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Biomedical subjects

R Andres

Publications and source records attributed to R Andres.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Salivary gland function and glucose metabolic status.

To study the relationship between glucose metabolic status and salivary gland function in different-aged persons, subjects with diabetes mellitus (DM = 11), impaired glucose tolerance (IGT = 26), and controls (n = 26), aged 24 to 93, were examined in the oral physiology component of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. All were generally healthy (except DM) and nonmedicated. The controls and subjects with IGT were classified using World Health Organization criteria, and diabetic status was assessed using Hb1Ac levels. Unstimulated and 2% citrate-stimulated parotid and submandibular salivary flow rates were collected, and subjective responses to questions about salivary hypofunction were evaluated. No statistically significant differences were observed between the three groups, nor between young and old subjects with altered glucose metabolism. These findings suggest that among well-controlled individuals with altered glucose metabolism, salivary gland function is not significantly impaired.

Adult

Glucose tolerance in women: the effects of age, body composition, and sex hormones.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the separate and interactive effects of age, phase of the menstrual cycle, menopausal hormone status, body fat mass, and regional fat distribution on glucose tolerance in healthy women. DESIGN: Retrospective study. SETTING: The Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. PATIENTS: Two hundred sixty healthy women aged 22-89 years. MEASUREMENTS: Plasma levels of estradiol and progesterone, body mass index (BMI), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR), and plasma glucose values in the fasting state (FPG) as well as 120 minutes after 40 gm/m2 of oral glucose (G120) were measured for each participant. RESULTS: We found a progressive decline in oral glucose tolerance of 0.4 mM (6.7 mg/dL)/decade at G120) in women from early to late adult years, with no relationship to phase of the menstrual cycle and no abrupt change associated with the menopause. Multiple regression analysis revealed significant, independent effects of BMI and WHR on FPG and G120. The influence of age (P less than 0.01) on G120 was stronger than that of the BMI or WHR (P less than 0.05). There was no significant relationship between the levels of endogenous sex hormones and glucose tolerance after adjustments for age, BMI, and WHR. However, women taking oral contraceptives, but not those receiving postmenopausal replacement therapy, did exhibit mildly elevated G120 values. CONCLUSIONS: Age per se, and to a lesser extent BMI and WHR, but not levels of endogenous sex steroids, contribute to the physiological decline in glucose tolerance in older women.

Activities of Daily Living

Long-term longitudinal measurements of plasma dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate in normal men.

Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DS) was measured by direct tritium RIA in longitudinal plasma specimens from 97 normal healthy male participants in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. Fasting blood was collected at regular visits (approximately 1.5 yr apart) over an average 13 yr of adulthood (cumulative age range: 32-83 yr). DS was measured in 3-4 widely spaced specimens from each subject. A decline in DS was found in 65 (67%) subjects, 13 subjects (13%) showed no change, and increases were found in the 19 remaining subjects during the study period. A plot of individual data points revealed the same pattern we had obtained previously from a cross-sectional study of a different normal male population. A plot of DS values vs. age among subjects whose DS increased during the study also revealed an age-related decline. Thus, the longitudinal decrease in circulating DS, long inferred from cross-sectional data, is confirmed for normal men in the present study. A more detailed study of every specimen collected during the study period from 12 of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging subjects (4 whose values tended to be low, 4 whose values tended to be high, and 4 whose values were near the mean) failed to reveal any patterns of variation that could be correlated with changes in life circumstances, health status, or any other discernible factors. Hence, the wide variability seen in DS among individuals within normal populations remains unexplained.

Adult

Fasting respiratory exchange ratio and resting metabolic rate as predictors of weight gain: the Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging.

The authors followed 775 men (aged 18-98 years) participating in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study in Aging for an average of ten years. Resting metabolic rate and fasting respiratory exchange ratio (RER) were measured by indirect calorimetry on their first visit and related to subsequent weight change. Deviations from the predicted value of resting metabolic rates (predicted from their estimated fat-free mass) were calculated. Average weight change was 0.07 kg (s.d. 6.4 kg); 122 men (15.3%) gained more than 5 kg and 40 (5.2%) more than 10 kg during the follow-up. After adjustment for initial age, body mass index, fat-free mass, and duration of follow-up, RER, but not RMR or deviations from predicted RMR, was positively related to weight change (P less than 0.001). Major weight gain (from at least 5 kg to at least 15 kg) was related to initial RER in non-obese men only (initial body mass index less than 25 kg/m2). From Cox proportional hazard regression analyses the adjusted relative risk of gaining 5 kg or more in initially non-obese men with a fasting RER of 0.85 or more was calculated to be 2.42 (95% confidence interval: 1.10-5.32) compared to men with a fasting RER less than 0.76. It was concluded that a relatively high fasting RER is a weak but significant predictor of substantial weight gain in non-obese white men.

Adolescent

Glucose clamp technique: a method for quantifying insulin secretion and resistance.

Methods for the quantification of beta-cell sensitivity to glucose (hyperglycemic clamp technique) and of tissue sensitivity to insulin (euglycemic insulin clamp technique) are described. Hyperglycemic clamp technique. The plasma glucose concentration is acutely raised to 125 mg/dl above basal levels by a priming infusion of glucose. The desired hyperglycemic plateau is subsequently maintained by adjustment of a variable glucose infusion, based on the negative feedback principle. Because the plasma glucose concentration is held constant, the glucose infusion rate is an index of glucose metabolism. Under these conditions of constant hyperglycemia, the plasma insulin response is biphasic with an early burst of insulin release during the first 6 min followed by a gradually progressive increase in plasma insulin concentration. Euglycemic insulin clamp technique. The plasma insulin concentration is acutely raised and maintained at approximately 100 muU/ml by a prime-continuous infusion of insulin. The plasma glucose concentration is held constant at basal levels by a variable glucose infusion using the negative feedback principle. Under these steady-state conditions of euglycemia, the glucose infusion rate equals glucose uptake by all the tissues in the body and is therefore a measure of tissue sensitivity to exogenous insulin.

Glucose

Kinetics of native insulin in diabetic, obese, and aged men.

The kinetics of unlabeled porcine insulin were studied in 69 nondiabetic male subjects aged 18-83 yr with obesity indexes of 0.93 - 1.51 and in 12 maturity-onset diabetics age 46-78 yr with obesity indexes of 0.95-1.56 by using the euglycemic clamp technique. Analysis of the insulin kinetic data by using a mathematical model permitted the determination, for each individual, of steady state distribution masses and degradation rate constants. The individuals were grouped to allow comparison of the results on the basis of age, obesity index, or diabetes. The responses over a period of 120 min to an infusion and wash out of insulin show some transient as well as steady state differences with age, obesity, or diabetes. Analysis of these data by use of compartmental models leads to the conclusion that in the steady state the ratio of insulin in extravascular spaces to that in plasma (T/P) is decreased in the moderately obese group (26%) and in the diabetic group (17%) but increased in the older group (13%) when each is compared with the appropriate control. Since extravascular insulin includes both insulin bound to receptors and insulin in the interstitial fluid, the observed changes in the extravascular to plasma mass ratio most likely reflect changes in in vivo binding to receptors, although the magnitude of the change would be modified somewhat by changes in the size of the interstitial spaces relative to plasma. In addition, the rate of entry of new insulin into plasma (BSDR) was increased in the diabetic population (45%; P less than 0.02) as well as in the moderately obese group (27%) but was decreased somewhat in the older group (11%). The following general conclusions can be drawn from the results: The pattern of parameter changes seen with obesity is similar to that seen with maturity-onset diabetes. The decrease in T/P seen with obesity and with maturity-onset diabetes cannot be accounted for solely by changes in fasting plasma insulin levels in these populations. The pattern of changes seen in the older subjects is opposite that seen in the maturity-onset diabetics, which suggests that diabetes is a perturbation distinct from the normal aging process. Finally, the changes in the metabolism of insulin are not large, making it unlikely that they are the sole cause of the major alterations in glucose tolerance seen with aging, obesity, or diabetes.

Adolescent

The response of arginine vasopressin to intravenous ethanol and hypertonic saline in man: the impact of aging.

The effect of age on the hypothalamic-hypophyseal-renal axis in normal man was determined by assaying plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP) responses to inhibitory and to secretory stimuli. Nine young (21-49 years) and 13 old (54-92 years) subjects received IV ethanol (375 mg/m2 per min). AVP levels fell progressively during the infusion in the young group, but fell for only 30 min in the old group and then rose paradoxically despite the continuing increase in blood ethanol. Eight young (22-48 years) and 8 old (52-66 years) men were provided identical osmolal loads by a 2-hour IV infusion of 3% NaCl at 0.1 ml/kg per min. Serum AVP rose 2.5 times the baseline in the young and 4.5 times the baseline in the old men despite identical free water clearances. Osmoreceptor sensitivity (the slope of AVP on osmolality) was greater in the old subjects. The heightened sensitivity to hyperosomolality helps examine the paradoxical response to ethanol, since osmolality increased during that time. This increased AVP response may severe to compensate for the reduced renal ability to conserve salt and water in aging man.

Adult

Oral glucose augmentation of insulin secretion. Interactions of gastric inhibitory polypeptide with ambient glucose and insulin levels.

Gastric inhibitory polypeptide, or GIP, has been postulated as the major enteric hormonal mediator of insulin release. The release of immuno-reactive GIP (IR-GIP) after oral glucose and its role in insulin release was studied in normal men by the glucose clamp technique. In 24 subjects studied with the hyperglycemic clamp, blood glucose was maintained at 125 mg/dl above basal for 2 h via a primed-continuous IV glucose infusion coupled to a servo-controlled negative feedback system. 40 g glucose per m(2) surface area was ingested at 60 min, and the blood glucose was maintained at the steady-state hyperglycemic level. Plasma IR-GIP and insulin (IRI) levels were measured throughout the 2-h period. IR-GIP levels changed little when IV glucose alone was given; the mean basal value was 305+/-34 (SEM) pg/ml. After oral glucose, IR-GIP levels began to rise within 10 min and reached a peak within 40 min of 752+/-105 pg/ml. Plasma IRI responded initially to the square wave of hyperglycemia in the typical biphasic pattern. After oral glucose, plasma IRI levels rose strikingly above the elevated levels produced by hyperglycemia alone, reaching a peak of 170+/-15 muU/ml within 45 min. The time course of the rise in IR-GIP and IRI was nearly identical. To assess whether the maintenance of euglycemia would affect this process, the euglycemic clamp was employed in 11 subjects to maintain basal blood glucose levels during a similar 2-h study. A primed-continuous insulin infusion, with a constant rate of 120 mU/m(2) per min was given together with a servo-controlled glucose infusion. This resulted in hyper-insulinemia of approximately 300 muU/ml. Glucose was ingested by six subjects at 60 min. Plasma IR-GIP responded to oral glucose similarly to the effect seen in the hyperglycemic studies. No increase in endogenous insulin release was seen despite the increase in IR-GIP when euglycemia was maintained. However, in five of seven subjects given insulin whose blood glucose concentration rose by 20 mg/dl or more after oral glucose, there was an increase in plasma insulin concentration associated with the elevation in IR-GIP. Thus, the effect of glucose-released IR-GIP on insulin secretion is dependent upon the presence of some degree of hyper-glycemia and is not inhibited in the presence of marked hyperinsulinemia.

Adolescent

Glucose intolerance in uremia. Quantification of pancreatic beta cell sensitivity to glucose and tissue sensitivity to insulin.

The relative contributions of impaired insulin secretion and of tissue insensitivity to insulin to the carbohydrate intolerance of uremia were investigated in 10 chronically uremic subjects. Two types of glucose-clamp experiments were performed in each patient before and after 10 wk of thrice weekly hemodialysis. In both types the blood glucose concentration was maintained at a constant level by the periodic adjustment of a variable glucose infusion with a negative feedback formula.Hyperglycemic clamp. The blood glucose concentration was acutely raised and maintained 125 mg/dl above basal levels for 2 h. Since the glucose concentration was held constant, the glucose infusion rate is an index of glucose metabolism (M). After dialysis M increased in all patients from an average of 4.23 to 6.30 mg/kg body wt per min (P < 0.001). The plasma insulin responses (I) both pre- and postdialysis were biphasic with an early burst within the first 2-5 min, followed by a phase of gradually increasing insulin concentration. After dialysis the plasma insulin response diminished slightly. Consequently, the M/I ratio, an index of tissue sensitivity to endogenous insulin, increased postdialysis in all subjects by an average of 92% (P < 0.01). Euglycemic clamp. The plasma insulin concentration was acutely raised and maintained by a primecontinuous insulin infusion. The blood glucose concentration was held constant at the basal level by a variable glucose infusion as above. M/I again is a measure of tissue sensitivity to insulin (exogenous) and increased in all patients postdialysis by an average of 57% (P < 0.01). In two patients hepatic glucose production was measured with tritiated glucose during the euglycemic clamp and declined by 84% predialysis. A similar decrease (82%) was observed postdialysis. Thus, both the hyperglycemic and euglycemic clamp techniques demonstrated tissue insensitivity to insulin to be the dominant carbohydrate defect in uremia. The surprising apparent lack of consistency in the change in beta cell response postdialysis is explained by the strong inverse correlation between beta cell sensitivity to glucose and tissue sensitivity to insulin (r = -0.920; P < 0.001). Those individuals who showed the most striking improvement in tissue sensitivity to insulin actually decreased their serum insulin response to hyperglycemia; those whose improvement in tissue sensitivity was more modest showed increases in beta cell responses.

Administration, Oral

Aging and ethanol metabolism.

The effect of aging on the distribution and elimination of ethanol was studied in a group of 50 healthy subjects ranging in age from 21 to 81 yr (mean, 53.3). Ethanol was administered in a continuous 1-hr infusion at a mean rate of 375 mg/m2 body surface area/min (equivalent to a mean dose of 0.57 gm/kg body weight). Serial blood samples for the determination of ethanol concentration was obtained at 15- to 30-min intervals for up to 4 hr post infusion. Ethanol elimination and distribution were evaluated with the aid of a two-compartment model. Rates of ethanol elimination were not affected by age. Peak ethanol concentration in blood water at the end of the infusion period was correlated with age (r= 0.55, p less than 0.001). Lean body mass and total volume of distirbution fo the ethanol were negatively correlated with age. The smaller volume of distirbution, in association with the decreased lean body mass, most likely explains the higher peak ethanol concentration found in the blood after administration of an ethanol does on the basis of surface area in the old as compared with the young subjects. This study demonstrates that age-related changes in body composition are important factors in the study of ethanol metabolism and its pharmacologic effects.

Adult

A test of the hypothesis that the rate of fall in glucose concentration triggers counterregulatory hormonal responses in man.

The hypothesis that the rate of fall in glucose concentration triggers counterregulatory hormonal responses was tested in five subjects following one hour of sustained hyperglycemia. Despite a rapidly falling blood glucose concentration, no increase in plasma growth hormone, cortisol, glucagon, or catecholamines occurred as long as the blood glucose concentration remained above fasting levels. Plasma growth hormone, cortisol, and catecholamines were not released until the mean blood glucose reached 28 mg./100 ml., 39 mg./100 ml., and 39 mg./100 ml., respectively, below the fasting level. Plasma glucagon was suppressed during the period of hyperglycemia. As the blood glucose concentration fell below basal levels, a progressive increase in glucagon occurred. Plasma glucagon returned to fasting values when the nadir in blood glucose was attained. During the period of rapidly falling blood glucose, only plasma insulin showed any change; its response lagged behind the decline in blood glucose. By the time the fasting glucose level was attained, the plasma insulin was still almost three times the basal level. We concluded that under our experimental conditions the rate of fall in blood glucose and the degree of hypoglycemia achieved is primarily determined by the plasma insulin concentration.

Blood Glucose

Familial hemochromatosis: characteristics of the precirrhotic stage in a large kindred.

Ffty asymptomatic members of a kindred with familial hemochromatosis were studied in an effort to clarify some of the physiologic abnormalities present in the pre-cirrhotic or latent stage of the disease. Using excess hepatic iron as a marker for inheritance of hemochromatosis, results of liver biopsies on 31 family members suggest an auto-somal dominant mode of inheritance with incomplete expressivity. In addition to a relationship between alcohol intake and excess liver iron, there was a strong association between the level of alcohol intake and the presence of hepatic fibrosis in those subjects with excess iron stores. Both serum iron and transferrin saturation were significantly higher in family members with iron overload than in those who were not affected. Only transferrin saturation was significantly correlated with the severity of hepatic iron deposition. Studies of glucose tolerance (OGTT, IVITT, glucose clamp studies) demonstrated a defect in carbohydrate metabolism associated with deficient insulin secretion and insulin resistance, both of which were related to the degree of hepatic iron depostion. In this kindred we have found no evidence for a contribution of inheritance to the carbohydrate intolerance of hemochromatosis. Iron overload was not related to activity of hepatic collagen proline hydroxylase or urinary excretion of peptide-bound hydroxyproline. Serum ferritin, previously thought to be a reliable marker of reticuloendothelial iron stores, was normal in 19 of 20 family members with iron overload.

Adolescent

Age differences in vitamin B6 status of 617 men.

The effect of age on vitamin B6 metabolism was studied in 617 community-dwelling subjects, ages 18 to 90. These are, for the most part, clinically healthy, educated men whose intake of nutrients is not limited by economic factors. Plasma pyridoxal phosphate (PLP) was used as the primary criterion of vitamin B6 status. About one-third of the subjects were taking supplementary vitamins on their own initiative. The amount of pyridoxine-HCl varied from 0.1 to 105 mg/day. The average plasma PLP of the men not taking a supplement (N = 414) was 12.3 +/-0.3 ng/ml, with 25% of the values below 7.5 ng/ml and 7% below 5 ng/ml. There was a statistically significant decrease in plasma PLP with age of 0.9 ng/ml per decade. For those taking a supplement, the average plasma PLP was 20.5 +/- 1.0 ng/ml, with only 8% of the values below 7.5 ng/ml and none below 5 ng/ml. Glutamic-oxaloacetic transaminase activity in plasma (PGOT) and erythrocytes (EGOT) was determined on all subjects. The ratio of EGOT with in vitro stimulation by PLP to EGOT actual (alpha-EGOT) was also studied. These studies provide the most extensive normative data on vitamin B6 status available on men in the adult years of life.

Adolescent

The effect of age on creatinine clearance in men: a cross-sectional and longitudinal study.

Standard true 24-hour creatinine clearance determinations were performed on 884 subjects of the Baltimore Longitudinal Study. On the basis of clinical data, subjects were placed in categories indicating the presence of specific diseases or medications which might alter glomerular filtration rate. Subjects not included in these categories were considered normal (N=548). In the normals, cross-sectional analysis by 10-year age groups showed a progressive linear decline in clearance from 140 ml/min/1.73m2 at age 30 to 97 at age 80. Three or more serial clearances were obtained at 12- to 18-mo. intervals on 293 normal subjects. These longitudinal data showed an acceleration of the rate of decline in creatinine clearance with advancing age. The decrease in creatinine clearance with age seen in this study represents true renal aging and is not secondary to diseases which become increasingly prevalent in the elderly. A nomogram constructed from these data provides normative age-corrected standards for creatinine clearance.

Adolescent

Effects of arterial versus venous sampling on analysis of glucose kinetics in man.

A compartmental model is presented to account for transient and steady-state changes in blood glucose concentration which result from transit through the forearm and hand in man. This model permits the inter-conversion of arterial and venous data and the derivation of arterial equivalent total body glucose models from venous data. Data were obtained from subjects in the basal state following a pulse injection of [1-14C]glucose tracer. An artery, an antecubital vein, and a dorsal vein of a heated hand (68 degrees C environment) were sampled. Blood transit time is shorter 0.3 vs. 1.0 min) and irreversible glucose loss is reduced (1.9 vs. 2.9%) in the heated hand preparation when compared to the antecubital vein preparation. Because of the smaller correction required and the smaller variation among individuals when heated hand rather than antecubital vein data are obtained, we suggest that for analysis of whole-body kinetics such data should be used along with the compartmental model correction when arterial data cannot be obtained.

Adult