Plasma ??-Endorphin, ??-Lipotropin, and Met-Enkephalin Concentrations during Pregnancy in Normal and Drug-addicted Women and Their Newborn

Panerai, Alberto E.; Martini, Alberto; Giulio, Anna Maria Di; Fraioli, Franc; Vegni, C; Pardi, G; Marini, Antonio; Mantegazza, Paolo

doi:10.1097/00006254-198402000-00004

Cited by 20 publications

(34 citation statements)

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“…Endogenous opiate levels rise during pregnancy and de livery in both humans and rats [4,6,9,12,13,[19][20][21][22][23]. Pain threshold has been observed to rise over the course of preg nancy in rats, and this "analgesia of pregnancy" has been demonstrated to be opiate mediated [1,7,8].…”

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confidence: 99%

Ingestion of amniotic fluid enhances opiate analgesia in rats

Kristal

Thompson

Abbott

1986

Physiology & Behavior

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. Ingestion ofllmnioticfluid enhances opiate analgesia in rats. PHYSIOL BEHAV 38(6) [809][810][811][812][813][814][815] 1986.-Placenta ingestion has recently been shown to enhance opiate-mediated analgesia produced by morphine injection, footshock, or vaginal/cervical stimulation. The enhancement of the effect of endogenous opiates (especially analgesia) may be one of the principal benefits to mammalian mothers of placentophagia at delivery. During labor and delivery, however, mothers also ingest amniotic fluid (AF) which, unlike placenta, becomes available during, or even before expulsion of the infant. The present experiments were undertaken to determine (a) whether AF ingestion, too, enhances analgesia; if so, (b) whether the effect requires ingestion of, or merely exposure to, AF; (c) whether the effect can be produced by AF delivered directly to the stomach by tube; and (d) whether the enhancement, if it exists, can be blocked by administering an opiate antagonist. Nulliparous Long-Evans rats were tested for analgesia using tail-flick latency. We found that (a) rats that ingested AF after receiving a morphine injection showed significantly more analgesia than did rats that ingested a control substance;' (b) AF ingestion, alone, did not produce analgesia; (c) ingestion of AF, rather than just smelling and seeing it, was necessary to produce analgesia enhancement; (d) AF produced enhance ment when oropharyngeal factors were eliminated by delivering it through an orogastric tube; and (e) treatment of the rats with naltrexone blocked the enhancement of morphine-induced analgesia that results from AF ingestion. . Furthermore, placenta does not seem to contain a substance that, by itself, is analgesic, since in gestion of placenta in the absence of an analgesia-producing treatment does not elevate pain threshold [15,16]. We have also demonstrated that the analgesia-enhancing effect of placenta ingestion seems to be specific to opiate-mediated analgesia, since treatment with naltrexone, an opiate antagonist, not only attenuates the analgesia produced by footshock, as expected, but also blocks the enhancing effect of placenta ingestion [15]. Endogenous opiate levels rise during pregnancy and de livery in both humans and rats [4,6,9,12,13,[19][20][21][22][23]. Pain threshold has been observed to rise over the course of preg nancy in rats, and this "analgesia of pregnancy" has been demonstrated to be opiate mediated [1,7,8]. Enhancement of such analgesia, therefore, may be one of the principal benefits of parturitional placentophagia, and, in contrast to other hypotheses about advantages (e.g., nest hygiene, mother-infant attachment, reduction of predator-attracting stimuli [14,17]), this hypothesis suggests a benefit that would apply to virtually all species of mammals.However, if placenta, alone, contains the substance that enhances opiate-mediated analgesia during the perinatal period, the fact that placenta is delivered after the neonate (anywhere from 5 to 75 min after) would render it effective only during th...

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confidence: 99%

Ingestion of amniotic fluid enhances opiate analgesia in rats

Kristal

Thompson

Abbott

1986

Physiology & Behavior

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“…amines spermidine and spermine, key regulators of cell In infants of heroin-addicted mothers, plasma BE levels show growth, multiplication, and differentiation. Central (but not even larger increases after birth (up to 1000 times adult levels) peripheral) administration of BE reduced lung ODC activ-and remain elevated at 40 d of age (9). These and other obserity by as much as 80% in the 6-d-old rat.…”

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confidence: 78%

“…ODC cata-three to four times higher than the concentrations found in their lyzes the rate-limiting step in the synthesis of the poly-mothers, and decline to adult levels by the 5th day of life (9,10). amines spermidine and spermine, key regulators of cell In infants of heroin-addicted mothers, plasma BE levels show growth, multiplication, and differentiation.…”

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confidence: 99%

Effect of Central Administration of β-Endorphin on Lung Ornithine Decarboxylase Activity in Developing Rats

1991

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ABSTRACT. Results from a number of studies suggest a indicates that endogenous opioid systems (i.e. opioids and opioid role for endogenous opioids in the regulation of lung devel-receptors) tonically modulate fetal lung maturation. opment and function. Although it is not known which opioid Accumulated knowledge suggests that BE may influence pulpeptides are involved in these processes, accumulated evi-monary development. Pituitary and hypothalamic levels of BE dence suggests a prominent role for /3-endorphin (BE). Our are elevated in fetal and neonatal rats after maternal morphine study examines the effect of BE on lung ornithine decar-treatment (8). Plasma BE levels in normal newborn babies are boxylase (ODC) activity in preweanling rats. ODC cata-three to four times higher than the concentrations found in their lyzes the rate-limiting step in the synthesis of the poly-mothers, and decline to adult levels by the 5th day of life (9, 10). amines spermidine and spermine, key regulators of cell In infants of heroin-addicted mothers, plasma BE levels show growth, multiplication, and differentiation. Central (but not even larger increases after birth (up to 1000 times adult levels) peripheral) administration of BE reduced lung ODC activ-and remain elevated at 40 d of age (9). These and other obserity by as much as 80% in the 6-d-old rat. Significant vations support the hypothesis that BE may have a prominent decreases in ODC activity were seen at doses of BE as low role in the modulation of lung maturation (1 1-14). as 0.5 pgjg brain wt. In contrast to the reductions in ODC Studies of the consequences of opioid exposure on lung funcactivity, plasma levels of corticosterone in animals admin-tion have predominantly addressed prenatal effects, primarily istered BE were approximately five times higher than those due to their relevance to respiratory distress syndrome. However, seen in control animals. BE'S actions on ODC activity and it is equally important to investigate opioid actions on the plasma corticosterone levels were prevented by naloxone postnatal lung. Both the newborn human and rat lungs are or naltrexone, indicating that both responses are mediated extremely immature and undergo vast morphologic restructuring by opioid receptors. Studies of ODC kinetics showed a after birth; the majority of alveoli are formed postnatally, increasprofound reduction in V,,, (70% below control values), but ing from approximately 20 million at birth to 300 million in the no change in Km. The effect was observed only during the mature lung (15-18). The neonatal lung is highly responsive to first 2 wk of postnatal age, a period of time in lung trophic hormones (19-21). Finally, as the early postnatal lung maturation that is characterized by active alveolarization. development (saccular stage) is fundamentally a continuation of Because changes in ODC levels during early postnatal life the late fetal maturation, the findings obtained during the first are associated with perturbations in tissue growth and/or days of age essentially ...

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“…The supernatant was collected, and fl-END was measured by on treatment with anti-malarial drugs, penicillamine, methoradioimmunoassay and validated as previously described [12]. trexate, systemic steroids or other immunosuppressive agents Specific antibodies were obtained against bovine serum albumin were not included.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…trexate, systemic steroids or other immunosuppressive agents Specific antibodies were obtained against bovine serum albumin were not included. Routine laboratory tests included ESR (BSA) conjugates of human ,B-END [12]. Briefly, 01 ml of (Westergren), qualitative rheumatoid factor (RF) latex test PBMC supernatant was added to 02 ml of phosphosaline buffer (Gamma Biologicals, Houston, TX), and nephelometric quanticontaining BSA, the antiserum at an initial dilution of 1/12 000, fications of RF and C-reactive protein (CRP) (Beckman, Brea, and the tracer; tubes were incubated for 24 h, and free CA).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Decreased immunoreactive beta-endorphin in mononuclear leucocytes from patients with rheumatic diseases

Wiedermann

Sacerdote

Mur

et al. 1992

Clinical and Experimental Immunology

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SUMMARYThe neuroendocrine polypeptide hormone beta-endorphin (f-END), which is released from various tissues including the anterior pituitary gland and cells of the immune system, has recently been implicated as having an immunoregulatory role. We used a radioimmunoassay to measure f-END levels in circulating mononuclear leucocytes from normal subjects and patients with various rheumatic diseases. Levels of f-END in leucocytes from patients were lower than in leucocytes from healthy subjects (P< 000 1). Whereas levels of f-END in leucocytes from patients with the various rheumatic disorders were not significantly different, an inverse correlation was found between f-END levels in leucocytes and expression of rheumatoid factor (P < 0 025) and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (P < 0 025). This study demonstrates decreased content of f-END in cells of the immune system related to parameters of inflammatory activity in rheumatic diseases.

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Plasma ??-Endorphin, ??-Lipotropin, and Met-Enkephalin Concentrations during Pregnancy in Normal and Drug-addicted Women and Their Newborn

Cited by 20 publications

References 0 publications

Ingestion of amniotic fluid enhances opiate analgesia in rats

Ingestion of amniotic fluid enhances opiate analgesia in rats

Effect of Central Administration of β-Endorphin on Lung Ornithine Decarboxylase Activity in Developing Rats

Decreased immunoreactive beta-endorphin in mononuclear leucocytes from patients with rheumatic diseases

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