Endocrine Abstracts

Background: The Wilms’ Tumour-1 (WT1) transcription factor is a critical regulator of embryonic gonadogenesis, but is also expressed by granulosa cells (GCs) in preantral follicles in the ovary after birth. Evidence from animal models suggests an important role for WT1 in regulating GC steroidogenesis and apoptosis. However, the role of WT1 in human GC biology has not been extensively explored.Aim: To investigate the role of WT1 in regulating human ...

Testicular dysgenesis syndrome (TDS) is a group of associated conditions (testicular germ cell tumours (TGCT), cryptorchidism, hypospadias and low sperm counts) that are thought to have a common origin in fetal life. Exposure of fetal rats to environmental chemicals such as the endocrine disrupting chemical di(n-butyl) phthalate (DBP) results in a TDS-like syndrome. However, exposed rats do not develop TGCT and the rodent is a poor model in this context. The effects of ...

Background: Endocrine disruption in the human fetal testis by environmental agents has been proposed as a possible cause of testicular dysgenesis syndrome (TDS) comprising male reproductive disorders such as testicular germ cell tumours (TGCT), cryptorchidism, hypospadias and low sperm counts. Exposure of fetal rats to the widely used plasticizer di(n-butyl) phthalate (DBP) results in a TDS-like syndrome due to a reduction in testosterone production. Whether such effects also ...