Endocrine Abstracts

G-protein subunit α-11 (Gα11), which is encoded by GNA11, plays a major role in calcium homeostasis by regulating parathyroid hormone (PTH) secretion, and germline loss-of-function mutations cause familial hypocalciuric hypercalcaemia type 2 (FHH2). Since Gα11 is ubiquitously expressed, we investigated whether FHH2 is associated with additional non-calcitropic phenotypes by analysing mice harbouring a homozygous germline deletion o...

Background and aim: The dual-release hydrocortisone Plenadren® has shown promising results of improved cardiovascular and metabolic profiles after treatment of adrenal insufficiency, possibly due to an improved circadian profile of cortisol, but results are ambiguous. Aim: To further investigate the potential effect of dual-release hydrocortisone on the metabolic profile as compared to conventional hydrocortisone in patients with secondary adrenal i...

Background: Non-functioning pituitary adenomas (NFPAs) necessitate prolonged clinical, biochemical and radiological observation, constituting a significant burden in terms of medical resources and societal costs. Reliable biomarkers associated with aggressiveness and recurrence of NFPAs are lacking. As the growth of tumor remnants is highly variable, molecular markers that can predict growth potential and tumor behavior are necessary.Aim: To identify tar...

Background: Octreotide s.c. depot is a novel, ready-to-use formulation administered via a thin needle, which may allow self-administration. In a phase 1 study in healthy volunteers, octreotide s.c. depot provided greater bioavailability with faster onset and greater IGF1 suppression than long-acting octreotide. Here, we present data from a phase 2 study evaluating pharmacokinetics (PK), efficacy, safety, and tolerability of octreotide s.c. depot in patients with acromegaly and...

Introduction: Glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide (GIP) induces the cytokine interleukin (IL)-6 in adipocytes. IL-6 enhances insulin secretion from β-cells via L- and α-cell-derived GLP-1.Therefore we hypothesized that GIP regulates Glucagon-like peptide (GLP)-1 as well as glucose control via IL-6.Methods/Design: Basic research study on isolated human and mouse pancreatic islets and FACS-sorted human α-and β-cells that were treat...

Background: Patients on long-term glucocorticoid treatment are at risk of adrenal insufficiency during glucocorticoid treatment. The side effect can occur during glucocorticoid treatment if there is a mismatch between glucocorticoid requirements and production/intake. High-dose glucocorticoid treatment is often sufficient to overcome most stressful situations. A low-dose of 5 mg prednisolone/day is however, equivalent to 20 mg hydrocortisone, a dose often used as basal glucoco...

Many patients with primary adrenal insufficiency (Addison’s disease) take extra doses of glucocorticoids before or during stressful events, but benefit has not been demonstrated. We aimed to test the effect of an extra dose of glucocorticoids on cardiorespiratory, hormonal and metabolic parameters in response to physical activity in a randomised placebo-controlled, 2-weeks cross-over, clinical trial (clinicaltrials.gov NTC01847690). Ten women with Addison’s disease a...

Background: Conventional glucocorticoid replacement therapy in patients with Addison’s disease (AD) is unphysiological with possible adverse effects on mortality, morbidity and quality of life. Physiological amounts of glucocorticoids are required for normal GH production and release and a chronically raised cortisol level, suppresses the secretion of GH with possible metabolic and cardiovascular consequences. The diurnal cortisol profile can likely be restored by continu...

Objective: We aimed to assess the prevalence of glucocorticoid-induced adrenal insufficiency in prednisolone treated patients, and its relation to glucocorticoid dose and duration of treatment.Subjects and measures: As part of a larger study 48 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (33 women, aged 34–85 years) treated with a mean prednisolone dose of 7.0 mg (range 5–20 mg) per day, and a mean duration of treatment of 95 months (range: 6–360 m...

Introduction: Phthalates are suspected to influence thyroid function in epidemiologic and experimental animal studies. The aim of the study was to investigate the ability of primary human thyroid cell cultures to metabolise phthalates and a possible concentration-dependent response of phthalates on thyroglobulin (Tg) secretion.Methods: Human thyrocytes obtained from thyroidectomies were cultured to confluent monolayers. These were exposed to DEHP in conc...