The implication of alexithymia in personality disorders: a systematic review.

Background: Alexithymia, characterized by difficulty identifying and expressing emotions, is often associated with various psychiatric disorders, including personality disorders (PDs). This study aimed to explore the relationship between alexithymia and PD, focusing on their common origins and implications for treatment.

Methods: A systematic review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines using databases such as MEDLINE (PubMed), Scopus, and Web of Science.

Alcohol use patterns and disorders among individuals with personality disorders in the Sao Paulo Metropolitan Area.

Introduction: Alcohol Use Disorders are frequently comorbid with personality disorders. However, the heterogeneity of the prevalence estimates is high, and most data come from high income countries. Our aim is to estimate the prevalence and association between alcohol use outcomes and the three DSM-5 clusters of personality disorders in a representative sample of the São Paulo Metropolitan Area.

Experimentation with tobacco during adolescence as a factor influencing treatment of smoking in adulthood. A retrospective cohort.

Background: There are still few studies on predictors of smoking cessation in Brazilian samples. Experimentation with tobacco during adolescence (ETA) may be one of the important predictors.

Objective: This study aimed, within the context of a treatment-seeking group of subjects, to test the hypothesis that ETA negatively affects the outcome of smoking cessation during adulthood.

Use of psychotropic medications in São Paulo Metropolitan Area, Brazil: pattern of healthcare provision to general population.

Purpose: We estimate the proportion of psychotropic medication use (PMU) among adults in São Paulo Metropolitan Area, Brazil. We investigated whether socio-demographic factors, comorbidity, and disease severity influence PMU among individuals with psychiatric disorders.

Methods: Data are from the São Paulo Megacity Mental Health Survey, a cross-sectional, population-based study, the Brazilian branch of the World Mental Health Survey Initiative.

Investigating dimensionality and measurement bias of DSM-5 alcohol use disorder in a representative sample of the largest metropolitan area in South America.

Background: Given the recent launch of a new diagnostic classification (DSM-5) for alcohol use disorders (AUD), we aimed to investigate its dimensionality and possible measurement bias in a non-U.S.

Methods: The current analyses were restricted to 948 subjects who endorsed drinking at least one drink per week in the past year from a sample of 5037 individuals.

Drinking patterns and alcohol use disorders in São Paulo, Brazil: the role of neighborhood social deprivation and socioeconomic status.

Background: Research conducted in high-income countries has investigated influences of socioeconomic inequalities on drinking outcomes such as alcohol use disorders (AUD), however, associations between area-level neighborhood social deprivation (NSD) and individual socioeconomic status with these outcomes have not been explored in Brazil. Thus, we investigated the role of these factors on drink-related outcomes in a Brazilian population, attending to male-female variations.

Methods: A multi-stage area probability sample of adult household residents in the São Paulo Metropolitan Area was assessed using the WHO Composite International Diagnostic Interview (WMH-CIDI) (n = 5,037).

DSM-5 latent classes of alcohol users in a population-based sample: results from the São Paulo Megacity Mental Health Survey, Brazil.

Background: We aimed to identify different categorical phenotypes based upon the DSM-V criteria of alcohol use disorders (AUD) among alcohol users who had at least one drink per week in the past year (n=948).

Methods: Data are from the São Paulo Megacity Mental Health Survey collected in 2005-2007, as part of the World Mental Health Survey Initiative. A latent class analysis of the 11 DSM-5-AUD criteria was performed using Mplus, taking into account complex survey design features.

Days out-of-role due to common physical and mental health problems: results from the São Paulo Megacity Mental Health Survey, Brazil.

Objectives: To investigate the relative importance of common physical and mental disorders with regard to the number of days out-of-role (DOR; number of days for which a person is completely unable to work or carry out normal activities because of health problems) in a population-based sample of adults in the São Paulo Metropolitan Area, Brazil.

Methods: The São Paulo Megacity Mental Health Survey was administered during face-to-face interviews with 2,942 adult household residents. The presence of 8 chronic physical disorders and 3 classes of mental disorders (mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders) was assessed for the previous year along with the number of days in the previous month for which each respondent was completely unable to work or carry out normal daily activities due to health problems.

Gender differences in drinking patterns and alcohol-related problems in a community sample in São Paulo, Brazil.

Objective: To investigate drinking patterns and gender differences in alcohol-related problems in a Brazilian population, with an emphasis on the frequency of heavy drinking.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a probability adult household sample (n = 1,464) in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. Alcohol intake and ICD-10 psychopathology diagnoses were assessed with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview 1.

Mental disorders in megacities: findings from the São Paulo megacity mental health survey, Brazil.

Background: World population growth is projected to be concentrated in megacities, with increases in social inequality and urbanization-associated stress. São Paulo Metropolitan Area (SPMA) provides a forewarning of the burden of mental disorders in urban settings in developing world. The aim of this study is to estimate prevalence, severity, and treatment of recently active DSM-IV mental disorders.

Estrogen receptors mediate rapid activation of phospholipase C pathway in the rat endometrium.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the activation of rapid signaling events by 17β-estradiol in the rat uterus. 17β-Estradiol induced a rapid increase of total [3H]-inositol phosphate accumulation in the whole uterus and endometrium, but not in the myometrium. The effect of 17β-estradiol in the endometrium was blocked by phospholipase C (PLC) inhibitor (U73122), estrogen receptors antagonist (ICI 182,780), exportin CRM1 inhibitor (leptomycin B) and selective inhibitor of the SRC family of protein tyrosine kinases (PP2).

Environmental toxicants and male reproductive function.

Environmental toxicants, such as cadmium and bisphenol A (BPA) are endocrine disruptors. In utero, perinatal or neonatal exposure of BPA to rats affect the male reproductive function, such as the blood-testis barrier (BTB) integrity. This effect of BPA on BTB integrity in immature rats is likely mediated via a loss of gap junction function at the BTB, failing to coordinate tight junction and anchoring junction function at the site to maintain the immunological barrier integrity.

Sociodemographic correlates of transitions from alcohol use to disorders and remission in the São Paulo megacity mental health survey, Brazil.

Aims: To evaluate sociodemographic correlates associated with transitions from alcohol use to disorders and remission in a Brazilian population.

Methods: Data are from a probabilistic, multi-stage clustered sample of adult household residents in the São Paulo Metropolitan Area. Alcohol use, regular use (at least 12 drinks/year), DSM-IV abuse and dependence and remission from alcohol use disorders (AUDs) were assessed with the World Mental Health version of the Composite International Diagnostic Interview.

In vivo treatments with fulvestrant and anastrozole differentially affect gene expression in the rat efferent ductules.

Estrogen plays a key role in maintaining the morphology and function of the efferent ductules. We previously demonstrated that the antiestrogen fulvestrant markedly affected gene expression in the rat efferent ductules. The mechanism of fulvestrant action to modulate gene expression may involve not only the blockade of ESR1 and ESR2 estrogen receptors, but also the activation of ESR1 and ESR2 when the receptors are tethered to AP-1 or SP1 transcription factors, or the activation of the G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1.

Expression and signaling of G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 (GPER) in rat sertoli cells.

The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression and signaling of the G protein-coupled estrogen receptor 1 (GPER) in cultured immature rat Sertoli cells--in which we have previously described the classical estrogen receptors (ESR1 and ESR2). Expression of GPER in cultured Sertoli cells from 15-day-old rats was detected by RT-PCR and immunoassays. Gper transcripts also were present in testes from 5-, 15-, and 120-day-old rats.

Estrogen receptors and function in the male reproductive system.

A substantial advance in our understanding on the estrogen signaling occurred in the last decade. Estrogens interact with two receptors, ESR1 and ESR2, also known as ERalpha and ERbeta, respectively. ESR1 and ESR2 belong to the nuclear receptor family of transcription factors.

Muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes in the male reproductive tract: expression and function in rat efferent ductules and epididymis.

In mammals, at least five different muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes (mAChRs; M(1)-M(5)) are known to be widely expressed and distributed in different tissues from different species. They mediate distinct physiological functions according to their location and receptor subtype. Multiple events are associated with the regulation of intracellular signaling by mAChRs, and a coordinated balance of the molecular mechanisms governing receptor signaling, desensitization, resensitization, and mitogenic signaling is known to occur in various cell types.

Focal adhesion kinase is a blood-testis barrier regulator.

In mammalian testes, such as rats, the mechanism(s) that regulate blood-testis barrier (BTB) restructuring at stages VIII-IX of the seminiferous epithelial cycle of spermatogenesis to facilitate the transit of preleptotene/leptotene spermatocytes is not known. This is due to the lack of information on the regulatory proteins at the BTB. Herein, focal adhesion kinase (FAK), a nonreceptor protein tyrosine kinase, is shown to structurally interact with occludin and ZO-1 to form a functional protein complex at the BTB.

Cadmium-induced testicular injury.

Cadmium (Cd) is an environmental toxicant and an endocrine disruptor in humans and rodents. Several organs (e.g.

An occludin-focal adhesion kinase protein complex at the blood-testis barrier: a study using the cadmium model.

Several integral membrane proteins that constitute the blood-testis barrier (BTB) in mammalian testes, in particular rodents, are known to date. These include tight junction (TJ) proteins (e.g.

Effects of the antiestrogen fulvestrant (ICI 182,780) on gene expression of the rat efferent ductules.

The efferent ductules express the highest amount of estrogen receptors ESR1 (ERalpha) and ESR2 (ERbeta) within the male reproductive tract. Treatment of rats with the antiestrogen fulvestrant (ICI 182,780) causes inhibition of fluid reabsorption in the efferent ductules, leading to seminiferous tubule atrophy and infertility. To provide a more comprehensive knowledge about the molecular targets for estrogen in the rat efferent ductules, we investigated the effects of ICI 182,780 treatment on gene expression using a microarray approach.

17beta-estradiol induces the translocation of the estrogen receptors ESR1 and ESR2 to the cell membrane, MAPK3/1 phosphorylation and proliferation of cultured immature rat Sertoli cells.

The aim of the present study was to determine the mechanisms involved in estrogen actions in cultured rat Sertoli cells. RT-PCR detected transcripts for the estrogen receptors ESR1 and ESR2 in cultured immature Sertoli cells and in the testis of 15-, 28-, and 120-day-old rats. The expression of ESR1 and ESR2 was confirmed in Sertoli cells by immunofluorescence and Western blot.

Expression and localization of muscarinic acetylcholine receptor subtypes in rat efferent ductules and epididymis.

The expression of muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR) subtypes (M(1)-M(5)) was studied in the rat efferent ductules and epididymis at the mRNA and protein levels. The relative abundance of each mAChR transcript subtype differed depending on the tissue and the epididymal region analyzed. The M(1) mAChR mRNA level was more abundant in the efferent ductules than in the caput and cauda of the epididymis.