Endocrine Abstracts

We have previously proposed a central role for locally generated glucocorticoids in the periarticular and systemic osteoporosis seen in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Synovial fibroblasts (SFs) express the 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1) enzyme and this expression increases dramatically with inflammation. Recently, production of DKK-1 (a Wnt signalling inhibitor known to inhibit bone formation) by SFs in response to inflammation has been proposed to ex...

Background: In patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D), arterial stiffness is a potential alternative biomarker for cardiovascular (CV) risk as it has recently shown important prognostic value in the development of CVD that is independent from traditional risk factors. Glycemic control by means of HbA1c is a main determinant of arterial stiffness progression, however the relationship with continuous glucose monitoring (CGM)-derived parameters such as time in range (TIR) has not be...

Primary hyperaldosteronism ('Conn's syndrome') may have a prevalence as high as 10% in hypertensive patients, and in some cases there may not be obvious hypokalaemia. Recently the use of a single aldosterone/ renin ('A/R') ratio has been advocated as a screening test for Conn's, and less influence by anti-hypertensive drug therapy has been claimed.We have established a cut-off for ambulant A/R ratios of 25 ng/mU using the DPC'Coat-a-Count' aldosterone method and the Nichols 'A...

The detrimental effect of excessive obesity on insulin resistance is well established. The expansion of adipose tissue is dependent on two processes: adipogenesis and angiogenesis and the Wnt signalling pathway has been reported to affect both. In adipose tissue the Wnt signalling pathway functions in a converse manner: increasing commitment of mesenchymal stem cells to preadipocytes and inhibiting differentiation of preadipocytes to mature adipocytes by decreasing expression ...

Overt hypothyroidism is associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease. We aimed in this study, to assess the changes in renal function, serum lipids, vitamin B12, folate and homocysteine levels before and after treatment in hypothyroid patients.Fifty-four (male/female;7/47) hypothyroid patients enrolled to study. We measured homocysteine(tHcy), total cholesterol(TC), triglyceride(TG), HDL-cholesterol (HDL-C), creatinine, folic acid, and vi...

Background: Altering maternal nutrition affects fetal development, potentially predisposing them to later metabolic disease. Tissue sensitivity to cortisol is regulated, in part, by GR and 11βhsd1 and 2, and GR and 11βhsd1 expression is known to be raised both with obesity and type 2 diabetes.Objectives: To examine whether gestational diet influences GR and11βhsd1 and 2 mRNA expression in the neonatal liver.Methods: ...

Salivary cortisol is an increasingly popular tool in endocrine, psychological and sports studies. Immunoassays used for its measurement are limited by cross-reactivity from related steroids, mainly cortisone, which is abundant in saliva.A method was developed for the simultaneous measurement of cortisol and cortisone (SalF and SalE respectively) in saliva using LC-MS/MS. 40 μl of extract was injected onto a C8 4×2 mm guard cartridge attached to...

Aim of the work: Clinical research studies over the last 15 years have reported a significant burden of hypopituitarism in survivors of traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, these endocrine anomalies remain under diagnosed due to nonspecific clinical signs and misunderstanding of the phenomenon. The aim of the work is to evaluate for the first time in Belgium their prevalence and to quantify the deficits of the different pituitary axes in patients recruited to the endocrinolo...

Obesity increases the risk of pregnancy-related complications such as miscarriage, foetal abnormalities, hypertension, diabetes, thrombosis, caesarean section and infection. Although bariatric surgery addresses some of these risks, women should defer pregnancy for 12-24 months postoperatively until weight loss has plateaued due to concerns regarding limited maternal weight loss and foetal nutritional deficiency. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of pregnancy on ...

Introduction: Primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT) develops more frequently in the elderly with marked predisposition for female gender. The prevalence of PHPT in Poland is unknown. Therefore, the aim of this study is to assess the prevalence of PHPT in a representative sample of Polish elderly population.Description of methods/design: The study was carried out as a part of the nationwide PolSenior project (medical, psychological and socioeconomic aspects ...