Les biocapteurs sont des moyens d'analyse en plein essor à la fois rapides, sélectifs et peu coûteux, applicables à des domaines très variés (environnement, santé, agroalimentaire…). La capacité de reconnaissance moléculaire extraordinaire de biomolécules telles que les enzymes ou les anticorps a été exploitée avec succès pour la réalisation de nombreux biocapteurs. Cependant, l'inconvénient majeur de ces récepteurs biologiques est qu'ils sont difficiles à produire et fragiles. Une manière de surmonter ces inconvénients consiste à les remplacer par des récepteurs artificiels présentant des propriétés de reconnaissance similaires. Parmi les matériaux biomimétiques prometteurs figurent les polymères à empreintes moléculaires (MIPs). Dans ce travail, nous nous sommes intéressés au développement de deux capteurs biomimétiques impédimétriques, le premier basé sur l'utilisation de poly(éthylène co-alcool vinylique) imprimé pour la détection de la créatinine et le deuxième sur des MIPs de polyméthacrylate pour la détection de la testostérone. Dans le premier cas, le polymère imprimé a été produit et déposé à la surface d'électrodes en or, soit par drop-coating, soit sous forme de nanofibres par la technique d'électrofilage. Dans le deuxième, le MIP a été synthétisé par polymérisation radicalaire de l'acide méthacrylique en présence d'éthylèneglycol diméthacrylate (réticulant), d'initiateur et de testostérone en utilisant la méthode du « grafting from » qui consiste à greffer d'abord l'initiateur sur la surface du transducteur mais pour la polymérisation on a utilisé deux approches (spin-coating d'une solution de prépolymérisation sur la surface du transducteur ou l'immersion de ce dernier dans la solution de monomère plus testostérone) suivie de l'exposition à une source d'energie pour effectuer la polymérisation. Les performances des capteurs (limite de détection, sélectivité, reproductibilité) ont ensuite été évaluées / Biosensors are rapid, selective and low-cost analytical devices of growing interest for a wide range of application fields (e.g. environment, food, health). The extraordinary molecular recognition capabilities of sensing biomolecules such as enzymes and antibodies have been successfully exploited in the elaboration of a number of biosensors. However, these biorecognition elements are often produced via complex and costful protocols and require specific handling conditions because of their poor stability. To circumvent these limitations, artificial receptors of similar recognition properties are now proposed as alternatives to natural receptors in sensor technology. Molecular imprinted polymers are among the most promising biomimetic materials reported. In this work, we developed two impedimetric biomimetic sensors. The first one is based on imprinted poly(ethylene co-vinyl alcohol) for creatinine detection and the second on polymethacrylate MIPs for testosterone analysis. In the first case, MIP was produced and deposited onto gold microelectrodes, either by spin-coating of a pre-polymerization solution, or by electrospinning. In the second case, MIPs were synthetized by photopolymerization of methacrylic acid in presence of ethyleneglycoldimethacrylate (cross-linker), an azo-initiator and testosterone as template using the “grafting from” method in which the initiator is first attached to the transducer surface but to effect polymerization we used two different approaches (dip-coating of a prepolymerization solution on the transducer surface functionalized with the initiator or immersing it in the solution of monomers and testosterone) followed by exposure to an energy source to effect polymerization. Then, analytical performances (linear range, detection limit, selectivity and reproducibility) of both creatinine and testosterone sensors were determined and compared

Red deer males aggregate for a major part of a year to bachelor groups. Social position - Rank - is unstable in these groups. Previous experiments revealed that rank modulated by agonistic behaviour influences antler growth and antler cycle timing. Antlers are secondary sexual characteristics of the deer family and one of the fastest growing tissue in the vertebrate taxa. Their development is modulated by androgenic hormone, testosterone. In our experiment, we observed agonistic behaviour of 19 males. They were equipped with GPS collars and regularly handled for blood samples and downloading of telemetrical data. Based on statistical analysis, we found that in our bachelor group 13 stags kept similar interindividual distances which did not exceed 22 metres ("Closest associates"), whereas the rest of the group moved tens of metres away ("Wanderers"). In regard to the number of agonistic interactions and the interindividual relationship, which arose from that, we divided the bachelor group on "Friends" (˂9 interactions) and "Rivals" (≥9). We found that the number of interactions depended on average distance among males in groups divided by dyadic relationship ("Friends" and "Rivals"). With increasing distance, "Rivals" increased the number of interactions, while "Friends" did not show this trend....

Les hommes et les femmes diffèrent devant la survenue de plusieurs types d’arythmies cardiaques. Ainsi, la prévalence des fibrillations auriculaires, ou celle du syndrome de Brugada est plus élevée chez les hommes, tandis que les femmes sont plus susceptibles de développer des torsades de pointe. La survenue de ces arythmies pourrait être affectée par l’existence de disparités entre les sexes au niveau de l’activité électrique cardiaque normale. Des différences ont d’ailleurs été décrites dans les paramètres électrocardiographiques des hommes et des femmes, et notamment au niveau des paramètres traduisant la phase de repolarisation ventriculaire. Par ailleurs, plusieurs études cliniques et expérimentales ont permis d’avancer que les androgènes pourraient contribuer à expliquer les différences homme-femme observées dans la repolarisation ventriculaire. Leur influence sur les autres paramètres électrocardiographiques a toutefois reçu peu d’attention jusqu’à aujourd’hui. Dans ce contexte, l’objectif de ce travail était de mieux comprendre l’implication de la testostérone dans les différences sexuelles observées au niveau de l’électrocardiogramme. En travaillant à partir d’une cohorte de volontaires sains, nous avons tout d’abord confirmé l’existence de différences électrocardiographiques rapportées précédemment dans la littérature. Nous avons de plus noté un segment PR plus long chez les hommes, bien que l’onde P et l’intervalle PR n’étaient pas significativement différents entre les sexes. Par la suite, nous avons évalué l’association de la testostérone avec les différents paramètres de l’électrocardiogramme humain. La testostérone était le plus fortement associée au complexe QRS, au segment ST et à l’intervalle QTc. Nous avons donc examiné la contribution de la testostérone dans les mécanismes responsables des différences sexuelles pour ces trois paramètres. D’après les résultats obtenus, la testostérone ne semblait toutefois pas expliquer ces différences homme-femme. En conclusion, les résultats de cette étude suggèrent que la testostérone n’est pas responsable des différences observées au niveau du complexe QRS, du segment ST et de l’intervalle QTc des hommes et des femmes de notre cohorte. D’autres médiateurs, seuls ou en association avec la testostérone, pourraient jouer un rôle dans l’établissement de ces différences électrocardiographiques associées au sexe. / The incidence of various cardiac arythmias subtypes differs between men and women. Indeed, atrial fibrillation or Brugada syndrome are more prevalent in men, while women are more susceptible to Torsades de Pointe. The development of various arrhythmias may be affected by sexual disparities in the normal electrical cardiac activity. Sex differences have been described in the electrocardiographic parameters of men and women, particularly in the parameters representing the ventricular repolarisation phase. Besides, the results obtained in several clinical and experimental studies suggested that androgens could contribute to explain differences in ventricular repolarization of men and women. However the effects of this hormone on other electrocardiographic parameters have received little attention. In this context, the aim of the current study was to better understand the implication of testosterone in the sex differences observed in the electrocardiogram. We examined the electrocardiograms of a cohort of healthy volunteers, and first confirmed sex differences in parameters, that had been previously described in the literature. While P wave and PR interval showed no significant differences, we did note a longer PR segment in men compared to women. Secondly, we evaluated the association of circulating levels of testosterone with the human electrocardiographic parameters. The correlation was the strongest with QRS complex, ST segment and QTc interval. Therefore, we assessed the mediating role of testosterone in the relationship between sex and these three parameters. However, the results showed that this androgen did not seem to explain these sex-related differences. In conclusion, this study suggests that testosterone is not responsible for the differences observed in QRS complex, ST segment and QTc interval of our cohort of men and women. Additional mediators may be involved in these sex-related electrocardiographic differences, alone or in conjunction with testosterone.

L’intégrité fonctionnelle de la barrière hémato-encéphalique (BHE) est altérée dans de nombreuses pathologies neurologiques et métaboliques. Les vaisseaux cérébraux sont des tissus cibles des hormones stéroïdes sexuelles mais la contribution respective de ces effecteurs endocriniens et de leurs récepteurs dans l’intégrité de la BHE reste encore à être précisée. Les effets des hormones gonadiques sur l’unité neurovasculaire chez la souris ont été étudiés, en se concentrant sur l’aire préoptique médiane de l’hypothalamus, une région cérébrale hormono-sensible. L’augmentation de la perméabilité de la BHE chez des souris mâles et femelles gonadectomisés. Elle est associée chez le mâle à une désorganisation des jonctions serrées et une diminution de l’expression des protéines les constituant, à une activation des cellules gliales, et à une augmentation de l’expression de molécules inflammatoires, la supplémentation en testostérone permettant la restoration. Les récepteurs des androgènes et des estrogènes peuvent ainsi être impliqués dans la régulation hormono-dépendante du transport paracellulaire. La lignée de souris transgéniques sélectivement invalidées pour le récepteur neural des androgènes, a permis de mettre en évidence l’effet délétère de l’absence de ce récepteur sur l’intégrité de la BHE et des jonctions serrées. Pour compléter, un modèle ex vivo de tranches d’hypothalamus a permis d’appréhender les effets à court terme de la testostérone sur la BHE. Ces données soulèvent des questions sur les effets délétères potentiels des perturbateurs endo-criniens sur l'intégrité BBB et l'apparition de maladies neurologiques et métaboliques associées. / Functional integrity of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) is compromised in many neurological and metabolic pathologies. Cerebral blood vessels are target tissue for sex steroid hormones but the relative contribution of these endocrine effectors and their receptors in the BBB integrity are still unclear. Effects of gonadal hormones on the mouse neurovascular unit were studied, focusing on the hypothalamic medial preoptic area, a highly sensitive brain area to gonadal steroid hormones. BBB permeability increased in both gonactectomized male and female, is associated with tight junction disorganization and lower expression of tight junction proteins, glial activation, and up-regulation of inflammatory molecules in male. Testosterone supplementation restores the BBB impermeability, tight junction integrity, and almost completely abrogated the inflammatory features. Androgen and estrogen receptor may be involved in testosterone-induced regulation of the formation and maintenance of tight junction in males. Studying the involvement of these receptors using a trans-genic mice line selectively lacking neural AR in the CNS, highlighted the negative effect of this dele-tion on the BBB and TJ integrity. To complete, ex vivo slices of male mouse hypothalamus allowed to assess short-term molecular mechanisms of testosterone on the BBB structure and function.These data raise questions about the potential deleterious effects of endocrine disruptors on the BBB integrity and the occurrence of neurological and metabolic diseases.

Communication signals are shaped by the opposing selection pressures imposed by predators and mates. A dynamic signal might serve as an adaptive compromise between an inconspicuous signal that evades predators and an extravagant signal preferred by females. Such a signal has been described in the gymnotiform electric fish, Brachyhypopomus gauderio, which produces a sexually dimorphic electric organ discharge (EOD). The EOD varies on a circadian rhythm and in response to social cues. This signal plasticity is mediated by the slow action of androgens and rapid action of melanocortins. My dissertation research tested the hypotheses that (1) signal plasticity is related to sociality levels in gymnotiform species, and (2) differences in signal plasticity are regulated by differential sensitivity to androgen and melanocortin hormones. To assess the breadth of dynamic signaling within the order Gymnotiformes, I sampled 13 species from the five gymnotiform families. I recorded EODs to observe spontaneous signal oscillations after which I injected melanocortin hormones, saline control, or presented the fish with a conspecific. I showed that through the co-option of the ancient melanocortin pathway, gymnotiforms dynamically regulate EOD amplitude, spectral frequency, both, or neither. To investigate whether observed EOD plasticities are related to species-specific sociality I tested four species; two territorial, highly aggressive species, Gymnotus carapo and Apteronotus leptorhynchus, a highly gregarious species, Eigenmannia cf. virescens, and an intermediate short-lived species with a fluid social system, Brachyhypopomus gauderio. I examined the relationship between the androgens testosterone and 11-ketotestosterone, the melanocortin a-MSH, and their roles in regulating EOD waveform. I implanted all fish with androgen and blank silicone implants, and injected with a-MSH before and at the peak of implant effect. I found that waveforms of the most territorial and aggressive species were insensitive to hormone treatments; maintaining a static, stereotyped signal that preserves encoding of individual identity. Species with a fluid social system were most responsive to hormone treatments, exhibiting signals that reflect immediate condition and reproductive state. In conclusion, variation in gymnotiform signal plasticity is hormonally regulated and seems to reflect species-specific sociality.

Les acides aminés sont des molécules importantes pour la synthèse des protéines, la fourniture de substrats énergétiques ou la production de facteurs de régulation de l'activité cellulaire. L'ornithine aminotransférase {OAT} est une enzyme clef du métabolisme des acides aminés qui relie l'arginine, un acide aminé indispensable à la synthèse protéique au cours de la croissance, et le glutamate, la glutamine et l'a-cétoglutarate, qui peuvent être transformées en glucose. Nous nous sommes intéressés à la caractérisation biochimique de l'activité de l'OAT et à ses variations chez la souris, en utilisant deux contraintes physiologiques, le développement postnatal et l'exposition au froid. Au cours d'une première étude, nous avons caractérisé une activité OAT fonctionnelle dans tous les organes étudiés. Nous avons démontré l'existence d'un dimorphisme sexuel de l'activité, en faveur des femelles, dans la plupart des organes. Dans une seconde étude, nous avons montré des variations organe et sexe spécifiques de l'activité OAT au cours du développement postnatal en réponse aux besoins spécifiques en acides aminés : une régulation de l'expression de l'OAT par la testostérone et le changement de régime alimentaire lors du sevrage ; une contribution potentielle importante et insoupçonnée du muscle squelettique au métabolisme de l'ornithine. Enfin, nous avons mis en évidence que l'exposition au froid augmente ou diminue l'activité OAT de façon tissu-spécifique en liaison avec les besoins énergétiques de l'organisme. Nos résultats montrent que l'activité OAT est modulée dans les différents organes en fonction des besoins en acides aminés et en substrats. Cela suggère un rôle important du métabolisme des acides aminés dans les réponses adaptatives des organismes à leur environnement / Amino acids are important molecules for protein synthesis and energetic substrates supply. Ornithine aminotransferase {OAT} is a key enzyme of amino acids metabolism linking arginine, an essential amino acid for protein synthesis during growth, and glutamate, glutamine and alpha-ketoglutarate which could be converted into glucose. We principally focused on biochemical characterization of OAT activity and its variations in the mouse using two physiological constraints, postnatal development and cold exposition. During a first study, we characterized a functional OAT activity in all the males and females mice organs studied. We showed the existence of a sexual dimorphism of OAT activity in almost all the organs studied, with a higher OAT activity in females. ln a second study, we showed that the variations of OAT activity were organ and sex specific during the postnatal development in response to the specific needs in amino acids during the growth. We linked these variations to the regulation of OAT expression by testosterone and the change of the diet during weaning. We demonstrated an important and unsuspected contribution of skeletal muscles in pups' ornithine metabolism. Finally, we showed that cold exposition modulates OAT activity in a tissue specific way, in relation with energetic needs and the multiple roles of the substrates generated by the metabolic pathways of OAT. Our results show that in the different organs, OAT activity is modulated in function of amino acids needs, energetic substrates or detoxification needs of the organism during the different metabolic constraints. This is suggesting an important role for the amino acids metabolism in adaptive responses of organisms to their environment

Made available in DSpace on 2016-01-26T18:55:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ellyn.pdf: 424817 bytes, checksum: 14bf73c93a8a550f72aac6b4afc87223 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-09-20 / The objective of this study was to evaluate the framework sperm and protein seminal plasma and endocrine profile in deer bred in captivity. Four males aged between 12 and 36 months were evaluated. In four times at intervals of seven days, gave the weight (60.5 to 89.0 kg) and body mass index (93.07 kg/m2 to 126.56 kg/m2). There were four semen samples per animal, with an interval of seven days, by electroejaculation. Gave the fallowing values: ejaculate volume (0.50 ± 0.35 ml to 0.75 ± 0.28 ml), motility (87.75 ± 4.78% to 90.00 ± 7.07%) total defects (17.25 ± 5.81% and 47.72 ± 17.55%) and plasma testosterone (6.43 ± 4.33 ng/dL at 166.00 ± 64.48 ng/dL). Electrophoresis on SDS-PAGE revealed protein bands between 7.6 kDa and 142 kDa. Seminal plasma showed a wide range of proteins between 7.6 kDa and 142 kDa. Age influences the testosterone concentration, being higher in the range of 36 months. / O objetivo do trabalho foi avaliar o quadro espermático e protéico do plasma seminal e o perfil endócrino, em cervos criados em cativeiro. Quatro machos com idades entre 12 e 36 meses foram avaliados. Em quatro momentos com intervalos de sete dias, obteve-se o peso (60,5 a 89,0 kg) e o índice de massa corporal (93,07 kg/m2 a 126,56 kg/m2). Foram realizadas quatro colheitas de sêmen por animal, com intervalo de sete dias, por meio de eletroejaculador. Obteve-se os seguintes valores: volume do ejaculado (0,50±0,35 mL a 0,75±0,28 mL), motilidade espermática (87,75±4,78% a 90,00±7,07%), defeitos totais (17,25±5,81% a 47,72±17,55%) e testosterona plasmática (6,43±4,33 ng/dL a 166,00±64,48 ng/dL). A eletroforese em SDS-PAGE revelou bandas proteicas entre 7,6 kDa e 142 kDa. O plasma seminal apresentou uma grande gama de proteínas entre 7,6 kDa e 142 kDa. A idade influi na concentração de testosterona, sendo essa maior na faixa dos 36 meses.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-18T17:53:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Ellyn.pdf: 424817 bytes, checksum: 14bf73c93a8a550f72aac6b4afc87223 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-09-20 / The objective of this study was to evaluate the framework sperm and protein seminal plasma and endocrine profile in deer bred in captivity. Four males aged between 12 and 36 months were evaluated. In four times at intervals of seven days, gave the weight (60.5 to 89.0 kg) and body mass index (93.07 kg/m2 to 126.56 kg/m2). There were four semen samples per animal, with an interval of seven days, by electroejaculation. Gave the fallowing values: ejaculate volume (0.50 ± 0.35 ml to 0.75 ± 0.28 ml), motility (87.75 ± 4.78% to 90.00 ± 7.07%) total defects (17.25 ± 5.81% and 47.72 ± 17.55%) and plasma testosterone (6.43 ± 4.33 ng/dL at 166.00 ± 64.48 ng/dL). Electrophoresis on SDS-PAGE revealed protein bands between 7.6 kDa and 142 kDa. Seminal plasma showed a wide range of proteins between 7.6 kDa and 142 kDa. Age influences the testosterone concentration, being higher in the range of 36 months. / O objetivo do trabalho foi avaliar o quadro espermático e protéico do plasma seminal e o perfil endócrino, em cervos criados em cativeiro. Quatro machos com idades entre 12 e 36 meses foram avaliados. Em quatro momentos com intervalos de sete dias, obteve-se o peso (60,5 a 89,0 kg) e o índice de massa corporal (93,07 kg/m2 a 126,56 kg/m2). Foram realizadas quatro colheitas de sêmen por animal, com intervalo de sete dias, por meio de eletroejaculador. Obteve-se os seguintes valores: volume do ejaculado (0,50±0,35 mL a 0,75±0,28 mL), motilidade espermática (87,75±4,78% a 90,00±7,07%), defeitos totais (17,25±5,81% a 47,72±17,55%) e testosterona plasmática (6,43±4,33 ng/dL a 166,00±64,48 ng/dL). A eletroforese em SDS-PAGE revelou bandas proteicas entre 7,6 kDa e 142 kDa. O plasma seminal apresentou uma grande gama de proteínas entre 7,6 kDa e 142 kDa. A idade influi na concentração de testosterona, sendo essa maior na faixa dos 36 meses.

O presente estudo objetivou avaliar os efeitos de um microciclo de treinamento intensivo (8 dias), associado ou não à suplementação com carboidratos (CHO), sobre parâmetros metabólicos, hormonais, marcadores de lesão tecidual e estoques de lipídios intramiocelulares em corredores de longa distância. Os efeitos cumulativos desse período de treinamento intensivo e da suplementação com CHO também foram analisados sobre uma sessão de exercício intermitente de alta intensidade e performance atlética (9º dia). Participaram do estudo 24 corredores de longa distância do sexo masculino com 28,0±1,3 anos de idade. Os corredores foram distribuídos em dois grupos (grupo CHO ou grupo controle - CON). No grupo CHO, após treinamento intensivo, foram aumentadas as concentrações dos lipídios intramiocelulares (+0,0061±0,0022 e +0,0008±0,0043 vs. CON: -0,0091±0,0053 e -0,0224±0,0151; dos músculos tibial anterior e sóleo, respectivamente), da testosterona total (694,0±54,6 ng/dL vs. CON: 610,8±47,9 ng/dL) e de sua fração livre (552,7±49,2 pmol/L vs. CON: 395,7±36,6 pmol/L). No 9º dia o protocolo consistiu em uma sessão de 10 séries de 800m (100%Vm3km), com pausa de 1min 30s entre as séries. Antes e após a sessão os atletas realizaram teste máximo de 1.000m. A queda no desempenho do 2º teste de 1.000m foi menor no grupo CHO (5,3±1,0%) vs. 10,7±1,3% no CON. As concentrações de glicose, lactato, epinefrina, cortisol e GH aumentaram após as 10x800m em ambos os grupos. No entanto, essa resposta foi atenuada no grupo CHO para cortisol (22,4±0,9 pmol/L vs. CON: 27,6±1,4 pmol/L) e GH (21,8±5,6 ng/mL vs. CON: 36,7±5,0 ng/mL). Ainda após as 10x800m, as concentrações de LDH e DNA livre foram menores no grupo CHO (509,2±23,1 U/L e 48.240,3±5.431,8 alelos/mL) quando comparadas às do grupo CON (643,3±32,9 U/L e 73.751,8±11.546,6 alelos/ mL, respectivamente). Durante o período de recuperação, a diminuição do cortisol, associada às maiores glicemias e insulinemias no grupo CHO, pode ter resultado em efeito anabólico e atenuação da resposta inflamatória. Conclui-se que a suplementação com CHO atenuou a supressão do eixo hipotalâmico-pituitáriogonadal, além de promover melhora do desempenho atlético, aumento dos estoques de lipídios intramiocelulares e menores respostas catabólicas e dos marcadores de dano tecidual / This study aimed to evaluate the effects of intensive microcycle training (8days), with and without CHO supplementation, on the metabolic and hormonal responses of long distance runners. Markers for tissue damage and intramyocellular lipid stores were also investigated, along with the cumulative effects of this kind of CHO supplementation on a further session of high intensity intermittent running and athletic performance (day9). The study included 24 male long distance runners with a mean age of 28.0±1.3 years. The runners were divided into two groups (CHO (supplementation) and CON (control)). In the CHO group, the intramyocellular lipids (+0.0061 ± 0.0022 + 0.0008 ± 0.0043 and vs. CON: -0.0091 ± 0.0053 and -0.0224 ± 0.0151; for the tibialis anterior and soleus muscles, respectively) total testosterone (694.0± 54.6 ng/dL vs CON: 610.8±47.9 ng/dL) and its free fraction (552.7±49.2 pmol/L vs CON: 395.7±36.6 pmol/L) were increased after intensive training. On the 9th day all participants ran 10X800m at 100% Vm3km intensity. An all-out 1000m run was performed before and after the 10X800m session and it was noted that the performance decrease for the second 1000m was lower for the CHO-group (5.3±1.0% vs. CON: 10.6±1.3%). Glucose, lactate, epinephrine, cortisol and GH concentrations increased after 10x800m in both groups, but an attenuated response was noted for the CHO group for cortisol (22.4±0.9 pmol/L vs. CON: 27.6±1.4 pmol/L) and GH (21.8±5.6 ng/mL vs. CON: 36.7± 5.0 ng/mL). Moreover, the LDH and free plasma DNA concentrations were lower in the CHO group (509,2±23,1 U/L e 48.240,3±5.431,8 Allels/mL) compared to the CON group ((643,3±32,9 U/L e 73.751,8±11.546,6 Allels / mL, respectively) after the 10X800m run. During the recovery period, the observed lower cortisol response in the CHO group as well as to the higher glucose and insulin concentrations may have resulted in better anabolic effects and attenuation of inflammantion response. This may be linked to. In conclusion CHO supplementation attenuates the suppression of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonodal axis, and result in better physical performance, higher levels of intramyocellular lipid stores, and lower catabolic responses and levels of markers for tissue damage

Die Adoleszenz beschreibt die entwicklungspsychologische Phase zwischen der Kindheit und des Erwachsenenalters, die durch rapide Veränderungen in der Physiologie, im Hormonhaushalt und Verhalten charakterisiert ist. Typische jugendliche Verhaltenstendenzen wie risikohaftes Verhalten und Impulsivität werden einer erheblichen biologischen Umstrukturierung des jugendlichen Gehirns attribuiert. Unklar ist jedoch, wie sich diese massiven biologischen Veränderungen auf spezifische Prozesse auswirken, welche in ein erhöhtes risikohaftes und impulsives Entscheidungsverhalten in der Adoleszenz resultieren. Die vorliegende Dissertation setzt sich zum Ziel, die kognitiven, affektiven und neuronalen Mechanismen der jugendlichen Impulsivität zu untersuchen. Hier wird der Pubertät eine besondere Rolle zugeschrieben und unterschiedliche Analyseebenen wie kognitive und affektive Maße mit biologischen Maßen wie Hormonen kombiniert, sowie Methoden der funktionellen Magnetresonanztomographie (fMRT) und kognitiven Modellierung angewandt. Die vorliegende Dissertation ist publikationsorientiert und besteht aus vier Projekten. Zum Zeitpunkt der Abgabe der Dissertation sind Kapitel I und Kapitel II erschienen, und Kapitel III und IV sind als vollständige Manuskripte bei unterschiedlichen peer-reviewed Journals eingereicht. Kapitel I gibt eine generelle Übersicht zum aktuellen Forschungsstand über den Zusammenhang zwischen Hormonen in der Pubertät, affektiver Verarbeitung und erhöhter Impulsivität und Risikobereitschaft in der Adoleszenz. Es werden Befunde von empirischen Studien mit Menschen und Tieren diskutiert, welche sich mit jugendlichen Verhalten, sowie Gehirnentwicklung während der Pubertät befassen, sowie zukünftige neue Forschungsschwerpunkte formuliert. Die folgenden drei weiteren Kapitel sind empirische Studien, welche sich mit den offenen Punkten aus dem ersten Kapitel befassen. Alle drei Studien untersuchen Ungeduld, da diese als eine spezifische Subkomponente von dem eher allgemein gefassten psychologischen Konstrukt der Impulsivität definiert ist (Romer, 2010). Während sich alle drei Studien auf die ungeduldige Entscheidungsfindung fokussieren, entscheiden sie sich dennoch in den untersuchten Mechanismen: Kapitel II fokussiert sich auf die Pubertät, speziell auf Testosteron und seinen Zusammenhang mit ungeduldiger Entscheidungsfindung. Konsistent mit früheren Studien ist das chronologische Alter (und nicht Testosteron) assoziiert mit einer generellen Abnahme der Diskontierung in der frühen Adoleszenz, während hingegen Testosteron (und nicht das Alter) mit einer erhöhten Sensitivität für sofortige Belohnungen einhergeht. Kapitel III untersucht die neuronalen Mechanismen, die der Beziehung zwischen Testosteron in der Pubertät und ungeduldigem Entscheidungsverhalten (dargestellt im vorherigen zweiten Kapitel) unterliegen. Ergebnisse dieser Studie zeigen, dass Testosteron in der Pubertät speziell das dorsale, nicht jedoch das ventrale Striatum beeinflusst, welches mit der Entscheidung für kleinere, aber zeitlich früherer Belohnungen einhergeht. Die letzte Studie in Kapitel IV befasst sich mit der Frage, wie der affektive Inhalt einer Belohnung ungeduldige Entscheidungsfindung beeinflusst. Zwei unabhängige Studien haben gezeigt, dass erhöhte Levels an positiven Affekt mit einer Zunahme an ungeduldigen Entscheidungen assoziiert waren. Ein möglicher Mechanismus, der dieses Ergebnis erklären kann, ist eine Veränderung der Zeitwahrnehmung. Zusammenfassend untersucht die vorliegende Dissertation in sehr umfangreicher Art und Weise die zugrundeliegenden Mechanismen von ungeduldiger Entscheidungsfindung und kombiniert in einem multi Modell Ansatz Maße von Affekt und Hormonen mit Methoden, wie der fMRT und kognitiver Modellierung von aufgabenbezogenen Verhalten. Ergebnisse früherer Studien über jugendliches Verhalten und Gehirnentwicklung werden durch die vorliegende Doktorarbeit erweitert, indem Hormone in der Pubertät eine besondere Hervorhebung genießen und in diesem Zusammenhang spezifische Prozesse, die der impulsiven Entscheidungsfindung unterliegen, auf neuronaler und verhaltensbasierter Ebene umfangreich und sorgfältig analysiert werden. Schließlich wird die Rolle von Testosteron in der Pubertät neu definiert und es wird ein neues Framework vorgeschlagen, welches den Einfluss von Testosteron auf die kognitive Kontrolle in der Pubertät besonders hervorhebt und somit neuartige, spannende Ideen für die zukünftige Forschung darbietet / Adolescence describes the developmental phase between childhood and adulthood and is characterized by rapid changes in physiology, hormones and behavior. Typical adolescent behavioral tendencies such as risk taking and impulsivity are thought to evolve from a major biological reorganization of the adolescent brain. However, it remains unclear how these large scale biological changes impact specific processes that result in increases in risky and impulsive decision-making in adolescence. The current dissertation aims at elucidating the cognitive, affective and neural mechanisms of adolescent impulsivity by 1) highlighting the role of puberty and 2) combining different levels of analyses, including cognitive or affective measures, with biological measures such as pubertal hormones and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), in combination with cognitive modeling techniques. The dissertation is publication-oriented and consists of four pieces of work. At the time of submitting this dissertation, Paper I and Paper II have been published, and Paper III and Paper IV exist as complete drafts that have been submitted for publication. Paper I gives a general overview of the current state of the art on the relationship between pubertal hormones, affective processing and increased impulsive and risky decision-making in adolescence. It discusses findings of empirical studies focusing on both adolescent behavior and the brain in the light of pubertal maturation in humans and animals and formulates new research directions. The following three papers are empirical studies that tackle the questions made in Paper I, examining specifically impatience, which is defined as one subcomponent of the more broader construct of impulsivity (Romer, 2010). While each paper focuses on impatient decision-making, they differ in terms of the mechanism being investigated: Paper II focuses on puberty, in particular testosterone and its relationship to impatient decision making. Consistent with previous studies, age, but not testosterone is associated with an overall decline in discounting in early adolescence, while testosterone but not age is associated with increased sensitivity to immediate rewards. Paper III investigates the neural mechanisms underlying the relationship between pubertal testosterone and impatient decision making previously described in Paper II. Here, results indicated that testosterone specifically impacts the dorsal, but not the ventral striatum, which in turn lead to behavior that was biased towards choosing smaller sooner rewards. Finally, Paper IV focuses on affective processing, specifically on how the affective content of a reward impacts impatient decision-making. In two independent studies, increased levels of positive affect were consistently associated with an increase in impatient decisions. The underlying mechanism that may explain this increased impatient behavior is a shift in time judgment. In summary, this dissertation thoroughly investigated the underlying mechanisms of impatient decision-making by using a multimodal approach with measures of affect, fMRI, and hormonal assessment combined with cognitive modeling of task-related behavior. It extends previous findings on adolescent behavior and brain development by elucidating the role of pubertal hormones with regard to specific processes underlying impatient decision making, both on a behavioral and neural level. Finally, it redefines the role of pubertal testosterone by proposing a novel framework that highlights its impact on executive control, thus offering novel, exciting directions for future research.