Endocrine Abstracts

Background: The reserve pool of primordial follicles (PMF) is finely regulated by molecules implicated in follicular growth or PMF survival. Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH), produced by granulosa cells of growing follicles, is known for its inhibitory role in the initiation of PMF growth. We observed in a recent in vivo study that injection of AMH into mice seemed to induce an activation of autophagy, a cytoplasmic lysosomal-dependent degradation system, which is im...

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) exhibit broad spectrum of biological activities in various tissues, including bone, cartilage, blood vessels, heart, kidney, neurons, liver and lung. BMPs are members of the transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) family that bind to type II and type I serine-threonine kinase receptors, and transduce signals through Smad and non-Smad signalling pathways. BMPs together with other intraovarian growth factors are intimately involved in re...

ICH is a rare disease characterized by a complex pathogenesis, but with a strong genetic component. ICH may be associated to several other morphogenetic or inborn defects, such as the osmic defects that identify the Kallmann syndrome (KS). The description of several pedigrees including relatives affected either with isolated osmic defects or KS or normoosmic ICH (nICH) justifies the emerging idea of ICH as a complex genetic disease characterized by variable expressivity and pe...