The effects of cadmium on estrogen receptor and other estrogen-regulated genes in the human breast cancer cell line MCF-7 were studied. Treatment of MCF-7 cells with 1 microM cadmium decreased the level of estrogen receptor 58%. Cadmium induced a parallel decrease in estrogen receptor mRNA (62%). Progesterone receptor levels increased 3.2-fold after cadmium treatment. This induction was blocked...

To investigate a possible common environmental exposure that may partially explain the observed decrease in human semen quality, we correlated seminal plasma and blood cadmium levels with sperm concentration and sperm motility. We studied three separate human populations: [Group 1] infertility patients (Long Island, NY), [Group 2] artificial insemination (AI) donors (Rochester, NY), and [Group ...

In this study we evaluated the time dependence in cadmium-nicotine interaction and its effect on motor function, anxiety linked behavioural changes, serum electrolytes, and weight after acute and chronic treatment in adult male mice. Animals were separated randomly into four groups of n = 6 animals each. Treatment was done with nicotine, cadmium, or nicotine-cadmium for 21 days. A fourth group ...

The environmental pollutant cadmium affects human health, with the kidney being a primary target. In addition to proximal tubules, glomeruli and their contractile mesangial cells have also been identified as targets of cadmium nephrotoxicity. Glomerular contraction is thought to contribute to reduced glomerular filtration, a characteristic of cadmium nephrotoxicity. Because p38 MAPK/HSP25 signa...

It is known that cadmium induces a variety of functional disorders, especially liver and kidney dysfunction. The main mechanism involved in cadmium hepatotoxicity is its binding to sulfhydryl groups and initiation of inflammation. Additionally, oxidative stress, due to a decrease in antioxidative capacity, plays a role in chronic cadmium hepatotoxicity. The role of oxidative stress in acute cad...

In this study the effect of cadmium, cadmium+selenium and cadmium+zinc administration on the ovarian structure in Japanese quails was studied. The morphometric analysis of the relative volume of primary follicles detected the highest value in control group with a similar value in the group with administration of cadmium with selenium. Lower relative volume is reported in group with cadmium and ...

Cadmium is an omnipotent environmental contaminant associated with the development of breast cancer. Studies suggest that cadmium functions as an endocrine disruptor, mimicking the actions of estrogen in breast cancer cells and activating the receptor to promote cell growth. Although acute cadmium exposure is known to promote estrogen receptor-mediated gene expression associated with growth, th...

The heavy metal cadmium is a widely dispersed environmental pollutant that has no biological function in the human body and is known to cause several adverse health effects, mainly on kidneys and bone and the endocrine system. Little is known about effects in early life. The main source of exposure in a non-smoking population is via basic foods such as cereals (e.g. wheat and rice) and vegetabl...

Phosphorylation of insulin receptor substrate (IRS)-2 on tyrosine residues is a key event in IGF-1/insulin signaling and leads to activation of the PI 3-kinase and the Ras/MAPK pathway. Furthermore, phosphorylated serine/threonine residues on IRS-2 can induce 14-3-3 binding. In this study we searched IRS-2 for novel phosphorylation sites and investigated the interaction between IRS-2 and 14-3-3...

BACKGROUND Awareness of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention is increasing, but little is known about the functional knowledge of PrEP and its impact on willingness to use PrEP. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study was to assess the functional knowledge of PrEP among a sample of gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (MSM) participating in a Web-based survey of sexu...