Endocrine Abstracts

The transcription factor Sox9 is a member of the HMG-box-DNA binding family essential for chondrocyte differentiation, sexual determination, and the maintenance of the stem/progenitor cells in several tissues. Furthermore, Sox9 is involved in the development of endoderm-derived-organs. Owing to the endodermic origin of the thyroid, we proposed to study the expression of Sox9 in thyroid follicular cells and its regulation by TSH and TGFβ, two main factors involved in thyro...

Undifferentiated thyroid carcinomas are extremely aggressive and currently lack effective treatment. Aberrant RAS-ERK signaling, triggered mainly by BRAF and RAS mutations, is responsible for the occurrence and progression of most thyroid carcinomas, which led to the clinical use of small kinase inhibitors targeting kinases of the pathway. The results were disappointing, because of the emergence of resistance and high-associated toxicity. A more specific approach, targeting si...