Endocrine Abstracts

OBJECTIVE: To quantify the extent of change in total body water (TBW) and nature of its relationship with changes in body composition, measured by direct methods, during physiological GH replacement in severely GHD adults.METHODS: Thirty (16 female, age range 17-65 years) severely GHD adults were studied. Patients with diabetes insipidus, cardiovascular or renal disease requiring diuretic therapy were excluded. Patients with other pituitary deficits had ...

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the quality of life improvement, observed with long-term physiological GH replacement, is correlated with favourable changes in body composition or total body water (TBW) measured by direct methods.METHODS: Thirty (16 female, age range 17-65 years) severely GHD adults were studied. Patients with diabetes insipidus, cardiovascular or renal disease requiring diuretic therapy were excluded. Patients with additional pituitary ...

Gene arrays are a powerful tool to search for novel targets of drug action and disease-specific patterns of gene expression. GH has pleiotropic actions and thus a wide range of potential gene targets. Using an accessible tissue, namely peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNCs), we have started to explore the use of gene arrays in the context of the in-vivo response to GH treatment.PBMNCs were obtained with consent and ethical permission from 2 prepuber...

A number of tissues have been identified as non-classical targets of oestrogen action. Oestrogen can significantly influence the hair cycle and the human hair follicle provides an accessible tissue to investigate mesenchymal:epithelial interactions in vitro. Recently, oestrogen receptor alpha (ERalpha) and beta (ERbeta) have been identified in human hair follicle cells. Although human hair follicles vary significantly with body site, non-balding scalp follicles have not been r...

The capacity of the adrenal to produce steroids is controlled in part through the transcriptional regulation of steroid enzymes. Steroidogenic factor 1 (SF-1), an orphan nuclear receptor is thought to be central to the transcriptional regulation of all steroid hydroxylase enzymes. Recently co-regulatory proteins have been implicated in the modulation of nuclear receptor transcriptional activity. We hypothesised that classic and novel secretogogues, including forskolin, angiote...

Introduction:Hypothyroidism may be associated with bradycardia, low voltage complexes,ST-T wave changes, atrioventricular and intraventricular conduction disturbances. Extrasystoles and tachyarrhythmias of both atrial and ventricular origins have been described in hypothyroidism with the ventricular tachyarrhythmias associated with prolonged QT interval.Aims: To ascertain the prevalence of cardiac arrhythmias in primary hypothyroidism.<p class="abste...

Objective: Despite being the most common endocrine malignancy, the management of thyroid cancer in the UK remains sub-optimal, with reduced survival rates compared with Western Europe. The British Thyroid association published national guidelines in March 2002 to help standardize and improve the management and survival of thyroid cancer in the UK. We have audited the management of thyroid cancer in a large district hospital comparing the results to the standards set by the Bri...

Objective: Despite being the most common endocrine malignancy, the management of thyroid cancer in the UK remains sub-optimal, with reduced survival rates compared with Western Europe. The British Thyroid association published national guidelines in March 2002 to help standardize and improve the management and survival of thyroid cancer in the UK. We have audited the management of thyroid cancer in a large district hospital comparing the results to the standards set by the Bri...

Today prolactin (PRL) has been demonstrated to regulate more then 300 different biological functions, including metabolism during lactation and in subjects with hyperprolactinemia. However, the mechanisms for how PRL regulates the adipose tissue in humans and rodents have remained unclear. We recently reported PRL receptor (PRLR) expression in the adipose tissue of lactating and in PRL-transgenic mice. These results suggest PRLR-mediated effects in adipose tissue. However, to ...

Context: Glucocorticoids have adverse systemic effects which may predispose to cardiovascular disease. The effect of glucocorticoid use on cardiovascular disease has not been assessed.Objective: To test the hypothesis that users of exogenous glucocorticoids have a dose-dependent increased risk of cardiovascular disease; in particular, that supraphysiological doses will be associated with cardiovascular disease.Design: A cohort study using a record linkage database....