Endocrine Abstracts

The majority of adrenocortical tumors (ACT) are benign and hormonally non-functioning, in contrast to adrenocortical carcinomas (ACC), which are rare and usually very aggressive tumors. The differential diagnosis between these two entities is mainly based on unspecific and subjective criteria, contributing to the inaccuracy of diagnosis. Due to ACC molecular and biological heterogeneity, prognostic factors have a limited capacity to predict ACC clinical outcomes, leading to an...

Introduction: The majority of adrenocortical carcinomas (ACC) autonomously produce steroids. However, urinary steroid profile of patients with ACC revealed that these tumors secrete and release predominantly intermediate metabolites. This steroid secretion pattern could be attributed to the undifferentiated status of the tumor cells expressing an incomplete pattern of enzymes involved in the steroidogenic cascade.Aims: Our study aim was to analyze the ex...

IntroductionMetabolic homeostasis in the testis is essential for a healthy spermatogenesis. Insulin is regarded as one of the most important intervenients in the metabolic regulation of spermatogenesis, where it acts directly on the differentiation of spermatogonia into primary spermatocytes or indirectly through the metabolic modulation of Sertoli cells. Additionally, insulin is hypothesized to play a major role on human spermatozoa capacitation, althou...

Introduction: Incidence of Digestive NETs (DNETs) has increased in the last 40 years. Visceral obesity, metabolic syndrome (MetS) and insulin resistance (IR) have been associated with several types of cancer.Aim: To evaluate possible associations of obesity, hyperinsulinemia and IR with well-differentiated (WD) DNETs through a case control study.Materials and methods: Ninety-six patients with gastrointestinal (75.0%) and pNET (22.9...

Current lifestyle, characterized by physical inactivity and a poor diet, is heavily linked with an increased incidence of metabolic diseases. One of the most serious silent co-morbidities of those diseases is infertility. The hormonal link between food intake and energy homeostasis is mediated by the leptin ghrelin axis. Compelling evidence suggests that direct leptin’s action regulates cellular glucose homeostasis and mitochondrial biogenesis. We have recently shown that...

Introduction: Mitochondrial uncoupling proteins (UCPs) are channel proteins present in the mitochondrial inner membrane which are responsible for the transport of protons between the mitochondrial intermembrane space and the matrix. Currently, six UCP homologues had been identified (UCP1-6). UCPs are major regulators of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, general cellular redox state and metabolism. UCPs also exhibit specific functions, such as UCP1 and thermogenesis or ...

Metabolic and endocrine dysregulation induced by high-fat diet (HFD) can lead to decreased male fertility potential and have a negative impact on the offspring’s metabolic health. Small non-coding RNAs (sncRNAs) were proposed as being potential mediators of metabolic queues across transgenerational inheritance. During development and epidydimal transit, spermatozoa become enriched with tRNA-derived stress-induced RNAs (tiRNAs). This sncRNAs class appears to be particularl...