Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: The FreeStyle Libre is increasingly employed in the management of T1DM. This audit examined if users are meeting the recommended competencies set out in the London prescribing guidelines, to ascertain if users are aware of and utilising inbuilt features of the Libre, to identify if user training can be enhanced, and to see if Libre use improves patients’ quality of life as a result of Libre use.Methods: The audit was conducted via a st...

11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1) is an NADPH-dependant oxo-reductase located in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) lumen of skeletal muscle. Here it generates active glucocorticoids to regulate permissive and adaptive metabolism, and can mediate the pathological effects of glucocorticoid excess. Hexose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (H6PD) in the SR interacts with 11β-HSD1 to generate an appropriate NADPH/NADP+ ratio to support activity. H6PD depletion...

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) levels increase during metabolic stress, which acts as a consumed substrate by, amongst other proteins, the sirtuins, which adapt transcriptional programmes to increase energy availability and regulate insulin sensitivity. Thus, maintaining appropriate skeletal muscle NAD+ availability is critical for regulating systemic energy homeostasis. In order to gain better insight into ageing muscle NAD+ dynamics we used ta...

Background: Recent consensus recommends assessment of aortic dimensions with aortic sized index (ASI) normalized for body surface area (BSA) defined as absolute aortic dimension/BSA, in girls with Turner syndrome (TS) as young as 10 years. There are currently multiple formulae for estimating BSA without agreement on a preferred method. We assess the clinical validity of each formulae as this may have implications on interpretation of ASI.Method: We calcu...

Effective treatment of differentiated thyroid cancer relies on a multifaceted approach often including administration of 131I to ablate residual cancer cells post-surgery. The success of this treatment hinges upon adequate uptake of iodide by malignant thyroid follicular cells. In a subset of patients, dedifferentiation of the carcinoma can result in aberrant expression and trafficking of the iodide transport protein, the sodium iodide symporter (NIS), resulting in ...

NAD+, an essential coenzyme in energy production, has recently risen to prominence as a signalling molecule central in mediating cellular metabolism and mitochondrial function. NAD+ dependent protein deacetylase sirtuin (SIRT) proteins regulate key metabolic transcription factors, including FOXOs and PGC-1α in muscle, in response to cellular energy demands and metabolic stress. Declining NAD+, metabolic and mitochondrial function are hallm...

Exercise has undisputed health benefits mediated through metabolic adaptation in skeletal muscle. In contrast, a sedentary lifestyle, leads to impaired metabolic function and negative health outcomes such as insulin resistance and sarcopenia. Whilst exercise improves skeletal muscle metabolism, how the process is co-ordinated at a cellular level remains unclear. Recently, NAD+ has been suggested to play an important role in muscle adaptation, acting as a substrate f...

Drospirenone (DRSP) is a potent antimineralocorticoid with progestative and moderate antiandrogenic properties. We have previously shown that DRSP exerts a potent antiadipogenic activity in murine and human preadipocytes through specific antagonism of the MR. In the present study responses to DRSP were investigated in a model of diet-induced obesity for 12 weeks. Female 10-week-old C57bl6 mice were fed with normal chow or a high fat diet (HF, containing 45% fat by calories). M...

Accelerated medial calcification is a major cause of premature cardiovascular mortality in people with chronic kidney disease. Evidence suggests that the concentration of extracellular Ca2+ and vascular smooth muscle cells play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of vascular calcification. Extracellular Ca2+ is detected by the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR). The CaSR is a G protein-coupled receptor that is expressed in a range of tissues, but characteriza...

Prostate Cancer (PC) affects 1-in-6 men in the UK, and obesity 1-in-3, with rates of both increasing. High-fat diet is linked with increased risk of PC death, and volume of peri-prostatic adipose tissue (PPAT) is associated with increased risk of lethal PC/reduced therapy response. Despite this, molecular mechanisms underpinning obesity-driven PC remain poorly-understood. This is important since weight-gain and central obesity are major side-effects of PC trea...