Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Adrenocortical tumors (ACTs) are usually divided in adenoma (ACA) or carcinoma (ACC) according to histopathologic methods. Some lesions are occasionally difficult to classify according to these criteria. We studied the use of some immunohistochemical markers to recognise the difference between malignant and benign tumors.Materials and methods: We studied 12 patients affected by ACC and 10 by ACA. Clinical evaluation and hormone analysis wer...

PATZ1 is a recently discovered zinc finger protein that, due to the presence of the POZ domain, acts as a transcriptional repressor affecting the basal activity of different promoters, and associates with a variety of transcription factors (i.e. RNF4, HMGA1, gscl, SPBP). We have previously described, by using mice lacking the PATZ1 gene, its crucial role in spermatogenesis. Consistently, PATZ1-KO mice are unfertile and testes from these mice showed only few spermatocyte...

Using gene expression profiling we found that the CBX7 gene was drastically down-regulated in six thyroid carcinoma cell lines versus control cells. This suggested that CBX7 is an oncosuppressor. The aim of this study was to determine whether CBX7 is related to thyroid cancer phenotype, and to try to identify new tools for the diagnosis and prognosis of thyroid cancer. We thus evaluated CBX7 expression in various snap-frozen and paraffin-embedded thyroid carcinoma tissues of d...

Gastrointestinal abnormalities in acromegaly include dolichomegacolon and increased prevalence of colonic polyps. No data are available on the small intestine. The aims of this study were to investigate orocecal transit time (OCTT) and the presence of small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) in acromegaly. 41 acromegalic patients and 30 controls entered the study. Acromegalics were classified according to whether they were on medical treatment with somatostatin analogs (SS...

Background: Parathyroid carcinoma (PC) is rare, usually presenting with hyperparathyroidism and severe hypercalcemia. A standardized diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic approach has not been provided yet and TNM staging algorithm is not universally accepted. Surgery is the first-choice treatment and is the only effective therapy to control hypercalcaemia. Chemo- or radio-therapy, local treatments or novel drugs should be reserved to selected cases.Cas...

Background: Lenvatinib is an oral chemotherapy for metastatic radioiodine-refractory differentiated thyroid cancer (RRDTC) which significantly improves progression free survival (PFS). It has been proved that higher rates of dose interruption or reduction of Lenvatinib have a negative impact on PFS. Patients with active cancer, such as RRDTC, have an increased risk of contracting Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV2) and developing complications, especial...

Objective: Oxidative stress has been implicated in the pathogenesis of hyperthyroidism, and its complications. Advanced glycation end products (AGEs), compounds derived from non-enzymatic transformation of macromolecules, are able to increase oxidative stress and promote inflammation and are increased in several oxidative stress-related disorders, including autoimmune thyroiditis. In the same diseases, the activity of paraoxonase-1 (PON-1), an anti-oxidant enzyme protecting ag...

Background: We report a case of a patient with an ileocecal neuroendocrine tumor (NET) metastatic to both breasts, for whom the initial clinical presentation was chronic diarrhea Breast metastases were initially suspected by a 68-Gallium DOTANOC PET/CT and were confirmed by histopathology. We also performed a comprehensive (non-systematic) literature review through which we identified 116 cases of NENs metastatic to breast.Methods: Case report and compre...

Background: Lymphocytic infiltration and inflammation in autoimmune thyroid diseases (AITDs) results in accumulation of HA, contributing to the pathogenesis of both thyroidal and extra-thyroidal (ophthalmopathy, pretibial dermopathy and mixedema) manifestations of AITDs. HA fragments, originating from native HA during tissue inflammation and injury, in turn promote the expression of different mediators of oxidative stress and inflammation, by interacting with the Toll-like rec...

Objective: AGEs, compounds formed by the transformation of proteins, are increased in conditions of oxidative stress and promote inflammation by interacting with their receptor (RAGE) on cell membrane. By contrast, the soluble receptor for AGE (sRAGE), that is proteolytically cleaved from cell surface receptor via matrix metalloproteinases, sequester RAGE ligands and act as a cytoprotective and anti-inflammatory agent. AGEs/sRAGE interaction play a role in the pathogenesis of ...