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OBJECTIVE -Aims of this study were 1) to assess sexual function and endocrine profile among fertile type 1 diabetic women during the follicular and luteal phases of the menstrual cycle, 2) to compare these results with those obtained among healthy fertile women who served as control subjects, and 3) to explore the correlations between sexual function and endocrine milieu among patients and control subjects during the follicular and luteal phases of the menstrual cycle.RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS -Fifty fertile women with type 1 diabetes and 47 healthy control subjects completed a semistructured medical interview and filled in selfadministered validated instruments to evaluate sexual function, depression, and sexual distress. Venous blood samples were drawn to measure glycated hemoglobin and an endocrine profile during either the follicular or the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle.RESULTS -Type 1 diabetic women had decreased sexual function and increased sexual distress compared with control subjects during the luteal, but not the follicular, phase of the menstrual cycle. During the follicular phase, patients had lower estrogenic basal tone, lower "weak" androgen (namely ⌬ 4 -androstenedione and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate) production, and lower free-triiodothyronine and free-thyroxine levels compared with control subjects. During the luteal phase, total testosterone levels were higher in patients than control subjects, while 17␤-estradiol and progesterone levels were lower in patients than control subjects.CONCLUSIONS -Among type 1 diabetic women, sexual function and sexual distress vary according to the phase of the menstrual cycle. This finding may have implications on the clinical assessment of sexual function in type 1 diabetic women. Diabetes Care 29:312-316, 2006A lthough sexual disorders have been extensively studied in diabetic men (1-4), the sexual function of diabetic women has only recently received attention (4 -8). The prevalence of sexual dysfunction in diabetic men approaches 50%, whereas in diabetic women it seems to be slightly lower (5,9,10). Neuropathy, vascular impairment, and psychological complaints have been implicated in the pathogenesis of decreased libido, low arousability, decreased vaginal lubrication, orgasmic dysfunction, and dyspareunia among diabetic women. However, discrepancies exist between different reports (5,8,11). This could result, at least in part, from relatively small sample size, uncontrolled study design, or inaccurate characterization of diabetes. In fact, type 1 and type 2 diabetes seem to differently influence women's sexual function (5,6,12,13). To our knowledge, correlations between sexual function and endocrine profile and phase of the menstrual cycle in type 1 diabetic women have been scarcely investigated.Aims of the present study were 1) to assess sexual function and endocrine profile among fertile type 1 diabetic women during the follicular and luteal phase of the menstrual cycle, 2) to compare these results with those obtained among healthy fertile wom...

SummaryIncreasing evidence demonstrated that the expression of Angiotensin I-Converting Enzyme type 2 (ACE2), is a necessary step for SARS-CoV-2 infection permissiveness. In the light of the recent data highlighting an association between COVID-19 and diabetes, a detailed analysis aimed at evaluating ACE2 expression pattern distribution in human pancreas is still lacking. Here, we took advantage of INNODIA network EUnPOD biobank collection to thoroughly analyse ACE2, both at mRNA and protein level, in multiple human pancreatic tissues and using several methodologies. We showed that ACE2 is indeed present in human pancreatic islets, where is preferentially expressed by insulin producing β-cells. Of note, pro-inflammatory cytokines increased ACE2 expression in β-cells, thus putatively suggesting an enhancement of β-cells sensitivity to SARS-CoV-2 during inflammatory conditions. Taken together, our data indicate a potential link between SARS-CoV-2 infection and diabetes, through direct β-cell virus tropism.Highlights-Human pancreatic islets express SARS-CoV-2 receptor Angiotensin I-Converting Enzyme type 2 (ACE2)-In human pancreatic islets, ACE2 is preferentially expressed by β-cells-In human β-cells, ACE2 expression is increased upon inflammatory stress