Gonadotropin axis and semen quality in young Swiss men after cannabis consumption: Effect of chronicity and modulation by cannabidiol.

Background: While cannabis is the most widely used recreational drug in the world, the effects of phytocannabinoids on semen parameters and reproductive hormones remain controversial. Cannabinoid receptors are activated by these compounds at each level of the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonadotropic axis.

Objectives: To assess the impact of the consumption of Δ-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol on semen parameters, as well as on male reproductive hormone and endocannabinoid levels, in a cohort of young Swiss men.

Effect of a four-week isocaloric ketogenic diet on physical performance at very high-altitude: a pilot study.

Background: A ketogenic diet (KD) reduces daily carbohydrates (CHOs) ingestion by replacing most calories with fat. KD is of increasing interest among athletes because it may increase their maximal oxygen uptake (VOmax), the principal performance limitation at high-altitudes (1500-3500 m). We examined the tolerance of a 4-week isocaloric KD (ICKD) under simulated hypoxia and the possibility of evaluating ICKD performance benefits with a maximal graded exercise bike test under hypoxia and collected data on the effect of the diet on performance markers and arterial blood gases.

The Cardiac Mineralocorticoid Receptor (MR): A Therapeutic Target Against Ventricular Arrhythmias.

Mineralocorticoid antagonists have been shown to be useful in the treatment of severe heart failure and may even save lives in this context. However, the reason for the beneficial action of these drugs, as well as the physiological role played by the cardiac mineralocorticoid receptor (MR), are still poorly understood. While the proinflammatory action of aldosterone on the heart and the resulting fibrosis partly explain the improvement due to the anti-mineralocorticoid therapy, the reduction in sudden death is probably related to a lower occurrence of ventricular arrhythmias.

Spot urine samples to estimate 24-hour urinary calcium excretion in school-age children.

Urinary calcium/creatinine ratio (UCa/Cr) on a single spot urine sample is frequently used in children to evaluate calciuria, but its accuracy to estimate 24-h urinary calcium excretion (24hUCa) has not been properly assessed. We analyzed the correlation between UCa/Cr in various spot samples and 24hUCa among healthy children. A 24-h urine specimen and three spot urine samples (evening, first, and second morning) were collected in a convenience sample of children aged 6 to 16 years (n = 101).

Semen endocannabinoids are correlated to sperm quality in a cohort of 200 young Swiss men.

Background: A role for endocannabinoids in the male and female reproductive systems has been highlighted during the recent decades. Some of these compounds bind the cannabinoid CB1 receptor, which is abundantly expressed in the central nervous system but also present in the reproductive system, while others act as 'entourage compounds' modulators.

Objectives: The present study aimed at evaluating the relationship between sperm quality and endocannabinoid profiles in a cohort of 200 young Swiss men and whether the presence of specific xenobiotics could influence these profiles.

Monitoring caffeine intake in children with a questionnaire and urine collection: a cross-sectional study in a convenience sample in Switzerland.

Purpose: The objectives of this study were (1) to estimate caffeine intake and identify the main sources of intake using a dietary questionnaire, (2) to assess 24-h urinary excretion of caffeine and its metabolites, and (3) to assess how self-reported intake estimates correlates with urinary excretion among children in Switzerland.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of children between 6 and 16 years of age in one region of Switzerland. The participants filled in a dietary questionnaire and collected a 24-h urine sample.

Steroid profile analysis by LC-HRMS in human seminal fluid.

Steroids are essential hormones that play a crucial role in homeostasis of many biological processes including sexual development, spermatogenesis, sperm physiology and fertility. Although steroids have been largely studied in many biological matrices (such as urine and plasma), there is very limited information of the steroid content and their study as potential indicators of the quality of the seminal fluid. In this study, a LC-HRMS (liquid chromatography-high resolution mass spectrometry) strategy has been developed in order to obtain the extended steroid profile of human seminal fluid.

Urine Spot Samples Can Be Used to Estimate 24-Hour Urinary Sodium Excretion in Children.

Background: The gold standard to assess salt intake is 24-h urine collections. Use of a urine spot sample can be a simpler alternative, especially when the goal is to assess sodium intake at the population level. Several equations to estimate 24-h urinary sodium excretion from urine spot samples have been tested in adults, but not in children.

Estimation of salt intake and excretion in children in one region of Switzerland: a cross-sectional study.

Purpose: Salt intake among children in Switzerland is unknown. The objectives of this study were to determine salt excretion and to identify the main dietary sources of salt intake among children in one region of Switzerland.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study using a convenient sample of children 6-16 years of age in Valais, Switzerland, between 2016 and 2018.

MicroRNA-204 Is Necessary for Aldosterone-Stimulated T-Type Calcium Channel Expression in Cardiomyocytes.

Activation of the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) in the heart is considered to be a cardiovascular risk factor. MR activation leads to heart hypertrophy and arrhythmia. In ventricular cardiomyocytes, aldosterone induces a profound remodeling of ion channel expression, in particular, an increase in the expression and activity of T-type voltage-gated calcium channels (T-channels).

CRP-Based Cardiovascular Risk Assessment: New Conventional CRP Assay Fit for Purpose?

Background: Subclinical inflammation was shown to play a role in the context of cardiovascular disorder processes. American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association guidelines on cardiovascular risk assessment in specific clinical contexts recommend the use of C-reactive protein (CRP) measurement with high sensitive (hs)-CRP assays that meet the precision requirements for values <2 mg/L. Until now, only hs-CRP assays reached the required limit of quantification.

Effects of interpersonal violence-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) on mother and child diurnal cortisol rhythm and cortisol reactivity to a laboratory stressor involving separation.

Women who have experienced interpersonal violence (IPV) are at a higher risk to develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), with dysregulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and impaired social behavior. Previously, we had reported impaired maternal sensitivity and increased difficulty in identifying emotions (i.e.

T-Type Calcium Channel: A Privileged Gate for Calcium Entry and Control of Adrenal Steroidogenesis.

Intracellular calcium plays a crucial role in modulating a variety of functions such as muscle contraction, hormone secretion, gene expression, or cell growth. Calcium signaling has been however shown to be more complex than initially thought. Indeed, it is confined within cell microdomains, and different calcium channels are associated with different functions, as shown by various channelopathies.

CD14 as a Mediator of the Mineralocorticoid Receptor-Dependent Anti-apolipoprotein A-1 IgG Chronotropic Effect on Cardiomyocytes.

In vitro and animal studies point to autoantibodies against apolipoprotein A-1 (anti-apoA-1 IgG) as possible mediators of cardiovascular (CV) disease involving several mechanisms such as basal heart rate interference mediated by a mineralocorticoid receptor-dependent L-type calcium channel activation, and a direct pro-inflammatory effect through the engagement of the toll-like receptor (TLR) 2/CD14 complex. Nevertheless, the possible implication of these receptors in the pro-arrhythmogenic effect of anti-apoA-1 antibodies remains elusive. We aimed at determining whether CD14 and TLRs could mediate the anti-apoA-1 IgG chronotropic response in neonatal rat ventricular cardiomyocytes (NRVC).

Evaluation of steroidomics by liquid chromatography hyphenated to mass spectrometry as a powerful analytical strategy for measuring human steroid perturbations.

This review presents the evolution of steroid analytical techniques, including gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS), immunoassay (IA) and targeted liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS), and it evaluates the potential of extended steroid profiles by a metabolomics-based approach, namely steroidomics. Steroids regulate essential biological functions including growth and reproduction, and perturbations of the steroid homeostasis can generate serious physiological issues; therefore, specific and sensitive methods have been developed to measure steroid concentrations. GC-MS measuring several steroids simultaneously was considered the first historical standard method for analysis.

In vivo and in vitro evidences of dehydroepiandrosterone protective role on the cardiovascular system.

Context: Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and its sulfate ester, Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate (DHEA-S) have been considered as putative anti-aging hormones for many years. Indeed, while DHEAS is the most abundant circulating hormone, its concentration is markedly decreased upon aging and early epidemiologic trials have revealed a strong inverse correlation between the hormone concentrations and the occurrence of several dysfunctions frequently encountered in the elderly. Naturally, hormonal supplementation has been rapidly suggested to prevent DHEA (S) deficiency and therefore, age-related development of these pathologies, using the same strategy as estrogen replacement therapy proposed in postmenopausal women.

DHEA prevents mineralo- and glucocorticoid receptor-induced chronotropic and hypertrophic actions in isolated rat cardiomyocytes.

Corticosteroids have been involved in the genesis of ventricular arrhythmias associated with pathological heart hypertrophy, although molecular mechanisms responsible for these effects have not been completely explained. Because mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) antagonists have been demonstrated to be beneficial on the cardiac function, much attention has been given to the action of aldosterone on the heart. However, we have previously shown that both aldosterone and corticosterone in vitro induce a marked acceleration of the spontaneous contractions, as well as a significant cell hypertrophy in isolated neonate rat ventricular cardiomyocytes.

Expression profiling of human immune cell subsets identifies miRNA-mRNA regulatory relationships correlated with cell type specific expression.

Blood consists of different cell populations with distinct functions and correspondingly, distinct gene expression profiles. In this study, global miRNA expression profiling was performed across a panel of nine human immune cell subsets (neutrophils, eosinophils, monocytes, B cells, NK cells, CD4 T cells, CD8 T cells, mDCs and pDCs) to identify cell-type specific miRNAs. mRNA expression profiling was performed on the same samples to determine if miRNAs specific to certain cell types down-regulated expression levels of their target genes.

Antiapolipoprotein A-1 IgG chronotropic effects require nongenomic action of aldosterone on L-type calcium channels.

Autoantibodies to apolipoprotein A-1 (antiapoA-1 IgG) have been shown to be associated with higher resting heart rate and morbidity in myocardial infarction patients and to behave as a chronotropic agent in the presence of aldosterone on isolated neonatal rat ventricular cardiomyocytes (NRVC). We aimed at identifying the pathways accounting for this aldosterone-dependent antiapoA-1 IgG-positive chronotropic effect on NRVC. The rate of regular spontaneous contractions was determined on NRVC in the presence of different steroid hormones and antagonists.

Salivary cortisol profiles in patients remitted from recurrent depression: one-year follow-up of a mindfulness-based cognitive therapy trial.

Few studies have examined changes of diurnal cortisol profiles prospectively, in relation to non-pharmacological interventions such as mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT). Fifty-six patients remitted from recurrent depression (≥3 episodes) were included in an 8-week randomized controlled trial comparing MBCT plus treatment as usual (TAU) with TAU for depression relapse prophylaxis. Saliva samples (0, 15, 30, 45, 60 min post-awakening, 3 PM, 8 PM) were collected on six occasions (pre- and post-intervention, 3-, 6-, 9-, 12-month follow-up).

Psychological distress in fibromyalgia patients: a role for catechol-O-methyl-transferase Val158met polymorphism.

Objective: Fibromyalgia (FM) has been related to biochemical alterations, central pain sensitization and psychological distress. Among genetic and environmental hypotheses, a role was suggested for catechol-O-methyl-transferase (COMT), a modulator in the metabolism of monoaminergic neurotransmitters.

Method: This study compared the COMT Val158Met enzyme polymorphism (rs4680) of 198 FM patients to 99 pain-free controls.

The cortisol awakening response in patients remitted from depression.

An impressive number of data has been accumulated on dysfunctions of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and cortisol hypersecretion in depression. To assess the dynamic HPA functioning, the cortisol awakening response (CAR) is an easily accessible and reliable approach. Some data suggest that elevated CAR in depressed patients has trait-like characteristics.