Endocrine Abstracts

Objective: To investigate the insulin response during a 5 hour Oral Glucose tolerance test (OGTT) in subjects with and without symptoms of reactive hypoglycaemia.Methods: 12 patients with suspected reactive hypoglycaemia were studied. After fasting from midnight, they were given a 75 g glucose drink at 9 am the following morning. Plasma glucose and insulin levels were measured at baseline and at 30 minute intervals for 5 hours. Relative insulin increase,...

Background: The polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a condition defined by hyperandrogenism and ovulatory dysfunction. It is also known to be associated with insulin resistance and has many features in common with the metabolic syndrome (MS) - a cluster of risk factors that have been shown to predict a greater risk of future cardiovascular events and type 2 diabetes. While there are studies confirming that the MS is more common in PCOS, none have systematically compared the re...

Deiodinase enzymes have an important role in thyroid hormone metabolism. Type I 5′-monodeiodinase (D1) converts thyroxine (T4) to triiodothyronine (T3), while type III 5-monodeiodinase (D3) inactivates T3 and produces reverse-T3 (rT3) from T4. In fetal sheep, plasma T3 rises towards term in association with the prepartum cortisol surge. This study investigated the effect of cortisol on tissue de...

Background: The polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a condition defined by hyperandrogenism and ovulatory dysfunction, is the most common endocrinopathy in women of reproductive age. Women classified as having PCOS according to the most recent consensus statement are heterogeneous both clinically and biochemically, and are therefore likely to have differing aetiologies, long term sequelae and possible treatment options.Aim: To utilise principal components ...

Without adequate treatment patients with acromegaly die prematurely from cardiovascular disease (CVD); however the contribution of atherosclerosis in this process is controversial. Increased carotid IMT is an early morphological marker of atherosclerosis and predictor of subsequent cardiovascular events. Contradictory data exist regarding IMT in patients with acromegaly.We measured carotid IMT in 79 patients with acromegaly (47 male, mean age 55±14 ...

Background: Neuroendocrine tumours (NETs) are a heterogenous group of malignancies that frequently metastasise to other organs. Both breast cancer and NETs have a predilection for liver, lymphatic and bone metastases. We report the investigations and management of a patient with concurrent small bowel NET and breast cancer.Case: 66 year-old female. Presented with 2 years of abdominal pain, diarrhea and flushing. Octreoti...

The peptides acylated and unacylated ghrelin (AG and UAG) are produced predominantly in the stomach. AG is the only known circulating orexigenic hormone with obesogenic and insulin-desensitising properties. Recent evidence suggests that UAG can inhibit these activities of AG. To investigate potential inhibitory effects of UAG and AZP-531, a UAG analogue, on AG-induced appetite and obesity we used an established rat model of diet induced obesity. Animals were fed a high-fat die...

Although leptin is important in the control of appetite and energy expenditure in adulthood, its actions before birth are unclear. This study investigated the effects of leptin on hepatic carbohydrate metabolism and insulin signalling in fetal sheep. Twelve sheep fetuses were chronically-catheterised at 115–120 d of gestation (term 145±2 d), and infused intravenously with saline (0.9% NaCl; n=6) or recombinant ovine leptin (0.5–1.0 mg/kg/d; Protein Labora...

Recent studies suggest TSH inhibits bone remodeling, indicating that TSH deficiency rather than thyroid hormone excess could cause bone loss in thyrotoxicosis. The findings predict that TSH receptor (TSHR) stimulating antibodies (TSHRAb) should inhibit bone turnover, whereas Graves’ disease patients exhibit high bone turnover with increased fracture susceptibility. We characterized TSH-action in primary human and mouse osteoblasts and osteoclasts, and explored whether a p...

Objective: In humans insulin-induced hypoglycaemia activates the autonomic nervous system and provokes counterregulatory hormonal responses, the magnitude of which is lower in healthy non-diabetic females and in women with type 1 diabetes compared to male counterparts, although the glycaemic thresholds at which these responses are triggered are similar in both sexes. The Edinburgh Hypoglycaemia Score (a validated method of symptom assessment) was used to examine symptoms to as...