Endocrine Abstracts

We hypothesised that SNPs within oxidative stress genes influence vascular compliance in patients with coronary artery disease.A SNP within the gene encoding the eNOS (NOS3) which encodes a Glu298→Asp amino acid substitution has been associated with cardiovascular disorders in which NO bioactivity is impaired. The gene coding for p22phox, a critical component of the NADH/NAD(P)H oxidase enzyme system, a major source of vascular SO, is CYB...

Up to 15% of unselected patients with hypertension have evidence of inappropriate aldosterone production, identified by a raised ratio of plasma aldosterone to renin (ARR), suggesting that altered regulation of aldosterone synthesis is a key intermediate phenotype in essential hypertension. We previously described an association between the -344C/T 5'UTR polymorphism in the CYP11B2 (aldosterone synthase) gene and hypertension with raised ARR; the same genetic variation associa...

Aldosterone is an important cardiovascular hormone. Around 15 % of hypertensives have alteration in aldosterone regulation, defined by a raised ratio of aldosterone to renin (ARR). Studies of CYP11B2, the aldosterone synthase gene, focus on a single nucleotide polymorphism in the 5'promotor region (-344 C/T). We have shown that the T allele is associated with increased urinary excretion and plasma levels of aldosterone and is more common amongst hypertensives with a raised ARR...

IntroductionThe oral 11β-hydroxylase inhibitor, osilodrostat, normalized mean urinary free cortisol (mUFC) in 79% (15/19) of patients with Cushing’s disease at the end of the 22-week core LINC 2 study. Long-term efficacy and safety data following an optional extension phase are reported here.MethodsPatients with clinical benefit at week 22 could continue receiving osilodrostat during the extension; ...

Introduction: Islet transplantation (ITx) is a therapeutic option for patients with Type 1 diabetes. However there is attrition of graft function and the majority of patients require exogenous insulin injections and/or further transplants, within five years. Mouse models help elucidate mechanisms of islet graft failure and the NOD/Lt-scid IL2rγnull (NSG) mouse is useful to study human islet engraftment but few published studies exist. As diffe...

Calcium mobilization from intracellular stores represents an important cell signalling process that is regulated, in mammalian cells, by inositol-1,4,5-triphosphate (IP3), cyclic ADP ribose (cADPR) and nicotinic acid adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NAADP). Intracellular calcium is important for mobilization of secretory granules to the plasma membrane in preparation for exocytosis. NAADP mobilizes calcium from lysosome-related acidic compartments and it has recently...

Introduction: Addison’s disease (AD) is a rare condition (reported prevalence of 40–110 per million) that requires prompt recognition and optimal management to prevent the risks associated with cortisol deficiency.Aim: To assess the prevalence, presentation and clinical course of patients diagnosed with AD in the geographical area of Banbury in Oxfordshire.Patients and methods: Notes of subjects with AD currently register...

Introduction: Cushing’s disease (CD) is a rare condition, associated with significant morbidities and potentially fatal, if untreated.Objective: To assess the long-term morbidities in a large series of patients with CD during a prolonged follow-up period.Patients and methods: All subjects with CD who presented/followed-up in our Department between 01/1967 and 06/2009 were studied. All information was collected as documented in...

Background: Despite the widespread use of immunohistochemistry (IHC), there are debates on how pre-analytic variables influence diagnostic results, including the effect of varying tissue section thickness. Scant literature suggests that tissue thickness can affect stain interpretation, including nuclear stains that rely on assigning tumor cells to the positive category, such as Ki-67, and raise the question of whether tissue section thickness should be standardized for some di...

Introduction: The commonest complications post trans-sphenoidal surgery is diabetes insipidus and the development of anterior pituitary hormone deficiencies. Other complications include meningitis, CSF leak, visual deterioration, haemorrhages and transient hyponatremia. We present a case of pituitary abscess 6 months post pituitary surgery who presented with viral meningitis and panhypopituitarism.Case report: A 55-year-old lady presented with a 3 weeks ...