instruction:
In this task, you are given a passage which has a question and the context. You have to generate an answer to the question based on the information present in the context.
question:
Context: In humans, glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis is the most common cause of medication-induced osteoporosis. Recent clinical data suggest that glucocorticoid therapy increases the risk of vertebral fractures within a short treatment period. Therefore, this study aimed at investigating vertebral bone in a rat model of glucocorticoid-induced postmenopausal osteoporosis.', 'Fifty Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned into three groups: 1) untreated controls, 2) Sham-operated group, and 3) ovariectomized rats treated with glucocorticoid (dexamethasone) for 3 months (3M) after recovery from bilateral ovariectomy. Osteoporotic bone status was determined by means of the gold standard dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scan. Vertebral bodies were examined using µCT, histological analysis, mRNA expression analysis, and biomechanical compression testing. Further systemic effects were studied biochemically using serum marker analysis.', 'Dexamethasone treatment showed at 3M a significantly lower bone mineral density in ovariectomized rats compared to Sham-operated control (p < 0.0001) as analyzed in vivo by DEXA. Furthermore, Z scores reached levels of -5.7 in the spine indicating sever osteoporotic bone status. Biomechanical testing of compression stability indicated a lower functional competence (p < 0.0001) in the spine of treated rats. µCT analysis showed significant reduction of bone volume density (BV/TV%; p < 0.0001), significantly enhanced trabecular spacing (Tb.Sp; p < 0.0001) with less trabecular number (Tb.N; p < 0.001) and complete loss of trabecular structures in glucocorticoid-treated ovariectomized rats. Histological analysis by osteoblast and osteoclast activities reflected a higher bone catabolism reflected by osteoclast counts by TRAP (p < 0.019) and lower bone catabolism indicated by ALP-stained area (p < 0.035).Serum analysis showed a significant increase in osteocalcin (p < 0.0001), osteopontin (p < 0.01) and insulin (p < 0.001) at 3M. Expression analysis of molecular markers in the vertebral body revealed lower expression in tenascin C in the OVX-steroid animals at 3M.\Question: Does short-term glucocorticoid treatment cause spinal osteoporosis in ovariectomized rats?
answer:
Short-term glucocorticoid treatment of ovariectomized rats indicates according to DEXA standards a severe osteoporotic bone status in vertebral bone. Nonetheless, dysfunctional bone anabolism and enhanced bone catabolism are observed. Alterations of bone extracellular matrix proteins that correlate to inferior mechanical stability and affected microstructure were noticed and suggest further investigation. Treatment with dexamethasone was also seen to affect insulin and osteopontin levels and thus osteoblast function and maturation. This described animal model presents a recapitulation of clinically obtained data from early phase glucocorticoid-induced osteoporosis observed in patients.


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Context: Coinfection with hepatitis C virus (HCV) is present in one-third of all human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals in the United States and is associated with rapid progression of liver fibrosis and poor response to pegylated interferon (IFN) and ribavirin. In this study we examined gene expression profiles in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from different groups of individuals who are monoinfected or coinfected with HIV and HCV. Data showed that HIV and HCV viremia up-regulate genes associated with immune activation and immunoregulatory pathways. HCV viremia is also associated with abnormalities in all peripheral immune cells, suggesting a global effect of HCV on the immune system. Interferon-alpha-induced genes were expressed at a higher level in PBMCs from HIV-infected individuals. HCV and HIV infections leave distinct profiles or gene expression of immune activation in PBMCs. HIV viremia induces an immune activated state; by comparison, HCV infection induces immunoregulatory and proinflammatory pathways that may contribute to progression of liver fibrosis.\Question: Do human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis C infections induce distinct immunologic imprints in peripheral mononuclear cells?
answer:
An aberrant type-I IFN response seen exclusively in HIV-infected individuals could be responsible for the poor therapeutic response experienced by HIV/HCV coinfected individuals receiving interferon-alpha-based current standard of care.


question:
Context: Obstetric complications involving birth hypoxia are implicated in the etiology of disorders with dopaminergic dysfunction, such as schizophrenia. Cesarean section (C-section) birth in both humans and rats is associated with increased mild respiratory distress and with reduced levels of circulating catecholamines at birth, which normally serve to prime the lungs and activate other processes promoting extrauterine adaptation. Using a rat model, it has been found that C-section birth can produce long-term changes in central nervous system (CNS) dopamine function, compared to vaginal birth.', 'The present experiments tested if administering exogenous epinephrine at birth could reverse long-term changes in dopaminergic parameters in C-sectioned rats.', 'In the absence of stress at adulthood, no differences were observed between C-sectioned and vaginally born rats in levels of in vivo tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) activity and dopamine transporter (DAT) binding. However, after repeated mild stress at adulthood, C-sectioned rats showed increased TH activity in nucleus accumbens and increased DAT in dorsal striatum and accumbens, compared to vaginally born controls. A single injection of epinephrine to C-sectioned rats just after birth prevented the increased TH activity and DAT binding seen in C-sectioned rats after repeated mild stress at adulthood. There was also a trend for epinephrine at birth to partially reverse an increase in amphetamine-induced locomotion seen in C-sectioned rats at adulthood.\Question: Does epinephrine administration at birth prevent long-term changes in dopaminergic parameters caused by Cesarean section birth in the rat?
answer:

These results suggest that variations in levels of circulating catecholamines in the neonate at the time of birth could contribute to subtle long-term changes in CNS function.