Liquorice or licorice is the common name of Glycyrrhiza glabra, a flowering plant of the bean family Fabaceae, from the root of which a sweet, aromatic flavouring is extracted.
Cortisol is a steroid hormone, in the glucocorticoid class of hormones and a stress hormone. When used as a medication, it is known as hydrocortisone.
Glycyrrhizin is the chief sweet-tasting constituent of Glycyrrhiza glabra (liquorice) root. Structurally, it is a saponin used as an emulsifier and gel-forming agent in foodstuffs and cosmetics. Its aglycone is enoxolone.
Aldosterone is the main mineralocorticoid steroid hormone produced by the zona glomerulosa of the adrenal cortex in the adrenal gland. It is essential for sodium conservation in the kidney, salivary glands, sweat glands, and colon. It plays a central role in the homeostatic regulation of blood pressure, plasma sodium (Na+), and potassium (K+) levels. It does so primarily by acting on the mineralocorticoid receptors in the distal tubules and collecting ducts of the nephron. It influences the reabsorption of sodium and excretion of potassium (from and into the tubular fluids, respectively) of the kidney, thereby indirectly influencing water retention or loss, blood pressure, and blood volume. When dysregulated, aldosterone is pathogenic and contributes to the development and progression of cardiovascular and kidney disease. Aldosterone has exactly the opposite function of the atrial natriuretic hormone secreted by the heart.
Mineralocorticoids are a class of corticosteroids, which in turn are a class of steroid hormones. Mineralocorticoids are produced in the adrenal cortex and influence salt and water balances. The primary mineralocorticoid is aldosterone.
Liquorice or licorice is a confection usually flavoured and coloured black with the extract of the roots of the liquorice plant Glycyrrhiza glabra.
11β-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase enzymes catalyze the conversion of inert 11 keto-products (cortisone) to active cortisol, or vice versa, thus regulating the access of glucocorticoids to the steroid receptors.
Secondary hypertension is a type of hypertension which by definition is caused by an identifiable underlying primary cause. It is much less common than the other type, called essential hypertension, affecting only 5-10% of hypertensive patients. It has many different causes including endocrine diseases, kidney diseases, and tumors. It also can be a side effect of many medications.
Hyperaldosteronism is a medical condition wherein too much aldosterone is produced by the adrenal glands, which can lead to lowered levels of potassium in the blood (hypokalemia) and increased hydrogen ion excretion (alkalosis).
Apparent mineralocorticoid excess is an autosomal recessive disorder causing hypertension, hypernatremia and hypokalemia. It results from mutations in the HSD11B2 gene, which encodes the kidney isozyme of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2. In an unaffected individual, this isozyme inactivates circulating cortisol to the less active metabolite cortisone. The inactivating mutation leads to elevated local concentrations of cortisol in the aldosterone sensitive tissues like the kidney. Cortisol at high concentrations can cross-react and activate the mineralocorticoid receptor due to the non-selectivity of the receptor, leading to aldosterone-like effects in the kidney. This is what causes the hypokalemia, hypertension, and hypernatremia associated with the syndrome. Patients often present with severe hypertension and end-organ changes associated with it like left ventricular hypertrophy, retinal, renal and neurological vascular changes along with growth retardation and failure to thrive. In serum both aldosterone and renin levels are low.
Carbenoxolone (CBX) is a glycyrrhetinic acid derivative with a steroid-like structure, similar to substances found in the root of the licorice plant. Carbenoxolone is used for the treatment of peptic, esophageal and oral ulceration and inflammation. Electrolyte imbalance is a serious side effect of carbenoxolone when used systemically.
Corticosteroid 11-β-dehydrogenase isozyme 2 also known as 11-β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase 2 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the HSD11B2 gene.
11β-Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1, also known as cortisone reductase, is an NADPH-dependent enzyme highly expressed in key metabolic tissues including liver, adipose tissue, and the central nervous system. In these tissues, HSD11B1 reduces cortisone to the active hormone cortisol that activates glucocorticoid receptors. It belongs to the family of short-chain dehydrogenases. It is encoded by the HSD11B1 gene.
Pseudohyperaldosteronism is a medical condition which mimics the effects of elevated aldosterone (hyperaldosteronism) by presenting with high blood pressure (hypertension), low blood potassium levels (hypokalemia), metabolic alkalosis, and low levels of plasma renin activity (PRA). However, unlike hyperaldosteronism, this conditions exhibits low or normal levels of aldosterone in the blood. Causes include genetic disorders, acquired conditions, metabolic disorders, and dietary imbalances including excessive consumption of licorice. Confirmatory diagnosis depends on the specific root cause and may involve blood tests, urine tests, or genetic testing; however, all forms of this condition exhibit abnormally low concentrations of both plasma renin activity (PRA) and plasma aldosterone concentration (PAC) which differentiates this group of conditions from other forms of secondary hypertension. Treatment is tailored to the specific cause and focuses on symptom control, blood pressure management, and avoidance of triggers.
Enprostil is a synthetic prostaglandin designed to resemble dinoprostone. Enprostil was found to be a highly potent inhibitor of gastric HCl secretion. It is an analog of prostaglandin E2 but unlike this prostaglandin, which binds to and activates all four cellular receptors viz., EP1, EP2, EP3, and EP4 receptors, enprostil is a more selective receptor agonist in that it binds to and activates primarily the EP3 receptor. Consequently, enprostil is expected to have a narrower range of actions that may avoid some of the unwanted side-effects and toxicities of prostaglandin E2. A prospective multicenter randomized controlled trial conducted in Japan found combining enprostil with cimetidine was more effective than cimetidine alone in treating gastric ulcer.
Trilostane, sold under the brand name Vetoryl among others, is a medication which has been used in the treatment of Cushing's syndrome, Conn's syndrome, and postmenopausal breast cancer in humans. It was withdrawn for use in humans in the United States in the 1990s but was subsequently approved for use in veterinary medicine in the 2000s to treat Cushing's syndrome in dogs. It is taken by mouth.
11-Deoxycortisol, also known as cortodoxone (INN), cortexolone as well as 17α,21-dihydroxyprogesterone or 17α,21-dihydroxypregn-4-ene-3,20-dione, is an endogenous glucocorticoid steroid hormone, and a metabolic intermediate toward cortisol. It was first described by Tadeusz Reichstein in 1938 as Substance S, thus has also been referred to as Reichstein's Substance S or Compound S.
11α-Hydroxyprogesterone (11α-OHP), or 11α-hydroxypregn-4-ene-3,20-dione is an endogenous steroid and metabolite of progesterone. It is a weak antiandrogen, and is devoid of androgenic, estrogenic, and progestogenic activity.
The pharmacodynamics of spironolactone, an antimineralocorticoid and antiandrogen medication, concern its mechanisms of action, including its biological targets and activities, as well as its physiological effects. The pharmacodynamics of spironolactone are characterized by high antimineralocorticoid activity, moderate antiandrogenic activity, and weak steroidogenesis inhibition. In addition, spironolactone has sometimes been found to increase estradiol and cortisol levels and hence could have slight indirect estrogenic and glucocorticoid effects. The medication has also been found to interact very weakly with the estrogen and progesterone receptors, and to act as an agonist of the pregnane X receptor. Likely due to increased activation of the estrogen and/or progesterone receptors, spironolactone has very weak but significant antigonadotropic effects.
In enzymology, a prostaglandin-F synthase (PGFS; EC 1.1.1.188) is an enzyme that catalyzes the chemical reaction:
