Endocrine Abstracts

Bile acids (BAs) are synthesised from cholesterol in the liver and promote lipid digestion. An emerging body of evidence, however, suggests that BAs are also key signaling molecules with potent metabolic and endocrine functions, exerting their effects through activation of BA receptors, including the farnesoid-X- (FXR) and the G-protein-coupled- (TGR5) receptors. Disturbed BA synthesis has been associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus and insulin resistance, and recent studies...

Introduction: Poorly differentiated thyroid carcinoma is a tumor of follicular origin with morphological and biological characteristics between anaplastic and well differentiated carcinoma. It accounts for less than 5% of all thyroid tumors and is characterized by adverse prognosis, aggressive behavior and frequently distant metastases, mainly to lungs and bones and to a lesser extent to brain, liver, kidney, breast and skin. Incident presentation: We report a case of a patien...

Non-functioning pituitary adenomas (NFA) are associated with significant morbidity. Published data on the quality of life (QoL) of NFA patients are scarce and conflicting: some studies indicate a reduced QoL in patients with adequately treated NFAs while others demonstrate that subjective health-related QoL is not compromised to any major extent compared to the general population. Most published studies indicate specific subgroups of patients which are particularly affected, w...

Glucocorticoid hormones are used in the treatment of variety of diseases, due to their diverse range of effects. Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL), the most common form of childhood cancer, is one such disease treated by glucocorticoids (GCs). Although there has been much success in the treatment of ALL with GCs, drug resistance remains a problem, despite the detailed knowledge of the signalling networks underlying the GC actions through the glucocorticoid receptor (GR). Sys...

Data on the quality of life (QoL) of patients with non-functioning pituitary adenoma (NFA) are sparse and conflicting. We have therefore evaluated the QoL in patients with NFAs followed-up in a tertiary UK referral centre and explored the impact of various factors. Three validated questionnaires (Short Form 36-SF36, Nottingham Health Profile-NHP and European Quality of Life Scale-EuroQoL) were offered to consecutive NFA subjects attending outpatient clinics over a 6-month peri...

Background and aims: It is well recognized that insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) are associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease especially in women, while the role of sex steroids is still controversial. Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) represent a unique biological model for the study of the impact of all these factors on cardiovascular system. We aimed to evaluate the degree of low-grade inflammation and atherosclerosis in premenopau...

Pheochromocytomas and paragangliomas, tumors originating from the chromaffin cells, are rare in children.We report an 8-year-old boy who was admitted to the intensive care unit with seizures for which the child had to be intubated, severe hypokalemia (1.8 mEq/l), hyponatremia (127 mEq/l) and fever. Parents reported that several months before admission the boy had nocturnal sweating. Brain MRI revealed areas of increased sign intensity in the parietal lob...

Objectives: Machine perfusion may become a platform for cardioprotective approaches, enabling repair and reconditioning of donor hearts. Ischemic preconditioning (PC) is a powerful means of cardioprotection. Triiodothyronine (T3) is shown to repair the injured myocardium and recently this cardioprotective action was demonstrated in an ex vivo rat heart normothermic perfusion model. This study investigated potential effects of low-flow PC with and without T3 administration in a...

Introduction: Approximately 90% of the hypertensive population is characterized as having essential hypertension. Apart from renin and K+, ACTH plays an important role in aldosterone secretion, being a potent stimulant under situations of stress. Up to date, the association between stress and aldosterone-related hypertension has not been studied and that is the aim of our study.Methods: 36 hypertensive patients and 14 matched for age and sex c...

Introduction: A link between polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has been recently demonstrated. The pathogenesis of NAFLD is multifactorial, but obesity and insulin resistance (IR) appear to be important contributing factors. The aim of this study was to analyze level of transaminazes in PCOS women, and its relation to the indices of IR.Methods: We analyzed 600 women with PCOS diagnosed using ESHRE/ASRM criteria...