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Topic Review
Bone Mass Loss during Menopause
Antiosteoporotic Activity of Genistein Aglycone in Postmenopausal Women: Evidence from a Post-Hoc Analysis of a Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial. Genistein has a preventive role against bone mass loss during menopause. However, experimental data in animal models of osteoporosis suggest an anti-osteoporotic potential for this isoflavone. We performed a post-hoc analysis of a previously published trial investigating the effects of genistein in postmenopausal women with low bone mineral density. The parent study was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving postmenopausal women with a femoral neck (FN) density <0.795 g/cm². A cohort of the enrolled women was, in fact, identified at the baseline as osteoporotic (n = 121) on the basis of their T-score and analyzed thereafter for the 24 months' treatment with either 1000 mg of calcium and 800 IU vitamin D3 (placebo; n = 59); or calcium, vitamin D3, and Genistein aglycone (54 mg/day; genistein; n = 62). According to the femoral neck T-scores, 31.3% of the genistein and 30.9% of the placebo recipients were osteoporotic at baseline. In the placebo and genistein groups, the 10-year hip fracture probability risk assessed by Fracture Risk Assessment tool (FRAX) was 4.1 ± 1.9 (SD) and 4.2 ± 2.1 (SD), respectively. Mean bone mineral density (BMD) at the femoral neck increased from 0.62 g/cm² at baseline to 0.68 g/cm² at 1 year and 0.70 g/cm² at 2 years in genistein recipients, and decreased from 0.61 g/cm² at baseline to 0.60 g/cm² at 1 year and 0.57 g/cm² at 2 years in placebo recipients. At the end of the study only 18 postmenopausal women had osteoporosis in the genistein group with a prevalence of 12%, whereas in the placebo group the number of postmenopausal women with osteoporosis was unchanged, after 24 months. This post-hoc analysis is a proof-of concept study suggesting that genistein may be useful not only in postmenopausal osteopenia but also in osteoporosis. However, this proof-of concept study needs to be confirmed by a large, well designed, and appropriately focused randomized clinical trial in a population at high risk of fractures.
  • 684
  • 01 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Metformin for Cardiovascular Disease
Metformin, the most widely prescribed drug therapy for type 2 diabetes, has pleiotropic benefits, in addition to its capacity to lower elevated blood glucose levels, including mitigation of cardiovascular risk. The mechanisms underlying the latter remain unclear. Mechanistic studies have, hitherto, focused on the direct effects of metformin on the heart and vasculature. However, emerging evidence is indicative of a major role of the gut in mediating the cardiovascular actions of metformin.
  • 683
  • 25 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Drug Discovery Research around Tetanus Toxin Fragment C
Tetanus caused by the tetanus toxin (TT) is a fatal illness, which despite the existence of a vaccine, led to an estimated 34,684 deaths in 2019. TT is a neurotoxin produced by Clostridium tetani, a Gram-positive pathogenic bacterium, mainly found in soil and the gastrointestinal tracts of animals. TT induces the inhibition of neurotransmitter release, leading to spastic paralysis in a four-step process. First, TT binds to specific receptors, mainly composed of lipids and gangliosides, found at the neuromuscular junction (NMJ). Another receptor is reached by TT after these first bindings: a protein receptor responsible for its internalization (second step). This double receptor binding is responsible for the high affinity between TT and nerve cells. Third, TT is then transported into the cell body via axonal retrograde transport. In the last step, the proteolytic cleavage by TT of the VAMP/synaptobrevin, a neuronal substrate, leads to the inhibition of neurotransmitter release. All of these biological properties can be distinct associated parts of the TT structure. TT is a 150.7 kDa protein composed of a 52.4 kDa light chain and a 98.3 kDa heavy chain linked by a disulfide bond.
  • 682
  • 26 Aug 2022
Topic Review
Gut Microbiota
A disturbed interaction between the gut microbiota and the mucosal immune system plays a pivotal role in the development of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
  • 682
  • 10 Jun 2021
Topic Review
New Flavonoid & Myo-Inositol Supplement
Background and Aim. Cardiovascular risk is increased in women with menopause and metabolic syndrome. Aim of this study was to test the effect of a new supplement formula, combining cocoa polyphenols, myo-inositol, and soy isoflavones, on some biomarkers of cardiovascular risk in postmenopausal women with metabolic syndrome.Methods and Results. A total of 60 women were enrolled and randomly assigned (n=30per group) to receive the supplement (NRT: 30 mg of cocoa polyphenols, 80 mg of soy isoflavones, and 2 gr of myo-inositol), or placebo for 6 months. The study protocol included three visits (baseline, 6, and 12 months) for the evaluation of glucose, triglycerides, and HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C), adiponectin, visfatin, resistin, and bone-specific alkaline phosphatase (bone-ALP). At 6 months, a significant difference between NRT and placebo was found for glucose (96±7versus108±10 mg/dL), triglycerides (145±14versus165±18 mg/dL), visfatin (2.8±0.8versus3.7±1.1 ng/mL), resistin (27±7versus32±8 µg/L), and b-ALP (19±7versus15±5 µg/mL). No difference in HDL-C concentrations nor in adiponectin levels between groups was reported at 6 months.Conclusions.The supplement used in this study improves most of the biomarkers linked to metabolic syndrome. This Trial is registered withNCT01400724.
  • 681
  • 01 Nov 2020
Topic Review
RONS and Myokines in Skeletal Muscle Glucose Uptake
The skeletal muscle is the largest organ in the body that performs different functions, including those related to the movement of the body such as stability, equilibrium, and locomotion; vital functions such as breathing; and those associated with the maintenance of metabolic homeostasis, in which the generation and expenditure of energy and heat production are critical. The adequate interplay of these functions leads to the maintenance of life in organisms. Glucose is essential in metabolism since it is one of the main substrates that produces ATP, the key molecule that transfers energy during chemical reactions in organisms. To produce ATP, glucose needs to be transported from the extracellular space into the cytosol of the cell. This process is called glucose uptake, and it is critical in skeletal muscle since it provides enough glucose to the cell to produce ATP and satisfy the high demand for energy of the skeletal muscle. Glucose uptake in skeletal muscle tissue is a process mainly regulated by insulin, which is a hormone synthesized in the pancreas and released into the blood stream, where it is transported until it binds to specific insulin receptors that are anchored at the plasma membrane of skeletal muscle cells.
  • 680
  • 23 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Nuclear Factor Kappa B
NF-κB is a family of five eukaryotic transcription factors, p50, p52, p65 (RelA), RelB and c-Rel, which form 15 different homodimers and heterodimers.
  • 679
  • 09 May 2021
Topic Review
Oral Microbiome Related Diseases
The human oral microbiome refers to an ecological community of symbiotic and pathogenic microorganisms found in the oral cavity. The oral cavity is an environment that provides various biological niches, such as the teeth, tongue, and oral mucosa. The oral cavity is the gateway between the external environment and the human body, maintaining oral homeostasis, protecting the mouth, and preventing disease.
  • 679
  • 26 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Nanomaterials Aiming to Tackle Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria
The most important current issue related to human health is bacterial resistance against antibiotics. Prolonged treatment using antibiotics is required in multidrug-resistant conditions, along with debridement of tissue, but in a small number of cases, the high costs of healthcare and low patient compliance prevent this treatment from succeeding. The identical features of nanomaterials make them unique candidates and boost the efficacy against multi-drug-resistant bacterial infection. Nanomaterials execute different bactericidal actions, and therefore bacteria face difficulty against therapeutics due to nanomaterial morphology such as size, shape, and surface chemistry. Nanomaterials can penetrate the bacterial membrane with unique drug cargo. Therefore, nanomaterials may be helpful for treatment by improving the therapeutic efficacy through their interaction with the bacterial cell system.
  • 679
  • 30 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Ligands of Adrenergic Receptors
Adrenergic receptors are G protein-coupled receptors for epinephrine and norepinephrine. They are targets of many drugs for various conditions, including treatment of hypertension, hypotension, and asthma. Adrenergic receptors are intensively studied in structural biology, displayed for binding poses of different types of ligands.
  • 679
  • 19 Jul 2021
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