Because high levels of cortisol are frequently observed in patients with septic shock, low levels of serum cortisol are considered indicative of relative adrenal insufficiency (RAI). This study was performed to investigate whether pretest clinical characteristics, including basal serum cortisol levels, are predictive of serum cortisol response to corticotropin and whether basal cortisol levels ...

We wished to determine whether the increased ACTH during prolonged exercise was associated with changes in peripheral corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) and/or arginine vasopressin (AVP). Six male triathletes were studied during exercise: 1 h at 70% maximal oxygen consumption, followed by progressively increasing work rates until exhaustion. Data obtained during the exercise session were com...

Corticotropin releasing factor immunoactivity (CRFi) has been identified in the plasma of women in the second half of gestation. There are several lines of evidence supporting a placental source for this hormone. Regulation of placental CRFi is poorly understood. In this study, the effect of a long-acting glucorticoid on the release of placental CRFi was investigated. Eleven women in the third ...

Fallopian tube (FT) and endometrial urocortin 1 (Ucn1) and corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH)-receptor (CRH-R1/CRH-R2) expression were examined using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry in nonpregnant and pregnant women (intrauterine, IUP; ectopic pregnancy, EP). Tubal Ucn1 messenger RNA (mRNA) expression was higher in luteal compared to follicu...

The discharge of cholesterol, ascorbic acid, and histologically demonstrable lipides from the adrenal glands is generally regarded as evidence of increased activity of these glands during stress (l-5). These changes were also produced upon injection of purified corticotropin (6). However, in the detailed study of Fortier et al. (7) it was shown that corticotropin (ACTH) alone cannot account for...

In whole-cell and single-channel patch-clamp recordings from bovine adrenal fasciculata cells, it was discovered that selected caffeic acid derivatives dramatically enhanced the activity of background TREK-1 K+ channels. Cinnamyl 1-3,4-dihydroxy-alpha-cyanocinnamate (CDC), activated TREK-1 when this agent was applied externally to cells or outside-out patches at concentrations of 5 to 10 microM...