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Frontiers in Endocrinology 2020Hormones are largely responsible for the integrated communication of several physiological systems responsible for modulating cellular growth and development. Although... (Review)
Review
Hormones are largely responsible for the integrated communication of several physiological systems responsible for modulating cellular growth and development. Although the specific hormonal influence must be considered within the context of the entire endocrine system and its relationship with other physiological systems, three key hormones are considered the "anabolic giants" in cellular growth and repair: testosterone, the growth hormone superfamily, and the insulin-like growth factor (IGF) superfamily. In addition to these anabolic hormones, glucocorticoids, mainly cortisol must also be considered because of their profound opposing influence on human skeletal muscle anabolism in many instances. This review presents emerging research on: (1) Testosterone signaling pathways, responses, and adaptations to resistance training; (2) Growth hormone: presents new complexity with exercise stress; (3) Current perspectives on IGF-I and physiological adaptations and complexity these hormones as related to training; and (4) Glucocorticoid roles in integrated communication for anabolic/catabolic signaling. Specifically, the review describes (1) Testosterone as the primary anabolic hormone, with an anabolic influence largely dictated primarily by genomic and possible non-genomic signaling, satellite cell activation, interaction with other anabolic signaling pathways, upregulation or downregulation of the androgen receptor, and potential roles in co-activators and transcriptional activity; (2) Differential influences of growth hormones depending on the "type" of the hormone being assayed and the magnitude of the physiological stress; (3) The exquisite regulation of IGF-1 by a family of binding proteins (IGFBPs 1-6), which can either stimulate or inhibit biological action depending on binding; and (4) Circadian patterning and newly discovered variants of glucocorticoid isoforms largely dictating glucocorticoid sensitivity and catabolic, muscle sparing, or pathological influence. The downstream integrated anabolic and catabolic mechanisms of these hormones not only affect the ability of skeletal muscle to generate force; they also have implications for pharmaceutical treatments, aging, and prevalent chronic conditions such as metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, and hypertension. Thus, advances in our understanding of hormones that impact anabolic: catabolic processes have relevance for athletes and the general population, alike.
Topics: Adaptation, Physiological; Animals; Exercise; Growth Hormone; Growth and Development; Humans; Hydrocortisone; Muscle, Skeletal; Somatomedins; Testosterone
PubMed: 32158429
DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2020.00033 -
Alcohol Health and Research World 1998A plethora of hormones regulate many of the body's functions, including growth and development, metabolism, electrolyte balances, and reproduction. Numerous glands... (Review)
Review
A plethora of hormones regulate many of the body's functions, including growth and development, metabolism, electrolyte balances, and reproduction. Numerous glands throughout the body produce hormones. The hypothalamus produces several releasing and inhibiting hormones that act on the pituitary gland, stimulating the release of pituitary hormones. Of the pituitary hormones, several act on other glands located in various regions of the body, whereas other pituitary hormones directly affect their target organs. Other hormone-producing glands throughout the body include the adrenal glands, which primarily produce cortisol; the gonads (i.e., ovaries and testes), which produce sex hormones; the thyroid, which produces thyroid hormone; the parathyroid, which produces parathyroid hormone; and the pancreas, which produces insulin and glucagon. Many of these hormones are part of regulatory hormonal cascades involving a hypothalamic hormone, one or more pituitary hormones, and one or more target gland hormones.
Topics: Endocrine Glands; Ethanol; Hormones; Humans
PubMed: 15706790
DOI: No ID Found -
The Lancet. Diabetes & Endocrinology Aug 2018During ageing, the secretory patterns of the hormones produced by the hypothalamic-pituitary axis change, as does the sensitivity of the axis to negative feedback by end... (Review)
Review
During ageing, the secretory patterns of the hormones produced by the hypothalamic-pituitary axis change, as does the sensitivity of the axis to negative feedback by end hormones. Additionally, glucose homoeostasis tends towards disequilibrium with increasing age. Along with these endocrine alterations, a loss of bone and muscle mass and strength occurs, coupled with an increase in fat mass. In addition, ageing-induced effects are difficult to disentangle from the influence of other factors that are common in older people, such as chronic diseases, inflammation, and low nutritional status, all of which can also affect endocrine systems. Traditionally, the decrease in hormone activity during the ageing process has been considered to be detrimental because of the related decline in bodily functions. The concept of hormone replacement therapy was suggested as a therapeutic intervention to stop or reverse this decline. However, clearly some of these changes are a beneficial adaptation to ageing, whereas hormonal intervention often causes important adverse effects. In this paper, we discuss the effects of age on the different hypothalamic-pituitary-hormonal organ axes, as well as age-related changes in calcium and bone metabolism and glucose homoeostasis.
Topics: Aging; Endocrine System; Hormones; Humans
PubMed: 30017799
DOI: 10.1016/S2213-8587(18)30026-3 -
International Journal of Molecular... May 2022There is growing concern regarding the health and safety issues of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Long-term exposure to EDCs has alarming adverse health effects... (Review)
Review
There is growing concern regarding the health and safety issues of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs). Long-term exposure to EDCs has alarming adverse health effects through both hormone-direct and hormone-indirect pathways. Non-chemical agents, including physical agents such as artificial light, radiation, temperature, and stress exposure, are currently poorly investigated, even though they can seriously affect the endocrine system, by modulation of hormonal action. Several mechanisms have been suggested to explain the interference of EDCs with hormonal activity. However, difficulty in quantifying the exposure, low standardization of studies, and the presence of confounding factors do not allow the establishment of a causal relationship between endocrine disorders and exposure to specific toxic agents. In this review, we focus on recent findings on the effects of EDCs and hormone system modulators on the endocrine system, including the thyroid, parathyroid glands, adrenal steroidogenesis, beta-cell function, and male and female reproductive function.
Topics: Endocrine Disruptors; Endocrine System; Female; Hormones; Humans; Male
PubMed: 35628520
DOI: 10.3390/ijms23105710 -
The American Journal of Psychiatry Aug 2020Major depressive disorder is a common psychiatric disorder associated with marked suffering, morbidity, mortality, and cost. The World Health Organization projects that... (Review)
Review
Major depressive disorder is a common psychiatric disorder associated with marked suffering, morbidity, mortality, and cost. The World Health Organization projects that by 2030, major depression will be the leading cause of disease burden worldwide. While numerous treatments for major depression exist, many patients do not respond adequately to traditional antidepressants. Thus, more effective treatments for major depression are needed, and targeting certain hormonal systems is a conceptually based approach that has shown promise in the treatment of this disorder. A number of hormones and hormone-manipulating compounds have been evaluated as monotherapies or adjunctive treatments for major depression, with therapeutic actions attributable not only to the modulation of endocrine systems in the periphery but also to the CNS effects of hormones on non-endocrine brain circuitry. The authors describe the physiology of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA), hypothalamic-pituitary thyroid (HPT), and hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axes and review the evidence for selected hormone-based interventions for the treatment of depression in order to provide an update on the state of this field for clinicians and researchers. The review focuses on the HPA axis-based interventions of corticotropin-releasing factor antagonists and the glucocorticoid receptor antagonist mifepristone, the HPT axis-based treatments of thyroid hormones (T and T), and the HPG axis-based treatments of estrogen replacement therapy, the progesterone derivative allopregnanolone, and testosterone. While some treatments have largely failed to translate from preclinical studies, others have shown promising initial results and represent active fields of study in the search for novel effective treatments for major depression.
Topics: Depressive Disorder, Major; Endocrine Glands; Hormones; Humans; Neurosecretory Systems; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 32456504
DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.19080848 -
Journal of Applied Physiology... Mar 2017The complexity and redundancy of the endocrine pathways during recovery related to anabolic function in the body belie an oversimplistic approach to its study. The... (Review)
Review
The complexity and redundancy of the endocrine pathways during recovery related to anabolic function in the body belie an oversimplistic approach to its study. The purpose of this review is to examine the role of resistance exercise (RE) on the recovery responses of three major anabolic hormones, testosterone, growth hormone(s), and insulin-like growth factor 1. Each hormone has a complexity related to differential pathways of action as well as interactions with binding proteins and receptor interactions. Testosterone is the primary anabolic hormone, and its concentration changes during the recovery period depending on the upregulation or downregulation of the androgen receptor. Multiple tissues beyond skeletal muscle are targeted under hormonal control and play critical roles in metabolism and physiological function. Growth hormone (GH) demonstrates differential increases in recovery with RE based on the type of GH being assayed and workout being used. IGF-1 shows variable increases in recovery with RE and is intimately linked to a host of binding proteins that are essential to its integrative actions and mediating targeting effects. The RE stress is related to recruitment of muscle tissue with the glandular release of hormones as signals to target tissues to support homeostatic mechanisms for metabolism and tissue repair during the recovery process. Anabolic hormones play a crucial role in the body's response to metabolism, repair, and adaptive capabilities especially in response to anabolic-type RE. Changes of these hormones following RE during recovery in the circulatory biocompartment of blood are reflective of the many mechanisms of action that are in play in the repair and recovery process.
Topics: Adaptation, Physiological; Exercise; Human Growth Hormone; Humans; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I; Male; Muscle Fatigue; Muscle, Skeletal; Recovery of Function; Resistance Training; Testosterone; Young Adult
PubMed: 27856715
DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00599.2016 -
Endocrinology Oct 2020Gonadal hormones contribute to the sexual differentiation of brain and behavior throughout the lifespan, from initial neural patterning to "activation" of adult... (Review)
Review
Gonadal hormones contribute to the sexual differentiation of brain and behavior throughout the lifespan, from initial neural patterning to "activation" of adult circuits. Sexual behavior is an ideal system in which to investigate the mechanisms underlying hormonal activation of neural circuits. Sexual behavior is a hormonally regulated, innate social behavior found across species. Although both sexes seek out and engage in sexual behavior, the specific actions involved in mating are sexually dimorphic. Thus, the neural circuits mediating sexual motivation and behavior in males and females are overlapping yet distinct. Furthermore, sexual behavior is strongly dependent on circulating gonadal hormones in both sexes. There has been significant recent progress on elucidating how gonadal hormones modulate physiological properties within sexual behavior circuits with consequences for behavior. Therefore, in this mini-review we review the neural circuits of male and female sexual motivation and behavior, from initial sensory detection of pheromones to the extended amygdala and on to medial hypothalamic nuclei and reward systems. We also discuss how gonadal hormones impact the physiology and functioning of each node within these circuits. By better understanding the myriad of ways in which gonadal hormones impact sexual behavior circuits, we can gain a richer and more complete appreciation for the neural substrates of complex behavior.
Topics: Adult; Animals; Brain; Female; Hormones; Humans; Male; Nerve Net; Sex Characteristics; Sex Differentiation; Sexual Behavior; Sexual Behavior, Animal
PubMed: 32845294
DOI: 10.1210/endocr/bqaa150 -
International Journal of Molecular... Jan 2023Millions of people are affected by pain-related conditions worldwide. Literature has consistently shown that each individual experiences and perceives pain in a unique... (Review)
Review
Millions of people are affected by pain-related conditions worldwide. Literature has consistently shown that each individual experiences and perceives pain in a unique manner due to biological, environmental, and cultural factors in which they have been raised. It has been established that biological males and females perceive pain differently and that it may be partially explained by their distinct hormonal profiles since birth, which are only further magnified during puberty. For biological males, high levels of testosterone have shown to increase their pain threshold; and for biological females, estrogen fluctuations have shown to increase pain intensity and perception. However, sex hormones have not been studied in the context of pain treatment or their impact on biochemical pathways involved in pain perception. For this purpose, the transgender community serves as a unique population to investigate the impact of hormone replacement therapy on molecular pathways involved in the perception of pain. The purpose of this review is to explore the biochemistry of hormone replacement in transgender patients who also have other pain-related conditions such as headaches, fibromyalgia, temporomandibular myalgia, and visceral pain.
Topics: Male; Female; Humans; Gonadal Steroid Hormones; Testosterone; Transgender Persons; Pain Threshold; Visceral Pain; Hormones
PubMed: 36768188
DOI: 10.3390/ijms24031866 -
Frontiers in Immunology 2020Sexual dimorphism refers to differences between biological sexes that extend beyond sexual characteristics. In humans, sexual dimorphism in the immune response has been... (Review)
Review
Sexual dimorphism refers to differences between biological sexes that extend beyond sexual characteristics. In humans, sexual dimorphism in the immune response has been well demonstrated, with females exhibiting lower infection rates than males for a variety of bacterial, viral, and parasitic pathogens. There is also a substantially increased incidence of autoimmune disease in females compared to males. Together, these trends indicate that females have a heightened immune reactogenicity to both self and non-self-molecular patterns. However, the molecular mechanisms driving the sexually dimorphic immune response are not fully understood. The female sex hormones estrogen and progesterone, as well as the male androgens, such as testosterone, elicit direct effects on the function and inflammatory capacity of immune cells. Several studies have identified a sex-specific transcriptome and methylome, independent of the well-described phenomenon of X-chromosome inactivation, suggesting that sexual dimorphism also occurs at the epigenetic level. Moreover, distinct alterations to the transcriptome and epigenetic landscape occur in synchrony with periods of hormonal change, such as puberty, pregnancy, menopause, and exogenous hormone therapy. These changes are also mirrored by changes in immune cell function. This review will outline the evidence for sex hormones and pregnancy-associated hormones as drivers of epigenetic change, and how this may contribute to the sexual dimorphism. Determining the effects of sex hormones on innate immune function is important for understanding sexually dimorphic autoimmune diseases, sex-specific responses to pathogens and vaccines, and how innate immunity is altered during periods of hormonal change (endogenous or exogenous).
Topics: Age Factors; Animals; Autoimmunity; Epigenesis, Genetic; Epigenome; Estrogen Replacement Therapy; Estrogens; Female; Gonadal Steroid Hormones; Humans; Immunity, Innate; Male; Progesterone; Sex Characteristics; Sex Factors; Sexual Development; Testosterone
PubMed: 33584674
DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.604000 -
Sports Medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) Jun 2022Ageing is accompanied by decreases in physical capacity and physiological regulatory mechanisms including altered hormonal regulation compared with age-matched sedentary...
BACKGROUND
Ageing is accompanied by decreases in physical capacity and physiological regulatory mechanisms including altered hormonal regulation compared with age-matched sedentary people. The potential benefits of exercise in restoring such altered hormone production and secretion compared to age-matched physically inactive individuals who are ageing remains unclear.
OBJECTIVES
The aim of this systematic review was to summarise the findings of exercise training in modulating levels of ostensibly anabolic and catabolic hormones in adults aged > 40 years.
METHODS
We searched the following electronic databases (to July 2021) without a period limit: Cochrane Library, PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, SPORTDiscus and Web of Science. Additionally, a manual search for published studies in Google Scholar was conducted for analysis of the 'grey literature' (information produced outside of traditional commercial or academic publishing and distribution channels). The initial search used the terms 'ageing' OR 'advanced age' OR 'old people' OR 'older' OR elderly' AND 'anabolic hormones' OR 'catabolic hormones' OR 'steroid hormones' OR 'sex hormones' OR 'testosterone' OR 'cortisol' OR 'insulin' OR 'insulin-like growth factor-1' OR 'IGF-1' OR 'sex hormone-binding globulin' OR 'SHBG' OR 'growth hormone' OR 'hGH' OR 'dehydroepiandrosterone' OR 'DHEA' OR 'dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEA-S)' AND 'exercise training' OR 'endurance training' OR 'resistance training' OR ' strength training' OR 'weight-lifting' OR 'high-intensity interval training' OR 'high-intensity interval exercise' OR 'high-intensity intermittent training' OR 'high-intensity intermittent exercise' OR 'interval aerobic training' OR 'interval aerobic exercise' OR 'intermittent aerobic training' OR 'intermittent aerobic exercise' OR 'high-intensity training' OR 'high-intensity exercise' OR 'sprint interval training' OR 'sprint interval exercise' OR 'combined exercise training' OR 'anaerobic training'. Only eligible full texts in English or French were considered for analysis.
RESULTS
Our search identified 484 records, which led to 33 studies for inclusion in the analysis. Different exercise training programs were used with nine studies using endurance training programs, ten studies examining the effects of high-intensity interval training, and 14 studies investigating the effects of resistance training. Most training programs lasted ≥ 2 weeks. Studies, regardless of the design, duration or intensity of exercise training, reported increases in testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), human growth hormone (hGH) or dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) (effect size: 0.19 < d < 3.37, small to very large) in both older males and females. However, there was no consensus on the effects of exercise on changes in cortisol and insulin in older adults.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, findings from this systematic review suggest that exercise training increases basal levels of testosterone, IGF-1, SHBG, hGH and DHEA in both male and females over 40 years of age. The increases in blood levels of these hormones were independent of the mode, duration and intensity of the training programs. However, the effects of long-term exercise training on cortisol and insulin levels in elderly people are less clear.
Topics: Adult; Aged; Aging; Dehydroepiandrosterone; Exercise; Female; Hormones; Humans; Hydrocortisone; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I; Insulins; Male; Middle Aged; Sex Hormone-Binding Globulin; Testosterone
PubMed: 34936049
DOI: 10.1007/s40279-021-01612-9