UI/ml; P < 0.01) were higher in angina group than in controls. In most of the cases, the increase of sFas was associated with comparable changes in sIL2-R serum levels, indicating that the activation of Fas system is strictly associated with autoimmune-inflammatory reactions. This phenomenon, both in chronic heart failure and in unstable angina, occurs in the absence of biochemical evidences of myocardial damage and seems to parallel the activation of T cell. Soluble Fas could have a role in sustaining inflammatory response and in prolonging the detrimental effects correlated with it in chronic heart failure and angina pectoris

Fasting and post-methionine load homocyst(e)ine values are correlated with microalbuminuria and could contribute to worsening vascular damage in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus patients

The study aim was to assess the relationship between homocyst(e)inemia and microalbuminuria in non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) patients. The study was performed on 33 NIDDM patients (16 males and 17 females), and 16 healthy control subjects (seven males and nine females). Plasma fasting and post-methionine load homocyst(e)ine (tHcy), together with other parameters that could modify tHcy levels, were assessed. There were no significant differences between NIDDM patients and controls for fasting tHcy (8.12 +/- 3.17 v 7.19 +/- 2.40 micromol/L) and post-methionine load tHcy (26.51 +/- 11.50 v 25.06 +/- 10.76 micromol/L). Moreover, there was a significant correlation between urinary albumin excretion (UAE) and fasting tHcy (r = .340, P = .05) and post-methionine load tHcy (r = .502, P = .004) in NIDDM patients. Fasting tHcy was correlated both with post-methionine load tHcy (r = .429, P = .01) and with vitamin B12 (r = -.349, P = .04) in NIDDM patients. Microalbuminuric NIDDM patients had higher fasting tHcy (9.05 +/- 3.83 micromol/L) than normoalbuminurics (7.12 +/- 1.95 micromol/L). In addition, NIDDM patients with complications presented higher fasting tHcy values than the group without complications (9.61 +/- 3.34 v 6.53 +/- 2.09 micromol/L, Kolmogorov-Smirnov two-sample test for nonparametric data [KS] = 1.794, P = .003), without any other significant differences in the parameters considered. tHcy could be an important risk factor worsening the prognosis in NIDDM patients, especially microalbuminuric patients. Microalbuminuric NIDDM patients could be particularly prone to hyperhomocyst(e)inemia, probably due to endothelial or renal dysfunction with a reduction in the scavenging of tHcy