Endocrine Abstracts

Modern methods of induction of ovulation and assisted conception techniques have offered renewed hope for many infertile couples, including those with genetic causes of infertility. Turner's syndrome is, of course, characterised by primary ovarian failure and although spontaneous ovulation and conceptions have occasionally been reported, (usually in mosaic forms of Turner's) these events are rare and unpredictable. Attempts to induce ovulation are futile. The most realistic ch...

Although leptin is important in the control of appetite and energy expenditure in adulthood, its actions before birth are unclear. This study investigated the effects of leptin on hepatic carbohydrate metabolism and insulin signalling in fetal sheep. Twelve sheep fetuses were chronically-catheterised at 115–120 d of gestation (term 145±2 d), and infused intravenously with saline (0.9% NaCl; n=6) or recombinant ovine leptin (0.5–1.0 mg/kg/d; Protein Labora...

Background: Growth hormone (GH) excess is associated with increased insulin resistance (IR). Lanreotide autogel (Autogel) reduces GH-levels effectively in patients with active acromegaly. However, the effect of somatatostatin analogues on IR and (-cell function (HOMA %B) is complex and unpredictable. Our study prospectively monitored IR and related metabolic parameters in acromegalics treated with Autogel.Methods: Nine patients (P) with active acromegaly...

A 29 year old male and his wife presented with an 18 month history of primary infertility. History and initial investigations suggested no major female component but a semen analysis revealed azoospermia. There was no history of any sexual dysfunction and neither partner was receiving any medication. Clinical examination revealed normal secondary sexual characteristics. Both testicles were of normal consistency with a volume of approximately 15mls but a 4x2cm mass was palpable...

Innate immune cells, including macrophages, are functionally affected by thyroid hormone (TH). Macrophages can undergo phenotypical alterations, shifting between pro-inflammatory (M1) and anti-inflammatory (M2) profiles. Previous studies have established that increased TH concentrations shift macrophages into a more pro-inflammatory phenotype. Cellular TH concentrations are, in part, determined by TH transporters, cellular gateways facilitating bidirectional TH transport. An i...

Background/aims: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder in women, being characterized by ovarian hyperandrogenism attributed to intrinsic overproduction by theca cells (TCs). Although previous reports pointed a higher stability and transcription of CYP17mRNA (Wickenheisser JK et al. 2006)1, few have examined (and none has quantified) P450c17 protein expression in TCs from PCOS ovaries. Therefore, the aim of this study is to qua...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is characterised by hyperandrogenism and insulin resistance. It is thought that androgen excess contributes to the mechanism of insulin resistance. Granulosa cells in PCOS demonstrate impaired insulin-induced glucose uptake and lactate accumulation1. The aim of this study was to characterise insulin signalling (via the PI3-Kinase (PI3-K) pathway) and glucose metabolism in an immortalised mouse granulosa cell line (KK1)2, a...

Insulin resistance is common in women with PCOS. Insulin and IGF-1 affect glucose uptake and metabolism via insulin receptor substrate (IRS-1) and the phosphotidyl inositol-3-kinase (PI3K) pathway. Impaired glucose metabolism has been observed in granulosa-lutein cells from anovulatory (but not ovulatory) women with PCO (Rice et al. 2005). The aim of this study was to analyse IRS-1 protein expression in human preantral follicles in samples of normal and PCO. Immunohisto...

Preantral follicle development in polycystic ovaries (PCO) is characterised by an increased proportion of early growing follicles. We have previously shown that IGF-1 stimulates initiation of follicle growth in normal and PCO (Endocrine Abstracts 2004 7 P172). Here we have extended these studies, specifically to examine whether the ovulatory status of the patients from whom tissue is obtained influences the response to IGF-1. Small ovarian biopsies were obtained (with ethical ...

The recent recommendations from the joint ESHRE/ASRM expert panel regarding the definition of PCOS (the so-called Rotterdam Criteria) have given rise to considerable controversy, particularly over the inclusion of anovulatory women with polycystic ovaries (PCO) but without evidence of androgen excess. We reviewed the results of a large series of anovulatory women with PCO who have been treated with low-dose FSH at our centre with the aim of investigating the impact of serum te...