Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Refined carbohydrates which substitute the staple diet in most cultures may exaggerate postprandial responses in term of insulin and free fatty acid levels. These changes may herald the onset of metabolic syndrome and diabetes among those at high risk of these diseases.Objectives: To determine the postprandial insulin and free fatty acids levels in healthy subjects after the consumption of two different breakfast meals, Mediterranean-like v...

Objective: The objective of this study was to determine level of non-HDL and LDL cholesterol in type 2 diabetic patients with or without coronary artery disease irrespective on lipid lowering therapy and the common factors associated with elevated non-HDL cholesterol.Study design: cross-sectional study: Place and duration of study: diabetic clinic, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi. Data of Type 2 diabetes mellitus patients attended clinics during 20...

Aim: To determine the incidence of hypocalcaemia and the need for calcium supplementation after thyroid surgery in 120 patients.Methods: A prospective study to determine the incidence of hypocalcaemia by measuring ionized calcium level in 120 patients underwent thyroidectomy at King Abdul Aziz University Hospital, the data included pre- and post-operative ionized calcium level, albumin, free thyroxine, thyrotopin and alkaline phosphatase. As well include...

Central obesity is strongly associated with insulin resistance and chronic sub-clinical inflammation, which is implicated in the development of type 2 diabetes (T2DM). However, the mechanisms underlying this link remain unclear. Recently JNK, a mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK), has been implicated in obesity and insulin resistance by interfering with insulin action. Studies in rodent models show that phosphorylated JNK-1 is elevated in obesity, whilst the absence of JNK...

Introduction and methods: Controversy exists regarding the optimal dosing regimen of radioactive iodine (RAI) for the treatment of hyperthyroidism. The dose of RAI was individualised, based on the size of the thyroid gland and 24-h RAI uptake. We performed a 10-year retrospective analysis of patients with hyperthyroidism treated with variable dose RAI, with a cure defined as eu- or hypothyroidism.Results: One hundred and forty-nine patients with hyperthy...

Introduction: Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) regulates the bioavailability of sex steroid hormones, which in turn regulate reproductive function. The potential association of SHBG gene polymorphisms with the age at menopause has not been examined.Objective: The present study aimed to assess the possible relationship between the pentanucleotide (TAAAA)n repeat polymorphism in the promoter of the SHBG gene and the age at menopause in a Greek fe...

Background: Osteocalcin (OC) is a bone-specific protein produced primarily by osteoblasts during bone formation. The OC concentration is used to assess fracture risk and monitor treatment of osteoporosis and other disorders of bone metabolism. To adequately interpret the OC concentration, it is necessary to calculate reference ranges from a healthy reference population, adapted to a specific laboratory method.Methods: We established a healthy reference p...

Introduction: Acute ischaemic stroke is a stressful condition in which there is marked increase in the production of cortisol. In the past adrenal insufficiency in critically ill patients had been shown to be associated with significant morbidity and mortality. To date there is no study performed to determine its prevalence among patients with acute ischaemic stroke.Objectives: The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of relative adrenal insu...

We reported the isolation and structural characterization of CPF-AM1 and other peptides from the skin secretion of Xenopus amieti. This study investigated the insulin-releasing activities of synthetic CPF-AM1 using clonal pancreatic cell line, BRIN-BD11 and Swiss TO mice with diet-induced insulin resistance.Acute insulin-release studies were performed in Krebs Ringer bicarbonate buffer supplemented with 5.6 mM or 16.7 mM glucose, purified synthetic pepti...

With the cloning of the gene encoding pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) it became apparent that several other peptides distinct from ACTH would be co-secreted from the anterior pituitary into the circulation. This begged the question as to whether these peptides have any biological actions on the adrenal, or to that matter any other tissue. Over the past two decades it has become apparent that the N-terminal fragment known as pro-gamma-MSH plays a role in adrenal physiology.<p c...