Endocrine Abstracts

Objective: Acromegaly is caused by a growth hormone (GH)-secreting pituitary tumor and its signs are linked to increasedGH-dependent hepatic insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) synthesis. A eucaloric very low-carbohydrate ketogenic diet (euVLCK; < 50 g/day) induces ketosis and reduces portal insulin concentrations, which down-regulate hepatic GH receptors and reduce IGF-I synthesis. Somatostatin receptor ligands (SRLs) reduce GH secretion by the pituitary tumor,resul...

Introduction: An increased frequency of autoimmune diseases and an elevated incidence of autoantibodies have been observed in Turner syndrome (TS), but indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) has not been able to demonstrate autoantibodies against the adrenal cortex. We asked if the more sensitive radioimmunosorbant assay employing recombinant human 21-hydroxylase was able to identify autoantibodies against 21-hydroxylase, (21OH-Ab) in TS patients; 21-hydroxylase is the major adrena...

Introduction: The repercussions of long-term exposure to low level mixtures of endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs) which are present, ubiquitously, in the environment are not well understood. Heat-treated sewage sludge, an EDC-rich product used as fertiliser, has been shown to compromise testicular and ovarian development. However, to date, there has been limited investigation in exposed animals of the adrenal glands, the steroid hormone products of which play key roles in f...

Within target cells, cortisol-cortisone inter-conversion is catalysed by both a NADP(H)-dependent, bidirectional type 1 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11βHSD1) enzyme and by a NAD+-dependent, unidirectional type 2 11βHSD (11βHSD2) isoenzyme. Since several published studies have reported altered glucocorticoid metabolism in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), the current study assessed whether prenatal exposure of lambs to testosterone propionate...

Background: Also known as preadipocyte factor 1 (pref-1) or delta-like 1 (Dlk1), fetal antigen 1 (FA1) was originally isolated from amniotic fluid and it is involved in tissue homeostatis during development and tissue regeneration in the post-natal organisms. FA1 may also plays a role in energy metabolism since mice deficient in FA1 are obese and mice overexpressing FA1 exhibit a lipodystrophy phenotype.In our study we determined FA1 serum levels in pati...

Objective: To investigate gender differences in spatial orientation and verbal memory we conducted a study in 21 healthy young women and men (eleven women). Participating women were required to be in the mid-luteal phase of the cycle. Hormone profiling for behavioural studies is often performed in saliva samples to avoid venous blood sampling. We have compared simultaneously collected blood and saliva samples to confirm the presence of the luteal phase.M...

Introduction: A yearly mortality rate of 4% among young adult patients is unacceptable in any patient population. Nevertheless, in Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS), up to 4% of young patients die every year and this situation has been going on for decades. PWS is a complex hypothalamic disorder, combining hypotonia, intellectual disability (ID), pituitary hormone deficiencies and hyperphagia. Due to this lack of satiety, patients can literally eat themselves to death: overeating ca...

Introduction: Growth hormone (GH) is not only important for growth during childhood. Also, for (young) adults, growth hormone is important for bone mass, muscle strength and metabolism. GH deficiency (GHD) is a condition that can cause a broad range of adult health issues, if left untreated. Therefore on one hand, it is important to confirm and treat GHD after transfer to adult care. On the other hand, the personal and financial burden of unnecessary growth hormone in...

The tumor-homing property of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) has led to their use as delivery vehicles for therapeutic genes such as the sodium iodide symporter (NIS), which has convincingly been demonstrated by our recent studies of systemic NIS gene delivery using MSCs as delivery vehicles in both subcutaneous and orthotopic xenograft mouse models. External beam radiation therapy (EBRT) represents a promising tool in the application of engineered MSC (eMSCs)-based gene therapy ...

Introduction: The inflammatory eye disease Graves’ orbitopathy (GO) is the main complication of Graves’ disease in patients. In previous studies we have shown that hypoxia and HIF-1 dependent pathways could play an important role in the pathogenic process of GO. Hypoxia is known to attract inflammatory cells and therefore maintains inflammation and recruitment of immune cells like macrophages (MQ). However, few is known about the specific contribution of MQ to the pr...