Endocrine Abstracts

The art of writing papers is extremely important to scientists. Communication of scientific information matters as much as doing the experimental work, and the most definitive form of communication is the research paper that has been peer-reviewed and published in a journal. A well-written paper is a pleasure to read, and can be an inspiration to colleagues – it’s the envy of most of us who take many years to learn how to do it well.In preparin...

There is increasing interest in clinical assessment of body composition, however uncertainty remains regarding the appropriate techniques. Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) is often described as a gold standard, in view of its high precision (reproducibility). However, for the molecular model of body composition (dividing the body into water, fat, protein and mineral) the in vivo gold standard comprises the multi-component model, and recent comparisons of DXA again...

The DCCT conclusively confirmed that long-term microvascular complications of Type 1 diabetes can be prevented by restoration of near-normal glucose levels. Despite ongoing refinements in management including structured re-education, optimized insulin analogue regimens, continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion and even steps towards the bioartificial pancreas, exogenous insulin replacement is inextricably linked to risk of severe hypoglycaemia.Transplant...

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Germ cell-somatic cell communication in the ovary is essential for follicle and oocyte development. This communication may take place via gap junctions or via paracrine mediated signalling through the secretion of growth factors. Over the past ten to fifteen years there has been a major change in how the oocyte is perceived within the context of the ovarian follicle. The original view of the oocyte as a passenger benefiting from the nutrients provided by gap-junction coupled s...

Secondary hyperparathyroidism, an inevitable consequence of untreated chronic uraemia, is an adaptive response to sustained phosphate retention, failure of calcitriol synthesis and hypocalcaemia. For many years the therapeutic approach to these abnormalities has been relatively constant, comprising, respectively, dietary phosphate restriction with oral phosphate binders, replacement of the deficient active vitamin D ligand, and calcium supplementation by the oral and/or transd...

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Thyroid hormone receptors are ligand dependant transcription factors. They mediate a genomic response initiated by the thyroid hormone triiodothyronine, T3.In mice and humans two isotypes, TRα and TRβ, are produced from two different genes, and several isoforms of each isotype are present in the tissues. The knock out of either TRα or TRβ genes induces different phenotypes and several studies led to the conclusion that the TRα re...

Medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC) is a neuroendocrine tumour of the parafollicular cells of the thyroid gland accounting for 5–15% of thyroid carcinomas. Most medullary thyroid carcinomas occur sporadic while up to 25% are familial as part of the multiple endocrine neoplasia type 2 (MEN-2). Most of the carcinomas have already metastasized at the time of detection. Surgical therapy is the treatment of choice in patients with MTC, both for patients with the familial and the...