Endocrine Abstracts

With over 650 million people obese in 2016 and 2.8 million people dying a year from being overweight or obese, the obesity epidemic is now linked to more deaths worldwide than being underweight. This high mortality rate and disease burden are potentially preventable if risk factors such as unhealthy diet and physical inactivity were eliminated. The classification of obesity is defined as a Body Mass Index (BMI) equal to or above 30 kg/m2. Weight management services ...

Bisphosphonates are the mainstay of treatment for metabolic bone diseases such as post-menopausal osteoporosis and Paget’s disease. Enormous progress has been made over the last few years in understanding how these drugs act at the molecular level. After targeting bone and selective internalisation by osteoclasts, simple bisphosphonates are incorporated into cytotoxic, non-hydrolysable analogues of ATP. By contrast, the more potent nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates inhi...

Bisphosphonates are powerful inhibitors of bone resorption and have become blockbuster drugs in the treatment of metabolic bone diseases. Enormous progress has been made over the last few years in understanding exactly how bisphosphonate drugs act at the molecular level. After targeting bone and selective internalisation by osteoclasts, nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates potently inhibit FPP synthase. Inhibition of this enzyme disrupts the flux through the mevalonate pathway,...

There is little information on the effects on pituitary function of cranial irradiation for non-pituitary tumours. We have studied anterior and posterior pituitary function in 17 patients (6 males), with a median age 19 years (range 5-48) at the time of radiotherapy. 16 patients had primary brain tumours and one had acute lymphocytic leukaemia. The patients were selected by the radiotherapists for investigation . Pituitary functions were assessed at a median of 60 months (rang...

Background: Primary hyperaldosteronism (PHA) typically manifests as resistant hypertension, hypokalaemia and metabolic alkalosis. We present a case of PHA who subsequently exposed type 4 renal tubular acidosis (RTA) after surgical intervention.Case history: A 62 year old man underwent investigation for chronic resistant hypertension, which had failed to respond to titration of three antihypertensive agents including Perindopril, Amlodipine and Doxazosin....

Familial hypocalciuric hypercalcaemia type-3 (FHH3) is caused by loss-of-function mutations of the sigma subunit of adaptor protein-2 (AP2), a ubiquitously expressed heterotetrameric protein with a fundamental role in endocytosis of transmembrane proteins. FHH3-associated AP2σ mutations impair internalisation of calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) giving rise to FHH. CaSR predominantly signals via Gαq/11 leading to intracellular calcium release, and activation...

Screening for coeliac disease is routine at annual review in the Oxfordshire Children’s Diabetes Service and oro-gastro-duodenoscopy (OGD) is carried out following positive serology. Our protocol for Diabetes management during Day Case Endoscopy for confirming CD was revised in 2002 following audit. We re-audited our current practice to check adherence to the protocol and degree of blood glucose control.Data was collected from case notes, nursing no...

The hypothalamus plays a key role in the control of appetite and energy balance. The endogenous cannabinoids are widely distributed throughout the brain, including the hypothalamus, together with specific cannabinoid-1 (CB-1) receptors. Endogenous and exogenous cannabinoids induce hyperphagia, whereas the selective CB-1 receptor antagonist, SR 141716 (rimonabant), inhibits feeding and CB-1 knockout animals are leaner and eat less after an overnight fast. Ghrelin, the recently ...

The vitamin D receptor (VDR) polymorphism, BsmI, has previously been associated with the efficacy of raloxifene therapy. The aim of this study was to examine associations between the BsmI and FokI polymorphisms of the VDR gene and bone density and bone turnover response to raloxifene. One hundred osteopenic postmenopausal women (ages 52 to 80 years, mean 64 years) were prescribed raloxifene (60mg/day) and calcium carbonate (500mg/day) for 48 weeks. Bone density at the lumbar s...

Recent evidence suggests a high prevalence of neuroendocrine dysfunction in patients following traumatic brain injury (TBI), but dynamic anterior pituitary assessment were performed in relatively small number of patients and posterior pituitary function remains poorly investigated.We studied 102 consecutive patients (84 males) who had survived severe or moderate TBI [initial Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) score 3-13] at a mean (+/- standard deviation) of 19 +/...