Association among abnormal glycolipids, reproductive hormones, and cognitive dysfunction in female patients with bipolar disorder.

BACKGROUND: Patients with bipolar disorder (BD) show abnormalities in glucolipid metabolism and reproductive hormone levels, which are of concern in women with BD. This study was dedicated to investigating the glucolipid and reproductive hormone levels of female patients, and to preliminarily investigating their relationships with cognition. METHODS: A total of 58 unmedicated female BD patients, 61 stable-medicated female BD patients, and 63 healthy controls (HC) were recruited in this study. Serum glycolipid indexes and reproductive hormones were measured. Cognitive function was assessed using the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS) and the Stroop Color-Word Test (Stroop test). RESULTS: Patients with BD showed significant cognitive impairment (p < 0.05), which was not affected by medication. Triglycerides (TG), luteinizing hormone (LH), and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) were altered in stable-medicated BD patients. In addition, regression analysis showed that progesterone (PRGE) and prolactin (PRL) were negatively associated with cognitive performance in stable-medicated BD patients. CONCLUSIONS: Female BD patients may have cognitive deficits and abnormal levels of glycolipids and reproductive hormones. And abnormal levels of glycolipids and reproductive hormones may be associated with cognitive dysfunction in female BD patients.

Effects of strigolactone and abscisic acid on the quality and antioxidant activity of grapes (Vitis vinifera L.) and wines.

This study employed various methods, including recording of phenological phenomena and analysis of physicochemical indicators, to scrutinize effects of strigolactone and abscisic acid on indicators of ripeness, phenolic compounds, and antioxidant activity. 50 µM GR24 (strigolactone analog), 200 µM ABA (abscisic acid), 50 µM GR24 + 200 µM ABA, and 200 µM ABA + 10 µM TIS108 (strigolactone-biosynthesis inhibitor) were employed in E-L34 and E-L35. Samples were collected from E-L34 to E-L38. Each treatment could improve sugar contents and reduce acid contents, especially in the ABA + TIS group whose contents were 1 °brix higher and 1.11 g/L lower than the control group. Additionally, the ABA and ABA + TIS groups could significantly contribute to phenolic accumulation, especially anthocyanins which were increased by at least 1.5 mg/g at each stage. However, the ABA + GR group had some inhibitory effects on ripening. Therefore, this study can lay a foundation for precisely applying exogenous ABA and GR24.