please see the full text contains the pesian abstracts for this volume.

The enzyme 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11beta-HSD) catalyzes the reversible conversion of physiologically active corticosterone to the biologically inert 11beta-dehydrocorticosterone in rat testis and protect the Leydig cells (LCs) against the suppressive effect of glucocorticoids. The developmental pathway of the adult LCs population is accompanied with an increase in the 11beta-HDS a...

Cortisol is involved in the distribution and deposition of fat, and its action is regulated by the activity of 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase. Glycyrrhetinic acid, the active principle of licorice root, blocks 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1, thus reducing the availability of cortisol at the level of adipocytes. We evaluated the effect of topical application of a cream containin...

Deficiencies in the conversion between active and inactive glucocorticoids in the kidney can lead to hypertension. However, the significance of glucocorticoid metabolism in specific kidney regions in vivo is not clear, possibly in part due to the difficulty in measuring glucocorticoid levels in kidney regions in vivo. We used microdialysis techniques to sample renal interstitial fluid from cons...

IL-11 and IL-11 receptor (R)alpha are induced by Th2 cytokines. However, the role(s) of endogenous IL-11 in antigen-induced Th2 inflammation has not been fully defined. We hypothesized that IL-11, signaling via IL-11Ralpha, plays an important role in aeroallergen-induced Th2 inflammation and mucus metaplasia. To test this hypothesis, we compared the responses induced by the aeroallergen ovalbum...

-Renal 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase II (11beta-HSDII) converts glucocorticoids into inactive metabolites and plays an important role in controlling blood pressure and sodium retention. To examine whether this enzyme may be involved in the pathophysiology of salt-sensitive hypertension, we determined 11beta-HSDII activity and mRNA levels in the blood vessel and kidney of Dahl Iwai salt-se...