Endocrine Abstracts

Cortisol and cortisone are interconverted by type 1 and type 2 11ßhydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11ßHSD) isoenzymes. The type 1 isoenzyme is a widely expressed reductase that converts cortisone to cortisol regulating glucocorticoid tissue exposure. Its activity is inhibited by GH and IGF-I, being increased in GH deficiency (GHD) and decreased in acromegaly. In our experience rhGH therapy unmasked a central hypoadrenal state in adults with organic GHD, likely by normal...

Background: Several criteria (i.e., cortisol supprimibility after 1 mg overnight dexamethasone suppression test -F-dex-, low ACTH levels, high 24 h urinary free cortisol levels -UFC-, high midnight serum cortisol levels) have been used for defining SH. Nevertheless, a real gold standard combination of tests is lacking. Recently midnight salivary cortisol (MSC) has been described as a sensitive marker for the diagnosis of overt hypercortisolism, while the role of MSC in the dia...

Aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of rhGH treatment on glucose and lipid metabolism in in 26 patients (17M and 9F, age 47.0±11.1 years) with adult onset GH deficiency. Metabolic parameters (fasting glucose and insulin, glycated haemoglobin, lipid profile, body composition, OGTT) and indices of insulin resistance (IR) and sensitivity (IS), i.e. homeostasis model assessment (HOMA-IR and derived ISI-HOMA), quantitative insulin check index (QUICKI), ISI-composite, ...

Generously supported by IPSEN)-->A highly polymorphic microsatellite in the IGF-I gene promoter composed of variable cytosine–adenine (CA) repeats (n=10–24) has been linked to IGF-I levels, risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases with conflicting results. Aim of this study was to investigate the impact of this polymorphism on the response to rhGH (mean dose 0.34±0.14 mg/day) in adult GH-deficient (GHD) pa...

Adult GH deficiency syndrome is characterized by visceral obesity, dyslipidemia, insulin resistance and is associated with an increased cardiovascular risk. Epicardial adipose tissue, giving its relationship with abdominal visceral adiposity, coronary artery disease, cardiac morphology and function and metabolic syndrome, has been proposed as cardio-metabolic risk indicator. In this study, we evaluated the echocardiographic epicardial fat thickness in 14 patients (8 M and 6 F,...

Celiac disease is a chronic inflammatory autoimmune disorder often associated with other endocrine autoimmune diseases, such as type I diabetes mellitus, Addison’s disease and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. In these patients, LH, FSH and GH secretion has been poorly investigated. Aim of this study is to evaluate anterior pituitary function, and in particular hypotalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis and GH-IGF-I axis, in adult patients with treated celiac disease. For this ...

A common polymorphic variant of the GH receptor (exon-3 deletion, d3GHR) has been linked with increased response to recombinant human GH (rhGH) in some, but not all, GH deficient (GHD) and non-GHD patients. Aim of this study was to investigate the impact of the GHR genotype on the phenotype of GHD adults and on the metabolic effect of short- and long-term rhGH therapy, with particular focus on glucose homeostasis (1 year: n=100 and 5 years: n=50). Effects of rhGH...