RESUMO
BACKGROUND & AIMS: Adequate nutrition from which amino acids are part gives us protection against infectious or metabolic diseases. In particular, glycine has immunomodulatory properties and is a secretagogue of insulin. However, its absorption rate or plasma levels are impaired in bacterial infection or high glucose levels. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between glycine and insulin plasma levels in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2). METHODS: Plasma levels of insulin and glycine were determined in four groups: 1) patients with PTB; 2) patients with PTB-DM2; 3) household contacts with DM2 (C-DM2), and 4) healthy household contacts (H-C). Likewise, we analyzed the plasma levels of glucose, serine, arginine, lysine, taurine, and glutamic acid. RESULTS: We observed significant differences in the glycine levels between PTB and PTB-DM2 vs C-DM2 and H-C groups (P < 0.05). We observed also important differences in insulin and glucose levels after comparisons between PTB, PTB-DM2, and C-DM2 vs. H-C groups (P < 0.05). A correlation between glycine and insulin levels in the PTB (r = 0.326) and PTB-DM2 (r = 0.318) groups was found. CONCLUSION: Our results showed a significant association between glycine and insulin plasma levels in patients with PTB and PTB-DM2, which suggests that the determination of glycine levels could be used as a reference test to evaluate both pathologic conditions. An additional support to the above is that significant changes in the glucose levels in these groups were observed, too.
Assuntos
Diabetes Mellitus Tipo 2/sangue , Glicina/sangue , Insulina/sangue , Tuberculose Pulmonar/sangue , Adulto , Biomarcadores/sangue , Glicemia/análise , Estudos de Casos e Controles , Estudos Transversais , Diabetes Mellitus Tipo 2/complicações , Diabetes Mellitus Tipo 2/diagnóstico , Feminino , Hemoglobinas Glicadas/metabolismo , Humanos , Masculino , Pessoa de Meia-Idade , Estado Nutricional , Tuberculose Pulmonar/complicações , Tuberculose Pulmonar/diagnósticoRESUMO
Alterations in platelet activity have been associated with the onset of major depressive disorder (MDD) and with ischemic cardiovascular events through mechanisms that remain unknown. The present study evaluated nitric oxide (NO) levels, mitochondrial membrane potential (PMMP), and P-selectin expression in platelets from 30 untreated MDD patients and 30 matched controls by flow cytometry. In addition, tryptophan and serotonin concentrations were measured in the whole blood by high performance liquid chromatography. Patients were assessed with the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. The patients had not had antidepressant treatment or any other pharmacological interventions for at least 1 year. MDD patients significantly differed from controls in levels of major fluorescent platelets for NO, PMMP, and P-selectin compared with those observed in control subjects. Serotonin concentrations in MDD patients did not differ from those in controls These results demonstrate that untreated MDD patients show increased platelet activation, suggesting an alteration in the platelet function.