Expression of guanylate cyclase C in human prefrontal cortex depends on sex and feeding status.

Introduction: Guanylate cyclase C (GC-C) has been detected in the rodent brain in neurons of the cerebral cortex, amygdala, midbrain, hypothalamus, and cerebellum. Methods: In this study we determined GC-C protein expression in Brodmann areas (BA) 9, BA10, BA11, and BA32 of the human prefrontal cortex involved in regulation of feeding behavior, as well as in the cerebellar cortex, arcuate nucleus of hypothalamus and substantia nigra in brain samples of human 21 male and 13 female brains by ELISA with postmortem delay < 24 h. Results: GC-C was found in all tested brain areas and it was expressed in neurons of the third cortical layer of BA9. The regulation of GC-C expression by feeding was found in male BA11 and BA10-M, where GC-C expression was in negative correlation to the volume of stomach content during autopsy. In female BA11 there was no correlation detected, while in BA10-M there was even positive correlation. This suggests sex differences in GC-C expression regulation in BA11 and BA10-M. The amount of GC-C was higher in female BA9 only when the death occurred shortly after a meal, while expression of GC-C was higher in BA10-O only when the stomach was empty. The expression of GC-C in female hypothalamus was lower when compared to male hypothalamus only when the stomach was full, suggesting possibly lower satiety effects of GC-C agonists in women. Discussion: These results point toward the possible role of GC-C in regulation of feeding behavior. Since, this is first study of GC-C regulation and its possible function in prefrontal cortex, to determine exact role of GC-C in different region of prefrontal cortex, especially in humans, need further studies.

Acetabular osteometric standards for sex estimation in contemporary Croatian population.

AIM: To determine the sexual dimorphism of acetabular measurements in contemporary Croatian population and to provide a discriminant function equation for sex estimation. METHODS: The sample consisted of 200 adult pelvic bones (100 male and 100 female) from positively identified victims of Croatian War of Independence. In total, 96 left (48 male and 48 female) and 104 right (52 male and 52 female) acetabula were measured. One author measured two acetabular parameters using a sliding caliper: acetabular diameter (AD) and transverse acetabular diameter (TAD). Another author re-measured the acetabula of 40 randomly selected individuals to determine the inter-observer error. RESULTS: Both measured variables showed significant sexual dimorphism. Men had significantly higher values for AD and TAD than women. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that the cut-off point for prediction of male sex when using acetabular diameter was higher than 54 mm. For transverse acetabular diameter it was higher than 52 mm. The discriminant function was generated by using both acetabular variables, with 88% of accuracy in sex estimation. Inter-observer error was not significant. CONCLUSION: The acetabular measurements can be used for sex estimation in contemporary Croatian population with high accuracy.