Publisher Correction: Menstrual cycle rhythmicity: metabolic patterns in healthy women.

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Menstrual cycle rhythmicity: metabolic patterns in healthy women.

The menstrual cycle is an essential life rhythm governed by interacting levels of progesterone, estradiol, follicular stimulating, and luteinizing hormones. To study metabolic changes, biofluids were collected at four timepoints in the menstrual cycle from 34 healthy, premenopausal women. Serum hormones, urinary luteinizing hormone and self-reported menstrual cycle timing were used for a 5-phase cycle classification. Plasma and urine were analyzed using LC-MS and GC-MS for metabolomics and lipidomics; serum for clinical chemistries; and plasma for B vitamins using HPLC-FLD. Of 397 metabolites and micronutrients tested, 208 were significantly (p < 0.05) changed and 71 reached the FDR 0.20 threshold showing rhythmicity in neurotransmitter precursors, glutathione metabolism, the urea cycle, 4-pyridoxic acid, and 25-OH vitamin D. In total, 39 amino acids and derivatives and 18 lipid species decreased (FDR < 0.20) in the luteal phase, possibly indicative of an anabolic state during the progesterone peak and recovery during menstruation and the follicular phase. The reduced metabolite levels observed may represent a time of vulnerability to hormone related health issues such as PMS and PMDD, in the setting of a healthy, rhythmic state. These results provide a foundation for further research on cyclic differences in nutrient-related metabolites and may form the basis of novel nutrition strategies for women.

Acute experimental stress evokes a differential gender-determined increase in human intestinal macromolecular permeability.

BACKGROUND: Intestinal epithelial dysfunction is a common pathophysiologic feature in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) patients and might be the link to its clinical manifestations. We previously showed that chronic psychosocial stress induces jejunal epithelial barrier dysfunction; however, whether this epithelial response is gender-specific and might thus explain the enhanced female susceptibility to IBS remains unknown. METHODS: Intestinal responses to acute stress were compared in age-matched groups of healthy women and men (n = 10 each) experiencing low background stress. A 20-cm jejunal segment, was perfused with an isosmotic solution, and intestinal effluents were collected under basal conditions, for 15 min during cold pain stress and for a 45-min recovery period. Epithelial function (net water flux and albumin output), changes in stress hormones, and cardiovascular and psychologic responses to cold stress were measured. KEY RESULTS: Heart rate and blood pressure significantly increased during cold pain stress with no differences between men and women. Adrenocorticotropic hormone and cortisol levels during cold pain stress were significantly higher in men. Basal net water flux and epithelial permeability were similar in men and women. Cold pain stress increased water flux in both groups (72 ± 23 and 107 ± 18 µL min(-1) cm(-1) , respectively; F(5, 90) = 5.5; P = 0.003 for Time) and, interestingly, this was associated with a marked increase of albumin permeability in women but not in men (0.8 ± 0.2 vs.-0.7 ± 0.2 mg/15 min; P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS & INFERENCES: Intestinal macromolecular permeability in response to acute experimental stress is increased in healthy women, a mechanism that may contribute to female oversusceptibility to IBS.

Defining personal nutrition and metabolic health through metabonomics.

A major charter for modern nutrition is to provide a molecular basis for health outcome resulting from different food choices and how this could be designed to maintain individual health free of disease. Nutrigenomic techniques have been developed to generate information at various levels of biological organization, i.e. genes, proteins, and metabolites. Within this frame, metabonomics targets the molecular characterization of a living system through metabolic profiling. The metabolic profiles are explored with sophisticated data mining techniques mainly based on multivariate statistics, which can recover key metabolic information to be further linked to biochemical processes and physiological events. The power of metabonomics relies on its unique ability to assess functional changes in the metabolism of complex organisms stemming from multiple influences such as lifestyle and environmental factors. In particular, metabolic profiles encapsulate information on the metabolic activity of symbiotic partners, i.e. gut microflora, in complex organisms, which represent major determinant in nutrition and health. Therefore, applications of metabonomics to nutrition sciences led to the nutrimetabonomics approach for the classification of dietary responses in populations and the possibility of optimized or personalized nutritional management.

[Lymphocytic meningitis. Virologic study. Analysis of the study carried out from 1984 to 1986 (632 cases)]. / Meningitis linfocitaria. Estudio virológico. Análisis de estudio realizado entre 1984-1986 (632 casos).

The experience with the virological diagnosis of lymphocytic meningitis in the Centro Nacional de Microbiología during 3 years (1984-1986) included 632 cases. The most common causative organism was the parotiditis virus (46.9%), particularly in children (64.6%), followed by the non-polio enteroviruses (25.3%). The varicella-zoster virus was the most common organism found in adults (33.3%). We describe some clinical and epidemiological aspects, emphasizing the absence of clinical features suggesting herpesvirus infection in about 50% of cases. Finally, we indicate the study techniques or methods more adequate in each instance (specific IgM detection, isolation techniques or detection of intrathecal antibody production), and we define a study protocol for cases of acute lymphocytic meningitis which permits a high diagnostic yield (44.1-54.9%).

Intrafamilial correlation analysis for IgM serum levels.

The IgM serum level was determined in the members of 29 healthy families. The IgM mean concentrations between fathers and mothers and between sons and daughters were significantly different (P less than .01), with higher serum IgM levels in females than in males. Simple linear regression analysis was done for the following intrafamilial combinations: son-father, daughter-father, son-mother, and daughter-mother. Significant correlation coefficients (P less than .05) were obtained in all four combinations, which does not support the X-linked gene hypothesis (i.e., that the X chromosome carries quantitative genes for immunoglobulin M). An alternative explanation for the differences between sexes for IgM serum concentration is considered.