Endocrine Abstracts

The testis and epididymis collaborate in the male gamete development. The testis has the specific function to generate spermatozoa and spermatozoa undergo numerous changes passing through the epididymis. p63 in the basal layer of epithelium plays a key role in maintaining cellular populations, whereas Notch 1 and its ligand Jagged 2 have an important role in the cell differentiation and Jagged 2 is up-regulated by TAp63, which transactivates p53 target genes and induces apopto...

PTHrP has been shown to be the primary factor responsible for humoral hypercalcemia of malignancy, and recently PTHrP has been shown to be an early-response gene that may be involved in cellular proliferation or differentiation. 1,25 DHCC and its analoge EB1089 have been reported to inhibits growth of cells derived from a variety of tumours in vitro and in vivo. We have investigated in this study the effect of different 1,25 DHCC and EB1089 doses (from 10&#8...

A high prevalence of rickets in the Gbagyi tribe around Kaduna, Northern Nigeria, has been noted. Multiple affected children born to one wife, but not others, of polygamous men suggests a genetic aetiology.With ethical approval, children with deformities characteristic of rickets (genu varum/valgum, rachitic rosary) were identified, clinical histories obtained and examination points documented included genu valgus/varus distances and other limb deformiti...

Midgut Carcinoid disease (MGC) is uncommon, occurring in approximately 1.4 per 100,000 of the population per year. MGC has an unpredictable disease progression varying from rapid and aggressive to slow and indolent. For this reason it is not appropriate to treat all patients according to the same schedule. As some treatments are not without risk, it is important to identify those patients selected for these options at an appropriate stage of disease.In a...

UO-44 is a novel protein of unknown function which was described in uterus, medium-size ovarian follicles, oviduct and pancreas of different mammalian species. Using differential display analysis in preimplantation rat uteri, Chen et al. 1999 cloned and described it as an estradiol responsive gene named estrogen regulated gene 1 (ERG-1). Subsequent characterization showed that its expression was modified through pregnancy. The human ortholog (HuUO-44) was cloned and cha...

In April 1986, the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant resulted in widespread radioactive contamination in southern Belarus, northern Ukraine and southern Russia. The main radiation dose was to the thyroid and came from exposure to I131 from drinking contaminated milk. A substantial increase in thyroid cancer incidence in children was observed as early as 5 years after the accident. The first report in 1992 described 114 cases of thyroid cancer in childre...

Glucocorticoids (Gcs) act through the ubiquitously expressed glucocorticoid receptor (GR). Transcriptional activation by the GR involves interaction with co-modulator proteins, the expression level of which can mediate Gc sensitivity. The aim of this study was to identify additional GR interacting proteins that may influence Gc sensitivity.Using a yeast two-hybrid screen we identified a novel GR interacting protein, R59, which showed an enhanced interact...

Alterations in the rate of glucocorticoid(GC) metabolism induce compensatory changes in GC secretion under the control of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The principal routes of metabolic clearance of GCs are by hepatic A-ring reduction however the regulation of these enzymes is poorly understood. Recently we and others have demonstrated that bile acids act as potent inhibitors of GC metabolism by 5beta-reductase and 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases in vi...

Glucocorticoids (Gcs) exert their pleiotropic effects through activation of the ubiquitously expressed glucocorticoid receptor (GR). The mechanism of transcriptional activation by the GR involves interaction with co-modulator proteins. Glucocorticoid sensitivity is mediated by the expression level of these co-modulator proteins and GR concentration. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify additional GR interacting proteins that may influence glucocorticoid sensitivity...

Vascular calcification is a regulated process with similarities to osteogenesis, however, the precise mechanism underlying this process is poorly understood. Pericytes are pluripotential microvascular cells which have been shown to differentiate along an osteogenic lineage. Glucocorticoids are widely prescribed drugs but have adverse side-effects including both vascular lesion formation and bone loss. The mechanism underpinning the contrasting effects of dexamethasone (dex) on...