Endocrine Abstracts

The factors responsible for regulating primordial follicle activation and early preantral follicle growth remain poorly understood, despite their importance in determining a female’s reproductive lifespan. The essential role of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) family of receptors (ErbBs) during ovulation is well established; however there is emerging evidence that ErbBs may also be important regulators of early follicle development. This study aimed to investigate the ro...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrinopathy that is associated with an adverse metabolic profile including insulin resistance and dyslipidaemia. Hyperandrogenism is the hallmark of PCOS and obesity increases androgen synthesis, partly due to accompanying hyperinsulinemia but also as a result of adipokines affecting ovarian steroidogenesis (Comim et al., 2013, PLoS ONE 8(11). Adipokines are factors secreted by adipose tissue and while a clear link betwe...

We have reviewed the outcome of a low-dose step-up regimen for induction of ovulation in clomiphene-unresponsive women with PCOS and in women with hypothalamic hypogonadism (HH), treated at a single centre. Data from 366 women with PCOS and 80 with HH (1165 records) were entered into a FileMakerPro database, refined and constrained to allow stratification and analysis of relevant data. 85% of cycles were ovulatory in both PCOS and HH. PCOS patients were more likely to have cyc...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common endocrinopathy is associated with an adverse metabolic profile including obesity, insulin resistance, and dyslipidaemia. Hyperandrogenism is the hallmark of PCOS and androgen production is increased in the presence of increased adiposity. While a clear link between obesity and the severity of PCOS exists, the relationship between hyperandrogenism and adipose tissue is less clear. Interestingly, women with PCOS and raised androgen le...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the commonest endocrine disorder in women of reproductive age. It is characterised by excessive ovarian androgen production which, in turn, has been implicated in the aetiology of aberrant follicular development. We have previously reported that prenatal exposure to androgens activates follicle growth1. It has been suggested that androgens may interact with the IGFs to promote the activation and growth of follicles. The aim of thi...

Objectives: To examine the effect on weight change of diet/lifestyle advice to maintain/achieve a healthy weight in an unselected PCOS population.Methods: All overweight patients attending the Reproductive Endocrine clinic with PCOS are routinely given lifestyle advice for weight loss by their consultant, offered referral to see a dietician and, when clinically appropriate, prescribed orlistat. Clinical notes were reviewed for 50 consecutive patients wit...

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with insulin resistance. Abnormally low glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) expression has been shown in adipocytes from subjects with PCOS1 and skeletal muscle from type 2 diabetics2. Although GLUT4 expression is mostly restricted to classic insulin target tissues such as skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle and adipose, we have found it in granulosa cells (GCs) of mice3. Glucose uptake and metabolism by GCs...

Background: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is the most common endocrine disorder in women. It is characterized by hyperandrogenism, which results primarily from excess androgen production by ovarian theca cells (TCs). Obesity contributes to androgen excess in PCOS and previous studies in vitro using bovine TCs have shown that adiponectin (production of which is inhibited in PCOS) is a repressor of P450c17 activity. However, little is known about expression of adiponec...

Initial follicle growth results in a number of distinct morphological changes, such as cuboidalisation and proliferation of the granulosa cells (GC) as well as an increase in oocyte size.Cell adhesion molecules and intercellular junctions play a pivotal role in changes in cell shape. We hypothesize that change in GC shape is key, and that increased understanding of changes in cell adhesion and associated junctions will provide insight into the regulation...

In rodents and other mammals, it is well established that the production of certain TGF-β members including Gdf9 and Bmp15 by oocytes is important for follicle development to proceed. It is believed that these growth factors form part of a short loop paracrine system to regulate gene expression in neighbouring follicle cells. We propose that one aspect of this feedback loop may involve the genomic modulation of TGF-β antagonists in granulosa cells by oocyte-secreted ...