Endocrine Abstracts

Measurements of plasma concentrations of the O-methylated metabolites of catecholamines including metanephrine, normetanephrine and methoxytyramine have advantages over other biochemical tests used to diagnose phaeochromocytoma for several reasons: i) the metabolites are produced within chromaffin cells continuously from catecholamines leaking from storage vesicles; ii) the single largest source of these metabolites is from adrenal medullary chromaffin cells, but this p...

Genomic imprinting is an epigenetic mechanism by which a subset of our genes displays unequal expression of the maternal and paternal alleles; in many cases, one allele is fully silenced. It occurs because these genes are marked differently (by DNA methylation and/or histone modifications) in male and female gametes. These gamete-specific marks are maintained at fertilisation and perpetuated throughout development and adult life, such that the alleles of imprinted genes retain...

Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) transports sex steroids (androgens and estrogens) in the blood and regulates their access to tissues. In humans and other vertebrates, the liver produces the SHBG that circulates in the blood, and in most species the gene encoding SHBG is also expressed in the testis. The testicular cell types in which SHBG is produced vary between species; in most mammals, expression of the Shbg gene in Sertoli cells gives rise to a secreted protein ...

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Markers to predict tumor biology represent an important tool for the optimal management of pituitary adenomas. Specific morphologic features may serve as predictive markers of tumor behavior. These include a) tumor cell-specific markers, b) stromal-related elements involving vasculature and angiogenetic factors, and additional stromal substances and c) miscellaneous tumor type-associated features.Macroscopic invasion of the perisellar tissues, defined as...

Wnt ligands are secreted proteins that bind to Frizzled receptors. During normal development Wnt signalling plays essential roles in the regulation of patterning, fate determination, and cell proliferation. In the ‘canonical’ Wnt/ß-catenin signalling pathway, binding of Wnt ligand to Frizzled and LRP5 receptors normally leads to inhibition of a ‘destruction complex’ consisting of APC/Axin/GSK-3ß/Ck1/Dvl and other factors, with subsequent accumulat...

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a metabolic compartment participating in virtually all anabolic and catabolic branches of cellular metabolism. The redox balance of pyridine nucleotides is a major regulator of the metabolism. Several observations demonstrate their presence in the lumen of the ER. NADPH donates electrons for biosynthetic reactions, biotransformation and antioxidant defense; its reduced state is ensured by NADP+-dependent dehydrogenases. In the ER lu...

I first developed a research interest in the adrenal cortex about 50 years ago. As for many others, these studies gave a detailed insight into several important, though necessarily focused aspects. Teaching endocrinology to undergraduates, it was easy to explain the functions of the gland by following the usual well-trodden paths. Over several years, however, I have come to realize that, despite all that, I still don’t actually know what the adrenal cortex is for. ...