Endocrine Abstracts

In the last few years studies have shown that subtle variations in thyroid function, including subclinical thyroid dysfunction, and even variation in thyroid function within the normal range, are associated with morbidity and mortality. It is estimated that 40–65% of the inter-individual variation in serum TSH and FT4 levels is determined by genetic factors. To identify these factors, various linkage and candidate gene studies have been performed in the past, which have i...

Sex steroid hormone-induced variations of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) migration are critical in determining the sex/gender-related differences in male and female pathophysiology of cardiovascular system. Although several substances present in the environment, defined endocrine disruptors (EDs), could interfere with androgen and estrogen effects, the sex/gender-related susceptibility of VSMC motility to these substances is completely unknown. Here, naringenin (Nar) and...

Estrogens, in particular 17β-estradiol (E2), orchestrate cellular mechanisms involved in the development and differentiation of various neuron populations, modulation of synaptic plasticity, induction of neuronal survival, and neurogenesis. Beneficial effects of E2 have been widely reported against a variety of insults, including H2O2 injury, serum deprivation, and glutamate excitotoxicity. Recently, we identified E2 ...

In the gastroentero-pancreatic tract, a spectrum of neuroendocrine tumors (NET) exists, including low grade tumors (carcinoid), intermediate grade malignant carcinoid, and high grade poorly differentiated carcinomas of the small and large cell types. In year 2000, the WHO presented a classification scheme for all NETs, but mostly applied to gastroentero-pancreatic tumors. This term carcinoid was replaced by (neuro)endocrine tumor, malignant carcinoid by well differentiated (ne...

RCTs and real-life studies have shown the efficacy of GLP-1 RAs on weight loss, glycemic outcomes, and prevention of cardiovascular (CV) events, but long-term data are lacking. This was a retrospective cohort study of 253 patients with a first prescription of a GLP-1 RA between 2009 and 2016 and a minimum follow-up of 5 years. The endpoints of the study were weight and glycemic outcomes. Secondary endpoints were the occurrence of renal and CV events, comparing patients with GL...

Background: The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic disease (Covid-19) has caused millions of deaths worldwide, thus a massive SARS-CoV-2 vaccination campaign has been launched since the end of 2020. Viruses and vaccines can induce adverse thyroid effects; SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccines have been associated with several thyroid disorders, especially subacute thyroiditis (SAT) and Graves’ disease (GD). We aimed to study the occurrence o...

Introduction: Hypoparathyroidism (HypoPT) is a rare endocrine disease which is characterized by hypocalcaemia and undetectable or inappropriately low serum parathyroid hormone (PTH). Post-surgical HypoPT (PS-HypoPT) is the most common cause, caused by accidental parathyroid removal/injury during neck surgery. From a neuropsychological standpoint, patients with PS-HypoPT present cognitive and neuropsychological symptoms: the more plausible pathophysiological mechanism resides i...

A 57-year-old gentleman presented with a very sudden change in hair colour to bright white and eyebrow loss. On further questioning, he had been shaving much less and had not been getting any erections. On examination he had gynaecomastia. Initial blood tests showed hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism (LH 0.6 IU/l, FSH 0.1 IU/l, testosterone 1.6 nmol/l) with an otherwise normal anterior pituitary hormonal profile. Oestradiol was found to be significantly elevated at 582 pmol/l. He ...

Introduction: The detection of a unique genetic marker is not possible for multifactorial diseases, such as thyroid cancer (TC), where the pathological phenotype is given by the contribution of multiple genes, environmental factors and lifestyle. We found a mathematical model for inferring the risk of thyroid cancer, an example of multifactorial disease.Methods: Genetic data represented by 184 SNPs associated to thyroid tumors were used for Bayesian clus...

Introduction: Reproduction exhibit a regular cyclicity and is regulated by complex interactions between circadian signals, gonadotropins and sex steroid hormones. Peripheral circadian rhythm is generated upon cyclic transcription of clock genes expressed in several cells, e.g. granulosa cells in the ovary. Here we investigated whether cyclic intracellular events occurring in response to gonadotropins are linked to expression of clock genes.Methods: Prima...