Endocrine Abstracts

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Thyroid hormone (TH) is essential for the developing nervous system. Early in pregnancy, the maternal thyroid is the fetal brain's sole source of hormone while later, the developing fetal thyroid assumes an increasingly greater role to be fully independent by term. Because brain structures vary as to timing of need for TH, different types of brain impairment and, correspondingly, different neurobehavioral deficits reflect the exact period of TH was insufficient. Several human ...

For the last two decades this laboratory has been investigating the states of vitamin D and gonadal steroid hormone resistance in New World primate (platyrrhine) species. Hormone resistance results from the constitutive over-expression of proteins in the heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein (hnRNP) A and C families. These proteins, originally considered to bind and 'stabilize' single strand pre-mRNAs destined for translation, also bind DNA, regulating both the transcription...

The hormonal form of vitamin D, calcitriol, regulates diverse cellular functions through activation of the vitamin D receptor (VDR), in a manner similar to how other ligands of nuclear receptors elicit regulation of gene transcription. Insufficient or excess calcitriol responses manifest primarily as bone diseases (rickets, osteoporosis, Paget's diseases) and hyperproliferative diseases (psoriasis and cancer). Our long-term objective is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms th...

Many prospective blood-based epidemiological studies have investigated various inflammatory markers as potential predictors and/or determinants of coronary heart disease (CHD) in the general population, such as plasma fibrinogen and C-reactive protein. The interpretation of these studies, has, however, generally been complicated by limited sample size, selective publication, and, most importantly, “confounding” by causative risk factors. Further clarification of th...

It is now realized that the vascular endothelium is the key signal transducer for the disturbed vascular biology that drives atherogenesis. Endothelial dysfunction leads to a pro-coagulant, adhesive, proliferative constrictor phenotype. Inflammation, endothial dysfunction and structural arterial wall changes are already linked by the end of the first decade of life. Classical risk factor burden affects nitric oxide dependent endothelial function and novel influences such as me...

Mammalian genome sequencing has driven the development of new -omic technologies that are capable of defining the genes, proteins and biological pathways that mediate cellular responses to endogenous and exogenous stimuli. We have used transcript profiling, which allows the expression levels of thousands of genes to be measured simultaneously, to define the molecular mechanism of 17beta-estradiol (E2) signalling in vivo, using the rodent uterotrophic assay as a model experimen...

There are two populations of GCs in large antral follicles: mural granulosa cells (MGCs) that line the ovarian follicle wall, and cumulus cells (CCs) closely associated with the oocyte. Among the genes expressed more highly in CCs was one encoding an amino acid transporter (Slc38a3). Slc38a3 mRNA was not detected in oocytes. Expression of Slc38a3 mRNA was reduced in the CCs after removal of the oocyte and restored by co-culturing CCs with fully-grown oocyt...

Until recently, the concept that exogenous chemicals could possess hormonal properties was restricted to consideration of the estrogenicity of phytoestrogens and a few synthetic chemicals, effects first recognized in the 1930s. The picture has now enlarged considerably, and in the process, become more complex. Anti-androgens and biochemical inhibitors have been added to the list of hormonally active synthetic and natural products, and molecular approaches have enabled fundamen...

With the success of statins in lowering LDL cholesterol and reducing cardiovascular disease (CVD) event rate, interest is shifting towards HDL cholesterol (HDL-C) as a potential target for therapeutic intervention.High HDL-C is associated with low CVD event rate. Reverse cholesterol transport may contribute to this association, and describes transfer of cholesterol on HDL particles from peripheral tissues to the liver. The transport process involves: ATP...