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OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to examine the possible role of the immune system in the pathophysiology of chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia syndrome and in the differential diagnosis of depression by investigating changes in peripheral…
The possible link between the opioid peptide beta endorphin and the heterogeneity of the clinical course of multiple sclerosis (MS) was investigated. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) concentrations of beta endorphin were measured in 50…
It is well known that a variety of stressors influence immune responses. The opioid peptide-beta-endorphin (BE) is deeply involved in stress responses, is synthesized in cells of the immune system, and participates in the modulation of immune…
Baseline concentrations of cholecystokinin-8 (CCK-8) and beta-endorphin (beta-EP) were measured in T-lymphocytes from 33 restricting patients with anorexia nervosa (AN-R), 23 binging/purging patients with anorexia nervosa (AN-BP), and 24 healthy…
Concentrations of cholecystokinin-8 (CCK-8) and beta-endorphin (beta-EP) in T-lymphocytes of 26 women with bulimia nervosa (BN) and in 26 age- and sex-matched healthy comparison subjects were measured. Ten patients were then treated with 300 mg/day…
Beta-endorphin (BE) and cholecystokinin (CCK) were measured in fresh PBMC isolated from human subjects and rats. The BE and CCK PBMC contents increased significantly with age both in human and rat models. Moreover, polyclonal stimulation induced a…
beta-Endorphin is an opioid peptide synthesized in the pituitary, hypothalamus, and immunocytes, known to affect immune responses both when added in vitro and when its synthesis is increased in vivo (e.g., during stress). We show here that, similar…
Neuropeptides, initially thought to be common features of gut and brain, are only synthesized in immune cells and modulate immune functions. The presence and possible functions of these peptides in immune cells in both physiological or pathological…
We assessed the clinical and biological effects of high-dose, long-term Naltrexone (NTX) treatment in 11 children (3-11 years), who had been diagnosed as autistic. The drug was given following an open design, for 12 weeks. Beta-Endorphin (beta-END)…
Levels of beta-endorphin in peripheral blood mononuclear cells have been studied as a new approach to investigating opioid tone in migraine and tension-type headache. Sixty-one patients with migraine without aura, 39 with migraine with aura and 23…
Opioid system hypofunction has been postulated in cluster headache (CH) on the basis of reduced opioid levels found in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). In this study beta-endorphin levels were monitored in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of 65…
Lymphocytes can be activated to produce and release opioid peptides. We investigated the levels of immunoreactive beta-endorphin in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from 11 patients with acute myocardial infarction. The concentrations of…
beta-Endorphin (beta-EP) and cholecystokinin 8 (CCK-8) concentrations in peripheral blood mononuclear cells were measured in 12 drug-free autistic (AU) children, in 10 drug-free children with pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) and in 11 healthy…
