Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Iodine-131 (I-131) has been used to treat hyperthyroidism for half a century. Recent recommendations from the RCP London and British Thyroid Association suggest 400 MBq in most cases, but 500–600 MBq for toxic multinodular goitre (MNG). We have reviewed our clinic data with particular reference to response to a standard dose, 400 MBq, given to treat hyperthyroidism.Method: Casenotes of 88 patients who received 400 MBq I-131 for hyperthyr...

A pre-diabetes state, Impaired Glucose Tolerance (IGT), is recognised as a natural stage in the development of diabetes with blood glucose levels gradually rising over time until levels consistent with diabetes are reached. In addition, people with IGT have a 2–3 times greater risk of macrovascular disease than euglycaemic subjects. Three recent studies demonstrate benefits of intensive lifestyle modification in people with IGT in preventing diabetes. Hence, education of ...

Testosterone (T) acts as a coronary vasodilator and reduces myocardial ischemia in men with coronary heart disease. We have previously demonstrated that T inhibits the pore forming alpha1c subunit of the cardiovascular L-type calcium channel in HEK293 cells. In this study we investigated the effects of T and 5β-dihydrotestosterone (5β-DHT) on extracellular calcium entry in A7r5 vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). A7r5 cells grown on coverslips in 12-well plates in ...

ObjectiveThere is large inter-individual variation in the growth hormone (GH) response to resistance exercise, but the intra-individual variation is unknown. This study aimed to determine the reproducibility of the GH response to a 30-min resistance exercise session.DesignFollowing local Ethics Committee approval, nine male participants were familiarised before completing three trials in a random order. Durin...

Objective: To assess the understanding of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) among families of Caucasian White (W) and Asian (A) with CAH, and also to evaluate the need for interpreters for Asian families attending the North West Regional CAH clinic.Design: A parent directed questionnaire was administered by two interviewers, one of whom spoke Urdu,Punjabi and Bengali to 18 A families ( M = 8 F=18) and 39 W families (M=20 F=22) with children with CAH, ...

An 18-year old male presented with galactorrhoaea and obesity. PRL measured 16,630 mU/l, FSH 6.0 U/l, LH 5.0 U/l, testosterone 8.6 nmol/l, SHBG 15.0 nmol/l, IGF-1 22.0 nmol/l and TSH 1.39 mU/l. Several 24-hour urinary free cortisol estimations excluded hypercortisolism. Short synacthen test confirmed an intact HPA axis. Visual fields were full. Pituitary-MRI revealed a large adenoma extending into the right cavernous sinus without suprasellar extension. PRL started declining u...

Leptin is known to be produced by human pituitary adenomas, and inhibits the proliferation of HP75 cells in vitro. The HP75 cell line is derived from gonadotroph tumour cells from a clinically non-functioning human pituitary adenoma transfected with SV40. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of interleukins (IL) IL1-alpha and IL-6 on growth of HP75 cells and their effects on the growth inhibitory actions of leptin.HP75 cells were plated in 2...

BACKGROUND: We have previously shown that men with coronary artery disease (CAD) have lower serum bioavailable testosterone levels than men with normal coronary arteries and this may have detrimental effects in coronary disease. It has been suggested that low androgen levels in men with CAD could be accounted for by the high prevalence of statin therapy and other factors such as smoking. We investigated the effects of statin therapy and smoking on testosterone in men with CAD....

Objectives: Testosterone deficiency has been associated with depressive symptoms, which may be improved by replacement therapy. Patients with chronic heart failure have a high prevalence of depression, which is associated with early mortality in these patients. Men with heart failure may also have low plasma levels of testosterone, which could contribute to depressed mood. In a clinical study investigating whether testosterone treatment benefits men with heart failure, patient...

Mutations in each of the 4 subunits of succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) – SDHA, B, C and D predispose to development of phaeochromocytomas and paragangliomas. Loss of SDH function leads to accumulation of succinate which acts as an oncometabolite to drive tumourigenesis. However, mutations in SDHB have an increased likelihood of causing metastatic disease, compared to mutations in the other SDH subunits. The reasons behind this increased risk remai...