Endocrine Abstracts

Low glycaemic index (GI) diet and gut hormones such as glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) and peptide YY (PYY) have been shown independently to reduce appetite. However, the direct relationship between a single meal of low or high GI and the levels of these hormones has not been studied. In this study we looked at the short term effects of a single low or high GI meal on plasma levels of GLP-1, PYY and insulin.King’s College London’s research ethi...

Non alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome. The potential role of glucocorticoids (GC) in the pathogenesis of NAFLD, is highlighted by patients with GC excess, Cushing’s syndrome, who develop central adiposity, insulin resistance and in 20% of cases, NAFLD. Although in most cases of NAFLD, circulating cortisol levels are normal, hepatic cortisol availability is controlled by enzymes that regenerate cortisol from inacti...

Patients with glucocorticoid (GC) excess, Cushing’s syndrome, develop a classical phenotype characterized by insulin resistance and central obesity. Whilst it is clear that GCs are essential for adipocyte differentiation, their impact upon many of the processes that regulate lipid accumulation has not been explored in detail. De novo lipogenesis involves carboxylation of acetyl CoA to malonyl-CoA by acetyl CoA carboxylase (ACC), which is subsequently converted to p...

Background: The novel peptide prokineticin-2 (PK2) has recently been implicated in the regulation of a number of physiological processes; including regulating gastrointestinal motility, spermatogenesis, neurogenesis and circadian rhythms. PK2 is a cysteine rich protein which mediates its effects via the prokineticin receptors which are expressed in several hypothalamic nuclei known to regulate food intake. We therefore hypothesised that PK2 may be an important endogenous regul...

Background: The hypothalamus is a critical area of the brain involved in the regulation of appetite. Cerebellin1 (Cbln1) is a highly conserved 16 amino acid neuropeptide. High levels of Cbln1 mRNA expression are found in specific hypothalamic areas involved in appetite regulation.Aim: To examine the effects of Cbln1 on food intake in rodents.Methods: 1. Ad libitum fed rats were injected intracerebroventricularly (ICV) with Cbln1 (1...

Introduction: Ghrelin is a potent orexigenic brain-gut peptide with lipogenic and diabetogenic effects, possibly mediated by GHS-R. Cannabinoids also have orexigenic and lipogenic effects. AMPK is a regulator of energy homeostasis and we have previously shown that ghrelin and cannabinoids stimulate hypothalamic AMPK activity while inhibiting it in liver and adipose tissue, suggesting that AMPK mediates both the central appetite-inducing and peripheral effects of ghrelin and ca...

Adipose tissue produces several hormones and cytokines termed ‘adipokines’ that have widespread effects on carbohydrate and lipid metabolism. They appear to play an important role in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance, diabetes, and atherosclerosis. Chemerin is a novel adipokine, highly expressed in obese, insulin-resistant subjects. Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with insulin resistance and obesity. We assessed chemerin levels in sera and adipose...

Background: PCOS is a metabolic disorder associated with long-term health risks including insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes and dyslipidaemia. Metformin improves insulin sensitivity in PCOS and reduces circulating concentrations of markers of endothelial dysfunction, although it is unclear whether this translates into improvements in vascular function.Objective: To determine whether metformin therapy improves arterial stiffness and endothelial function...