Endocrine Abstracts

Background of Study: Some medications for the treatment of type 2 diabetes mellitus fail to achieve a continuous favorable glucose control in the long run during clinical use. Therefore we examined the durability of dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor, sitagliptin which is relatively new to Japanese type 2 diabetic patients in clinical settings.Objectives and Methods: 117 subjects (M/F=65/52, Age: 66±10 y.o., duration of diabetes 12±8 y. b...

Antagonists of growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH-ant) may exert their antiproliferative effects directly on cancer cells, which are mediated by the tumoral GHRH receptors identified by us. Furthermore we showed that GHRH-ant are able to induce apoptosis in LNCaP human prostate cancer cells through a Ca2+-dependent pathway. However, the molecular features involved in the antiproliferative effect of GHRH-ant have not yet been elucidated. To study this, gene expression profi...

Background: Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) results from loss of paternally imprinted gene(s) from the 15q 11-13 region and is characterised by weight faltering during early childhood due to hypotonia, followed by obesity due to onset of the hyperphagic phase.Aim of study: To determine the presence of an age zone during which excessive weight gain is particularly likely, in order to target counselling and dietary input.Method: Body mas...

Objective: The structure of psychological and somatic complaints of aging male patients in relation to sex hormone patterns and metabolism has not been fully elucidated, especially in regard to late-onset hypogonadism.Methods: We investigated the nature of complaints in 434 consecutive patients aged 50–86 years attending our andrology unit and their association with physical characteristics, life style habits and sex hormone levels.<p class="abs...

Objective: The present study designed to assess the effect of Mg+Zn, vitamin C+E, and combination of these micronutrients on blood pressure in type 2 diabetic patients.Materials and methods: In a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled clinical trial, 69 type 2 diabetic patients were randomly divided into four groups, each group receiving one of the following daily supplement for 3 months; group M: 200 mg and 30 mg Zn (n=16), group V: 200 mg...

Oestrogens have important modulatory effects on the skin and the hair follicle. Although they inhibit hair growth in animal models, their effect on human hair growth is less clear. Therefore, we have investigated the effect of oestrogenic compounds on human hair growth in vitro using a whole follicle assay system.Individual microdissected hair follicles from female temporal/occipital scalp (n=6, age range 49–69 mean age 54.67yrs) were incuba...

Ectopic thyroid tissue, defined as thyroid tissue not located anterolaterally to the second and fourth tracheal cartages, is rare. In the majority of the cases it is located in the midline, between the foramen caecum and the proper location of the thyroid gland and most often it is found in the base of the tongue. We present a case of ectopic thyroid in the lower cervical area in a patient with a multinodular goiter. A 27-yr-old asymptomatic woman presented with a recent histo...

Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is an adrenal sex steroid whose levels decline during normal aging. Epidemiological studies demonstrate inverse correlation between circulating DHEA-sulphate and body fat mass while DHEA administration in elderly subjects reduces visceral and subcutaneous fat accumulation. Although previous studies have shown that some effects may be mediated via DHEA-induced inhibition of white pre-adipocyte proliferation, mechanisms remain unknown. Furthermore, ...

Introduction: Episodes of poorly controlled diabetes (DM) are one of the most frequent medical complications during hospitalization in the elderly population.Goals: To analyze the mortality rate (M) in patients with DM who undergo some medical decompensation during an admission to Orthopedic Surgery and Traumatology (OST).Material and methods: Descriptive analysis of patients admitted to OST who suffered some type of medical decomp...

Background: Many in vitro studies have suggested that oxidative stress induced by hyperglycemic condition has pivotal role for pathogenesis of vascular complications in diabetics. This study intended to evaluate oxidative stress and antioxidant potential in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), and to clarify the relation between oxidative stress and metabolic derangements including chronic hyperglycemia.Materials and methods: We measured t...