Endocrine Abstracts

Transcriptional activity of androgen receptor (AR) is governed by androgenic ligands and (thought to be) fine-tuned by post-translational modifications, such as SUMOylation. We have utilized genome-wide tools to study in an unbiased fashion the role of SUMOylation in the regulation of AR-directed gene programs in prostate cancer cells. Our results show that the SUMOylation does not simply repress the AR activity, but the modification modulates the receptor activity in a target...

Background: A diagnosis of Addison’s disease means lifelong dependence on daily glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid therapy and is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, as well as a risk of unexpected adrenal crisis. We wished to explore whether immunomodulatory therapy at an early stage of autoimmune Addison’s disease could lead to preservation or improvement in adrenal steroidogenic function.Design: We conducted an open-label, p...

BackgroundWomen with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are at increased risk of pregnancy complications and poor pregnancy outcomes. Defective placentation is among the proposed mechanisms involved. Altered neurokinin B (NKB) placental expression has been associated with several conditions characterized by placental dysfunction, such as pre-eclampsia and intra-uterine growth retardation. However, the expression of NKB and its receptors has not been studie...

Aim of the study: to analyze surgical outcome in patients who underwent unilateral or bilateral adrenalectomy for hypercortisolism.Methods: retrospective study including patients operated on between January 1994 and June 2005.Results: adrenalectomies for hypercortisolism were performed in 18 patients (5 males, 13 females, mean age 43.6±16.1 years). Indications were cortisol producing adenoma (n=10), adrenocortical carcinoma (n...

Introduction: Type 1 Diabetes (DM1) is associated with a destructive autoimmune process of pancreatic b-cells. The presence of anti-islet cells (ICA) antibodies (Ab), as well as for distinctive antigens – GAD65, IA2 or Insulin (IAA) - is related to the disease development.Aim: To evaluate the effect of DM1 antibodies on the measures of glycemic variability (GV) obtain through continuous glucose monitoring (CGM).Materials and m...

Objective: The purpose of the study was to investigate osteoprotegerin (OPG) and receptor activator of nuclear factor kappa-B ligand (RANK-L) levels in acromegaly patients with regard to the disease activity. The associations between OPG, RANK-L and random growth hormone (GH), insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), lumbar spine (LS) bone mineral density (BMD), femoral neck (FN) BMD were also evaluated.Methods: A study group included 72 patients with acrom...

Objective: A diabetic state is causally related to heart failure (HF) which is a leading cause of mortality. Early detection of high-risk individuals is imperative for primary prevention. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of N-terminal pro-B-type Natriuretic Peptide (NT-proBNP) in patients with diabetes type 2 (DT2).Methods: We investigated 86 patients both sexes with DT2 aged 65.54±11.37 years (from 50 to 65 years) without clinical ...

Introduction: Germline mutations in succinate dehydrogenase subunit B (SDHB) are one of the commonest findings in familial paraganglioma (PGL) syndromes and account for one quarter of PGLs associated with germline mutations. Although the penetrance is low, the malignancy conversion is high; up to 30%. With the increasing availability of genetic testing and the identification of ‘asymptomatic carriers’ of the SDHB gene mutation, it is therefore impor...

Primary adrenal non-Hodgkin lymphoma (PANHL) is extremely rare and constitutes <1% of all NHLs and 3% of extranodal lymphoma. PANHL affects predominantly elderly and males and could arises in the presence of a preexisting autoimmune adrenalitis. Diffuse large lymphomas of B-cell origin (DLBCL) histology is reported in 70% of PANHL cases.The present case is a primary, bilateral DLBCL of adrenal in 75-year-old male patient admitted for abdominal pain, ...

Introduction: Turner Syndrome (TS) is associated with a higher overall morbidity and mortality than the general population, with respiratory diseases as one of the major causes. Haemophilus influenza type B (HiB) and pneumococcal (PC) vaccination can reduce morbidity and mortality, by alleviating the risk of respiratory diseases. All patients in the Newcastle Adult Turner Syndrome clinic who lack immunity to either HiB or PC at baseline receive vaccination in our TS clinic. Ho...