Serum levels of leptin, insulin-like growth factor-1 and growth hormone in children with insulin dependent diabetes mellitus: the effect of metabolic control and pubertal development

The existing literature on the relation between serum leptin and growth hormone [GH] / insulin like growth factor-1 [IGF-1] axis in insulin dependent diabetes mellitus [IDDM] is conflicting. The present study included 45 children and adolescents with IDDM [22 recently diagnosed and 23 old known diabetics], aged from 6-14 years, they were 26 girls and 19 boys, together with 16 apparently healthy control children of matchable age and sex. All patients and controls were subjected to complete medical history and clinical examination including calculation of body mass index [BMI] and pubertal staging. The serum levels of leptin, C-peptide, CH and IGF-1 were determined in all patients and controls. Glycemic control was assessed by glycosylated hemoglobin [HbA1C]. Diabetic children showed significantly higher mean values of serum levels of leptin and GH than controls. This was true for the diabetic children in general, for those with poor metabolic control [HbA1C>9%], for the old diagnosed diabetics as well as the pubertal diabetic adolescents. On the other hand, the whole diabetic cases, prepubertal adolescent diabetics, the recently diagnosed ones and those with poor metabolic control showed significant lower serum levels of IGF-1 than their comparable partners. In all diabetic cases, serum levels of leptin as well as lGF-1 were positively correlated with BMI and C-peptide. However, leptin and GH showed significant positive correlation in pubertal diabetics only. IGF-1 levels were negatively correlated with HbA1C in the studied diabetic children, while no correlation could be detected between serum leptin and IGF-1 or between GH levels and either of IGF-1 or BMI in diabetic cases. Leptin and GH /IGF-1 system are altered in IDDM in relation to the degree of metabolic control and the pubertal changes. The improvement of glycemic control may help to correct such ulterations. The effect of these changes needs further studies to be settled

inhibitory effects of melatonin on vascular reactivity: possible role of vasoactive mediators

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of melatonin [MEL] on isolated rabbit aortic rings and its role in the vascular reactivity to contractile agents, noradrenaline [NA] and phenylephrine [PHE], as well as the relaxant agents [acetylcholine and sodium nitroprusside]. In addition, the levels of nitric oxide [NO], cyclic guanosine monophosphate [cGMP], total calcium, lipid peroxides, superoxide dismutase [SOD] and glutathione [GSH] were also investigated in the tissue homogenates of rabbit aortic rings pre-incubated [20 min] in MEL with and without contractile agents. The result revealed that MEL has an endothelium dependent vaso-relaxant effect and potentiated significantly the vaso-relaxant effect of acetylcholine. Moreover, MEL [10-4M] had a significant inhibitory effect on the contractile responses of aortic rings to both NA and PHE. In comparison with the control tissue rings, the levels of lipid peroxides were significantly increased; while those of GSH and SOD activities were significantly decreased in the tissue homogenates of aortic rings pre-incubated [20 min] in NA or PHE. In addition, the levels of NO and cGMP were significantly lower in the tissue rings pretreated with NA and PHE, respectively. The levels of total calcium were significantly increased in only tissue rings pretreated with NA. The levels of lipid peroxides were significantly decreased; while those of GSH, NO, cGMP and SOD activities were significantly increased in tissue homogenates of aortic rings incubated [20 min] in MEL [10-4 M] in comparison with ring tissues incubated in NA or PHE alone. In aortic rings incubated In MEL + PHE, the levels of lipid peroxides were significantly lower; while those of GSH, cGMP and SOD activities were significantly higher than their levels in ring tissues incubated in PHE. In aortic rings incubated in MEL + NA, the levels of lipid peroxides and total calcium were significantly lower; while those of NO were significantly higher than their levels in ring tissues incubated in NA alone

Role of tumor necrosis factor-alpha, lipid peroxidation, nitric oxide and cyclic gaunosine monophosphate in lung cancer

Cytokines and lipid peroxidation can participate in the complicated process of carcinogenesis and tumor progression. In the present study, the serum levels of tumor necrosis factor-alpha [TNF-alpha], lipid peroxides [LPO], nitric oxide [NO] and cyclic guanosine monophosphate [cGMP] were measured in 32 patients with lung cancer and in 30 healthy control subjects. The levels of TNF-alpha and cGMP were measured using ELISA and the levels of LPO and NO were measured using colorimetric methods. The levels of TNF-alpha, LPO, NO and cGMP were significantly higher in lung cancer patients than in the control group. In patients with lung cancer, a significant positive correlation was found between LPO and each of TNF-alpha and NO. According to the clinical stage and histological type, the serum levels of TNF-alpha, LPO and NO were significantly elevated in the advanced stage and non small cell lung cancer compared with the limited lung cancer. The serum levels of cGMP were higher in advanced than limited lung cancer. A significant positive correlation between NO and cGMP was found in patients with advanced lung cancer. In conclusion, the elevation of serum levels of TNF-alpha, LPO and NO in patient with lung cancer may have a prognostic value, being associated with a worse prognosis. The NO/cGMP system may play an important role in the advanced lung cancer

Free radicals, total antioxidant status and interleukin-6 in seminal plasma of fertile and infertile men.

This work aimed to assess total antioxidant status, lipid peroxides [LPO], nitric oxide [NO] and interleukin-6 [IL-6] in seminal plasma of infertile men [n = 45] compared with fertile men [controls, n = 30]. The infertile men included asthenozoospermic [n = 17], asthenoteratozoospermic [n = 25] and oligozoospermic patients [n = 3]. The semen samples from fertile men showed antioxidant capacity at a higher value than equivalent samples from infertile men. Moreover, the inverse relationship between antioxidant capacity and lipid peroxidation in seminal plasma strongly suggested that impaired defenses play an important role in infertile disorders. Furthermore, the increased oxidative stress observed in infertile men may modulate the level of IL-6

Oxidative stress in seminal plasma of subfertile men with varicocele

To compare the oxidative stress in the seminal plasma of subfertile patients with and without varicocele. The free radicals and antioxidants were measured in seminal plasma of subfertile men with [n= 48] and without varicocele [n=50]: lipid peroxidation [LPO], nitric oxide [NO], superoxide dismutase [SOD], glutathione peroxidase [GSH-Px], glutathione reductase [GSH-R], total thiols [TT] and ceruloplasmin [CP]. Samples from patients with varicocele had significantly higher levels of LPO and NO in comparison with subfertile men without varicocele [P<0.001]. In addition, seminal plasma of patients with varicocele showed significantly lower activities of GSH-Px and GSH-R and lower levels of [TT] [P<0.001]. No significant differences in the activities of SOD enzyme and the levels of CP were found when the two groups were compared. Also, no significant differences in these biochemical variables were detected when varicocele was classified according to its grade or laterality. LPO levels correlated negatively with sperm motility [grade A] [r = -0.26, P<0.05], GSH-Px [r = -0.30, P< 0.05] and TT [r= -0.36, P<0.01] while correlated positively with the number of pus cells in semen [r= 0.35, P<0.01]. Furthermore, NO levels correlated positively with the percent of sperms with abnormal morphology [r= 0.34, P< 0.01] while correlated negatively with GSH-R [r=-0.38, P< 0.01]. Oxidative stress may be an important etiologic factor in the pathogenesis of infertility in patients with varicocele compared to other subfertile men. The therapeutic antioxidants and drugs that reduce NO levels may be implicated in the varicocele treatment

Serum interleukin-1P, inerleukin-6, nitric oxide and acute phase reactant in scorpion envenomated children

This study included 38 scorpion envenomated children with ages ranged between 1.5-12 years as well as 13 apparently healthy age matched controls. All victims were admitted to the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit [PICU]. The victims and controls were subjected to complete clinical history and examination, assessment of the nutritional status by anthropometric measurements and full blood count. The evaluation of the serum levels of interleukin-1 beta [IL-1 beta], interleukin-6 [IL-6], nitric oxide [NO] and alpha 1 antitrypsin [alpha 1-AT] was performed once for the controls and twice for the victims; the first sample on admission and the second sample was obtained 24 hours later. It was concluded that the obtained data revealed that cytokines are involved in the pathogenesis of scorpion envenomation and correlated with the severity of envenomation