Infusion of a lipid emulsion in healthy men decreases the serotonergic response

The role of prolactin in andrology: what is new?

Prolactin (PRL) has been long deemed as a hormone involved only in female reproduction. However, PRL is a surprising hormone and, since its identification in the 1970s, its attributed functions have greatly increased. However, its specific role in male health is still widely unknown. Recently, low PRL has been associated with reduced ejaculate and seminal vesicle volume in infertile subjects. In addition, in men consulting for sexual dysfunction, hypoprolactinemia has been associated with erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation, findings further confirmed in the general European population and infertile men. Several metabolic derangements, recapitulating metabolic syndrome, have also been associated with low PRL both in men with sexual dysfunction and from the general European population. In men with sexual dysfunction, followed-up for more than 4 years, low PRL was identified as an independent predictor of the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events. Finally, an association with anxiety or depressive symptoms has been found in men with sexual dysfunction and from the general European population. While a direct role for impaired PRL function in the pathogenesis of these reproductive, sexual, metabolic and psychological disorders is conceivable, the possibility that low PRL is a mirror of an increased dopaminergic or a decreased serotonergic tone cannot be ruled-out. Hyperactivity of the dopaminergic system can explain only a few of the aforementioned findings, whereas a hypo-serotonergic tone fits well with the clinical features associated with low PRL, and there is significant evidence supporting the hypothesis that PRL could be a mirror of serotonin in the brain.

Metabolomics reveals increased isoleukotoxin diol (12,13-DHOME) in human plasma after acute Intralipid infusion

Intralipid is a fat emulsion that is regularly infused into humans and animals. Despite its routine use, Intralipid infusion can cause serious adverse reactions, including immunosuppression. Intralipid is a complex mix of proteins, lipids, and other small molecules, and the effect of its infusion on the human plasma metabolome is unknown. We hypothesized that untargeted metabolomics of human plasma after an Intralipid infusion would reveal novel insights into its effects. We infused Intralipid and saline into 10 healthy men in a double-blind, placebo-controlled experiment and used GC/MS, LC/MS, and NMR to profile the small-molecule composition of their plasma before and after infusion. Multivariate statistical analysis of the 40 resulting plasma samples revealed that after Intralipid infusion, a less-well-characterized pathway of linoleic acid metabolism had resulted in the appearance of (9Z)-12,13-dihydroxyoctadec-9-enoic acid (12,13-DHOME, P < 10(-3)), a leukotoxin that has powerful physiological effects and is known to inhibit the neutrophil respiratory burst. Intralipid infusion caused increased plasma 12,13-DHOME. Given that 12,13-DHOME is known to directly affect neutrophil function, we conclude that untargeted metabolomics may have revealed a hitherto-unknown mechanism of intralipid-induced immunosuppression.