The Investigation of Kisspeptin, Spexin and Galanin in Euthyroid Women with Hashimoto's Thyroiditis.

OBJECTIVE: The hallmarks of Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) include the destruction of thyroid cells by leading to insulin resistance (IR), hypothyroidism, and metabolic abnormalities. Kisspeptin, spexin, and galanin control appetite and body weight (BW) to regulate metabolisms. Here, we sought to determine if galanin, kisspeptin, and spexin are linked to the pathophysiology of HT in euthyroid female individuals. METHODS: Forty-five women with HT and 45 healthy control women of the same age participated in the current study. The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) method was used to measure the serum levels of galanin, spexin, and kisspeptin. RESULTS: In comparison to the controls, HT patients had significantly higher levels of kisspeptin (p < 0.01), galanin (p < 0.01), anti-thyroid peroxidase (anti-TPO) (p < 0.001), anti-thyroglobulin (anti-Tg) (p < 0.001), and body mass index (BMI) (p < 0.05). The two groups were comparable in terms of spexin, free triiodothyronine-3 (fT3), fT4, thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels, and homeostatic model assessment for insulin resistance (HOMA-IR). Galanin and kisspeptin were seen to have a positive correlation (p < 0.01; r = 0.786). CONCLUSIONS: Euthyroid women with HT were found to have higher levels of kisspeptin and galanin. These results imply that kisspeptin and galanin may be linked to the pathogenesis of hypothyroidism, and as a result, we believe that these markers may be beneficial in the early detection and treatment of HT patients.

Profound hypoglycemia-induced by vaccinium corymbosum juice and laurocerasus fruit.

An emergency intervention was performed in a 75-year-old male patient with hypoglycemic attack and blackout. Although he was diagnosed with prediabetes before 2 years, he did not take any anti-diabetic drug or follow dietary advice. He drank Vaccinium corymbosum L (VC) juice daily with a belief that it increases sexual potency. Before the development of hypoglycemia, the patient had consumed about 500 ml VC juice in addition to eating 200-300 gram of Laurocerasus officinalis (LO) fruit. The measured plasma glucose (PG) level during loss of consciousness was 30 mg/dl. The profound hypoglycemia may be an unexpected side effect of an interaction between the chemical compositions of the two plants, occurred as a result of LO fruit intake that may have a strong PG-lowering effect or related to excessive intake of VC juice. Both plants may be considered in the alternative treatment of diabetes.