Endocrine Abstracts

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is an aggressive neuro-endocrine tumour with an abysmal prognosis. These cancers are characteristically resistant to glucocorticoid (Gc) action, and display glucocorticoid receptor (GR) abnormalities. We therefore selected model cell lines displaying reduced GR expression and Gc insensitivity as tractable in vitro systems in which to discover the effects of restored GR expression. GR fused to the yellow fluorescent protein, eYFP, was over-e...

Glucocorticoids (Gcs) act via the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) to inhibit proliferation of many epithelial cell types, and induce apoptosis in others, notably lymphoblastic leukemia. Resistance to Gcs occurs in human small cell lung cancer (SCLC), manifest clinically as dysregulated secretion of ACTH-related peptides. Currently nothing is known of the biological consequences such resistance causes. We have previously shown that a panel of human SCLC cell lines secrete ACTH rel...