Android subcutaneous adipose tissue topography in lean and obese women suffering from PCOS: comparison with type 2 diabetic women.

The new optical device, the lipometer, enables the noninvasive, quick, safe, and precise determination of the thickness of subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) layers at any given site of the human body. Fifteen anatomically well-defined body sites from neck to calf describe a SAT topography (SAT-Top) like an individual "fingerprint" of a subject. This SAT-Top was examined in 16 women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and compared to the body fat distribution of 87 age-matched healthy controls and 20 type-2 diabetic women. SAT-Top differences of these three groups were described and, to render the possibility of visual comparison, the 15-dimensional body fat information was condensed to a two-dimensional factor plot by factor analysis. All PCOS patients had an android body fat distribution with significantly thinner SAT layers on the legs as compared to healthy controls. Moreover, a hierarchical cluster analysis resulted in two distinctly different groups of PCOS women, a lean (PCOSL) and an obese (PCOSO) cluster: compared to healthy women, lean PCOS patients had significantly lower total SAT development, even though height, weight, and body mass index did not deviate significantly. Especially on the legs, their SAT layers were significantly lowered, indicating a more "apple-like" fat distribution type. Obese PCOS women showed a SAT-Top pattern very similar to that of women with type-2 diabetes, although the mean age difference between these groups was more than 30 years. Compared to healthy controls, the SAT-Top of these obese PCOS patients was strongly shifted into the android direction, appearing as "super-apples" with a significantly increased upper trunk obesity to 237.8% and a significantly decreased leg SAT development to 79.8%.

Subcutaneous adipose tissue pattern in lean and obese women with polycystic ovary syndrome.

The new optical device, Lipometer, permits the noninvasive, quick, safe, and precise measurement of the thickness of subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) layers at any given site of the human body. Fifteen anatomically well-defined body sites from neck to calf describe the SAT topography (SAT-Top) like an individual "fingerprint." SAT-Top was examined in 33 women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), in 87 age-matched healthy controls and in 20 Type-II diabetic women. SAT-Top differences of these three groups were described, and, based on a hierarchical cluster analysis, two distinctly different groups of PCOS women, a lean (PCOS(L)) and an obese (PCOS(O)) cluster, were found. For visual comparison of the different types of body fat distribution, the 15-dimensional body fat information was condensed to a two-dimensional factor plot by factor analysis. For comparison of the PCOS like body fat distribution with the "healthy" fat pattern, the (previously published) SAT-Top results of 590 healthy women and men (20-70 years old) and 162 healthy girls and boys (7-11 years old) were added to the factor plot. PCOS(O) women showed a SAT-Top pattern very similar to that of women with Type-II diabetes, even though the diabetic women were on average 30 years older. Compared with their healthy controls, SAT-Top of these PCOS(O) patients was strongly skewed into the android direction, providing significantly decreased leg SAT development and significantly higher upper body obesity. Compared with healthy women, PCOS(L) patients had significantly lower total SAT development (even though height, weight, and body mass index did not deviate significantly), showing a slightly lowered amount of body fat in the upper region and a highly significant leg SAT reduction. This type of fat pattern is the same as found in girls and boys before developing their sex specific body fat distribution. We conclude that women with PCOS develop an android SAT-Top, but compared in more detail, we found two typical types of body fat distribution: the "childlike" SAT pattern in lean PCOS patients, and the "diabetic" body fat distribution in obese PCOS women.

NADH stimulates endogenous dopamine biosynthesis by enhancing the recycling of tetrahydrobiopterin in rat phaeochromocytoma cells.

Treatment of Parkinson patients with L-DOPA (3,4-dihydroxy-L-phenylalanine) leads to endproduct inhibition of tyrosine hydroxylase, the key enzyme in dopamine biosynthesis and the enzyme needing tetrahydrobiopterin and iron as cofactors. To overcome this problem an alternative treatment was investigated which attempted to stimulate endogenous dopamine biosynthesis. Incubation of rat PC 12 cells with NADH (beta-nicotinamide adeninedinucleotide) leads to increased dopamine production. We investigated the possibility that this increase of dopamine biosynthesis was due to stimulation of quinonoid dihydropteridine reductase, the enzyme which recycles the inactive dihydrobiopterin to the active tetrahydrobiopterin. The experiments showed that whereas NADH is able to increase dopamine production in PC 12 cells (rat phaeochromocytoma cells, clone PC 12) up to three-fold, no influence is exerted by NADH on pteridine metabolism; neither are tetrahydrobiopterin concentrations nor the de novo-biosynthesis of pteridines from guanosine triphosphate altered by NADH. Further no influence of NADH on protein de novo synthesis of quinonoid dihydropteridine reductase was observed. However, NADH was able to directly increase the catalytic activity of this enzyme. Our results suggest that the stimulation of dopamine biosynthesis by NADH is due to more rapid regeneration of quinonoid dihydrobiopterin to tetrahydrobiopterin.

Interheavy disulfide bridge in immunoglobulin G (IgG) reacting with dithionitrobenzoate. A unique feature in serum proteins.

Immunoglobulin G (IgG) of many species contains 'labile' disulfide bonds (SS*), which within 24 h undergo a disulfide exchange with dithionitrobenzoic acid (NBSSBN). Aims of the present study were to detect directly this type of SS* groups by means of 14C-labelled NBSSBN, and to investigate its possible presence in other serum proteins. NBSSBN reacts during the first 30 min of incubation with free SH groups, and thereafter with the sulfur atoms of SS* groups. The latter reaction reaches equilibrium after 24 h. The total of thionitrobenzoate residues (NBS) bound to IgG is called 'sigma S' and represents both SH and SS*. The results can be summarized as follows: (1) The measurement of the binding of 14C-NBSSBN gave identical sigma S values with IgG from humans and mice, as compared to the detection with the unlabelled reagent, which is based on the photometric determination of liberated NBS anions; whereas with IgG from rats some differences were observed which were ascribed to different batches of animals investigated; (2) experiments with electrophoretically separated serum proteins revealed only the gamma-globulins strongly binding 14C-NBSSBN in addition to the 30 min reaction, which indicates that SS* is confined to the gamma-globulin fraction; and (3) the significant decrease of sigma S in association with malignant tumors in man and animal models, which was previously described to be due to a specific alteration of the IgG subclass pattern, was likewise detected with the radiometrical method. Previous studies have identified SS* as one of the two inter-heavy disulfide bridges in IgG1, and possible implications of this group in specific functions of IgG1 are discussed.

The effect of reduced physical activity on longevity of mice.

Reduced physical activity leads, in female mice, to a reduction of the average and maximal life span. The average age at death of the inactive experimental group was 497 +/- 121 days (mean +/- S.D.) compared to 557 +/- 139 days in the active control group, and the six oldest inactive experimental mice died at age 732 +/- 50 days, while the six oldest active control mice died at 890 +/- 52 days. The restriction of mobility was connected with a higher growth rate and a higher body weight in spite of a significant decrease in food intake. In spite of a reduced food intake leading to a reduced whole body metabolism, the results show that mobility restriction shortens life span in female mice.

Free epinephrine in the ischemic blood of muscle transplants in the rabbit.

A stimulated autotransplantation of the rectus femoris muscle in the rabbit was performed by clamping of the blood vessels for 2 h and cutting and suturing of the nerve. Four months after this operation, isometric contractions of the reinnervated muscle were recorded. Comparing controls and postoperation cases, the recovered strength measured about 65%. Due to operation stress, the epinephrine content in plasma was about 420 pg/ml; in plasma of the ischemic muscle it was enhanced to more than 600 pg/ml. During or immediately after ischemia, conjugated epinephrine is assumed to be converted to the free hormone. In systemic blood additionally about 200 pg/ml epinephrine were identified as glucuronides. The activity of adenylate cyclase increased, while the acetylcholine esterase decreased to one-half after nerve cutting.