Endocrine Abstracts

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic, progressive and fatal lung disease characterized by excessive matrix deposition that disrupts the normal alveolar architecture and lung physiology. Glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP1) is a gut-produced hormone with insulinotropic effects. GLP1 receptor is expressed in the lung where it is implicated in the synthesis of the protein (SPs) and lipid fractions of the surfactant. We have previously shown that the GLP1 receptor agonist, l...

The development and maturation of kisspeptin neurons is critical for activating GnRH release needed to initiate puberty. However, little is known of the development and organization of kisspeptin neurons in the human hypothalamus and the anatomical architecture of kisspeptin neurons in rodents is distinct from that of primates.The aim of the present study was to examine the development of the hypothalamic neuroendocrine circuitry that sets the structural...

Recent studies have shown that serum concentrations of AMH (produced by granulosa cells of the human ovary) are positively related to the number of antral follicles and are negatively correlated with age. Like inhibin B (also a granulosa cell product) AMH is thought to be a useful clinical marker of follicle reserve. Serum AMH concentrations have been reported to be higher than normal in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), which is characterised by an excess of antral...

Cis-gender females are known to mount stronger humoral immune responses than cis-gender males. Little is known about the immunophenotypes of transgender individuals on gender-affirming hormonal treatment, despite growing evidence that hormones influence the immune system.Via the process of class-switch recombination (CSR), B-cell immunoglobulin isotype ‘switches’ from early IgM/IgD classes to IgG/IgA/IgE. Whilst important in infection/vaccine responses; switched isot...

Visfatin/pre-B-cell enhancement factor is an adipocytokine, which is found in the visceral fat tissue and enhances the growth of precursor of B cells through showing synergy with IL7 and stem cell factors. Other cytokines released from the adipose tissue are TNFα and IL6, which has been shown to be related with pathogenesis of insulin resistance, diabetes, dyslipidaemia, inflammation, and atherosclerosis. Our aim was to determine the relationship of plasma visfatin/pre-B-...

The TSH B/I ratio is normally reduced overnight and is substantially reduced in patients with overt central hypothyroidism due to h-p axis tumours before and after treatment. It is unknown if similar changes in the TSH B/I ratio in the absence of overt central hypothyroidism contribute to the increased TSH levels seen in cancer survivors who undergo h-p axis irradiation. Thus, we selected 9 patients with the highest TSH levels out of a previously reported cohort of 37 euthyroi...

Central obesity is strongly associated with sub-clinical inflammation, insulin resistance (IR) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), but the intracellular mechanisms involved in its pathogenesis remain unclear. Recent Murine studies have implicated C-jun N terminal kinase (JNK) as an important molecule linking insulin action and inflammation, therefore we investigated JNK in human abdominal adipose tissue (AT). JNK expression/activity was assessed in abdominal subcutaneous (Abd...

Background: Adipose tissue dysfunction occurring in obesity leads to a low grade chronic inflammatory state. Fat tissue from obese individuals has a high infiltration rate of macrophages contributing to the development of obesity-related inflammation. At the cellular level, inflammation can be triggered by the activation (phosphorylation) of NF-κB as well as JNK. On the other hand, palmitic acid (PA) is a saturated fatty acid found elevated in plasma from obese subjects a...

Background: RACE is an open-label study that assessed the long-term safety and efficacy of recombinant human parathyroid hormone 1–84 (rhPTH[1–84]) for the treatment of hypoparathyroidism in adults (ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT01297309). Here, we present 6-year safety and efficacy data.Methods: Patients initially received 25 or 50 μg of rhPTH(1–84) subcutaneously, once daily, with stepwise dose adjustments of 25 μg (up or do...

Hypoparathyroidism (HPT) is characterised by hypocalcaemia and impaired renal phosphate excretion and calcium conservation. Oral calcium supplements and calcitriol can improve serum calcium levels but lack the physiologic effects of PTH on renal reabsorption of calcium. RACE is an ongoing open-label study evaluating the long-term safety of recombinant human parathyroid hormone 1-84 (rhPTH[1-84], parathyroid hormone rDNA) in adults with HPT (NCT01297309). In this interim analys...