Endocrine Abstracts

Aim: Differentiating idiopathic hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism from extreme maturational delay can be difficult, so most boys receive testosterone (T) replacement until the diagnosis becomes clear. Standard 3 month T therapy for maturational delay does not diminish adult stature, so we set out to determine whether T treatment of greater than 6 months duration would have an adverse effect on final height (FH) in boys with the eventual diagnosis of extreme maturational delay.</p...

This work focuses on the characterization of circulating tumor cells(CTCs) captured from the blood of cancer patients using a microfluidic chip functionalized with an antibody against the epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EPCAM). We visualize CTCs captured from the blood of prostate cancer patients taking advantage of the unique tumor-associated marker, prostate specific antigen (PSA). Our data demonstrate that CTCs are detectable preoperatively in patients with early stage, ...

ATP-evoked signalling events are known to promote release of insulin from pancreatic beta-cells in a Ca2+-dependent manner. In rodent beta-cells and insulin-secreting cell lines, this is mediated by purinergic receptors and there is evidence for the involvement of both P2X and P2Y subtypes. Here,we have used human insulin-secreting cells to examine the expression of purinoceptors in control and disease tissue. Intact islets and isolated beta-cells were obtained from...