Study shows loss of key estrogen regulator may lead to metabolic syndrome and atherosclerosis
September 6, 2011 in Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes
UCLA researchers demonstrated that loss of a key protein that regulates estrogen and immune activity in the body could lead to aspects of metabolic syndrome, a combination of conditions that can cause Type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis and cancer. Called estrogen receptor alpha, this protein is critical in regulating immune system activity such as helping cells suppress inflammation and gobble-up debris.
This early preclinical study in female mice demonstrated that removing estrogen regulator alpha alone was enough to reduce the immune system's protective process and promote increased fat accumulation and accelerate atherosclerosis development. Without this protein, the mice developed additional aspects of metabolic syndrome such as glucose intolerance, insulin resistance and inflammation.
This estrogen receptor is also expressed in many other non-reproductive tissues such as fat, muscle and liver and can also act independent of the hormone estrogen. However, little is known about the receptor's actions in these tissues that are involved in blood-sugar regulation, which plays an integral role in metabolic syndrome.
Researchers hope that these early findings may provide insight into the development of metabolic syndrome, which affects millions of people worldwide. A better understanding of the activity of this receptor may lead to improved future therapies.
"Impairment of this receptor's function could also play a role in the heightened incidence of metabolic syndrome being seen in younger women," said senior author Andrea Hevener, Ph.D., associate professor of endocrinology, diabetes and hypertension, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. "We may find that action of this estrogen receptor is just as important as that of circulating estrogen, which is key in multiple therapies such as HRT."
Hevener notes that her team will next study the status of this estrogen receptor in pre and postmenopausal women.
More information: The study will appear in the early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) during the week of Sept. 5.
Provided by University of California - Los Angeles
-
Liver, dietary proteins key in fertility
Feb 01, 2011 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Team discovers new inhibitors of estrogen-dependent breast cancer cells
Jun 16, 2008 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Revealing estrogen's secret role in obesity
Aug 20, 2007 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Fertile? Not Without the Brain
Oct 20, 2006 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Improved estrogen reception may sharpen fuzzy memory
Jul 29, 2008 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Motion perception revisited: High Phi effect challenges established motion perception assumptions
Apr 23, 2013 |
3 / 5 (2) |
2
-
Anything you can do I can do better: Neuromolecular foundations of the superiority illusion (Update)
Apr 02, 2013 |
4.5 / 5 (11) |
5
-
The visual system as economist: Neural resource allocation in visual adaptation
Mar 30, 2013 |
5 / 5 (2) |
9
-
Separate lives: Neuronal and organismal lifespans decoupled
Mar 27, 2013 |
4.9 / 5 (8) |
0
-
Sizing things up: The evolutionary neurobiology of scale invariance
Feb 28, 2013 |
4.8 / 5 (10) |
14
-
Classical and Quantum Mechanics via Lie algebras
Apr 15, 2011
- More from Physics Forums - Independent Research
More news stories
Researchers find genetic risk factor for pulmonary fibrosis
A paper recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine and co-written by physicians and scientists at the University of Colorado School of Medicine finds that an important genetic risk factor for pulmonary fibros ...
Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes
9 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Biomarkers discovered for inflammatory bowel disease
Using the Department of Defense Serum Repository (DoDSR), University of Cincinnati (UC) researchers have identified a number of biomarkers for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which could help with earlier diagnosis and ...
Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes
9 hours ago |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
CDC says high number of public pools contain microbes
(HealthDay)—Three-quarters of public schools in the metro Atlanta area contain microbes, including bacteria indicating the presence of fecal matter, according to research published in the May 17 issue of ...
Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes
10 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
Study examines outbreak of spinal infections in Michigan
(HealthDay)—Factors such as increased case finding may explain why Michigan had half of the total spinal infections associated with contaminated methylprednisolone acetate in the recent fungal meningitis ...
Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes
10 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
World not ready for mass flu outbreak, WHO says
The world is unprepared for a massive virus outbreak, the deputy chief of the World Health Organization warned Tuesday, amid fears that H7N9 bird flu striking China could morph into a form that spreads easily among people.
Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes
11 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
If you can remember it, you can remember it wrong
(Medical Xpress)—Native peoples in regions where cameras are uncommon sometimes react with caution when their picture is taken. The fear that something must have been stolen from them to create the photo ...
B vitamins could delay dementia
(Medical Xpress)—Despite spending billions of dollars on research and development, drug companies have been unable to come up with effective treatments for dementia and Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Now, A. ...
Insight into the dazzling impact of insulin in cells
Australian scientists have charted the path of insulin action in cells in precise detail like never before. This provides a comprehensive blueprint for understanding what goes wrong in diabetes.
New sleeping pill poised to hit US markets
An experimental sleeping pill from US drug company Merck is effective at helping people fall and stay asleep, according to reviewers at the US Food and Drug Administration, which could soon approve the new drug.
Reducing caloric intake delays nerve cell loss
Activating an enzyme known to play a role in the anti-aging benefits of calorie restriction delays the loss of brain cells and preserves cognitive function in mice, according to a study published in the May ...
Antidepressant reduces stress-induced heart condition
A drug commonly used to treat depression and anxiety may improve a stress-related heart condition in people with stable coronary heart disease, according to researchers at Duke Medicine.