Endocrine Abstracts

Resistance to thyroid hormone due to a mutation in thyroid hormone receptor alpha (RTHα) is a syndrome whose features include delayed growth and neurocognitive development. Macrophages, which derive from circulating monocytes and have recently been recognized as important thyroid hormone target cells, are innate immune cells that are capable of adopting a wide range of phenotypes. Assuming the right phenotype in the right setting is crucial as macrophage dysfunction has b...

Thyroid hormones (TH) play an important role in brain development, central nervous system functions and energy metabolism. In order to mediate these effects in the brain, TH are actively transported through the blood-brain barrier from the periphery to the brain. Tanycytes are specialized ependymal cells that line the wall and the base of the third ventricle in the mediobasal hypothalamus. The cell bodies are in contact with the cerebrospinal fluid and send their processes to ...

Mutations in THRA, a ligand-inducible transcription factor, cause Resistance to Thyroid Hormone α (RTHα). RTHα manifests with features of hypothyroidism (skeletal dysplasia and growth retardation, neurocognitive impairment, low metabolic rate, reduced intestinal transit) reflecting hormone resistance in TRα-expressing tissues, but associated paradoxically with near-normal circulating TH levels. The lack of clear-cut, abnormal thyroid function tests...

Objectives: The canonical function of thyroid hormone receptors (TRs) as mediators of thyroid hormone action on target gene expression is well known. However, the physiological function of the thyroid hormone receptor α splice variant TRα2, that does not bind thyroid hormones, remains elusive. Initial studies addressing the function of TRα2 indicated that it might act as a TRα1 antagonist, but the mechanisms underlying the dominant-negative activity of TR&#...

Background: Ischemic heart disease (IHD) is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Thus, there is the necessity to find new therapeutic approaches. Thyroid hormones (TH) have a major impact on cardiac function and even appear to improve the outcome after acute ischemia/reperfusion and in chronic heart failure. Still, TH signaling within the heart is not yet completely understood.Aim: This project aims to investigate the influence of TH receptor al...