Endocrine Abstracts

Recent studies support a causal relationship between radiation, formation of RET/PTC rearrangements, and development of papillary carcinomas. The evidence that RET/PTC rearrangements result directly from radiation-induced DNA damage is compelling, and further substantiated by evidence that predisposition to radiation-induced intrachromosomal inversions involving the RET gene may be favored by the three-dimensional organization of human chromosome 10 during interphase. Thus, il...

Thyroid cancer is the commonest endocrine malignancy but there is much debate about the role of specific treatment modalities, including the extent of surgery, post-operative ablation with iodine-131, need for TSH-suppressive doses of thyroxine, role of serum thyroglobulin measurements and imaging during follow-up. Recent data have suggested poorer outcome for thyroid cancer in the UK than other countries and recent audits have highlighted shortcomings in patient management. T...

The higher risk of cardiovascular mortality in women with Turner Syndrome (TS) is partly related to their risk of aortic dissection, which causes death in 1: 50 women. Establishing factors which predict increased risk of aortic dissection is therefore of prime importance. Previous studies have suggested that multiple risk factors exist, notably coarctation, aortic root dilatation, bicuspid aortic valve and systemic hypertension.In this study we focused ...

Insulin resistance is associated with a variety of cardiovascular disorders, including hypertension, non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, coronary artery disease and polycystic ovary syndrome. The mechanism of reduced insulin-stimulated glucose uptake in these conditions is unclear, but is likely to involve defects in cellular components of insulin signalling. All of the disorders above are characterised by abnormal vascular endothelial function, with reduced availability...

Pressure to conserve the primary structures of regulatory peptides during the evolution of vertebrates has been distinctly non-uniform. It is proposed that the major factor determining the extent to which the amino acid sequence of a peptide is conserved is the need to maintain high affinity binding to one or more specific receptors. In the case of peptides such as neuropeptide Y and somatostatin, that bind to multiple receptor subtypes via different signal epitopes, the compl...

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Human adolescent pregnancy is characterised by poor pregnancy outcome; the risks of spontaneous miscarriage, prematurity and low birth-weight are particularly acute in girls who are still growing at the time of conception. Studies using an adolescent sheep paradigm demonstrate that in growing females who are overnourished throughout pregnancy, growth of the placenta is impaired resulting in a major decrease in lamb birth-weight relative to adolescent dams receiving a moderate ...

Hyponatremia due to the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion (SIADH) and disorders such as congestive heart failure and cirrhosis represents a common problem often encountered in the care of medical patients. Available treatment modalities for disorders of excess arginine vasopressin (AVP) secretion, or action, include fluid restriction, demeclocycline and NaCl administration, but all of these therapies have significant drawbacks and are suboptimal. Over th...

Introduction: Hypocalcemia varies from asymptomatic biochemical abnormality to life-treating disorder, depending on the duration, severity and rapidity of development.Case report: A 77-year-old woman was admitted for study of asymptomatic hypocalcemia discovered in routinely laboratory test. Past medical history, left thyroidectomy by goiter 53 year ago without follow-up. She denied any symptoms. Physical examination. Actinic keratosis in right cheek, sc...

Background: Generally, abdominal adipose tissue correlates stronger to decreased insulin sensitivity than what BMI does. In adults, males have more visceral adipose tissue (VAT) and less subcutaneous adipose tissue (SAT) than females. Comparisons between measures of body composition from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), dual x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and anthropometry have been studied previously; however not in preschool children.Aim: This study compa...