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Kritzer MF, Adler A, Locklear M. Androgen effects on mesoprefrontal dopamine systems in the adult male brain. Neuroscience 2024:S0306-4522(24)00306-3. [PMID: 38977069 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2024.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2024] [Revised: 06/25/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/10/2024]
Abstract
Epidemiological data show that males are more often and/or more severely affected by symptoms of prefrontal cortical dysfunction in schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease and other disorders in which dopamine circuits associated with the prefrontal cortex are dysregulated. This review focuses on research showing that these dopamine circuits are powerfully regulated by androgens. It begins with a brief overview of the sex differences that distinguish prefrontal function in health and prefrontal dysfunction or decline in aging and/or neuropsychiatric disease. This review article then spotlights data from human subjects and animal models that specifically identify androgens as potent modulators of prefrontal cortical operations and of closely related, functionally critical measures of prefrontal dopamine level or tone. Candidate mechanisms by which androgens dynamically control mesoprefrontal dopamine systems and impact prefrontal states of hypo- and hyper-dopaminergia in aging and disease are then considered. This is followed by discussion of a working model that identifies a key locus for androgen modulation of mesoprefrontal dopamine systems as residing within the prefrontal cortex itself. The last sections of this review critically consider the ways in which the organization and regulation of mesoprefrontal dopamine circuits differ in the adult male and female brain, and highlights gaps where more research is needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mary F Kritzer
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-5230, United States.
| | - Alexander Adler
- Department of Oncology and Immuno-Oncology, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Tarrytown, NY 10591, United States
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Kusters CDJ, Paul KC, Romero T, Sinsheimer JS, Ritz BR. Among men, androgens are associated with a decrease in Alzheimer's disease risk. Alzheimers Dement 2023; 19:3826-3834. [PMID: 36938850 PMCID: PMC10509321 DOI: 10.1002/alz.13013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2022] [Revised: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/23/2023] [Indexed: 03/21/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Increased levels of sex hormones have been hypothesized to decrease Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk. We assessed the association between sex steroid hormones with AD using a Mendelian randomization (MR) approach. METHODS An inverse-variance weighting (IVW) MR analysis was performed using effect estimates from external genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary statistics. We included independent variants (linkage disequilibrium R2 < 0.001) and a p-value threshold of 5 × 10-8 . RESULTS An increase in androgens was associated with a decreased AD risk among men: testosterone (odds ratio [OR]: 0.53; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.32-0.88; p-value: 0.01; false discovery rate [FDR] p-value: 0.03); dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS; OR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.38-0.85; p-value: 0.01; FDR p-value: 0.03); and androsterone sulfate (OR: 0.69; 95% CI: 0.46-1.02; p-value: 0.06; FDR p-value: 0.10). There was no association between sex steroid hormones and AD among women, although analysis for estradiol had limited statistical power. DISCUSSION A higher concentration of androgens was associated with a decreased risk of AD among men of European ancestry, suggesting that androgens among men might be neuroprotective and could potentially prevent or delay an AD diagnosis. HIGHLIGHTS Sex hormones are hypothesized to play a role in developing Alzheimer's disease (AD). The effect of sex hormones on AD was assessed using Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. Among women, genetically determined effects of sex hormones were limited or null. Among men, a higher concentration of androgens decreased AD risk. This study suggests a causal relationship between androgens and AD among men.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cynthia D J Kusters
- Department of Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Kimberly C Paul
- Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Tahmineh Romero
- Statistics Core, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Janet S Sinsheimer
- Department of Human Genetics, David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA
- Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USA
- Department of Computational Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Beate R Ritz
- Department of Neurology, David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, California, USA
- Department of Environmental Health, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Los Angeles, California, USA
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Liu MS, Tian ZY, Zhang Z, Yang F, Lou Y, Wang YJ, Zeng YJ, Zhang ZW, Zhu DL, Li P. Impaired Cognitive Function in Patients With Autonomous Cortisol Secretion in Adrenal Incidentalomas. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2023; 108:633-641. [PMID: 36263685 DOI: 10.1210/clinem/dgac603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2022] [Revised: 10/02/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
CONTEXT Glucocorticoids have potent effects on the central nervous system. However, while patients with Cushing syndrome frequently report impairments in cognitive function, studies investigating cognitive function in patients with autonomous cortisol secretion (ACS) in adrenal incidentalomas (AIs) are scarce. OBJECTIVE The aim of the present study was to evaluate neurocognitive function in patients with ACS. METHODS We prospectively recruited 63 patients with AI, 36 patients with nonfunctional adrenal adenoma (NFA) (46.5 ± 10.5 years), and 27 patients with ACS (48.6 ± 9.1 years); these patients underwent a battery of validated neuropsychological tests. ACS was diagnosed when serum cortisol levels after a 1-mg dexamethasone suppression test (cortisol1 mg DST) ≥ 50 nmol/L. RESULTS Patients with ACS had higher frequency of subjective memory complaints (40.7% vs 13.9%, P < 0.05) and higher proportion of mild cognitive impairment (22.2% vs 2.8%, P < 0.05) than patients with NFA. Furthermore, patients with ACS had worse performance on working memory and the visuospatial/constructional domain than patients with NFA (all P < 0.05). Serum cortisol1 mg DST was negatively correlated with working memory and visuospatial/constructional domains (r = -0.307 and -0.306, respectively, all P < 0.05). Performance on working memory and visuospatial/constructional domains gradually deteriorated with increases in serum cortisol1 mg DST (all P values for trend < 0.05). Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that serum cortisol1 mg DST was a significant risk factor for impairment of working memory and visuospatial/constructional domains (B = -0.006 and -0.043, respectively, all P < 0.05). CONCLUSION This study is the first to report that ACS is accompanied by impaired cognitive function. Consequently, cognitive function assessment should be incorporated into the clinical evaluation of patients with ACS. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER NCT05357456.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng-Si Liu
- Department of Endocrinology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Science & Peking Union Medical College, Graduate School of Peking Union Medical College, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Zhao-Yang Tian
- Department of Endocrinology, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Branch of National Clinical Research Centre for Metabolic Diseases, Nanjing 210008, China
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disease Medical Center, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Zhou Zhang
- Department of Endocrinology, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Branch of National Clinical Research Centre for Metabolic Diseases, Nanjing 210008, China
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disease Medical Center, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Fan Yang
- Department of Endocrinology, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Branch of National Clinical Research Centre for Metabolic Diseases, Nanjing 210008, China
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disease Medical Center, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Yuan Lou
- Department of Endocrinology, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Branch of National Clinical Research Centre for Metabolic Diseases, Nanjing 210008, China
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disease Medical Center, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Yi-Jie Wang
- Department of Endocrinology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Clinical College of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Yang-Jie Zeng
- Department of Endocrinology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Science & Peking Union Medical College, Graduate School of Peking Union Medical College, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Zi-Wei Zhang
- Department of Endocrinology, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Branch of National Clinical Research Centre for Metabolic Diseases, Nanjing 210008, China
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disease Medical Center, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Da-Long Zhu
- Department of Endocrinology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Science & Peking Union Medical College, Graduate School of Peking Union Medical College, Nanjing 210008, China
- Department of Endocrinology, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Branch of National Clinical Research Centre for Metabolic Diseases, Nanjing 210008, China
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disease Medical Center, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Ping Li
- Department of Endocrinology, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Branch of National Clinical Research Centre for Metabolic Diseases, Nanjing 210008, China
- Endocrine and Metabolic Disease Medical Center, Drum Tower Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing University Medical School, Nanjing 210008, China
- Department of Endocrinology, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Clinical College of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210008, China
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Han F, Kong X, Lv W, Li S, Sun Y, Wu Y. Association of diabetes mellitus with gait and falls in community-dwelling older adults: Serial mediation of vision and cognition. Arch Gerontol Geriatr 2023; 104:104827. [PMID: 36191493 DOI: 10.1016/j.archger.2022.104827] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVE Diabetes mellitus (DM) is associated with walking performance, but potential underlying mechanisms of this association remain unclear. The present study aims to disentangle the pathways linking DM to gait and falls through the serial mediation effect of vision and cognition among the older population. METHODS Data were taken from wave 9 (2018-2019) of the English Longitudinal Study of Aging (ELSA), including 5496 participants aged 60 years and older. DM was identified based on medical diagnosis and laboratory tests. Vision and falls were self-reported. Cognition was evaluated using questionnaire. Gait speed was measured by the "timed walking test". Serial mediation analysis was performed using Mplus 8.3. RESULTS DM was associated with impaired gait speed (c = 0.085, P < 0.05) and falls (c = 0.061, P < 0.05). The serial mediation model revealed that vision and cognition significantly mediated the association of DM with impaired gait speed, with 17.97% and 23.60% of the total effects explained by vision and cognition respectively, and 3.37% explained by the path through vision and then cognition. Similarly, vision and cognition significantly mediated the association of DM with falls, with 14.99% and 6.67% of the total effects explained by vision and cognition respectively, and 1.67% explained by the path through vision and then cognition. CONCLUSIONS These findings contribute to deeper understanding of the mechanism underlying the association of DM with walking performance. Evaluation and intervention targeted at vision and the cognition may be beneficial for improving gait or reducing falls in older adults with DM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fulei Han
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, Public Health College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Xiangjie Kong
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, Public Health College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Wenshan Lv
- Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Shiru Li
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, Public Health College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Yanping Sun
- Department of Neurology, Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, China
| | - Yili Wu
- Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, Public Health College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China.
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Longitudinal evaluation of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), its sulfated form and estradiol with cancer-related cognitive impairment in early-stage breast cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. Sci Rep 2022; 12:16552. [PMID: 36192413 PMCID: PMC9529889 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-20420-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to elucidate how patient-reported cognitive symptoms manifest from variations in hormone levels or precursors such as dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and its sulfated form [collectively termed as DHEA(S)] and to investigate their association in breast cancer survivors. Levels of estradiol and DHEA(S) were compared between early-stage breast cancer patients with and without cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) during adjuvant chemotherapy. Data were analyzed from 242 patients (mean age ± SD = 50.8 ± 9.2 years) who had completed FACT-Cog v.3.0, blood draws and questionnaires. Regression model was used to fit the magnitude of change in each respective biomarker levels against overall cognitive impairment status while adjusting for clinically important covariates. There was reduction in mean plasma levels of estradiol and DHEAS during and towards the end of chemotherapy (p-values < 0.001). Compared to non-impaired patients, smaller magnitude of decline was observed in DHEA(S) levels in patients reporting CRCI, with significant association between decline in DHEAS levels and acute onset of CRCI at 6 weeks from baseline (adjusted β of 0.40, p-value of 0.02). In contrast, patients reporting CRCI showed greater magnitude of decline in estradiol compared to non-impaired patients, although this was not found to be statistically significant. There was an association between magnitude of change in biomarker levels with self-reported CRCI which suggests that the hormonal pathway related to DHEAS may be implicated in acute CRCI for breast cancer survivors. Our findings help to improve biological understanding of the pathway from which DHEAS may correlate with cognitive dysfunction and its impact on cancer survivors.
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