Endocrine Abstracts

Human malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is a rare but aggressive neoplasm, arising from pleural mesothelial cells, generally due to asbestos exposure. Different growth factors are involved in the pathogenesis of MPM and in resistance to therapy; moreover, chemotherapy with cisplatin and antifolates, like pemetrexed (PEM), is the first-line treatment for inoperable MPM. Growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH), apart from stimulating GH secretion in the pituitary, exerts many...

Type II diabetes is a clinical disorder of glucose and fat metabolism, caused by an inability of insulin to promote sufficient glucose uptake into adipose tissue and striated muscle and to prevent glucose output from the liver. Skeletal muscle is an important element for the maintenance of glucose homeostasis because it can increase, after stimulation, glucose uptake from the blood. In previous experiments we found that acylated ghrelin (AG), unacylated ghrelin (UAG), obestati...