Estrogen, insulin

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant and enduring influence on global health, including maternal and fetal well-being. Evidence suggests that placental dysfunction is a potential consequence of SARS-CoV-2 infection during pregnancy, which may result in adverse outcomes such as preeclampsia and preterm birth. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear, and it is uncertain whether a mature placenta can protect the fetus from SARS-CoV-2 infection. To address the above gap, we conducted a transcriptome-based study of the placenta in both maternal and fetal compartments...

Metabolic disorders, encompassing diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases, gastrointestinal disorders, etc., pose a substantial global health threat, with rising morbidity and mortality rates. Addressing these disorders is crucial, as conventional drugs often come with high costs and adverse effects. This review explores the potential of royal jelly (RJ), a natural bee product rich in bioactive components, as an alternative strategy for managing metabolic diseases. RJ exhibits diverse therapeutic properties, including antimicrobial, estrogen-like, anti-inflammatory, hypotensive, anticancer, and antioxidant effects...

During inguinal adipose tissue (iWAT) ontogenesis, beige adipocytes spontaneously appear between postnatal 10 (P10) and P20 and their ablation impairs iWAT browning capacity in adulthood. Since maternal obesity has deleterious effects on offspring iWAT function, we aimed to investigate its effect in spontaneous iWAT browning in offspring. Female C57BL/6 J mice were fed a control or obesogenic diet six weeks before mating. Male and female offspring were euthanized at P10 and P20 or weaned at P21 and fed chow diet until P60...

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are typical persistent organic pollutants that have been associated with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) in cohort studies. This review aims to comprehensively assess the molecular mechanisms of PCBs-induced T2DM. Recent progress has been made in the research of PCBs in liver tissue, adipose tissue, and other tissues. By influencing the function of nuclear receptors, such as the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), pregnancy X receptor (PXR), and peroxisome proliferator activated receptor γ (PPARγ), as well as the inflammatory response, PCBs disrupt the balance of hepatic glucose and lipid metabolism...

Endogenous estrogens regulate essential functions to include menstrual cycles, energy balance, adipose tissue distribution, pancreatic β-cell function, insulin sensitivity, and lipid homeostasis. Estrogens are a family of hormones which include estradiol (E2), estrone (E1), and estriol (E3). Estrogens function by binding and activating estrogen receptors (ERs). Phytoestrogens are plant-derived compounds which exhibit estrogenic-like activity and can bind to ERs. Phytoestrogens exert potential estrogenic-like benefits; however, their effects are context-dependent and require cautious consideration regarding generalized health benefits...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrinopathy occurring in reproductive-age women. Hyperandrogenism, polycystic ovaries, chronic anovulation, and metabolic aberrations are the common features in PCOS. Hormonal changes are causing pathological symptoms in women with PCOS. The various hormone alterations in PCOS have been demonstrated. Hormones, such as insulin, growth hormones (GH), ghrelin, LEAP-2, gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH), insulin, the luteinizing hormone/follicle-stimulating hormone (LH/FSH) ratio, androgens, and estrogens, are all abnormal in PCOS women...

PURPOSE: We investigated the effect of metformin and lifestyle intervention on metabolic, inflammatory, and steroid biomarkers of breast cancer (BC) recurrence risk in two intervention trials among BC survivors with overweight or obesity. METHODS: Baseline and follow-up serum samples collected during the two trials were analyzed and data pooled. The USA trial (Reach for Health) included postmenopausal BC survivors (n = 333) randomly assigned to 6-month metformin vs placebo and lifestyle intervention (LSI) vs control (2 × 2 factorial design)...

Endometriosis is a benign, estrogen-dependent gynecological condition with an uncertain exact pathogenetic mechanism. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential differential expression of Insulin Growth Factor 1 (IGF-1) isoforms in deeply infiltrating endometriotic (DIE) lesions, in ovarian endometriomas, and in the eutopic endometrium of the same endometriosis patients and to compare their expression with that in the eutopic endometrium of women without endometriosis. A total of 39 patients were included: 28 with endometriosis, of whom 15 had endometriomas only, 7 had DIE nodules only, and 6 had both DIE and endometriomas, and 11 without endometriosis served as controls...

Estrogens are classically considered essential hormonal signals, but they exert profound effects in a number of physiological and pathological states, including glucose homeostasis and insulin resistance. Estrogen deficiency after menopause in most women leads to increased androgenicity and changes in body composition, and it is recommended to manipulate the β-cell function of the pancreas, insulin-induced glucose transport, and hepatic glucose output, hence, the increasing incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus...

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is a prevalent endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age, affecting 5-15% globally with a large proportion undiagnosed. This review explores the multifaceted nature of PCOS and its impact on pregnancy, including challenges in fertility due to hormonal imbalances and insulin resistance. Despite restoring ovulation pharmacologically, women with PCOS face lower pregnancy rates and higher risks of implantation failure and miscarriage. Our review focuses on the complexities of hormonal and metabolic imbalances that impair endometrial receptivity and decidualization in PCOS...

Menopause is a cardiometabolic transition with many women experiencing weight gain and redistribution of body fat. Hormonal changes may affect also several dimensions of well-being, including sexual function, with a high rate of female sexual dysfunction (FSD), which displays a multifactorial etiology. The most important biological factors range from chronic low-grade inflammation, associated with hypertrophic adipocytes that may translate into endothelial dysfunction and compromised blood flow through the genitourinary system, to insulin resistance and other neuroendocrine mechanisms targeting the sexual response...

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), especially nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), has emerged as a prevalent cause of liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma, posing severe public health challenges worldwide. The incidence of NASH is highly correlated with an increased prevalence of obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes, and other metabolic diseases. Currently, no approved drugs specifically targeted for the therapies of NASH partially due to the unclear pathophysiological mechanisms. G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 (GPER1) is a membrane estrogen receptor involved in the development of metabolic diseases such as obesity and diabetes...

Obesity and cancer represent two pandemics of current civilization, the progression of which has followed parallel trajectories. To time, thirteen types of malignancies have been recognized as obesity-related cancers, including breast (in postmenopausal women), endometrial, and ovarian cancer. Pathophysiologic mechanisms that connect the two entities include insulin resistance, adipokine imbalance, increased peripheral aromatization and estrogen levels, tissue hypoxia, and disrupted immunity in the cellular milieu...

<b/>Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), is a health problem observed in women of reproductive age. Different diets, physical activity recommendations and lifestyle changes can be effective in dealing with the symptoms of PCOS. Nutrition is indeed an essential part of the treatment of the disease as it directly affects body weight loss, insulin resistance, lipid profile, hormones, and dermatological complaints such as acne. Polyphenols, simply classified as flavonoids and non-flavonoids, are bioactive components found in plant-based foods...

BACKGROUND: Obesity-related factors such as adipokines, insulin, insulin-like growth factors, and sex steroid hormones have been reported to be involved in breast carcinogenesis. Studies across the world suggest an important, but still controversial, role of obesity in breast cancer risk. This study aims to evaluate the association of obesity-related factors such as adipokines, insulin, insulin resistance, and sex steroid hormones with breast cancer risk in the Indian population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Anthropometric and biochemical measurements were taken in 60 newly diagnosed and histologically confirmed breast cancer patients and 50 healthy controls...

We previously reported that piceatannol (PIC) had an anti-obesity effect only in ovariectomized (OVX) postmenopausal obesity mice. PIC was found to induce the phosphorylation of hormone-sensitive lipase (pHSL) in OVX mice. To elucidate the mechanism by which PIC activates HSL, we investigated the effect of PIC using 3T3-L1 adipocytes. PIC induced HSL phosphorylation at Ser563 in 3T3-L1 cells, as in vivo experiments showed. pHSL (Ser563) is believed to be activated through the β-adrenergic receptor (β-AR) and protein kinase A (PKA) pathways; however, the addition of a selective inhibitor of β-AR did not inhibit the effect of PIC...

Decidualization, a crucial process for successful pregnancy establishment and maintenance, involves endometrial stromal cell differentiation. This process is orchestrated by estradiol (E2), progesterone, and other stimuli that increase intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) levels. The intracellular progesterone receptor (PR), encoded by the PGR gene, has a key role in decidualization. This study aimed to understand the role of sex steroids and cAMP in regulating PGR expression during the in vitro decidualization of the human immortalized endometrial stromal cell line, T-HESC...

PURPOSE: To summarize the current state of knowledge surrounding the impact of testosterone therapy on cardiovascular risk factors in postmenopausal women. METHODOLOGY: In this scoping review, a comprehensive search of peer-reviewed literature was conducted in adherence to a methodological framework comprising 4 distinct stages: conceptualizing a comprehensive search strategy, screening relevant publications, extracting pertinent data, and organizing and synthesizing the resultant findings...

Aster proteins mediate the nonvesicular transport of cholesterol from the plasma membrane (PM) to the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). However, the importance of nonvesicular sterol movement for physiology and pathophysiology in various tissues is incompletely understood. Here we show that loss of Aster-B leads to diet-induced obesity and insulin resistance in female but not male mice, and that this sex difference is abolished by ovariectomy. We further demonstrate that Aster-B deficiency impairs nonvesicular cholesterol transport from the PM to the ER in ovaries in vivo, leading to hypogonadism and reduced estradiol synthesis...

INTRODUCTION: Senescent cells accumulate throughout the body and brain contributing to unhealthy aging and Alzheimer's disease (AD). We hypothesized that senolytic intervention would alleviate cellular senescence thereby improving spatial memory in APP NL-F/NL-F mice. METHODS: Male and female APP NL-F/NL-F mice were treated monthly with vehicle, 5 mg/kg Dasitinib (D) + 50 mg/kg Quercetin (Q), or 100 mg/kg Fisetin. Blood glucose levels, energy metabolism, spatial memory, and senescent cell markers were assayed...