Endocrine Abstracts

Adipose tissue is an endocrine organ releasing adipokines and expressing specific markers and intracellular mediators, which regulate whole-body energy by balancing lipid accumulation and utilization through adipogenesis, the differentiation of preadipocytes into mature adipocytes associated with gradual lipid storage, and lipogenesis, the additional lipid accumulation in mature adipocytes. Adipogenesis and lipogenesis, strongly induced by insulin, occur in white adipocytes, s...

Obesity, characterized by an abnormal body fat accumulation mainly caused by a chronic imbalance between energy intake and expenditure, is a massive public health problem. Targeting excessive fat deposition in adipose tissue and ectopic fat accumulation in skeletal muscle through promoting lipid oxidation pathway may represent a promising strategy to counteract obesity. This study aims at investigating the effects of cabergoline (CAB), a dopamine agonist, on adipose and skelet...

Cushing’s disease (CD), caused by an adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH)-secreting pituitary tumor, is the most common form of hypercortisolism. Pituitary surgery is the first-line treatment of CD and medical treatment is an alternative second-line approach to control cortisol excess. Long-term exposure to glucocorticoids (GC) downregulates the expression of somatostatin receptor type 2 (SSTR2) but not type 5 (SSTR5) in human and mouse ACTH-secreting tumor cell cultures; t...

Obesity is caused by an imbalance between dietary energy intake and expenditure. The expression of dopamine receptors (DRs) in human adipocytes has been already demonstrated. Moreover, the effects of cabergoline, a dopamine agonist, on body weight and glucose homeostasis in obese subjects without hyperprolactinemia has already been reported. The current study investigates the effects of cabergoline on lipid accumulation and on adipogenic factors expression to better define the...

Cushing’s syndrome (CS) is a rare endocrine disease caused by a chronic exposure to endogenous cortisol or exogenous glucocorticoids (GCs). Among multiple comorbidities, impairment of skeletal muscle mass and strength affects 40–70% of patients with active CS and persist even after long-term disease remission. In pathological conditions, GCs excess sustain muscle atrophy and weakness affecting type II muscle fibers. Muscle-specific microRNAs, defined myomiRs, are in...