Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P01189 (beta-endorphin)
 21,003 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

In thirty patients with common migraine the platelet concentrations of met-enkephalin immunoreactivity (ME) (76 +/- 9 pg/mg protein) were similar to those in 23 healthy volunteers (77 +/- 5), suggesting that there is no alteration in the ME pool in this biochemical compartment in migraine. Chronic treatment (4 weeks) with drugs that interfere with 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) synthesis or uptake induced the expected changes in platelet 5-HT levels, i.e. a rise following administration of the 5-HT precursor 5-hydroxytryptophan (daily dose: 300-500 mg, n = 9) and a decrease after amine uptake inhibition by amitryptyline (30-75 mg, n = 7) and even more by chlorimipramine (30-50 mg, n = 9). Platelet ME concentrations rose by up to approximately 90% over the basal values after either 5-hydroxytryptophan (significantly from week 2) or amitriptyline (at week 2) and were unchanged after chlorimipramine, indicating that 5-HT and ME concentrations in platelets can vary independently. The high platelet ME levels following 5-hydroxytryptophan and amitriptyline cannot be explained at present. They might be due either to increased ME synthesis, possibly in the megakaryocyte, or to decreased utilization by platelets or both.
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PMID:Platelet met-enkephalin immunoreactivity and 5-hydroxytryptamine concentrations in migraine patients: effects of 5-hydroxytryptophan, amitriptyline and chlorimipramine treatment. 661 Apr 76

The responses to work-test in ischemia (tourniquet technique), before and after I.V. injection of naloxone (2 mg) or saline, were investigated in healthy volunteers and patients suffering from various types of headache. The patients were examined during both painful and painless periods. We found that only the subjects suffering from migraine showed a significantly shortened pain tolerance at work-test in ischemia, after injection of naloxone, and only during painful periods. Psychogenic headache patients and migraine patients in painless periods showed responses during work-test similar to those in healthy volunteers, even after injection of naloxone. We believe that hyperalgesic effect of naloxone is due to involvement of beta-endorphin systems only during organic pain.
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PMID:Headache patients: different responses induced by naloxone during work-test. 715 Nov 48

In the current investigation an approach has been made to explore possible relations between musical talent, left-handedness, anomalous dominance for verbal materials, and immune vulnerability. Fifty-one young adult musicians and non-musicians were tested with Wing's Standardized Tests of Musical Intelligence, with a handedness questionnaire, a dichotic listening task, and with a questionnaire assessing asthma/allergies, migraine and myopia. In addition, IgE, Ig total, beta-endorphin, testosterone, and estradiol were measured in blood serum. Musical talent was related to left-handedness and to anomalous dominance; immune vulnerability was found in female musicians, and in subjects with reversed dominance for language functions as well as in male left-handers, independently of musical talent.
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PMID:Functional brain organization, handedness, and immune vulnerability in musicians and non-musicians. 837 39

Flurbiprofen, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug with effects on prostaglandin synthesis, platelet serotonin release, and beta-endorphin, was studied for efficacy in migraine prophylaxis. Twenty-three patients completed the 20-week, placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover trial. Flurbiprofen, in a dose of 100 mg twice daily, and placebo were each given for 8 weeks, with a 2-week "washout" period between the treatment periods. Flurbiprofen significantly reduced migraine intensity (P < .05), total hours with migraine (P < .015), and the dosing frequency of relief medication (P < .015). Total hours with migraine decreased by 41%, and the use of relief medication decreased by 31%. The reduction in migraine frequency did not reach statistical significance (P < .10). Adverse effects were infrequent. Based on the overall improvement in migraine parameters, flurbiprofen can be recommended for use in migraine prophylaxis.
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PMID:Flurbiprofen in the prophylaxis of migraine. 844 34

Interictal serum levels of serotonin and plasma and mononuclear cell concentrations of beta-endorphin were measured in 20 juvenile patients (13 suffering from migraine without aura and 7 from episodic tension-type headache) before and after 3 months of L-5-hydroxytryptophan treatment (5 mg/kg/day) and compared with a control group of 17 headache-free healthy subjects. While no significant differences in serum serotonin levels emerged between the three groups (migraine 104.6 +/- 26 micrograms/L, tension-type headache 90.7 +/- 26.2 micrograms/L, controls 96 +/- 32.9 micrograms/L), significantly lower plasma and mononuclear cell concentrations of beta-endorphin were found in both patient groups by comparison with the healthy controls (beta-endorphin in plasma: migraine sufferers 16.2 +/- 4.2 pmol/L [P < 0.05], tension-type headache subjects 14.5 +/- 1.7 pmol/L [P < 0.001] vs controls 21.3 +/- 4.6 pmol/L and respectively, beta-endorphin in mononuclear cells: migraine sufferers 110.5 +/- 16.4 pmol/10(6) GB/L [P < 0.001], tension-type headache subjects 142.3 +/- 22.7 pmol/10(6) GB/L [P < 0.001] vs controls 359.3 +/- 31.6 pmol/10(6) GB/L). No differences emerged between the two clinical forms of headache for the plasma and mononuclear cell concentrations of beta-endorphin. After L-5-hydroxytryptophan treatment, serum serotonin and both plasma and mononuclear cell beta-endorphin levels tended to be higher, though not significantly so, than prior to treatment, and the clinical score (frequency x intensity of headache attacks) was significantly lower in both headache groups than at the baseline. This study supports the theory that opiate analgesic system function is abnormally low in juvenile primary headache as in adults, and confirms that administering serotoninergic precursor drugs increases beta-endorphin, even in the peripheral blood, and may favorably affect clinical symptoms.
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PMID:beta-endorphin in plasma and monocytes in juvenile headache. 874 80

Histamine is able to induce spontaneous-like headache attacks in migraine and cluster headache subjects. Therefore, it has been considered as a possible agent in the pathogenesis of headache. Histamine desensitization is used for the treatment of cluster and other chronic headaches like migrains with interparoxysmal headache. However, it is unknown whether desensitization plays a role in headache improvement. Since a disfunction of the opioid system has been considered responsible for idiopathic headache and since low beta-endorphin levels have been demonstrated in some idiopathic headaches, particularly in migraine with interparoxysmal headache, we planned this study to verify if histamine therapy is able to modify serum beta-endorphin concentrations. For this purpose, we studied 24 healthy control subjects and 36 patients suffering from migraine with interparoxysmal headache refractory to conventional therapies. Patients showed baseline serum beta-endorphin levels significantly lower than healthy control subjects and treatment with histamine for 15 days increased their beta-endorphin concentrations. We believe that histamine treatment can activate the opioid endogenous system. However, the therapeutic effect of histamine remains to be verified by evaluating the correlation between beta-endorphin levels and headache improvement.
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PMID:Serum beta-endorphin increase after intravenous histamine treatment of chronic daily headache. 927 Feb 92

We investigated the effectiveness of acupuncture in childhood migraine in 22 children with migraine, randomly divided into two groups: a true acupuncture group (12 children) and a placebo acupuncture group (10 children). Ten healthy children served as a control group. Opioid activity in blood plasma was assayed by two methods: (1) determination of total (panopioid) activity with an opiate radioreceptor assay, and (2) determination of beta-endorphinlike immunoreactivity by radioimmunoassay. The true acupuncture treatment led to significant clinical reduction in both migraine frequency and intensity. At the beginning of the study, significantly greater panopioid activity was evident in plasma of the control group than in plasma of the migraine group. The true acupuncture group showed a gradual increase in the panopioid activity in plasma, which correlated with the clinical improvement. After the tenth treatment, the values of opioid activity of the true acupuncture group were similar to those of the control group, whereas the plasma of the placebo acupuncture group exhibited insignificant changes in plasma panopioid activity. In addition, a significant increase in beta-endorphin levels was observed in the migraine patients who were treated in the true acupuncture group as compared with the values before treatment or with the values of the placebo acupuncture group. The results suggest that acupuncture may be an effective treatment in children with migraine headaches and that it leads to an increase in activity of the opioidergic system.
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PMID:Acupuncture and the opioid system: implications in management of migraine. 936 92

Stress worsens certain disorders such as migraines or asthma, and has also been implicated in sudden myocardial arrest. It was previously shown that acute psychological stress by immobilization results in dura mast cell degranulation, an effect blocked by pretreatment with antiserum against corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH). Moreover, CRH was recently shown to induce skin mast cell degranulation. The effect of psychological stress was investigated on rat cardiac mast cells, because their release of coronary constrictive and proinflammatory molecules contributes to myocardial ischemia and possibly arrhythmias. Immobilization of rats for 30 min induced maximal cardiac mast cell degranulation as evidenced by light and electron microscopy. This effect was inhibited by pretreatment with the "antiallergic" drug sodium cromoglycate (cromolyn), which is thought to act primarily through mast cell stabilization. Mast cell degranulation was also blocked by preincubation with antiserum against CRH and was partially inhibited by a CRH type-1 receptor selective antagonist. Sensory neuropeptides did not appear to influence this effect, but a nonpeptide neurotensin receptor antagonist blocked stress-induced cardiac mast cell degranulation. This finding supports the involvement of neuropeptide neurotensin which is present in the heart and is known to trigger mast cell degranulation. These results indicate acute stress could result in local CRH and nonpeptide neurotensin release which could contribute to myocardial pathophysiology through direct or indirect release of cardiac mast cell mediators.
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PMID:A neurotensin receptor antagonist inhibits acute immobilization stress-induced cardiac mast cell degranulation, a corticotropin-releasing hormone-dependent process. 976 51

Mast cells derive from a distinct bone marrow precursor and mature in tissues under the influence of stem cell factor, nerve growth factor (NGF) and certain interleukins. Intracranial mast cells first appear in the meninges and are located perivascularly close to neurons. They can be activated by antidromic stimulation of the trigeminal nerve, as well as by acute immobilization stress. Substance P (SP) and corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) are particularly potent in stimulating mast cell release of vasoactive, inflammatory and nociceptive molecules. These findings have suggested that mast cells may be involved in neuroinflammatory conditions, such as migraines. In this study, dura mast cells were shown to have characteristics of connective tissue mast cells (CTMC) as they contained histamine, heparin and rat mast cell protease I (RMCP-I). Mast cells were localized close to SP-positive neurons immunocytochemically and mast cell-neuron contacts were also documented using scanning electron microscopy. Dura stimulated by SP and carbachol in situ released histamine. Preincubation of dura with estradiol slightly augmented histamine release by SP, an effect possibly mediated through estrogen receptors identified on dura mast cells. Acute stress by immobilization led to dura mast cell degranulation which was prevented by pretreatment with a neutralizing antibody to CRH or a CRH receptor antagonist. The present results further clarify the biology of intracranial mast cells and support their involvement in the pathophysiology of migraines which are precipitated or worsened by stress.
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PMID:Morphological and functional demonstration of rat dura mater mast cell-neuron interactions in vitro and in vivo. 1059 82

Behavioral interventions, particularly biofeedback and relaxation therapy, have demonstrated their effectiveness in the treatment of both adults and older children with migraine in controlled trials. The physiological basis for their effectiveness is unclear, but data from one trial suggest that levels of plasma beta-endorphin can be altered by relaxation and biofeedback therapies. The data supporting the effectiveness of behavioral therapies are less clear-cut in children than in adults, but that is also true for the data supporting medical treatment. This is due in part to methodological issues, especially the lack of a specific test for migraine, which has hampered research and helped lead to an inappropriate de-emphasis on care for childhood headache. In addition, migraine headaches in children are often briefer and have a higher rate of spontaneous remission than those experienced by adults, making it difficult to separate effective from ineffective treatments. While it is widely believed that stress is a major factor in childhood migraine, well-designed studies have had difficulty developing data to support this viewpoint. Many clinicians utilize 'confident reassurance', reassuring the family that the child is not seriously ill, in the belief that having migraine headaches can be stressful. They also modify behaviors that are believed to trigger migraine headaches, such as poor sleep habits or irregular meal times. Relaxation therapies use techniques such as progressive relaxation, self-hypnosis, and guided imagery. Several studies have found relaxation therapies to be as effective, or more effective, in reducing the frequency of migraine headaches than modest doses of a beta-blockade medication, although one study found relaxation therapy to be no more effective than a control program. Several studies have demonstrated that these therapies can be taught to children in a low cost but effective manner. Biofeedback therapies commonly use an apparatus to demonstrate a physiological effect. Most commonly in pediatrics, children are taught to raise the temperature of one of their fingers. This can be done with or without a thermometer. Several groups have shown that these techniques can be taught to children and that their use is associated with fewer and briefer migraine headaches. People who experience migraines can also experience episodic headaches throughout life. An important consideration is preparing children to deal with future headaches, allowing them to feel in control of their health. Behavioral therapies have the potential to do this, giving the child access to a technique that can be easily resumed without a medical visit or prescription.
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PMID:Behavioral treatment of migraine in children and adolescents. 1217 70


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