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Leptin is one of the most important adipose derived hormones. It decreases the food intake….and is decreased during dieting. Got you interested? Let´s go straight too the point. Leptin is a protein hormone which is responsible for various metabolic activities and plays a vital role in the consumption of diet, regulating body weight and reproductive function. Leptin is considered to be one of the most important adipose derived hormones and its gene is located on chromosome 7 in humans. It is predominantly expressed by adipocytes and only minute quantities are secreted by cells present in epithelial lining of stomach and placenta.   DISCOVERY Leptin was discovered accidentally in 1994 by Jeffery M. Friedman and his colleagues at the Rockefeller University though the research on it had started about forty years ago in 1950 at the Jackson Laboratory when a gene ob/ob associated with obesity was discovered in an obese mouse

Gluten intolerance also known as the gluten sensitive enteropathy, refers to the sensitivity to gluten and is observed in some people after ingestion of gluten. The gluten which is a normal part of diet and a component of wheat, barley and oats reacts adversely in some individuals with the epithelial layer of the small intestine which results in indigestion of various components of food. This intolerance is observed in about 6% of the individuals though gluten intolerance was also referred as the celiac disease or wheat allergy in the past but these terms now imply different conditions. Gluten intolerance is a temporary condition which requires temporary diet alteration while in celiac disease; the person is dependent on gluten free diet for the rest of his or her life. Thus differential diagnosis among the three is important for estimating time the treatment would take. The diagnosis is made on the symptoms

Healthy Gut Flora is one cornerstones of good health and wellbeing. Before proceeding with the relationship of gut flora to health and disease, one should know what gut flora is. The essential meaning of gut flora is the same as the flora and fauna of the environment but in medical and scientific terms it doesn’t mean plants but the various bacteria which normally reside small and large intestine. These are the permanent residents of the intestine and are not involved in pathogenesis (that is they do not cause diseases) but if somehow they get systemic entry then they can cause sepsis (generalized infection of the al body organs). The part of the gut which contains majority of gut flora is the caecum at the site of right iliac fossa. The small intestine contains fewer microbes than large intestine because it has comparatively low pH which makes it a bit unfertile

Unhealthy Omega-3 vs Omega-6 ratio and increased inflammation are behind numerous health problems. Why the ratio is important and how the western diet with way too large omega-6 intake contributes to many diseases from depression to cardiovascular diseases ? Why increasing only omega-3 intake is not a healthy solution. “PUFA”: Essential Fatty Acids and the science behind What is PUFA? Fatty acids are carbon chains with acidic group (carboxylic acid) at one end and methyl group at the other. The carboxylic group end of the fatty acid is called alpha, while the methyl end of the carbon chain is called omega. These carbon chains can be saturated or unsaturated, which makes the fatty acids saturated or unsaturated. Unsaturated fatty acids are fatty acids with at least one carbon-carbon double bond. The number of double bonds further differentiates the unsaturated group into mono-unsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) and poly-unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA).

Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate (eGFR): Measure of your Kidney Function in Sickness and Health Basics First: Kidney Function, GFR and Chronic Kidney Disease Before we begin discussing GFR, we need to understand kidney function in brief. Kidney is the chief organ for excretion and removes unwanted metabolites dissolved in urine. It also maintains water, acidity and salt balance in the body. Two kidneys are made of 1-1.5 million nephrons each, the fundamental unit of kidney. Each nephron is responsible for clearing blood from unwanted metabolites and performing a part in water and electrolyte balance. Each nephron has a glomerulus (bulb of nephron) and tubules. Glomerulus clears the blood first by simple filtration and then blood is cleared by tubules either by secretion or absorption. Glomerular filtration, thus define a normal functioning of kidneys. Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) is a measure of the kidney function. It is the amount of fluid

According to a study conducted in United States, almost 25.8 million people of all ages get affected by diabetes every year and this figure is only for United States. In fact, the number of diabetic patients is increasing day by day. Diabetes is a disease in which our blood sugar level increases from normal which leads to various complications. How to Detect Diabetes? There are various tests by which diabetes can be detected which help us in monitoring of glucose level in our body. The most common among these tests are the two which are done before eating anything for 8 hours and right after the meal but the main drawback of these two tests is that the results of these tests are greatly affected by the food we eat last time before the tests. Scientists have been finding ways to introduce any other technique that can overcome this problem

Lipid profile is done regularly as a routine laboratory blood test to maintain the various fractions of fats in the body in control. For ages, it has been known that lipids (fats) are associated with diseases like cardiovascular diseases, atherosclerosis and obesity. It is very important to keep all the fat components (lipid classes) in required proportion to avoid such consequences. These tests include triglycerides, cholesterol, LDL levels, HDL levels, and HDL-Cholesterol ratio. Of these, HDL- Cholesterol (considered good cholesterol) and LDL- Cholesterol (considered bad cholesterol) levels are very important tests. Let’s look first as to what they stand for in brief. Lipid Classes as Cholesterol, Triglycerides Lipids in the blood plasma are present in the form of four major classes. They are Triglycerides, Phospholipids, Cholesterol, and Cholesteryl esters. There is a small fraction of Free Fatty Acids (FFA) also present, but only 4% of the whole. However they are

Uric acid and its physiological importance Before we directly start discussing the uric acid, it is important to know from where does uric acid come from. DNA in human beings is made of four nucleotide bases (chemical building block of DNA). These are adenine, guanine, thymine and cytosine. Of these adenine and guanine belong to the purine group. Purines can be obtained from two sources, i.e., they can be synthesized in human body (endogenous purines) and can be consumed in diet (exogenous purines). Human DNA is under continuous renewal and this calls for a degradation of these purine bases too. The purines, adenine and guanine, are broken down by enzymes into uric acid and then to allantoin. The conversion of uric acid to allantoin is done by enzyme, uricase, which is absent in human beings. Thus, the end result of purine breakdown in humans is uric acid which is excreted

INR Blood test: What does it stand for? INR stands for International Normalized Ratio. It’s a ratio used to determine the blood clotting capacity of the patient. INR and blood clotting pathway explained! Before we discuss INR, it’s important to understand the science behind it. Blood clotting takes place due to 12-14 factors that include enzymes, tissue proteins and glycoproteins, receptors etc. These factors precipitate when there is an external tissue injury or an internal disorder which results in the formation blood clot to prevent loss of blood. While some of the factors are extensively required in either external injury (extrinsic factors) or internal disorder (intrinsic factors), others are part of the common pathway finally resulting in clot. These factors if deranged either increase the tendency to bleed or increases propensity to clot the blood. Hence, determination of the time required by either pathway, extrinsic and intrinsic to clot the

Talking about arthritis means that we are talking about hundred diseases which are related to joint discomfort. Clinically, rheumatoid arthritis can be defined as a progressive inflammatory disorder, characterized by proliferation of the synovial membrane and uncontrolled inflammation. This uncontrolled inflammation typically results in a chronic destructive joint disease called polyarthritis. However, rheumatoid arthritis can also be acute; as it can show sudden symptoms. Unlike other forms of arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis can affect any organ of the body and not necessarily only joints. As ultimate result, rheumatoid arthritis can cause progressive disability of the affected organ. However, the most common parts of human body getting affected in rheumatoid arthritis are the hands, wrists, knees and feet joints.   The major cause of rheumatoid arthritis is autoimmune disorder. Immune system of own body produces antibodies against its tissues, resulting in inflammation and pain. The antibodies trigger cells of the body to