Endocrine Abstracts

The calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) is a guanine-nucleotide-binding protein (G-protein)-coupled receptor that has a central role in calcium homeostasis. Loss-of-function mutations of the CaSR result in familial hypocalciuric hypercalcemia type 1 (FHH1) and gain-of-function mutations in autosomal dominant hypocalcemia (ADH). Recently, loss-of-function Gα11 mutations have been identified to cause FHH2 and we hypothesised that gain-of-function Gα11...

Kyphosis is a common spinal disorder affecting up to 8.3% of the population, and associated with significant morbidity. Familial and twin studies have implicated a genetic involvement. However, the causative genes have not been identified. Studies investigating the underlying molecular mechanisms are hampered by genetic heterogeneity, small families and variable modes of inheritance displayed by different kindreds. To overcome these limitations, we investigated 12 week old pro...

Osteoarthritis (OA) may be associated with endocrine disorders such as hypothyroidism, obesity, primary hyperparathyroidism or acromegaly, although often its cause remains undefined. To facilitate investigations of the underlying molecular mechanisms of OA we have investigated N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU) mutant mice using a genotype-driven approach in which candidate genes are examined for mutations. One such investigated gene is growth and differentiation factor...

Mutations of the transcription factor GATA3, which is important for maintaining human breast luminal epithelial cell differentiation and quiescence, have been reported in 17 oestrogen receptor (ER) positive breast cancers, although the functional effects of these mutations have not been studied. We therefore investigated 56 ER-positive breast cancers for GATA3 mutations. The tumours were macrodissected, and immunohistochemistry for GATA3 revealed a strong correlation between E...

Kyphosis and scoliosis are common spinal disorders that lead to significant morbidity in childhood, adolescence and adulthood. Familial and twin studies have implicated a genetic involvement, although the causative genes remain to be identified. To facilitate these studies, we investigated 12-week-old progeny of mice treated with the chemical mutagen N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU) using phenotypic assessments that included dysmorphology, radiography and dual-energy ...

Investigations of skeletal dysplasias which are often inherited have yielded important insights in the molecular mechanisms of bone development, osteoporosis and osteoarthritis. However, these studies have been hampered by the lack of available patients and affected families. To overcome this limitation, we have investigated mice treated with the chemical mutagen N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU) for hereditary musculoskeletal disorders. Mice were kept in accordance wi...

Abnormalities of calcium homeostasis such as secondary or tertiary hyperparathyroidism, and renal osteodystrophy often occur in patients with kidney failure. However, investigations of the underlying molecular mechanisms have been hampered by the lack of available tissues from patients and the lack of suitable animal models. We therefore sought to overcome this limitation by investigating mice treated with the chemical mutagen N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea and identified...

Cushing’s syndrome, which is characterised by excessive circulating glucocorticoid (GC) concentrations, may be due to ACTH-dependent or -independent causes that include anterior pituitary and adrenal cortical tumours, respectively. In the course of our phenotype-driven screens of mouse mutants induced by the chemical mutagen N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea (ENU), we observed a mutant mouse with obesity, hyperglycaemia and low bone mineral density, features that ar...

Pituitary non-functioning adenomas (NFAs), arising mostly from gonadotroph cells, represent the second most common type of pituitary tumour, after prolactinomas. NFAs are monoclonal in origin, but mutations of genes associated with hereditary pituitary syndromes (e.g. MEN1, AIP, CDKN1B, and PRKAR1A), classic oncogenes or tumour suppressor genes are rarely found. We therefore performed whole-exome sequence analysis to determine the tumourigenic events in pituitary NFAs using DN...