Secondary diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common complication of acromegaly, encountered in up to 55%... more Secondary diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common complication of acromegaly, encountered in up to 55% of cases. Vice versa, the prevalence of acromegaly is markedly higher in cohorts of patients with type 2 DM (T2DM). The presence of secondary DM depends primarily on acromegaly status and is associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity, malignancy rate and overall mortality. The principal pathophysiologic mechanism is increased insulin resistance due to excessive lipolysis and altered fat distribution, reflected at the presence of intermuscular fat and attenuated, dysfunctional adipose tissue. Insulin resistance is ascribed to the direct, diabetogenic effects of growth hormone (GH), which prevail over the insulin-sensitizing effects of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), probably due to higher glucometabolic potency of GH, IGF-1 resistance, or both. Inversely, GH and IGF-1 act synergistically in increasing insulin secretion. Hyperinsulinemia in portal vein leads to enhanced resp...
Aim To compare the kinetics of neutralizing antibodies (NΑbs) against SARS-CoV-2 after vaccinatio... more Aim To compare the kinetics of neutralizing antibodies (NΑbs) against SARS-CoV-2 after vaccination with the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine (Comirnaty, Pfizer/BioNTech) between patients with T2DM and healthy controls. Methods NAb levels after the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine were compared between 50 patients with non-insulin treated T2DM and 50 age-, gender-, and BMI-matched healthy controls up to 3 months after the second dose. The median age of both groups was 70 years. Results On day 1, mean NAbs of the control and T2DM groups were 14.64% (standard error, SE = 2.30) and 14.04% (SE = 2.14), respectively (p value = 0.926). Three weeks later, the mean NAb values were 39.98% (SE = 3.53) in the control group and 40.97% (SE = 3.99) in participants with T2DM (p value = 0.698). One month after the second vaccination, mean NAb values increased to 87.13% (SE = 2.94) in the control group and 89.00% (SE = 2.18) in the T2DM group. Three months after the second vaccine dose, the mean inhibitory titers decrease...
Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2020
Patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are at high risk for thrombotic events. Platelet reactivity m... more Patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are at high risk for thrombotic events. Platelet reactivity may be used to assess prothrombotic status. We investigated whether administration of novel antidiabetic agents may alter platelet reactivity in patients with T2D. We enrolled 54 consecutive male
Background: Arterial stiffness is a prominent macrovascular complication in patients with type 2 ... more Background: Arterial stiffness is a prominent macrovascular complication in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2). Antiplatelet therapy is the cornerstone of CVD therapy. There is little evidence about the influence of antiglycemic agents on arterial wall properties and prothrombotic state. Methods: We enrolled 80 consecutive patients (males=64.4%), aged 64.19 ± 8.82 years receiving either metformin plus another antiglycemic agent such as sulphonylureas, DPP-4i, GLP-1 agonists, insulin, or metformin alone (n=16 per group). Applanation tonometry was used to assess aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) as a measure of arterial stiffness. Platelet reactivity was measured with PFA-200, collagen/epinephrine (CEPI) and PFA-200 collagen/ADP closure time (CADP). Results: There was no difference between the study groups regarding gender, age, hypertension, dyslipidemia, smoking, PWV, CADP or CEPI (p=NS for all). When conducting a separate analysis between patients receiving aspirin (AS), d...
Molecules that govern bone metabolism, such as osteoprotegerin (OPG) and osteopontin (OPN), have ... more Molecules that govern bone metabolism, such as osteoprotegerin (OPG) and osteopontin (OPN), have been isolated from other tissues, including blood vessels. Atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease (CAD) are leading causes of mortality worldwide. Despite novel biochemical and imaging techniques, early detection of CAD is still unsatisfactory. Experimental data indicate that bone turnover markers (BTMs) contribute to the development of atherosclerosis. This finding has sparked interest in their clinical use. This narrative review analyzed information from >50 human studies, which strongly suggest that OPG, OPN, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) serum concentrations are altered in patients with CAD. Osteoprotegerin seems to be more useful for the detection of early disease, while OPN and ALP are recruited in vessels after the establishment of disease. Osteocalcin may be used as a flow cytometry marker for endothelial progenitor cells and can constitute a marker to monitor response t...
The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake in Figure 1. There is a ty... more The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake in Figure 1. There is a typo in the word "osteoclastogenesis" and the word "activity" is missing in the same entity. It should be "osteoclastogenesis" instead of "osteoclestogenesis".
Aging and its underlying pathophysiological background has always attracted the attention of the ... more Aging and its underlying pathophysiological background has always attracted the attention of the scientific society. Defined as the gradual, time-dependent, heterogeneous decline of physiological functions, aging is orchestrated by a plethora of molecular mechanisms, which vividly interact to alter body homeostasis. The ability of an organism to adjust to these alterations, in conjunction with the dynamic effect of various environmental stimuli across lifespan, promotes longevity, frailty or disease. Endocrine function undergoes major changes during aging, as well. Specifically, alterations in hormonal networks and concomitant hormonal deficits/excess, augmented by poor sensitivity of tissues to their action, take place. As hypothalamic-pituitary unit is the central regulator of crucial body functions, these alterations can be translated in significant clinical sequelae that can impair the quality of life and promote frailty and disease. Delineating the hormonal signaling alteration...
Introduction. The visceral adiposity index (VAI) is a mathematical formula based on simple anthro... more Introduction. The visceral adiposity index (VAI) is a mathematical formula based on simple anthropometric and biochemical parameters and reflects the distribution and function of the adipose tissue.Aim: to investigate the possible association between the presence of subclinical Cushing’s syndrome (SCS) and VAI in patients with adrenal incidentalomas.Patients and methods. We studied 258 patients with adrenal incidentalomas. The diagnosis of SCS was based on a post-LDDST cortisol level ≥1.8 mg/dl combined with an abnormal result of at least one other test of the HPA axis, in the absence of clinical signs. The VAI index was calculated as following: Women VAI= [WC/36.58+(1.89×BMI)] ×(TG/0.81)×(1.52/HDL), Men VAI= [WC/39.68+(1.88×BMI)] ×(TG/1.03)×(1.31/HDL).Results. 122 patients were excluded from the analysis due to overt metabolic problems (8 with BMI>39, 82 with metabolic syndrome and 34 with type 2 diabetes). Among 136 patients who were included in the analysis (42M/94W, 56.9±9.7 ...
Secondary diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common complication of acromegaly, encountered in up to 55%... more Secondary diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common complication of acromegaly, encountered in up to 55% of cases. Vice versa, the prevalence of acromegaly is markedly higher in cohorts of patients with type 2 DM (T2DM). The presence of secondary DM depends primarily on acromegaly status and is associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity, malignancy rate and overall mortality. The principal pathophysiologic mechanism is increased insulin resistance due to excessive lipolysis and altered fat distribution, reflected at the presence of intermuscular fat and attenuated, dysfunctional adipose tissue. Insulin resistance is ascribed to the direct, diabetogenic effects of growth hormone (GH), which prevail over the insulin-sensitizing effects of insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), probably due to higher glucometabolic potency of GH, IGF-1 resistance, or both. Inversely, GH and IGF-1 act synergistically in increasing insulin secretion. Hyperinsulinemia in portal vein leads to enhanced resp...
Aim To compare the kinetics of neutralizing antibodies (NΑbs) against SARS-CoV-2 after vaccinatio... more Aim To compare the kinetics of neutralizing antibodies (NΑbs) against SARS-CoV-2 after vaccination with the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine (Comirnaty, Pfizer/BioNTech) between patients with T2DM and healthy controls. Methods NAb levels after the BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine were compared between 50 patients with non-insulin treated T2DM and 50 age-, gender-, and BMI-matched healthy controls up to 3 months after the second dose. The median age of both groups was 70 years. Results On day 1, mean NAbs of the control and T2DM groups were 14.64% (standard error, SE = 2.30) and 14.04% (SE = 2.14), respectively (p value = 0.926). Three weeks later, the mean NAb values were 39.98% (SE = 3.53) in the control group and 40.97% (SE = 3.99) in participants with T2DM (p value = 0.698). One month after the second vaccination, mean NAb values increased to 87.13% (SE = 2.94) in the control group and 89.00% (SE = 2.18) in the T2DM group. Three months after the second vaccine dose, the mean inhibitory titers decrease...
Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 2020
Patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are at high risk for thrombotic events. Platelet reactivity m... more Patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) are at high risk for thrombotic events. Platelet reactivity may be used to assess prothrombotic status. We investigated whether administration of novel antidiabetic agents may alter platelet reactivity in patients with T2D. We enrolled 54 consecutive male
Background: Arterial stiffness is a prominent macrovascular complication in patients with type 2 ... more Background: Arterial stiffness is a prominent macrovascular complication in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2). Antiplatelet therapy is the cornerstone of CVD therapy. There is little evidence about the influence of antiglycemic agents on arterial wall properties and prothrombotic state. Methods: We enrolled 80 consecutive patients (males=64.4%), aged 64.19 ± 8.82 years receiving either metformin plus another antiglycemic agent such as sulphonylureas, DPP-4i, GLP-1 agonists, insulin, or metformin alone (n=16 per group). Applanation tonometry was used to assess aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) as a measure of arterial stiffness. Platelet reactivity was measured with PFA-200, collagen/epinephrine (CEPI) and PFA-200 collagen/ADP closure time (CADP). Results: There was no difference between the study groups regarding gender, age, hypertension, dyslipidemia, smoking, PWV, CADP or CEPI (p=NS for all). When conducting a separate analysis between patients receiving aspirin (AS), d...
Molecules that govern bone metabolism, such as osteoprotegerin (OPG) and osteopontin (OPN), have ... more Molecules that govern bone metabolism, such as osteoprotegerin (OPG) and osteopontin (OPN), have been isolated from other tissues, including blood vessels. Atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease (CAD) are leading causes of mortality worldwide. Despite novel biochemical and imaging techniques, early detection of CAD is still unsatisfactory. Experimental data indicate that bone turnover markers (BTMs) contribute to the development of atherosclerosis. This finding has sparked interest in their clinical use. This narrative review analyzed information from >50 human studies, which strongly suggest that OPG, OPN, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) serum concentrations are altered in patients with CAD. Osteoprotegerin seems to be more useful for the detection of early disease, while OPN and ALP are recruited in vessels after the establishment of disease. Osteocalcin may be used as a flow cytometry marker for endothelial progenitor cells and can constitute a marker to monitor response t...
The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake in Figure 1. There is a ty... more The original version of this article unfortunately contained a mistake in Figure 1. There is a typo in the word "osteoclastogenesis" and the word "activity" is missing in the same entity. It should be "osteoclastogenesis" instead of "osteoclestogenesis".
Aging and its underlying pathophysiological background has always attracted the attention of the ... more Aging and its underlying pathophysiological background has always attracted the attention of the scientific society. Defined as the gradual, time-dependent, heterogeneous decline of physiological functions, aging is orchestrated by a plethora of molecular mechanisms, which vividly interact to alter body homeostasis. The ability of an organism to adjust to these alterations, in conjunction with the dynamic effect of various environmental stimuli across lifespan, promotes longevity, frailty or disease. Endocrine function undergoes major changes during aging, as well. Specifically, alterations in hormonal networks and concomitant hormonal deficits/excess, augmented by poor sensitivity of tissues to their action, take place. As hypothalamic-pituitary unit is the central regulator of crucial body functions, these alterations can be translated in significant clinical sequelae that can impair the quality of life and promote frailty and disease. Delineating the hormonal signaling alteration...
Introduction. The visceral adiposity index (VAI) is a mathematical formula based on simple anthro... more Introduction. The visceral adiposity index (VAI) is a mathematical formula based on simple anthropometric and biochemical parameters and reflects the distribution and function of the adipose tissue.Aim: to investigate the possible association between the presence of subclinical Cushing’s syndrome (SCS) and VAI in patients with adrenal incidentalomas.Patients and methods. We studied 258 patients with adrenal incidentalomas. The diagnosis of SCS was based on a post-LDDST cortisol level ≥1.8 mg/dl combined with an abnormal result of at least one other test of the HPA axis, in the absence of clinical signs. The VAI index was calculated as following: Women VAI= [WC/36.58+(1.89×BMI)] ×(TG/0.81)×(1.52/HDL), Men VAI= [WC/39.68+(1.88×BMI)] ×(TG/1.03)×(1.31/HDL).Results. 122 patients were excluded from the analysis due to overt metabolic problems (8 with BMI>39, 82 with metabolic syndrome and 34 with type 2 diabetes). Among 136 patients who were included in the analysis (42M/94W, 56.9±9.7 ...
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Papers by Andromachi Vryonidou