Endocrine Abstracts

Adrenal cortical cells are continuously renewed in order to sustain production of relevant zonal steroids. Cell proliferation occurs at the periphery of the cortex where cells subsequently displace centripetally, switching phenotypically as they migrate though the gland and finally undergoing apoptosis at the medullary boundary. However, it is not known which mechanisms cause the cells to differentiate as they cross the zonal boundaries. A candidate group of genes involved in ...

Agouti-related protein (AgRP) is a 132 amino acid protein, expressed in the brain where it antagonises the anorexic effect of alpha-MSH through melanocortin 3 and 4 receptors. In situ hybridisation and RT-PCR have shown that AgRP mRNA is also expressed in the steroidogenic zone of the adrenal cortex where levels are up-regulated following 24 hrs of fasting. However, its physiological significance in the adrenal gland is still unknown.To investigate the s...