Endocrine Abstracts

Neurohypophysial hormone, arginine–vasopressin (AVP) concentrations in human plasma and in the plasma, and hypothalamus of the rat display diurnal variations with rising levels over the hours of sleep. Previous reports indicate that AVP infusions reduce rapid-eye-movement sleep in humans and increase the amount of time spent in waking in rats. Our aim was to determine whether AVP content of the rat hypothalamus is altered by sleep deprivation (S.D.). Adult ...

The hypothalamic–pituitary unit is a particularly radiosensitive region in the central nervous system. As a consequence, hypopituitarism commonly develops after radiation treatments for sellar and parasellar neoplasms, extrasellar brain tumours. Increasing tumour-related survival rates provide an expanding population at risk of developing hypopituitarism. The severity of hypopituitarism is related to the radiation doses given while whole body irradiation regimens to a dos...

Introduction: thyroid carcinoma is an uncommon malignancy, but it’s incidence appears to be increasing slowly (female 2–3.8/100.000 - male 1.2–2.6/100.000). This is the most common malignant endocrine tumour, represents about 1% of all malignancies. The majority of these patients females, mostly between the age of 30–60. The main differentiated histological types are papillary and follicular. The options of the treatment are surgical removal (mainly total),...

The history of a female patient is demonstrated as an example of diagnostic and therapeutical pitfalls in acromegaly. The patient was first operated on a pituitary macroadenoma at her age of 21. Prior to surgery, serum prolactin was found moderately elevated and the patient was raromenorrhoic, without galactorrhea. Soon recurrence of the tumour was trialed with bromocriptine medication, however, without any inhibitory effect on the process. The patient underwent a second neuro...

17α-Hydroxylase-C17,20-lyase (P45017α) is a key regulator enzyme of the steroid hormone biosynthesis in both the adrenals and the testes. Inhibition of this enzyme can block androgen synthesis in an early step, and may thereby be useful in the treatment of prostatic carcinoma, which is androgen-dependent in the majority of cases. Abiraterone and its analogues have been found strong inhibitors of P45017α suggesting that steroid de...