Effect of genetic subtypes and growth hormone treatment on bone mineral density in Prader-Willi syndrome.

Unlabelled: Abstract Background: Currently, there is limited information on the effects of growth hormone and of the different genetic subtypes on bone mineral density (BMD) in Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS).

Methods: We evaluated BMD in 79 individuals with the common subtypes of PWS (48 with deletion and 27 with UPD) and the effect of growth hormone treatment (n=46) vs. no growth hormone treatment.

The CTSA Consortium's Catalog of Assets for Translational and Clinical Health Research (CATCHR).

The 61 CTSA Consortium sites are home to valuable programs and infrastructure supporting translational science and all are charged with ensuring that such investments translate quickly to improved clinical care. Catalog of Assets for Translational and Clinical Health Research (CATCHR) is the Consortium's effort to collect and make available information on programs and resources to maximize efficiency and facilitate collaborations. By capturing information on a broad range of assets supporting the entire clinical and translational research spectrum, CATCHR aims to provide the necessary infrastructure and processes to establish and maintain an open-access, searchable database of consortium resources to support multisite clinical and translational research studies.

Inflammatory cytokine profiles during exercise in obese, diabetic, and healthy children.

Objective: Modulation of inflammatory status is considered a key component of the overall health effects of exercise. This may be especially relevant in children with obesity (Ob) or type 1 diabetes (T1DM), in which an imbalance between pro- and anti-inflammatory mediators could accelerate onset and progression of cardiovascular complications. To date, exercise-induced alterations in immuno-modulatory mediators in Ob and T1DM children remain largely unknown.

Increased oxidative stress and altered substrate metabolism in obese children.

Objective: Pediatric obesity, a major risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, has steadily increased in the last decades. Although excessive inflammation and oxidation are possible biochemical links between obesity and cardiovascular events in adults, little information is available in children. Furthermore, effects of gender and fitness on the interaction between dyslipidemia and oxidative/inflammatory stress in children are mostly unknown.

Resting and exercise-induced IL-6 levels in children with Type 1 diabetes reflect hyperglycemic profiles during the previous 3 days.

Poor glycemic control in Type 1 diabetes (T1DM) causes long-term cardiovascular complications, at least in part via chronic, low-grade inflammation associated with recurrent hyperglycemia. While physical activity can reduce both inflammation and cardiovascular risks, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. This is particularly important for T1DM children, for whom the prevention of long-term cardiovascular complications must include optimization of exercise-related anti-inflammatory strategies.

Ex vivo TCR-induced leukocyte gene expression of inflammatory mediators is increased in type 1 diabetic patients but not in overweight children.

Background: Abnormal systemic concentrations of proinflammatory cytokines/chemokines have been implicated in the development of long-term cardiovascular complications in type 1 diabetes (T1DM) and obesity. Whether leukocyte white blood cell (WBC) gene expression of these proinflammatory mediators contributes to their increased systemic levels, however, remains unclear, especially in the pediatric patient populations. This study examines mRNA changes of 9 cytokines and chemokines in WBCs following ex vivo immunostimulation from 9 T1DM (13.

Dose-dependent relationship between severity of pediatric obesity and blunting of the growth hormone response to exercise.

In children, exercise modulates systemic anabolism, muscle growth, and overall physiological development through the growth hormone (GH)-insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) axis. GH secretion, at rest and during exercise, changes with age and maturational status and can be blunted by hyperlipidemia and obesity, with possible negative effects on physiological growth. However, little is known about the effect of progressively more severe pediatric obesity on the GH response to exercise and its relationship to pubertal status.

Body composition and its components in preterm and term newborns: A cross-sectional, multimodal investigation.

A prospective, cross-sectional, observational study in preterm and term infants was performed to compare multimodal measurements of body composition, namely, limb ultrasound, bone quantitative ultrasound, and dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA). One hundred and two preterm and term infants appropriate for gestational age were enrolled from the newborn nursery and neonatal intensive care unit. Infants were included when they were medically stable, in an open crib, on full enteral feeds and within 1 week of anticipated discharge.

Improved predictive models for plasma glucose estimation from multi-linear regression analysis of exhaled volatile organic compounds.

Exhaled volatile organic compounds (VOCs) represent ideal biomarkers of endogenous metabolism and could be used to noninvasively measure circulating variables, including plasma glucose. We previously demonstrated that hyperglycemia in different metabolic settings (glucose ingestion in pediatric Type 1 diabetes) is paralleled by changes in exhaled ethanol, acetone, and methyl nitrate. In this study we integrated these gas changes along with three additional VOCs (2 forms of xylene and ethylbenzene) into multi-linear regression models to predict plasma glucose profiles in 10 healthy young adults, during the 2 h following an intravenous glucose bolus (matched samples of blood, exhaled and room air were collected at 12 separate time points).

Acute suppression of circulating sCD40L during hyperglycemia and euglycemic-hyperinsulinemia in healthy young males.

sCD40L is a proatherogenic cytokine, part of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily and consistently associated with obesity, diabetes, and increased cardiovascular risk. Although the role of sCD40L in the onset/progression of cardiovascular complications of dysmetabolic diseases may be modulated by acute and/or chronic fluctuations of plasma insulin and glucose, very little has been done to clarify this interaction. The kinetic profile of sCD40L (and, in an exploratory manner, of several immunomodulatory factors), were measured during hyperglycemia and euglycemic-hyperinsulinemia in a group of 10 healthy young males (26.

Altered kinetics of interleukin-6 and other inflammatory mediators during exercise in children with type 1 diabetes.

Background: Leukocyte mobilization and secretions of cytokines, chemokines, and growth factors in children during exercise are necessary biochemical signals for physiological growth and long-term cardiovascular protection. Because of glycemic instability, altered exercise responses, particularly the proinflammatory cytokine interleukin (IL)-6, may occur in type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) that could influence the onset/progression of diabetic vascular complications. Relatively little is known, however, on most molecular aspects of immunomodulatory adaptation to exercise in diabetic children.

Kinetic profiles of 18 systemic pro- and anti-inflammatory mediators during and following exercise in children.

While acute changes in systemic pro-/antiinflammatory cytokines occur with exercise, individual kinetics during and following exercise remain unclear; particularly, information is scarce regarding children. This study investigated the exercise-induced kinetic profiles of major pro-/anti-inflammatory mediators in 21 healthy children (13.9 +/- 0.

Sustained IL-1alpha, IL-4, and IL-6 elevations following correction of hyperglycemia in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus.

Objective: An imbalance of pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokines may accelerate diabetic vascular complications and interfere with proper wound healing. Currently, limited available literature suggests that plasma concentrations of certain pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines may be altered during hyperglycemia/diabetes mellitus. It is still unclear, however, whether these concepts also apply to children with diabetes, and whether alterations in circulating cytokine levels are a permanent feature of diabetes or an acute effect of fluctuating glucose concentrations.

Bone mineral density and leg muscle strength in young Caucasian, Hispanic, and Asian women.

Differences in bone mineral density (BMD) of ethnically diverse populations are usually attributed to anthropometric characteristics, but may also be due to life style or diet. We studied healthy young sedentary women with Asian (ASN, n=40), Hispanic (HIS, n=39), or Caucasian (CAU, n=36) backgrounds. Body composition and regional BMD were measured by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (Hologic) or PIXI (Lunar GE) for the heel and wrist).

Dietary effects on oxidation of low-density lipoprotein and atherogenesis.

Oxidization of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles leads to formation of atherosclerotic lesions and increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) via a complex cascade of biochemical events occurring mostly within the arterial wall. Multiple dietary factors impact LDL oxidation levels, such as fat-rich meals, hyper- and hypocaloric diets, and specific nutrients (vitamins E, C, and beta-carotene; mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids; and polyphenolic compounds). These basic nutrients are naturally present at high concentrations, individually or in combinations, in common foods (fruits/vegetables, vegetable oils, red wine, soy, fish, tea); in turn, these foods are the main components of well-defined diets (Mediterranean, East Asian, balanced vegetarian) that display protective action against LDL oxidation and potentially against CVD.

Effect of a high-fat meal on the growth hormone response to exercise in children.

Exercise-induced growth hormone (GH) secretion may significantly modulate growth and development in children. Altered physiological GH responses, therefore, may reduce the beneficial effects of exercise. High-fat food ingestion before exercise blunts the GH response in adults, but it is unknown whether this occurs in children.

Cytokines and growth factors during and after a wrestling season in adolescent boys.

Purpose: Brief periods of aerobic exercise training lead to reductions, rather then the expected increases in circulating IGF-I. We hypothesized that intense exercise training in adolescents initially leads to simultaneous increases in proinflammatory cytokines and decreases in activity of the GH/IGF-I axis; and that as exercise training proceeds, levels of proinflammatory cytokines become reduced, and a rebound in IGF-I ensues leading to the higher IGF-I levels.

Method: To test this, we evaluated the GH/IGF-I axis and levels of inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, TNF-alpha, IL-1beta, IL-1ra), body composition, and fitness in 13 healthy adolescent boys (mean age 15.