Ultradian rhythm of plasma noradrenaline in rhesus monkeys

Mechanism of pulsatile GnRH release in primates: Unresolved questions

The pulsatility of GnRH release is essential for reproductive function. The key events in reproductive function, such as puberty onset and ovulatory cycles, are regulated by the frequency and amplitude modulation of pulsatile GnRH release. Abnormal patterns of GnRH pulsatility are seen in association with disease states, such as polycystic ovarian syndrome and anorexia nervosa. Recent studies with physiological, track-tracing, optogenetic and electrophysiological recording experiments indicate that a group of kisspeptin neurons in the arcuate nucleus (ARC) of the hypothalamus are responsible for pulsatile GnRH release. Thus, the kisspeptin neuron in the ARC has been called the "GnRH pulse-generator." However, a few pieces of evidence do not quite fit into this concept. This article reviews some old works and discusses unresolved issues on the mechanism of GnRH pulse generation.

Neurotransmitters are released in brain areas according to ultradian rhythms: Coincidence with ultradian oscillations of EEG waves

Use of the push-pull superfusing technique has shown that in the brain the release rates of endogenous catecholamines, GABA, glutamate and histamine are not constant but fluctuate temporally according to ultradian rhythms. Rhythmic fluctuations have been found in the posterior and anterior hypothalamus, the locus coeruleus, the nucleus of the solitary tract, the mammillary body and the medial amygdaloid nucleus of cats and rats. Similar fluctuations appear in the nitric oxide signal registered in the nucleus accumbens, as well as in the power of delta and theta waves of the EEG in the posterior hypothalamus. The EEG rhythmic fluctuations are generated in the arcuate nucleus because they disappear after its electrocoagulation. The frequency of the EEG fluctuations is increased, decreased or even abolished when catecholamine or histamine receptor agonists and antagonists are centrally applied showing that the EEG ultradian rhythm is controlled by catecholaminergic and histaminergic neurons. Moreover, the rhythmic fluctuations of delta and theta waves corelate negatively with those of histamine in the rat posterior hypothalamus. The possible role of these rhythmic fluctuations is discussed. Their potential importance for pharmacotherapy is still unknown.

10 lessons learned by a misguided physician

It was a great and humbling honor to receive the 2016 Distinguished Career Award from my SSIB colleagues. This paper summarizes the major points of my DCA talk at the 2016 annual meeting. It is a reflection on my 50year medical and research career and 10 lessons I have learned over those years which might be of help to young investigators near the beginning of their own research careers. These lessons include: the value of being receptive to the opportunities provided you; how clinician-scientists can serve as critical role models for young investigators like me and a history of how my career developed as a result of their influence; the importance of carefully examining your own data, particularly when it doesn't agree with your preconceived ideas; the critical role that students, postdocs and PhD (and even veterinarian) colleagues can play in developing one's career; the likelihood that your career path will have many interesting twists and turns determined by changes in your own scientific interests and how rewarding various areas of research focus are to you; the importance of building a close-knit laboratory staff family; the fact that science and romance can mix. Finally, I offer 3 somewhat self-evident free pieces of advice for building and maintaining a rewarding career.

Brown adipose tissue thermogenesis heats brain and body as part of the brain-coordinated ultradian basic rest-activity cycle

Brown adipose tissue (BAT), body and brain temperatures, as well as behavioral activity, arterial pressure and heart rate, increase episodically during the waking (dark) phase of the circadian cycle in rats. Phase-linking of combinations of these ultradian (<24 h) events has previously been noted, but no synthesis of their overall interrelationships has emerged. We hypothesized that they are coordinated by brain central command, and that BAT thermogenesis, itself controlled by the brain, contributes to increases in brain and body temperature. We used chronically implanted instruments to measure combinations of bat, brain and body temperatures, behavioral activity, tail artery blood flow, and arterial pressure and heart rate, in conscious freely moving Sprague-Dawley rats during the 12-h dark active period. Ambient temperature was kept constant for any particular 24-h day, varying between 22 and 27 degrees C on different days. Increases in BAT temperature (> or = 0.5 degrees C) occurred in an irregular episodic manner every 94+/-43 min (mean+/-SD). Varying the temperature over a wider range (18-30 degrees C) on different days did not change the periodicity, and neither body nor brain temperature fell before BAT temperature episodic increases. These increases are thus unlikely to reflect thermoregulatory homeostasis. Episodic BAT thermogenesis still occurred in food-deprived rats. Behavioral activity, arterial pressure (18+/-5 mmHg every 98+/-49 min) and heart rate (86+/-31 beats/min) increased approximately 3 min before each increase in BAT temperature. Increases in BAT temperature (1.1+/-0.4 degrees C) were larger than corresponding increases in brain (0.8+/-0.4 degrees C) and body (0.6+/-0.3 degrees C) temperature and the BAT episodes commenced 2-3 min before body and brain episodes, suggesting that BAT thermogenesis warms body and brain. Hippocampal 5-8 Hz theta rhythm, indicating active engagement with the environment, increased before the behavioral and autonomic events, suggesting coordination by brain central command as part of the 1-2 h ultradian basic rest-activity cycle (BRAC) proposed by Kleitman.

Alternating lateralization of plasma catecholamines and nasal patency in humans

The nose receives both sympathetic and parasympathetic innervation that is manifested by the alternating dominance of sympathetic activity on one side with concurrent parasympathetic dominance on the other. This ultradian rhythm of autonomic function, known as the nasal cycle, averages 2-3 hours in length. Previous experiments have shown that the nasal cycle is correlated in an inversely coupled fashion to the alternating dominance of activity in the two cerebral hemispheres, suggesting a common mechanism of regulation. Here we show that there is an alternation in catecholamine levels of blood drawn from anticubital veins that may also correlate with the nasal cycle. Radioenzymatic measurement of norepinephrine, epinephrine, and dopamine in blood sampled simultaneously from both arms every 7.5 minutes for periods of 3-6 hours demonstrated alternating high levels of catecholamine in one of the two arms. This alternating lateralization of neurotransmitters was observed in 7 out of 7 experiments using resting human male subjects. The ratio of norepinephrine in the two arms also parallels the pattern of airflow in the nasal cycle. This study suggests that the autonomic nervous system may alternate in activity through paired structures.

The role of the sympathetic nervous system in the regulation of ultradian rhythms in urine excretions

The effects of alpha and beta adrenoreceptors blockade and surgical kidney denervation on ultradian rhythmicity in urine excretion were investigated in four dogs. Pharmacological treatments and surgical denervation of the kidneys suppressed the ultradian rhythmicity in urine flow but did not completely eliminate the ultradian rhythms in urinary osmolality and in electrolyte concentrations. These findings suggest that the autonomic nervous system plays a major role in the regulation of the ultradian rhythms in water excretion in dogs. The partial persistence of ultradian rhythms in urine osmolality and electrolyte concentrations after autonomic denervation supports the assertion that the ultradian rhythms in solute concentrations are regulated by different mechanisms to those of water excretion, suggesting the possible involvement of a multioscillatory system.

Physiological interactions of the basic rest--activity cycle of the brain: pulsatile luteinizing hormone secretion as a model

The hypothesis of the "basic rest--activity cycle" (BRAC) as an ultradian rhythm of CNS activity which integrates many somatic, visceral, and behavioral functions is supported by a variety of studies which demonstrate similar periodicities in the expression of a remarkable number of critical physiological systems. However, the existence of this BRAC has been supported primarily only by this similarity in cyclicity, and the argument in support of this potentially meaningful CNS oscillator is thus largely inferential. Since resolving consistent temporal relationships between a variety of these apparently otherwise unrelated rhythmic functions would strongly support the hypothesized existence of the BRAC, this article first presents methodology for reliable evaluation of these difficult to analyze interactions. Then, a relationship between rhythmic physical activity and pulsatile luteinizing hormone (LH) secretion is employed as a model interaction which allows analysis of the rhythmicity of the BRAC itself. This BRAC entrainment of pulsatile LH secretion is also utilized as a model to demonstrate how the BRAC may modulate the activity of various physiological functions via relatively direct mechanisms, secondary interactions, or entrainment of tissue with its own intrinsic pacemaker activity. The physiological function of the BRAC is discussed relative to this entrainment of pulsatile LH release.

Subhourly variability of circulating norepinephrine and epinephrine in the pregnant ewe and fetal and newborn lamb

Circulating norepinephrine and epinephrine were determined nine times over a 1-hour period in chronically instrumented ewes (n = 4), their fetuses (n = 4), and lambs (n = 4). In an apparent resting state, assessed by subjective and biophysical parameters, marked fluctuations were demonstrated in the mean norepinephrine and epinephrine values between animals and in the range of the concentrations of each individual animal. The significance of the fluctuations in resting plasma norepinephrine and epinephrine concentrations is discussed.

Plasma catecholamine and cardiovascular responses following hypothalamic stimulation in the awake cat

Ninety-three hypothalamic sites were electrically stimulated, using constant parameters, in awake, restrained cats to determine those regions which maximally activated the sympatho-adrenal (SA) and cardiovascular (CV) systems. Plasma catecholamine levels were measured over time following hypothalamic stimulation; levels of norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine (E) served as indices of adrenergic neural and adrenal medullary activities, respectively. CV parameters of heart rate (HR) and mean intra-arterial blood pressure (MAP) were continuously monitored. The greatest elevation in plasma catecholamines was elicited by stimulation of sites in the perifornical area, ventromedial nucleus, and medial forebrain bundle. Several sites were identified which preferentially elevated one of the sympatho-adrenal neurotransmitters. A differential increase in plasma E was most frequently obtained from sites around the border of the ventromedial nucleus and in the medial forebrain bundle. Differential elevation of plasma NE was observed following stimulation of sites in the anterior commissure, central preoptic area, and dorsal perifornical region posterior to the ventromedial nucleus. Sites which activated the CV and SA systems were not always coincident; those sites which activated the CV system alone tended to be located in the lateral hypothalamus.

Rapid fluctuations in plasma catecholamines in monkeys under undisturbed conditions

We have demonstrated in monkeys and in man sustained synchronous oscillations in plasma levels of insulin, C-peptide, glucagon, and glucose that have periods ranging from 8 to 11 min. To identify the mechanisms of these oscillations, we studied plasma levels of catecholamines in search for periodic fluctuations. Blood was obtained at 2-min intervals from fasting, undisturbed, chair-adapted male rhesus monkeys via chronically implanted central venous catheters. Plasma levels of epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine were measured by a radioenzymatic assay. Large fluctuations in plasma epinephrine were observed with an average peak-to-trough amplitude of 34 pg/ml at a mean level of 122 pg/ml. Similar fluctuations in norepinephrine and dopamine occurred and were correlated to those of epinephrine: r = 0.51 and 0.35, respectively. The most common periodicity in all three catecholamines was 6-13 min/cycle as determined by spectral analyses. Cross-correlation analyses indicated that fluctuations in the catecholamines were significantly negatively correlated with oscillations in insulin and were unrelated to fluctuations in glucagon. These fluctuations in plasma catecholamines may be related to mechanisms controlling the periodicity observed in plasma insulin and glucose.

Circadian rhythms of dopamine-beta-hydroxylase and c-AMP in plasma of controls and patients with affective disorders

In normals, dopamine-beta-hydroxylase activity in plasma follows a circadian rhythm with maximal values at 8 a.m. and minimal at 2 a.m. This pattern does not exist in affective patients in the phase of mania or normothymia, while it is present in the depressive phase. Plasma c-AMP has its maximal concentrations in plasma at 2 p.m. and its minimal at 2 a.m. in normals. In affective patients the minimum occurs at 2 a.m., as in normals, while the maximum is shifted 6 hours earlier, at 8 a.m., independently of the phase of the illness. During the depressive phase, the circadian rhythms of dopamine-beta-hydroxylase and c-AMP in plasma are synchronized.

The relation of plasma norepinephrine and epinephrine levels over time in humans

Plasma norepinephrine (NE) and epinephrine (E) levels were measured at 15 min intervals in 5 male and 7 female, healthy recumbent humans over periods of 4 h (n = 9), or 8 h (n = 3). Levels of both plasma catecholamines (CA) fluctuated both tonically and phasically over time. There was a pronounced downward ("tonic") trend in the levels of the 4 h subjects who had slept at home but no consistent trend was seen in the 8 h subjects who slept in the test bed overnight. The average (+/- S.E.) of median plasma NE levels was significantly lower (231.9 +/- 15.0 pg/ml) in the 4 h group than the 8 h group (356.9 +/- 6.7 pg/ml) probably due to the younger age of the 4 h group and the weakly positive correlation of NE levels with age. Plasma E levels showed no correlation with age and were not significantly different in the 4 h (111.6 +/- 27.0 pg/ml) or 8 h (98.2 +/- 13.7 pg/ml) groups. NE and E levels correlated well in 9 out of 12 subjects when the tonic trend was considered but levels correlated in only 6 out of 12 subjects when the tonic trend was removed and only phasic variations considered. Cardiovascular parameters showed inconsistent correlations to plasma CA in the 8 h subjects although plasma NE correlated positively with mean arterial blood pressure in all 3. These data suggest that resting plasma levels of both CA vary both tonically and phasically and correlate well in only some individuals, particularly when considered on a short-term, phasic basis.

In vivo release of endogenous catecholamines in the hypothalamus

The posterior hypothalamus of anaesthetized cats was superfused with a push-pull cannula and the release of the endogenous catecholamines noradrenaline, adrenaline and dopamine was determined in the superfusate. The rate of release of the three catecholamines followed an ultradian rhythm, the time interval between two adjacent phases of high rate of release being about 70 min. Pretreatment of the animals with reserpine decreased the levels of catecholamines in the hypothalamus and rest of the brain and reduced their rate of release into the superfusate. Hypothalamic superfusion with superfusing fluid of high concentration of potassium and low concentration of sodium enhanced the rate of release of noradrenaline and adrenaline; this effect was abolished when the hypothalamus was superfused with calcium-free solution. Electrical stimulation of the locus coeruleus ipsilateral to the superfused hypothalamus increased the release of noradrenaline and adrenaline, stimulation of the contralateral locus coeruleus enhanced the release of noradrenaline, adrenaline and dopamine. In both cases, the rate of release of adrenaline was enhanced to a lesser extent than the rate of release of noradrenaline. The release of noradrenaline and adrenaline was increased to a higher extent on stimulation of the ipsilateral locus coeruleus than on stimulation of the contralateral one.