Endocrine Abstracts

The enzyme 5β-reductase (AKR1D1) catalyses an essential step in bile acid (BA) synthesis, but in addition, controls intra-cellular steroid hormone availability by inactivation. Steroid hormones and BA are regulators of global lipid and carbohydrate metabolism. As disturbances in steroid hormone and BA metabolism have potent effects on metabolic health, we hypothesize that AKR1D1 may play a role in metabolic homeostasis. The role of AKR1D1 in regulating glucose homeostasis...

Babies born to mothers with diabetes during pregnancy are exposed to high circulating leptin before birth and, in turn, are at increased risk of developing diabetes in later life. In pancreatic islets isolated from fetal sheep, leptin influences β-cell proliferation in a bimodal manner. This study examined the effect of exogenous leptin infusion and leptin receptor antagonism on pancreatic β-cell mass in the sheep fetus in vivo.<...

Babies born to mothers with diabetes during pregnancy are exposed to high circulating leptin before birth and, in turn, are at increased risk of developing diabetes in later life. In pancreatic islets isolated from fetal sheep, leptin influences β-cell proliferation in a bimodal manner. This study examined the effect of exogenous leptin infusion and leptin receptor antagonism on pancreatic β-cell mass in the sheep fetus in vivo.<...

The enzyme 5β-reductase (AKR1D1) controls intra-cellular steroid hormone availability through hormone clearance. Additionally, it catalyses an essential step in bile acid (BA) synthesis. Disturbances in steroid hormones and BA metabolism have potent effects on metabolic health, therefore we hypothesize that AKR1D1 may play a role in metabolic homeostasis; the role of AKR1D1 in regulating glucose homeostasis and pancreatic function remains unexplored. We generated a global...

Hormonal control of pancreatic β-cell development in the fetus during late gestation remains unclear. In fetal sheep hypothyroidism causes an increase in pancreatic β-cell mass in association with increased plasma insulin and leptin concentrations. This study investigated the effects of triiodothyronine (T3), insulin and leptin on proliferation rates in fetal ovine pancreatic β-cells in vitro.All procedures were approve...

Thyroid hormones are important regulators of fetal growth, although their mechanism of action remains unclear. In the sheep fetus, thyroid hormone deficiency increases plasma insulin and leptin concentrations. This study investigated the effects of hypothyroidism on perirenal adipose tissue (PAT) development and adipose insulin signalling pathways in fetal sheep.All procedures were performed under the UK Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. In 10 tw...

Thyroid hormones are important regulators of fetal growth, although their mechanism of action remains unclear. This study investigated the effect of hypothyroidism on pancreatic β-cell development in foetal sheep.All procedures were carried out under the UK Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986. Under general anaesthesia between 105 and 110 days of gestation (days; term ~145 days), one twin fetus was thyroidectomised (TX), while the other was sha...

Development of the fetal hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis is important for normal maturation of the fetus and the timing of parturition. In hypothyroid fetuses, gestational length may be prolonged and maturational processes delayed, although the role of the HPA axis is unknown. This study investigated the effects of hypothyroidism before birth on the structure and function of the anterior pituitary and adrenal glands in fetal sheep near term.All...