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Medicine and Health Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Humans

2022

Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism

Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases Faculty Papers

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Heavy Metals As Risk Factors For Human Diseases - A Bayesian Network Approach, M Perrelli, R Wu, D J Liu, R G Lucchini, L Del Bosque-Plata, Michael Vergare, M P Akhter, J Ott, Claudia Gragnoli Dec 2022

Heavy Metals As Risk Factors For Human Diseases - A Bayesian Network Approach, M Perrelli, R Wu, D J Liu, R G Lucchini, L Del Bosque-Plata, Michael Vergare, M P Akhter, J Ott, Claudia Gragnoli

Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases Faculty Papers

Modern industrial agricultural processes expose human beings to multifactorial environmental pollution including heightened levels of heavy metals. The effects of acute heavy metal exposures at toxic levels are usually known; they are tested for and treated promptly. The effects of low/moderate-level chronic heavy metal exposures are less known as they may be subclinical, and pathogenic effects may only manifest clinically over time under the disguise of a diagnosable disease or miscellaneous symptoms attributed to aging. Consequently, the health impact of low-moderate heavy metal exposure is unlikely to be identified. Furthermore, established heavy metal safety levels often fail to recognize the …


Implication Of Melanocortin Receptor Genes In The Familial Comorbidity Of Type 2 Diabetes And Depression., Mutaz Amin, Jurg Ott, Rongling Wu, Teodor T Postolache, Claudia Gragnoli Jul 2022

Implication Of Melanocortin Receptor Genes In The Familial Comorbidity Of Type 2 Diabetes And Depression., Mutaz Amin, Jurg Ott, Rongling Wu, Teodor T Postolache, Claudia Gragnoli

Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolic Diseases Faculty Papers

The melanocortin receptors are G-protein-coupled receptors, which are essential components of the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis, and they mediate the actions of melanocortins (melanocyte-stimulating hormones: α-MSH, β-MSH, and γ-MSH) as well as the adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH) in skin pigmentation, adrenal steroidogenesis, and stress response. Three melanocortin receptor genes (MC1R, MC2R, and MC5R) contribute to the risk of major depressive disorder (MDD), and one melanocortin receptor gene (MC4R) contributes to the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D). MDD increases T2D risk in drug-naïve patients; thus, MDD and T2D commonly coexist. The five melanocortin receptor genes might confer risk for both disorders. However, they …