Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Short stature is a common reason for pediatric endocrine evaluation and it can have a variety of causes, including constitutional, genetic short stature, dysmorphic syndromes, chronic illnesses and also endocrine disorders. Growth hormone deficiency accounts for 8% of the cases and it can be isolated or associated with other pituitary hormones deficiencies, congenital or acquired, such as in central nervous system tumors.Case report: A 15-y...

Hypothalamic–pituitary insufficiency may have diverse causes. Infectious diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) may also affect the hypothalamus and/or the pituitary, although this has not been reported very often and not yet been studied systematically. It was the aim of this study to determine the incidence of hypothalamic–pituitary insufficiency in patients with previous infectious diseases of the CNS of different etiology.Patient seri...

Endogenous as well as exogenous androgens and oestrogen have neuroprotective properties. Oestrogen is formed locally in neural tissue from precursor androgens. In the brain, the expression of aromatase, the enzyme that catalyses the conversion of androgens to oestrogen, is restricted, under normal circumstances, to specific neuronal populations involved in neuroendocrine control and in the modulation of reproductive or sexually dimorphic behaviours. However, the expression of ...

Oxysterols are reactive molecules generated from the oxidation of cholesterol. Few data are available about their functions in myelination of nervous system. Our aim was to study the influence of oxysterols on myelin gene expression and myelin sheath formation by oligodendrocytes (central nervous system), and by Schwann cells (peripheral nervous system). We show by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry that oligodendrocytes and Schwann cells contain 24(S)-hydroxycholesterol, 25...

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) represents a huge public health problem worldwide, being associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular and oncological diseases, and all-cause mortality. There is compelling evidence supporting a key role of dysfunctional autonomic nervous system (ANS) in such an association as well as the mutual correlation between the components of MetS. Autonomic Nervous System Index (ANSI) is a percent ranked (0–100) unitary proxy of cardiac...

Cathepsin K is a cysteine protease known for its importance in bone remodelling. Inhibitors of cathepsin K are in clinical trials for osteoporosis treatment, but side effects included altered levels of related cathepsins in peripheral organs and in the central nervous system (CNS). Importantly, cathepsin K has been identified not only in osteoclasts but also in most epithelia and, recently, in brain parenchyma. Lately, we have also shown that cathepsin K deficiency in mice ind...

During fasting neuropeptide Y (NPY) neurons in the mediobasal hypothalamus are activated to increase food intake and to conserve energy. Under conditions of food deprivation, lipid metabolism plays an important role in providing fuel for muscle. We investigated if central NPY affects VLDL-TAG secretion directly via the autonomic nervous system. We measured VLDL-TAG secretion in Wistar rats by an intravenous bolus of tyloxapol to inhibit uptake of triglycerides by peripheral ti...

Background: Shift workers and rodents with clock gene mutations show increased risk of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Conversely, obesity and T2DM are related to circadian disturbances in humans and rodents. The circadian release of adipokines from white adipose tissue (WAT) plays a pivotal role in energy metabolism. Its regulatory mechanism is unclear at present.Aim: To determine the daily expression patterns of genes involved in circadi...

Gsα is a ubiquitously expressed G protein α-subunit that couples receptors to adenylyl cyclase and cAMP generation. In patients with Albright hereditary osteodystrophy (AHO), heterozygous Gsα mutations only lead to obesity when present on the maternal allele. Similarly, mice with heterozygous germline Gsα mutations on the maternal allele develop severe obesity and insulin resistance with reduced energy expenditure relative t...

11Beta-Hydroxylase (CYP11B1) and aldosterone synthase (CYP11B2) catalyse the synthesis of corticosterone and aldosterone respectively in the rat adrenal cortex. Recent studies have shown that CYP11B1 and CYP11B2 are also expressed in the central nervous system (CNS) but little is known about their regulation. In this study, we have quantified CYP11B1 and CYP11B2 gene expression in the CNS following treatment with ACTH and dexamethasone.Three groups of ma...