Endocrine Abstracts

Glucagon like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is derived from selective cleavage of the preproglucagon (PPG) molecule synthesised in intestinal L-cells. The physiological action of GLP-1 is most commonly recognised as a peripherally released incretin, but a subset of neurons in the lower brainstem, the PPG neurons, also express GLP-1. The majority of PPG neuronal cell bodies are located in the nucleus of the solitary tract and their axons project to numerous sites throughout the CNS. Many o...

Diabetes insipidus is characterised clinically by the inappropriate production of large volumes of dilute urine, even in the presence of clinical dehydration or depravation of water. DI occurs either due to deficiency or insufficiency of arginine vasopressin (AVP) hormone production. The gold standard test remains the water deprivation test. Hereditary DI accounts for <10% of all cases.We present a family with a known heterozygous missense mutation, ...

Introduction: Juvenile primary hyperparathyroidism represents more severe form of the disease, often with organ damages. Genetic mutation and paarthyroid hyperplasia are more frequent than in adults.Case report: 20–year–old patient with familial history of kidney stone. She was hospitalized for major hypercalcemia at 3.65 mmol/l (2.2–2.6 mmol/l) discovered on daily chronic vomiting and alteration of the general condition. The biological...

Introduction: 15% of pituitary tumors are considered as aggressive based on resistance to conventional treatment. Less than 40% of these cases respond to temozolomide treatment underlining the need for new therapeutic options. The PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway, upregulated in different pituitary tumors subtypes, can be targeted by different drugs in particular BKM 120, a pure PI3K inhibitor, and BEZ235, a dual PI3K/mTOR inhibitor.Objective: To study the anti-tum...

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Gangliocytomas are uncommon neuronal tumors that can sometimes cause endocrine syndromes. A few such cases have been reported in association with Cushing’s disease. In most instances, the tumor contained CRH and was associated with pituitary corticotroph hyperplasia or adenoma (mixed lesion). Only one case of isolated gangliocytoma causing Cushing’s disease per se has been described.We report the case of a 62 year-old woman whose clinical pictu...

The serum- and glucocorticoid-regulated kinase 1 (Sgk1) is a direct transcriptional target of glucocorticoids and is post-translationally activated by the insulin/IGF1 pathway. Distinct polymorphisms in the Sgk1 gene are associated with increased body weight and type 2 diabetes. Here we investigate the expression and regulation of Sgk1 in human obesity.In both omental and subcutaneous human adipose tissue, Sgk1 expression is significantly increased in 20...

Cross-talk between adipose tissue and skeletal muscle could be mediated in part by adipokines secreted from adipose tissue. Previously, we observed that adiponectin but not leptin decreased DNA synthesis rate in proliferating porcine myoblasts in growth factor-supplemented serum-free medium (GF-SFM) after 48-h exposure (Will et al. 2012). To further elucidate the effects of adiponectin and leptin on muscle cell growth and their mode of action, this study was conducted...

Introduction: There is controversy over which form of biochemical testing is best for screening for phaeochromocytoma/paraganglioma (PHAEO/PGL). Measurement of plasma metanephrines is the most sensitive test but is less specific and lacks widespread availability, and so many centres opt to measure 24-h urinary excretion of catecholamines and metanephrines. However, the standard 24-h urinary catecholamine profile also includes dopamine (DA), vanillylmandelic acid (VMA) and homo...

Background: PCOS is associated with a clustering of cardiovascular risk factors. Increased serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) are thought to be proatherogenic, and have also been found to be elevated in PCOS. This study was undertaken to determine the changes of VEGF in patients with PCOS after rimonabant and/or metformin intervention.Methods: A 6-month randomised open labelled parallel study of rimonabant or metformin in 20 patien...