Endocrine Abstracts

Wnt proteins are morphogens that are involved in morphogenesis, differentiation and stem cell biology in a variety of tissues. In the adrenal cortex, WNT4 is expressed at a higher level in the zona glomerulosa (ZG) and mice deficient in WNT4 have a defect in this zone. In this laboratory we confirmed that WNT4 is expressed at a higher level in the human ZG and showed that this is accompanied by higher expression of a potential antagonist, dickkopf-3 (DKK3). To investigate the ...

Pregnancy, a state of insulin resistance (IR), is associated with elevated levels of cytokines and profound alterations in metabolism, directed towards supplying adequate nutrition for the fetus. Adiponectin, an adipokine with anti-inflammatory and insulin sensitising properties, plays an important role in energy homeostasis. Interestingly, in gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), a state of greater insulin resistance, serum adiponectin levels are lower than normal subjects. We...

Introduction: Using the criterion of GH<2.5 μg/l and normalized IGF1, response rates to currently available somatostatin analogues in medically-naïve patients with acromegaly are 20–25% after 12 m. The broader somatostatin receptor binding profile of pasireotide may potentially improve response rates. This randomized, double-blind 12-m study compared pasireotide LAR with octreotide LAR.Methods: Patients with acromegaly (GH>5 μ...

Objective: Bisphenol A (BPA) exposure may promote obesity, but its effect on bone mineral density (BMD) has not been reported in humans. In the present study, we aimed to examine the complex interplay between BPA exposure, fat mass, fat-free mass, serum estradiol, leptin, osteocalcin levels and BMDs in a group of premenopausal women.Methods: A total of 246 Chinese premenopausal women aged 20 years and older with regular menstrual cycles were investigated...

Introduction: In a large, randomized, double-blind, phase III trial in patients with acromegaly, pasireotide LAR was significantly more effective than octreotide LAR at inducing GH<2.5 μg/l and normal IGF1 after 12 months of therapy (core study). The crossover phase of this trial allowed patients without full biochemical control at month 12 to switch treatments. This abstract reports the results of patients who switched therapy.Methods: Medicall...