The sex life of male patients with cirrhosis and its organic factors: What we have got so far?

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the sex lives of male cirrhotic patients organic factors affect them. METHOD: We did an observational study of 220 cirrhotic men's satisfaction with their sexual lives. Assessment of sex satisfaction was carried out using the New Sexual Satisfaction Scale. The frequency of intercourse and masturbation was estimated. Then, the levels of albumin, total bilirubin, vitamin D, and sex steroids were examined. Ascites and sarcopenia subgroups of our patients were stratified. RESULTS: Along with sex steroids, albumin, total bilirubin, and vitamin D all had an impact on how satisfying sex was (r = 0.22), (r = 0.24), and (r = -0.17) affected sex satisfaction. There were strong positive correlations between vitamin D (r = 0.33), albumin (r = 0.59), and free testosterone, along with a negative correlation between total bilirubin (r = -0.63) and free testosterone. An imbalance in sex steroid levels was observed, leading to decreased frequency of intercourse(p < 0.0001), weakened erections(p < 0.0001), and reduced quality of orgasm (p < 0.0001). Significant new sex behavior changes were found, such as an increase in masturbation. Physical limitations such as ascites and sarcopenia also impacted the decreasing sex life. CONCLUSION: The sex life of cirrhotic men is affected. The decrease in the frequency of intercourse and sexual satisfaction is noticeable in male patients and leads to increased masturbation. Free Testosterone, vitamin D, albumin, and bilirubin play role in their sex life. In addition, ascites and sarcopenia not only affect their sex life but also hamper the quality of their well-being.

The Association Between Lipid Serum and Semen Parameters: a Systematic Review.

Increased lipid levels sometimes not only affect sexual function but also are considered to harm semen quality. It is often a suspicion that elevated lipids are a factor in infertility. We conduct a systematic review. Articles that met the criteria were identified according to The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of recommendations in the PubMed, ProQuest, EBSCO, Web of Science Wiley Online, Springer Link, Scopus, and Science Direct databases with no time restriction for publication. Seven studies are eligible for qualitative analysis from nine studies that have the potential to be assessed. These studies measure the correlation of serum lipids (VLDL, HDL, LDL, triglycerides, total cholesterol, free cholesterol, phospholipids, free fatty acids) with semen parameters (concentration, motility, morphology, DNA fragmentation index). Although not all studies consistently report that lipids impact semen quality, this review suspects that lipids have a significant impact on sperm quality. This study implies that it is necessary to maintain lipid levels to maintain sperm quality and quality of life. However, further investigation with an observational cohort study design needs to be carried out to assess the effect of lipids on semen quality more precisely for the promotion of reproductive health care.

Treatment with Mammalian Ste-20-like Kinase 1/2 (MST1/2) Inhibitor XMU-MP-1 Improves Glucose Tolerance in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetes Mice.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the major causes of death in the world. There are two types of DM-type 1 DM and type 2 DM. Type 1 DM can only be treated by insulin injection whereas type 2 DM is commonly treated using anti-hyperglycemic agents. Despite its effectiveness in controlling blood glucose level, this therapeutic approach is not able to reduce the decline in the number of functional pancreatic ß cells. MST1 is a strong pro-apoptotic kinase that is expressed in pancreatic ß cells. It induces ß cell death and impairs insulin secretion. Recently, a potent and specific inhibitor for MST1, called XMU-MP-1, was identified and characterized. We hypothesized that treatment with XMU-MP-1 would produce beneficial effects by improving the survival and function of the pancreatic ß cells. We used INS-1 cells and STZ-induced diabetic mice as in vitro and in vivo models to test the effect of XMU-MP-1 treatment. We found that XMU-MP-1 inhibited MST1/2 activity in INS-1 cells. Moreover, treatment with XMU-MP-1 produced a beneficial effect in improving glucose tolerance in the STZ-induced diabetic mouse model. Histological analysis indicated that XMU-MP-1 increased the number of pancreatic ß cells and enhanced Langerhans islet area in the severe diabetic mice. Overall, this study showed that MST1 could become a promising therapeutic target for diabetes mellitus.

The Cross-Talk Between the TNF-α and RASSF-Hippo Signalling Pathways.

The regulation of cell death through apoptosis is essential to a number of physiological processes. Defective apoptosis regulation is associated with many abnormalities including anomalies in organ development, altered immune response and the development of cancer. Several signalling pathways are known to regulate apoptosis including the Tumour Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α) and Hippo signalling pathways. In this paper we review the cross-talk between the TNF-α pathway and the Hippo signalling pathway. Several molecules that tightly regulate the Hippo pathway, such as members of the Ras-association domain family member (RASSF) family proteins, interact and modulate some key proteins within the TNF-α pathway. Meanwhile, TNF-α stimulation also affects the expression and activation of core components of the Hippo pathway. This implies the crucial role of signal integration between these two major pathways in regulating apoptosis.