Patterns of IgA Autoantibody Generation, Inflammatory Responses and Extracellular Matrix Metabolism in Patients with Alcohol Use Disorder.

Recent data have emphasized the role of inflammation and intestinal immunoglobulin A (IgA) responses in the pathogenesis of alcoholic liver disease (ALD). In order to further explore such associations, we compared IgA titers against antigens targeted to ethanol metabolites and tissue transglutaminase with pro- and anti-inflammatory mediators of inflammation, markers of liver status, transferrin protein desialylation and extracellular matrix metabolism in alcohol-dependent patients with or without liver disease and in healthy controls. Serum IgAs against protein adducts with acetaldehyde (HbAch-IgA), the first metabolite of ethanol, and tissue transglutaminase (tTG-IgA), desialylated transferrin (CDT), pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines, markers of liver status (GT, ALP) and extracellular matrix metabolism (PIIINP, PINP, hyaluronic acid, ICTP and CTx) were measured in alcohol-dependent patients with ( = 83) or without ( = 105) liver disease and 88 healthy controls representing either moderate drinkers or abstainers.

Associations between Liver Enzymes, Lifestyle Risk Factors and Pre-Existing Medical Conditions in a Population-Based Cross-Sectional Sample.

While alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT) enzymes are commonly used indicators of liver dysfunction recent studies have suggested that these may also serve as predictive biomarkers in the assessment of extrahepatic morbidity. In order to shed further light on the interactions between serum liver enzyme abnormalities, factors of lifestyle and health status we examined ALT and GGT activities in a population-based sample of 8743 adult individuals (4048 men, 4695 women from the National FINRISK 2002 Study, mean age 48.1 ± 13.

Oral and Vaginal Hormonal Contraceptives Induce Similar Unfavorable Metabolic Effects in Women with PCOS: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

This clinical trial aims to compare hormonal and metabolic changes after a 9-week continuous use of oral or vaginal combined hormonal contraceptives (CHCs) in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). We recruited 24 women with PCOS and randomized them to use either combined oral (COC, = 13) or vaginal (CVC, = 11) contraception. At baseline and 9 weeks, blood samples were collected and a 2 h glucose tolerance test (OGTT) was performed to evaluate hormonal and metabolic outcomes.

Impact of Physical Activity on the Characteristics and Metabolic Consequences of Alcohol Consumption: A Cross-Sectional Population-Based Study.

Sedentary lifestyle and excessive alcohol drinking are major modifiable risk factors of health. In order to shed further light on the relationships between physical activity and health consequences of alcohol intake, we measured biomarkers of liver function, inflammation, lipid status and fatty liver index tests in a large population-based sample of individuals with different levels of physical activity, alcohol drinking and other lifestyle risk factors. The study included 21,050 adult participants (9940 men, 11,110 women) (mean age 48.

Alcohol Drinking Patterns and Laboratory Indices of Health: Does Type of Alcohol Preferred Make a Difference?

Although excessive alcohol consumption is a highly prevalent public health problem the data on the associations between alcohol consumption and health outcomes in individuals preferring different types of alcoholic beverages has remained unclear. We examined the relationships between the amounts and patterns of drinking with the data on laboratory indices of liver function, lipid status and inflammation in a national population-based health survey (FINRISK). Data on health status, alcohol drinking, types of alcoholic beverages preferred, body weight, smoking, coffee consumption and physical activity were recorded from 22,432 subjects (10,626 men, 11,806 women), age range 25-74 years.