Salivary cortisol and α-amylase: subclinical indicators of stress as cardiometabolic risk

Currently, the potential for cardiovascular (CV) stress-induced risk is primarily based on the theoretical (obvious) side effects of stress on the CV system. Salivary cortisol and α-amylase, produced respectively by the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the sympathetic-adrenomedullary (SAM) system during stress response, are still not included in the routine evaluation of CV risk and require additional and definitive validation. Therefore, this article overviews studies published between 2010 and 2015, in which salivary cortisol and α-amylase were measured as stress biomarkers to examine their associations with CV/CMR (cardiometabolic risk) clinical and subclinical indicators. A comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science and Scopus electronic databases was performed, and 54 key articles related to the use of salivary cortisol and α-amylase as subclinical indicators of stress and CV/CMR factors, including studies that emphasized methodological biases that could influence the accuracy of study outcomes, were ultimately identified. Overall, the biological impact of stress measured by salivary cortisol and α-amylase was associated with CV/CMR factors. Results supported the use of salivary cortisol and α-amylase as potential diagnostic tools for detecting stress-induced cardiac diseases and especially to describe the mechanisms by which stress potentially contributes to the pathogenesis and outcomes of CV diseases

Az amurgéb (Perccottus glenii Dybowski, 1877) egy álló- és egy folyóvízi populációjának táplálkozásökológiai vizsgálata

Az utóbbi két évtizedben a Távol‐Keletről származó amurgéb (Perccottus glenii) inváziója figyelhető meg Kelet‐ és Közép‐Európában. Munkánk során az amurgéb évszakonkénti részletes táplálkozásökológiai elemzését tűztük ki célul egy állóvízben (a Rakamaz-Tiszanagyfalui‐Nagy‐morotvában) és egy vízfolyásban (a Lónyay‐főcsatornában). A legjelentősebb táplálékszervezeteknek az árvaszúnyogok (Chironomidae), szitakötők (Odonata), rákok (Crustacea) és kérészek (Ephemeroptera) bizonyultak. A faj táplálkozásának intenzitásában nem tapasztalható méret, évszak és hely által befolyásolt változás. Táplálékának összetételét legfőképp a halak mérete befolyásolja, amelynek hatása erősebbnek bizonyult az élőhelyi és évszakos hatásoknál is. Kutatásaink igazolják, hogy az amurgé a vízi táplálékhálózat számos szintjét (kompartmentjét) befolyásolhatja, elsősorban azonban a makroszkopikus gerinctelen szervezetek hatékony predátora

Search for Bremsstrahlung radiation in quasi-free n p --> n p gamma reactions

Due to the high sensitivity of the N N --> N N gamma reaction to the nucleon-nucleon potential, Bremsstrahlung radiation is used as a tool to investigate details of the nucleon-nucleon interaction. Such investigations can be performed at the cooler synchrotron COSY in the Research Centre Juelich, by dint of the COSY-11 detection system. The results of the identification of Bremsstrahlung radiation emitted via the d p --> d p gamma reaction in data taken with a proton target and a deuteron beam are presented and discussed.Comment: 3 pages; Presented at Meson 2004: 8th International Workshop on Meson Production, Properties and Interaction, Krakow, Poland, 4-8 June 2004; Submitted to International Journal of Modern Physics

The ASY-EOS experiment at GSI: investigating the symmetry energy at supra-saturation densities

The elliptic-flow ratio of neutrons with respect to protons in reactions of neutron rich heavy-ions systems at intermediate energies has been proposed as an observable sensitive to the strength of the symmetry term in the nuclear Equation Of State (EOS) at supra-saturation densities. The recent results obtained from the existing FOPI/LAND data for $^{197}$Au+$^{197}$Au collisions at 400 MeV/nucleon in comparison with the UrQMD model allowed a first estimate of the symmetry term of the EOS but suffer from a considerable statistical uncertainty. In order to obtain an improved data set for Au+Au collisions and to extend the study to other systems, a new experiment was carried out at the GSI laboratory by the ASY-EOS collaboration in May 2011.Comment: Talk given by P. Russotto at the 11th International Conference on Nucleus-Nucleus Collisions (NN2012), San Antonio, Texas, USA, May 27-June 1, 2012. To appear in the NN2012 Proceedings in Journal of Physics: Conference Series (JPCS

Study of dielectron production in C+C collisions at 1 AGeV

The emission of e+e- pairs from C+C collisions at an incident energy of 1 GeV per nucleon has been investigated. The measured production probabilities, spanning from the pi0-Dalitz to the rho/omega! invariant-mass region, display a strong excess above the cocktail of standard hadronic sources. The bombarding-energy dependence of this excess is found to scale like pion production, rather than like eta production. The data are in good agreement with results obtained in the former DLS experiment.Comment: submitted to Physics Letters

Smoking Dose Modifies the Association between C242T Polymorphism and Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome in a Chinese Population

Background: The C242T polymorphism of the CYBA gene that encodes p22phox, a component of NADPH oxidase, has been found to modulate superoxide production. Oxidase is a major source of the superoxide anion that contributes to individual components of metabolic syndrome. We examined the relationship of the C242T polymorphism with the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in a Chinese population, taking account of consumed cigarette amounts. Methodology/Principal Findings: In 870 participants, we collected biomarkers related to metabolic syndrome and detailed history of smoking and genotyped the C242T polymorphisms. After adjustment for covariates, the CT/TT genotypes were associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome (P = 0.0008). The odds of having metabolic syndrome in the CT/TT participants were 0.439 (95%CI: 0.265, 0.726), while for CC participants the odds were 1.110 (95%CI: 0.904, 1.362). There was significant (P = 0.014) interaction between the C242T polymorphism and smoking status in relation to the prevalence of metabolic syndrome. For smokers who smoke no less than 25 pack-years, those with CT/TT genotypes had lower risk of metabolic syndrome as compared with CC polymorphism carriers (P = 0.015). In the multiple regression analysis, the CT/TT genotypes were significantly associated with lower serum concentration of triglycerides both in all subjects and smokers; furthermore, the CT/TT genotypes were also related to smaller waist circumference in smokers. Conclusions: Our study suggests that the C242T gene polymorphism is indeed related to the prevalence of metaboli

Is breast cancer prognosis inherited?

Introduction: A genetic component is well established in the etiology of breast cancer. It is not well known, however, whether genetic traits also influence prognostic features of the malignant phenotype. Methods: We carried out a population-based cohort study in Sweden based on the nationwide Multi-Generation Register. Among all women with breast cancer diagnosed from 1961 to 2001, 2,787 mother-daughter pairs and 831 sister pairs with breast cancer were identified; we achieved complete follow-up and classified 5-year breast cancer-specific prognosis among proband (mother or oldest sister) into tertiles as poor, intermediary, or good. We used Kaplan-Meier estimates of survival proportions and Cox models to calculate relative risks of dying from breast cancer within 5 years depending on the proband's outcome. Results: The 5-year survival proportion among daughters whose mothers died within 5 years was 87% compared to 91% if the mother was alive (p = 0.03). Among sisters, the corresponding proportions were 70% and 88%, respectively (p = 0.001). After adjustment for potential confounders, daughters and sisters of a proband with poor prognosis had a 60% higher 5-year breast cancer mortality compared to those of a proband with good prognosis (hazard ratio [HR], 1.6; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.2 to 2.2; p for trend 0.002). This association was slightly stronger among sisters (HR, 1.8; 95% CI, 1.0 to 3.4) than among daughters (HR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.1 to 2.3). Conclusion: Breast cancer prognosis of a woman predicts the survival in her first-degree relatives with breast cancer. Our novel findings suggest that breast cancer prognosis might be inherited

Indices of insulin sensitivity and secretion from a standard liquid meal test in subjects with type 2 diabetes, impaired or normal fasting glucose

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>To provide an initial evaluation of insulin sensitivity and secretion indices derived from a standard liquid meal tolerance test protocol in subjects with normal (NFG), impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or type 2 diabetes mellitus.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Areas under the curve (AUC) for glucose, insulin and C-peptide from pre-meal to 120 min after consumption of a liquid meal were calculated, as were homeostasis model assessments of insulin resistance (HOMA2-IR) and the Matsuda index of insulin sensitivity.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Subjects with NFG (n = 19), IFG (n = 19), and diabetes (n = 35) had mean ± SEM HOMA2-IR values of 1.0 ± 0.1, 1.6 ± 0.2 and 2.5 ± 0.3 and Matsuda insulin sensitivity index values of 15.6 ± 2.0, 8.8 ± 1.2 and 6.0 ± 0.6, respectively. The log-transformed values for these variables were highly correlated overall and within each fasting glucose category (r = -0.91 to -0.94, all p < 0.001). Values for the product of the insulin/glucose AUC ratio and the Matsuda index, an indicator of the ability of the pancreas to match insulin secretion to the degree of insulin resistance, were 995.6 ± 80.7 (NFG), 684.0 ± 57.3 (IFG) and 188.3 ± 16.1 (diabetes) and discriminated significantly between fasting glucose categories (p < 0.001 for each comparison).</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>These results provide initial evidence to support the usefulness of a standard liquid meal tolerance test for evaluation of insulin secretion and sensitivity in clinical and population studies.</p