Endocrine Abstracts

Brian Walker, UK-. AbstractBrian Walker is Professor of Endocrinology at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland where he is administrative head of a 60-strong multidisciplinary research group in the Centre for Cardiovascular Science.He graduated in medicine in Edinburgh in 1986 and completed his clinical training in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Since 1996 he has practised as an honorary consultant i...

Brian Walker, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom. AbstractBrian Walker is Professor of Endocrinology at the University of Edinburgh, where he is administrative head of a 60-strong multidisciplinary research group in the Centre for Cardiovascular Science.He graduated in medicine in Edinburgh in 1986 and completed his clinical training in Glasgow and Edinburgh. Since 1996 he has pra...

Neurosteroids are synthesized locally within the central nervous system and play essential roles in modulating neuronal activity and various brain functions. They can have a wide range of effects, including anxiolytic, sedative, analgesic, and neuroprotective actions. Understanding their distribution in the brain and how they interact with neurotransmitter systems is of significant interest to researchers studying brain function and related disorders. We aim to construct a 3D ...

Although Endocrinologists have focused for decades on circulating concentrations of cortisol, arguably the important concentrations are those within tissues which are available at corticosteroid receptors. Tissue concentrations are influenced by plasma proteins binding cortisol, by physicochemical characteristics of the steroid, by active transport across cell membranes, and by steroid metabolism within target tissues. Many of these factors vary between individuals, and within...

Liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) is a powerful tool that is changing the way we analyse steroids in the clinical laboratory. It offers positive compound identification to enable the unequivocal identification of a compound free from interference. LC–MS/MS is already opening up the field of steroid analysis in endocrinology and is providing new applications for individual steroids and panels of steroids in different clinical conditions. L...

In 1739 Thomas Coram was granted a Royal Charter to establish the Foundling hospital for the care of abandoned babies. The hospital was established in Bloomsbury and had the patronage of leading cultural figures of the day, including William Hogarth and Handel. Babies were admitted by ballot (white ball in, red ball maybe and black ball rejected), given a new name and fostered until the age of 5. Upon admittance to the hospital they severed all contact with their foster parent...

In 1807, the Hunterian museum, the first public museum in Scotland, opened at the University of Glasgow. Its contents were bequeathed by William Hunter, a graduate of the university, and included, as well as anatomy specimens, books, coins, paintings, natural history specimens, ‘curiosities from the South Seas’, minerals, fossils and so forth. A letter of 1809 stated ‘Hunter’s museum has been here for some time and drawn a considerable number of students to...

Introduction: Measurement of serum testosterone is necessary for the investigation of androgen disorders in males and females. Measurement of other androgens such as DHEAS and androstenedione (A4) may also be important in the investigation of PCOS and 17-hydroxyprogesterone (17-OHP) is useful to differentiate late onset CAH in patients with raised A4. Although it would be advantageous to measure all four steroids simultaneously this is not always easy because...

The human eye is an incredible organ. It can differentiate contrasts of light up to 1:10,000, equivalent to a photographic exposure value (EV) range of 14. The eye can also adapt to any lighting situation, stretching the total perceivable range to 1:1 million. For many applications, we rely on the camera for recording what our eyes can see. But is the camera able to reproduce the full range of light intensities present in natural scenes? The human eye has two types of photorec...

Similarities between the metabolic syndrome and Cushing’s syndrome, and reversibility of the features of Cushing’s syndrome, suggest that cortisol may contribute to pathophysiology in both conditions and that reducing cortisol action may provide a novel therapeutic approach in metabolic syndrome.There is substantial evidence that circulating cortisol concentrations are higher in people with hypertension and glucose intolerance. The basis for th...