Temporal Changes in Skeletal Muscle Capillary Responses and Endothelial-Derived Vasodilators in Obesity-Related Insulin Resistance.

The inability of insulin to increase skeletal muscle capillary blood volume (CBV) reduces glucose uptake in insulin resistance (IR). We hypothesized that abnormalities in endothelial-derived vasodilator pathways are temporally associated with the development of IR and an impaired ability to increase skeletal muscle CBV. A comprehensive metabolic and vascular screening assessment was performed on 10 adult rhesus macaques at baseline and every 4-6 months for 2 years after starting a high-fat diet supplemented with fructose.

Predictors of Improvements in Pain Intensity in a National Cohort of Older Veterans With Chronic Pain.

Unlabelled: Little is known about the factors associated with pain-related outcomes in older adults. In this observational study, we sought to identify patient factors associated with improvements in pain intensity in a national cohort of older veterans with chronic pain. We included 12,924 veterans receiving treatment from the Veterans Health Administration with persistently elevated numeric rating scale scores in 2010 who had not been prescribed opioids in the previous 12 months.

Short-term variability in outpatient pain intensity scores in a national sample of older veterans with chronic pain.

Objective: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) uses the 11-point pain numeric rating scale (NRS) to gather pain intensity information from veterans at outpatient appointments. Yet, little is known about how NRS scores may vary over time within individuals; NRS variability may have important ramifications for treatment planning. Our main objective was to describe variability in NRS scores within a 1-month timeframe, as obtained during routine outpatient care in older patients with chronic pain treated in VA hospitals.

Proinflammatory endothelial activation detected by molecular imaging in obese nonhuman primates coincides with onset of insulin resistance and progressively increases with duration of insulin resistance.

Background: Inflammation and insulin resistance (IR) are associated processes that potentiate risk for cardiovascular disease in obesity. The temporal relation between IR and inflammation is not completely characterized. We hypothesized that endothelial cell adhesion molecule expression in large arteries is an early event that coincides with diet-induced obesity and IR in primates.

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry for quantification of visceral fat.

Obesity is the major risk factor for metabolic syndrome and through it diabetes as well as cardiovascular disease. Visceral fat (VF) rather than subcutaneous fat (SF) is the major predictor of adverse events. Currently, the reference standard for measuring VF is abdominal X-ray computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), requiring highly used clinical equipment.

N-acetylcysteine for patients with prolonged hypotension as prophylaxis for acute renal failure (NEPHRON).

Background: Acute renal failure is a common complication in critically ill patients and carries an increased morbidity and mortality. N-acetylcysteine is an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agent that may counteract some of the pathophysiologic derangements in shock states.

Objective: To test whether the administration of N-acetylcysteine, compared with placebo, reduces the incidence of acute renal failure in hypotensive patients.

Orphanin FQ/nociceptin and mu-opioid receptor mRNA levels in human SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cells: effects of activating the cAMP-PKA signal transduction pathway.

Responses to opioid agonists vary, depending on past opioid exposure and the physiological state. The intracellular signaling pathway mediated by cAMP and protein kinase A (PKA) has been linked to regulation of opioid receptor responsiveness. The role of the cAMP-PKA pathway in regulating opioid receptor gene expression is incompletely defined.