Methamphetamine withdrawal induces activation of CRF neurons in the brain stress system in parallel with an increased activity of cardiac sympathetic pathways.

Methamphetamine (METH) addiction is a major public health problem in some countries. There is evidence to suggest that METH use is associated with increased risk of developing cardiovascular problems. Here, we investigated the effects of chronic METH administration and withdrawal on the activation of the brain stress system and cardiac sympathetic pathways. Mice were treated with METH (2 mg/kg, i.p.) for 10 days and left to spontaneous withdraw for 7 days. The number of corticotrophin-releasing factor (CRF), c-Fos, and CRF/c-Fos neurons was measured by immunohistochemistry in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN) and the oval region of the bed nucleus of stria terminalis (ovBNST), two regions associated with cardiac sympathetic control. In parallel, levels of catechol-o-methyl-transferase (COMT), tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), and heat shock protein 27 (Hsp27) were measured in the heart. In the brain, chronic-METH treatment enhanced the number of c-Fos neurons and the CRF neurons with c-Fos signal (CRF+/c-Fos+) in PVN and ovBNST. METH withdrawal increased the number of CRF+neurons. In the heart, METH administration induced an increase in soluble (S)-COMT and membrane-bound (MB)-COMT without changes in phospho (p)-TH, Hsp27, or pHsp27. Similarly, METH withdrawal increased the expression of S- and MB-COMT. In contrast to chronic treatment, METH withdrawal enhanced levels of (p)TH and (p)Hsp27 in the heart. Overall, our results demonstrate that chronic METH administration and withdrawal activate the brain CRF systems associated with the heart sympathetic control and point towards a METH withdrawal induced activation of sympathetic pathways in the heart. Our findings provide further insight in the mechanism underlining the cardiovascular risk associated with METH use and proposes targets for its treatment

Effects of tryptophan load on amino acid metabolism in type 1 diabetic patients

Tolerance to an oral tryptophan load (50 mg/kg body weight) was evaluated in a group of 15 insulin-dependent diabetic patients of both sexes in poor metabolic control. Tryptophan was measured fluorometrically, and the plasma levels of the other physiological amino acids were determined by HPLC. The ratio of the plasma concentration of each large neutral amino acid (LNAA) to the sum of the others was calculated to serve as an index for the competitive transport of these amino acids into the brain. The results show that post-loading plasma tryptophan levels in diabetic patients increased less than in healthy controls, suggesting enhanced liver catabolism of this amino acid (as reported for diabetic animals). Small changes were observed in the post-loading plasma concentrations of other amino acids. Therefore, the increment in the tryptophan/LNAA ratio in controls (basal, 0.12+/-0.01; 120 min after the load, 0.89+/-0.04; 240 min, 0.51+/-0.03) was greatly attenuated in diabetic patients (basal, 0.11+/-0.01, NS; 120 min, 0.46+/-0.04, p < 0.01; 240 min, 0.31+/-0.04, p < 0.01). Post-loading excursions in some other ratios were slightly larger in control than diabetic subjects. These differences, which may occur to a lesser extent after a protein-rich meal, could modify the availability of precursor amino acids to the brain for synthesis of neurotransmitters. Thus, as happens in certain animal species, an impairment of the post-absorptive accumulation of tryptophan and serotonin in the brain may occur in diabetic patients as a result of altered metabolic disposal of tryptophan

Complementary use of gel permeation and reversed-phase liquid chromatography for the analysis of A14-[125I]insulin and its degradation products in isolated human monocytes.

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Salivary immunoreactive insulin in type I diabetic patients after subcutaneous injection of insulin

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Body Weights (g ± SEM) n = 8-10/group.

<p>Body Weights (g ± SEM) n = 8-10/group.</p

The extracellular portion of the insulin receptor bete-subunit regulates the cellular trafficking of the insulin-insulin receptor complex. Studies on Chinese hamster ovary cell carrying the Cys 860 —Ser insulin receptor mutation

Objective: Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells transfected with human engineered insulin receptor (IR) cDNA to mutate Cys 860 to Ser (CHO-IRC60S) showed a defective insulin internalization without affecting insulin binding and IR autophosphorylation. Moreover, this mutation reduces insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-1 tyrosine phosphorylation and insulin-induced metabolic and mitogenic effects. Altogether, these observations support a role of the extracellular domain of IR P-subunit in insulin and receptor intracellular targeting as well as in insulin signaling. Design and methods: This study assesses in more details the effect of IRC860S mutation on the trafficking of the insulin-IR complex. In particular, IR internalization, phosphorylation, dissociation and recycling, as well as insulin degradation and retroendocytosis have been investigated in CHO cells overexpressing either wild type (CHO-IRWT) or mutated IRs. Results: the C860S mutation significantly decreases IR internalization both insulin stimulated and constitutive. In spite of a similar dissociation of internalized insulin-IR complex, recycling of internalized IR was significantly faster (half life (t(1/2)): 21 min vs 40 min, P < 0.001) and more extensive (P < 0.01) for IRC860S than for. On the other hand, insulin degradation and retroendocytosis were superimposable in both cell lines. As expected, insulin-induced phosphorylation was similar in both IRs, however dephosphorylation was much more rapid and was greater (P < 0.01) in CHO-IRWT as compared with CHO-IRC860S cells. Conclusions: Transmembrane and intracellular domain of IR seem to be determinants for IR internalization. Now we report that Cys 860 in the IR P-subunit ectodomain may be of relevance in ensuring a proper internalization and intracellular trafficking of the insulin-IR complex

Plasma biguanide levels are correlated with metabolic effects in diabetic patients.

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