Endocrine Abstracts

IntroductionPatients treated with radioiodine (RAI) for thyrotoxicosis, secondary to Graves or a toxic nodule, require close follow up to determine whether they have become hypothyroid or have a recurrence. National guidelines state that patients should have their first blood test at about six weeks post RAI. Telephoning patients with their results, rather than reviewing them at outpatient appointments, can be a more convenient and efficient method of fo...

BACKGROUND: Patients with dyspepsia are treated with proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) which reduce acid secretion and therefore give rise to a secondary hypergastrinaemia. Gastrinomas are a rare cause of dyspepsia diagnosed on the basis of a raised fasting gastrin measurement. Therefore, when screening patients with dyspepsia for a gastrinoma, PPIs must be withdrawn for 2 weeks, prior to the measurement of fasting gastrin levels to ensure that fasting gastrin levels are back to b...

Background: Secondary adrenal insufficiency is a common complication of transsphenoidal hypophysectomy (TSS) for pituitary adenoma. It is therefore imperative to rapidly and accurately identify patients requiring glucocorticoid replacement, thus minimising risks of adrenal insufficiency or unnecessary glucocorticoid exposure. The gold-standard test of HPA axis reserve, the insulin tolerance test (ITT), cannot be performed safely until after post-operative recovery. Nine am cor...

BackgroundSR141716 (Rimonabant) has been shown to significantly inhibit food intake and reduce body weight in rodents and humans by antagonising CB1 receptors. The gut hormones peptide YY3–36 (PYY3–36) and oxyntomodulin (OXM), released from L-cells in the small intestine inhibit food intake in both rodents and humans and this effect is thought to be mediated via the hypothalamus.Objective<...

Neuropeptide S (NPS) is a recently discovered peptide shown to be involved in the modulation of arousal and fear responses. It has also been shown that lateral ventricle administration of NPS causes a significant decrease in food intake. Neuropeptides involved in the modulation of arousal have been shown to be involved in the regulation of the hypothalamo-pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis and food intake.Objective: To examine the effect of NPS on the regulati...

Background: IVF is an effective treatment for infertility, however it may be complicated by the potentially life-threatening ‘ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome’ (OHSS). OHSS is an iatrogenic condition, resultant on the mode of triggering oocyte maturation. Kisspeptin safely triggers oocyte maturation in women at high risk of OHSS, but has yet to be compared with current triggers of oocyte maturation (hCG or GnRH agonist).Meth...

Background: IVF is an effective treatment for infertility, however it may be complicated by the potentially life-threatening ‘ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome’ (OHSS). OHSS is an iatrogenic condition, resultant on the mode of triggering oocyte maturation. Kisspeptin safely triggers oocyte maturation in women at high risk of OHSS, but has yet to be compared with current triggers of oocyte maturation (hCG or GnRH agonist).Meth...

Alpha melanocyte stimulating hormone (alpha-MSH) is an agonist at the melanocortin 3 receptor (MC3-R) and MC4-R and stimulates corticosterone release from rat and human adrenal cells. Patients with Cushing's syndrome have elevated levels of serum alpha-MSH. Agouti related protein (AgRP) is an endogenous antagonist at the MC3-R and MC4-R and is expressed in the rat adrenal cortex. AgRP antagonises alpha-MSH-induced corticosterone release from rat and bovine adrenal cells. This ...

Mutation of the GPR54 receptor is associated with a failure of reproductive function. The endogenous neuropeptide agonist for GPR54, kisspeptin, potently stimulates the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis in rodents and primates.Objective: The present study was designed to determine the effects of elevating circulating kisspeptin levels on LH, FSH and testosterone in male volunteers.Method: Study (i) Volunteers were infused w...

Kisspeptin is a 54 amino acid peptide, encoded by the anti-metastasis gene KiSS-1, that activates the G-protein-coupled receptor, GPR54. The kisspeptin/GPR54 system is critical to normal reproductive development. KiSS-1 gene expression is increased in the human placenta in normal and molar pregnancies. Circulating kisspeptin is dramatically increased in normal pregnancy but levels in gestational trophoblastic neoplasia (GTN) have not previously been reported. The...