Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Adrenocortical tumors (ACT) are common diseases mostly benign, but among them, adrenocortical carcinomas (ACC) appear highly aggressive with metastatic potential. Wnt/β-catenin pathway is frequently switched on in ACT, with β-catenin greatly dephosphorylated and consequently activated. While IWR1 induces an increase in Axin2 protein levels, XAV939 inhibits tankyrase 1 and 2 (thus stabilizing Axin): both stimulate β-catenin phosphorylation and degra...

Background: Adrenocortical tumors (ACT) are classified as adenomas (ACA) or carcinomas (ACC). β-Catenin constitutive activation is a frequent alteration in benign and malignant ACT. E-cadherin was discovered as a protein associated with β-catenin which plays a crucial role in cadherin-mediated cell adhesion. N-cadherin seems to be involved in the development of malignant ACT, but information regarding expression of N-cadherin or E-cadherin in ACT is very limited....

Introduction: Somatostatin (SST) is a widely distributed polypeptide that modulates the endocrine and exocrine secretion, cellular proliferation and differentiation, and apoptosis via G protein-linked receptors. Our previous studies showed high SSTR expression in adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC), aldosterone producing adenoma (APA) and in cortisol producing adenoma (CPA). Only very few information are available about the effectiveness of SST analogs in adrenal tumors.<p clas...

Background: DNA methylation has been recognized as a putative regulatory mechanism for CYP11B2 in primary hyperaldosteronism. We aimed to investigate the DNA methylation and the expression of a panel of genes encoding several enzymes involved in steroidogenesis in adrenocortical benign tumors.Methods: We collected a total of 60 adrenocortical tissues, including 9 non-functioning adrenal adenomas, 9 adenomas associated with autonomous cortisol se...

In patients with primary aldosteronism (PA), adrenal vein sampling (AVS) is considered the gold standard to distinguish between unilateral and bilateral autonomous production of aldosterone, while diagnostic imaging tests by CT scan or MRI are often inconclusive for the diagnosis. To date agreement is lacking on the best criteria indicating successful cannulation and lateralization.The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of different diagnostic c...

Background: Adrenocortical tumors (ACT) include benign and malignant forms. Adrenocortical carcinomas (ACC) are highly malignant neoplasms with poor prognosis and strong metastatic potential. Aurora kinase family members (AK) are serine/threonine kinase involved in the regulation of mitosis. Aurora kinase A (AKA) promotes centrosome maturation and spindle assembly, while aurora kinase B (AKB) is necessary for spindle assembly checkpoint and cytokinesis.A...

Background: Previous studies have shown an association between low CYP11B2 DNA methylation levels and high CYP11B2 mRNA levels in aldosterone-producing adenoma (APA), suggesting that epigenetic mechanisms play a pivotal role for regulating CYP11B2 function in primary aldosteronism. It has been proposed that aldosterone-producing cell clusters (APCCs) may become a source of autonomous aldosterone production when evolving into APA.Aim: Our aim was to deter...

Protein Kinase A (PKA) consists of two catalytic and two regulatory subunits with several isoforms (Cα,β,γ, RIα,IIα,Iβ,IIβ). In 30–40% of cortisol-producing adrenocortical adenomas (CPA) heterozygous activating somatic mutations in the catalytic subunit α (Cα) of PKA have been found. Previous reports found strikingly reduced levels of RIIβ in CPA compared to other adrenocortical tumors. Here, we investigated the correlatio...

Background: Papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC) is the most common malignant tumor of the thyroid gland, accounting for 74–80% of all thyroid cancers. The T1799T>A transversion is an activating mutation of the BRAF oncogene that is common in conventional PTC and specific to it.Aims: To study the prevalence, tumorigenic role and biomolecular implications of rare BRAF variants in a large cohort of patients.Study desig...

Genetic alterations affecting the PKA/cAMP pathway are commonly found in cortisol-producing adrenocortical adenomas (ACAs), while activating mutations in the gene coding for β-catenin (CTNNB1) have been reported in both adenomas and carcinomas. However, the molecular pathogenesis of most ACAs is still unclear. Aim of the study was a comprehensive genetic characterization of sporadic ACAs and the identification of novel molecular markers involved in adrenal tumori...