Previous studies have shown that positive affect (PA) and social connectedness predict better health in the United States (U.S.). However, the relevance of such findings for other cultural contexts has been largely ignored. The present study investigated the interplay of PA, social connectedness, and health using large probability samples of Japanese and U.S. adults. Health was measured objecti...

Long-term p.o. treatment with dehydroepiandrosterone, an adrenal steroid found in subnormal plasma concentrations in women predisposed to develop breast cancer, inhibits the formation of spontaneous mammary cancer in female C3H(Avy/a) mice.

Background: Preeclampsia along with its complications seems to be one of the major causes of maternal morbidity and mortality. Despite numerous studies, the pathology of preeclampsia has not yet been fully elucidated. This study, therefore, determines whether maternal serum levels of androgen and progesterone are higher in patients with preeclampsia than in matched control subjects. Methods: Se...

A number of endogenous steroids exhibit rapid, nongenomic effects on the central nervous system and are called neuroactive steroids. The rapid mechanisms of action include modulation of gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) and N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors, which are two receptors implicated in the behavioral effects of ethanol. It was hypothesized that neuroactive steroids that posit...

OBJECTIVE The aim was to study the effect of climatotherapy and spa treatment on selected neuro- and immunomodulatory steroids known to affect well-being, and homocysteine, in a homogenous group of thyroidectomized women under standard substitution regime. METHODS Dehydroepiandrosterone, its precursors and metabolites, cortisol, major sex steroids, SHBG, and homocysteine were measured before ...

Eicosanoids play an important role in the regulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis; less clear is their role in testicular steroidogenesis. To evaluate the involvement of cyclooxygenase metabolites, such as prostaglandins, in the regulation of human testicular steroidogenesis, we examined the effects of a prostaglandin-blocker, aspirin, on plasma testosterone, pregnenolone, progesterone, 1...