Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Adrenal masses discovered incidentally during imaging studies (adrenal incidentalomas – AIs) are common and prompt investigations to exclude secretory lesions and malignancy. Uncertainty exists over the best management strategy of AI.Objective: To monitor the current practice against the local protocol and existing guidelines; to identify the biochemical and imaging outcomes in a single centre cohort.Methods: Retro...

Background: Obese young people are likely to suffer significant morbidity in adult life. Successful intervention during adolescence may have far-reaching benefits. Evidence is emerging that patient-responsive clinical services may deliver improved outcomes.Aims: To assess the perceptions of obese young people about weight and weight-management services.Method: Annonymised, postal questionnaire survey of 116 obese young people (9&#1...

Sex steroid concentrations have a strong genetic determination, but environmental factors and body composition play an important role. Intrauterine growth restriction, evidenced by low birth weight has been associated with altered gonadotropin metabolism. If this relationship is also present across the wide range of birth weight is unkown. Serum sex steroid concentrations were investigated in healthy young brothers in relation to birth weight, body composition and parental ste...

Objective: The human androgen recteptor (AR) contains a polyglutamine and a polyglycine stretch that are highly polymorphic and are coded by a CAG and GGN repeat, respectively, in exon 1 of the AR gene. Although in vitro studies indicated a possible effect on AR gene tanscription and clinical observations suggest a modulation of androgen action, the functional significance of the GGN repeat remains unclear.We wanted to assess whether the GGN repea...

Introduction: Several numerical chromosome abberations are known in men. Of those the karyotype XXY (Klinefelter syndrome KS) is the most common chromosomal disorder with a prevalence of about one in 500 live-born males. KS is associated with hypogonadism and is suspected to cause variable physical and cognitive abnormalities. As a supernumerary X chromosome is also associated with infertility, sound animal models for KS are difficult to obtain.Methods: ...

Background: Abrupt catecholamine release may cause paroxysmal attacks in patients with pheochromocytoma, and is associated with major hemodynamic changes during adrenalectomy. We investigated whether preoperative paroxysmal attacks are associated with further intraoperative adverse hemodynamic changes during adrenalectomy for pheochromocytoma.Material and methods: From 1994 to 2006, 88 patients underwent laparoscopic adrenalectomy for pheochromocytoma. I...

Illicit expression of membrane receptors for circulating regulatory factors, such as GIP and LH receptors, has been well documented in ACTH-independent macronodular adrenal hyperplasias (AIMAHs) causing Cushing’s syndrome. In addition, we have observed an abnormal expression of serotonin, arginine vasopressin and ACTH in a subpopulation of steroidogenic cells in two AIMAH tissues. The aim of the present study was: (i) to investigate the presence of ACTH by immunohistochem...

More than twenty years after Chernobyl nuclear power plant explosion, radionuclides are still mainly bound to the organic soil layers. Currently, the radiation exposure is dominated by the internal exposure to gamma-radiation following the decay of 137Cs, due to presence of 137Cs into the food chain. Because of this persistence of contamination with 137Cs, questions regarding public health for people living in contaminated areas were raised. Se...

Uranium is the heaviest naturally occurring element found in the Earth’s crust. It is an alpha-emitter radioactive element that present both radiotoxicant and chemotoxicant properties. Uranium is present in environment as a result of natural deposits and releases by human applications (mill tailings, nuclear industry and military army). Populations could thus be exposed to uranium either through their drinking water or the food chain.Natural uranium...

The development of diabetes mellitus type 2 (T2DM) is affected by genetic and lifestyle factors. Polymorphisms within the KIR6.2 gene seem to be associated with a higher risk for T2DM. The protein encoded by this gene represents a potassium channel, which plays an essential role in insulin and glucagon secretion by the pancreas.A hyperglycaemic clamp without insulin was performed over 2 h in 10 healthy persons with the Kir6.2 E23K wild type Glu/Glu, 10 a...