Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Post-adrenalectomy persistent hyperkalemia, that lasts >3 months and needs to be treated, is a potentially serious, but not apprehensively investigated complication after surgical treatment in patients with aldosterone-producing adenomas (APA).Case report: A 53-year-old male presented type 2 diabetes mellitus and a 10-year history of resistant hypertension requiring multidrug treatment with antihypertensives of eight different classes. Pr...

Background: Familial Glucocorticoid Deficiency is an autosomal recessive disorder characterised by ACTH resistance of the adrenal cortex, leading to isolated glucocorticoid deficiency. Causative genes include MC2R, its accessory protein MRAP and StAR which account for 50% of cases. Recently nicotinamide nucleotide transhydrogenase (NNT) has been associated with a further 10% of cases. NNT generates the high concentrations of NADPH in mitochondria necessary for detoxification o...

Tanycytes line the wall of the third ventricle sitting at the boundary between the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) and the hypothalamus. Tanycytes actively take up substances from the CSF using their villi-like apical projections that extend into the third ventricle. Retinol is one such compound and can be oxidized by these cells to retinoic acid, which can be released to regulate transcription in the hypothalamus via specific nuclear receptors. Two retinal dehydrogenases (RALDHs)...

Objective: Sporadic adrenocortical tumors are common, but their pathogenesis is poorly elucidated. Several mRNA profiling and comparative genome hybridization (CGH) studies have been performed on adrenocortical tumors to date. Meta-analysis of these results may be warranted due to the low number of tumor samples examined in several individual studies. Here, we present an integrative meta-analysis of gene expression microarray and CGH studies performed to date on sporadic adren...

Introduction: Teriparatide (TPTD) is a recombinant aminoterminal fragment (1–34) of the human parathyroid hormone (PTH), which has a predominantly stimulating effect on bone formation. We report results of an 18-month prospective multicenter study with daily s.c. application of 20 μg of teriparatide in 85 elderly women with severe osteoporosis, the efficacy, safety and compliance of the treatment.Outcomes: The primary outcomes were defined as c...

Background: In pheochromocytomas, the measurement of fractionated metanephrines is the first-line test for diagnosis and the false-positive results remain a problem. Among various parameters and tests used, only the suppression of normetanephrine provides reliable evidence that a pheochromocytoma is not present.Objective: Aim of the study was to analyse the role of clonidine suppression test in laboratory diagnosis of pheochromocytoma.<p class="abste...

The production of iodine containing thyroid hormones necessary for brain development in the fetus depends not only on maternal dietary intake but also on placental iodine transport.Previously, studies focused on finding the optimum level of iodine nutrition for expectant mothers. However, little knowledge exists on the ability of the placenta to either accumulate or even store iodine. This study aims to investigate iodine uptake and tissue iodine content...

Tumour stroma formation is associated with angiogenesis and requires interactions of various different cell types, including endothelial cells and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), which are actively recruited into growing tumour stroma. Thyroid hormones T3 and T4 act as non-classical proangiogenic modulators mediated by non-genomic mechanisms via cell surface receptor integrin αvβ3. The deaminated T4 derivative tetrac is a specific inhibitor of thyroid hormone action a...

Introduction: MicroRNAs (miRNA) are non-coding RNA molecules involved in the posttranscriptional regulation of gene expression. MiRNAs bind mRNA molecules at their 3′ untranslated regions and induce translational repression or target degradation. MiRNAs play important roles in the pathogenesis of several neoplasms. There are no reports, however, on the possible involvement of miRNAs in the pathogenesis of adrenocortical tumors.Objective: To study s...

Background: Abnormal uterine artery Doppler (UtAD) at 23 weeks is considered to be a risk factor for FGR. However, the incidence of being born small for gestational age (SGA) in those with abnormal Doppler is not defined.Aims: 1. To determine the incidence of birthweight<2nd centile (BW<C2nd) in pregnancies at high risk of FGR.2. To determine the effect of specific antenatal FGR risk factors on fetal growth traje...