Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Kisspeptins (KISS1) and their receptor, KISS-1R, are expressed at higher levels in first trimester placental trophoblast cells than in term gestation. Expression is localised to the trophoblast compartment. In contrast to KISS1 which is only expressed in the villous trophoblast, KISS-1R is also found in the extravillous trophoblast population. Kisspeptins produced by first trimester trophoblast cells inhibited migration. Pre-eclampsia is known to be caused due to d...

Background: Genetic deficiency of the hypothalamic hormone kisspeptin, lead to pubertal failure and infertility. Kisspeptin is therefore a critical hypothalamic activator of reproduction. Kisspeptin-10 stimulates gonadotrophin release in both male and female rodents. However few studies have investigated the effects of kisspeptin-10 on gonadotrophin release in humans, and none have investigated its effects in women. If kisspeptin is to be useful for treating reproductive disea...

Kisspeptin is a 54 amino acid peptide that stimulates Gonadotrophin-Releasing-Hormone (GnRH) release from the hypothalamus and consequently activates the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Gonadal (HPG) axis. Recent studies have suggested that Kisspeptin also binds and activates Neuropeptide FF (NPFF) receptors. The C-terminal ten residues of Kisspeptin are capable of activation of both GnRH release and NPFF receptors. The aim of the current study was to determine which amino acids of Kis...

We have previously demonstrated that in experimental Parkinson’s disease local production of oestrogens protects against striatal dopamine loss in vivo (Gillies GE. et al. Pharmacol Biochem Behav. 2004;78:513–22). As neurodegenerative disease is invariably accompanied by neuroinflammation, much interest has focused on oestrogen receptor (ER)-dependent suppression of inflammatory activation of microglia, the primary innate immune cell-type in the brain, ...

The in utero environment is crucial for both the prenatal and long-term health of the offspring. The placenta is able to modify its structure/function in response to maternal growth and nutritional signals to actively regulate maternal-to-fetus nutrient transfer and consequently optimum fetal development. Little is known about the molecular mechanisms involved in placental sensing of maternal nutrients. However, we postulate that nutrient flux through the hexosamine biosynthet...

Fetal growth restriction and overgrowth (macrosomia) are both associated with altered placental development and problems at birth. Both conditions have lifelong impacts on health including an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Placental development depends on co-ordinated cellular growth and is enhanced by maternally-derived growth factors. MicroRNAs (miRs) are known to regulate gene expression and we have shown that global miR suppression in pla...

Introduction: Women with PCOS share the underlying pathology of insulin resistance with diabetes, metabolic syndrome and have increased prevalence of obesity. Despite these well established risk factors data on long term cardiovascular outcomes are limited and conflicting.Methodology: Retrospective analysis of a multi-ethnic database of all women with PCOS attending one UK endocrine unit between 1988 and 2009. Cardiovascular (CV) events were identified b...

Mutational analysis of the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) is frequently undertaken to confirm a diagnosis of familial hypocalciuric hypercalcaemia (FHH) and autosomal dominant hypocalcaemic hypercalciuria (ADHH). However, functional characterization of these CaSR mutations to demonstrate loss-of-function for FHH mutations and gain-of-function for ADHH mutations is infrequently performed. We demonstrate the importance of pursuing in vitro studies that investigate the functiona...