SRC-3/AIB-1 may Enhance Hepatic NFATC1 Transcription and Mediate Inflammation in a Tissue-Specific Manner in Morbid Obesity.

Background: Obesity is a global epidemic which is associated with several cardiometabolic comorbidities and is characterized by chronic, low grade systemic inflammation. Numerous biomarkers have been implicated in the pathophysiology of the disease, including transcription factors and coregulators. Steroid Receptor Coactivator (SRC)-family represent the master regulators of metabolic pathways and their dysregulation is strongly associated with numerous metabolic disorders.

Can obesity-induced inflammation in skeletal muscle and intramuscular adipose tissue accurately detect liver fibrosis?

Objectives: Obesity is characterized by a chronic, low grade, systemic inflammation. However, little is known about the role of skeletal muscle, which represents an active metabolic organ whose activities need to be determined. The purpose of our study was to detect relationships between skeletal muscle and adipose tissue inflammation with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and diabetes, as well as to explore associations with clinicopathological parameters.

Inter-tissue expression patterns of the key metabolic biomarker PGC-1α in severely obese individuals: Implication in obesity-induced disease.

Objective: PGC-1α is already known as a significant regulator of mitochondrial biogenesis, oxidative phosphorylation and fatty acid metabolism. Our study focuses on the role of PGC1α in morbid obesity, in five different tissues, collected from 50 severely obese patients during planned bariatric surgery.

Methods: The investigated tissues included subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT), visceral adipose tissue (VAT), skeletal muscle (SM), extramyocellular adipose tissue (EMAT) and liver.

Cortisol in tissue and systemic level as a contributing factor to the development of metabolic syndrome in severely obese patients.

Context: Adrenal and extra-adrenal cortisol production may be involved in the development of metabolic syndrome (MetS).

Objective: To investigate the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the expression of HSD11B1, nuclear receptor subfamily 3, group C, member 1 (glucocorticoid receptors) α (NR3C1α) and β (NR3C1β) in the liver, subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) and visceral adipose tissue (VAT) of severely obese patients with and without MetS.

Methods: The study included 37 severely obese patients (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m(2)), 19 with MetS (MetS+ group) and 18 without (MetS- group), studied before and during bariatric surgery.

Effects of bariatric surgery on HDL structure and functionality: results from a prospective trial.

Background: In addition to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels, HDL quality appears also very important for atheroprotection. Obese patients with metabolic syndrome have significantly reduced HDL-C levels and are usually at increased risk for coronary heart disease. Despite that weight loss benefits these patients, its effects on HDL quality and functionality is currently poorly studied.

The effect of bariatric surgery on patient HRQOL and sexual health during a 1-year postoperative period.

Background: Negative consequences of the obesity epidemic include decreased physical, psychological, and sexual health. Bariatric surgery is a well-tolerated and effective treatment for morbid obesity. This study aimed to determine the effect of bariatric surgery on health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and sexual functioning and to identify potential predictors of this effect.

Neutrophil Gelatinase-Associated Lipocalin as a Biomarker of Acute Kidney Injury in Patients with Morbid Obesity Who Underwent Bariatric Surgery.

Introduction: Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) has been identified as a biomarker of acute kidney injury (AKI) that could contribute to early diagnosis and effective management of AKI. The purpose of this study was to evaluate NGAL as a predictive marker of AKI in patients with clinically severe obesity (BMI >50) who underwent biliopancreatic diversion surgery.

Patients And Methods: We prospectively studied 23 patients with clinically severe obesity who underwent biliopancreatic bypass surgery.

Improved levothyroxine pharmacokinetics after bariatric surgery.

Background: The absorption of levothyroxine (LT4) is affected by many factors. Bariatric surgery is recommended in severely obese patients. The aim of this study was to determine the consequences of bariatric surgery on LT4 pharmacokinetic parameters, and to identify the regions of the gastrointestinal tract where LT4 is absorbed in patients with severe obesity before and after surgery.

Impaired pharmacokinetics of levothyroxine in severely obese volunteers.

Background: Suppressive or replacement doses of levothyroxine (LT4) are affected by the rate and extent of the active ingredient absorbed, as well as by the lean body mass. Obesity has reached epidemic proportions worldwide and is related with many comorbidities. The aim of this study was to determine the pharmacokinetic parameters of LT4 in severely obese individuals and compared them with similar data in lean control subjects.

Early histological changes in the kidney of people with morbid obesity.

Background: Morbid obesity represents a major health problem with increasing incidence worldwide. The clinical manifestation of renal involvement in obesity is proteinuria, and the histological feature is glomerulomegaly with or without focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS). In this study, we have investigated the very early histological changes in kidneys of people with morbid obesity and no proteinuria.

The alpha2B adrenergic receptor deletion/insertion polymorphism in morbid obesity.

The sympathetic nervous system participates in the regulation of the basal metabolic rate (BMR) and in the manifestation of the obesity-related metabolic syndrome. A deletion/insertion germline polymorphism of the alpha(2B) adrenergic receptor that is associated with reduced agonist-promoted desensitization has been linked to low BMR in obese subjects and to a predisposition to gain weight. This study investigated an association of the alpha(2B) polymorphism with the BMR and metabolic syndrome-related parameters of morbidly obese patients.

Restoration of euglycemia and normal acute insulin response to glucose in obese subjects with type 2 diabetes following bariatric surgery.

Insulin resistance and loss of glucose-stimulated acute insulin response (AIR) are the two major and earliest defects in the course of type 2 diabetes. We investigated whether weight loss after bariatric surgery in patients with morbid obesity and type 2 diabetes could restore euglycemia and normal AIR to an intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT). We studied 25 morbidly obese patients-12 with type 2 diabetes, 5 with impaired glucose tolerance, and 8 with normal glucose tolerance (NGT)-before and after a biliopancreatic diversion (BPD) with Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGBP).