Endocrine Abstracts

Background: In GHD adults short-term studies of GH replacement have been reported to improve several aspects of quality of life, in particular energy levels. Only one study to date has examined whether this beneficial effect on QoL is maintained on long-term replacement of greater than five years. Patients & Methods: In 1992 six-twelve months GH replacement was offered to severely GHD adults as part of a randomised placebo controlled study. At baseline 86 pat...

BACKGROUND: We have previously demonstrated that in weight losing gastrointestinal cancer patients appetite is poor despite low circulating leptin concentrations. One explanation for the apparent inability of these low circulating leptin concentrations to increase appetite might be a decrease in the leptin binding component resulting in high concentrations of 'free' biologically active leptin. The present study was designed to investigate this possibility, furthermore the effe...

Background. Recent studies have linked high serum levels of IGF-1 and low levels of IGFBP-3 with an increased risk of colorectal cancer. BP3 has been shown to have IGF-1 independent effects on cell proliferation in breast and prostate cells, but its effects on colon cancer cells is largely unknown. Aims. To determine: 1) the effects of BP-3 on colonic epithelial cell proliferation and apoptosis, and 2) whether any effects are independent of IGF-1. Methods....

The IGF/IGFBPs are important in follicle growth and selection, with IGFBP-4 being one of the major players in this system. We have shown potent, IGF-independent, inhibitory effects of IGFBP-4 on steroidogenesis, explaining its' preferential proteolysis in healthy follicles. Two isoforms of IGFBP-4 exist, non-glycosylated and glycosylated, at approximately 24 and 28kDa, with different susceptibility to proteolysis. We therefore investigated the production of IGFBP-4 isoforms by...

Introduction: Leptin, the product of the obese (ob) gene is secreted predominantly, but not exclusively, from adipose tissue. Fetal plasma concentrations of leptin increase with gestational age in conjunction with an increase in fetal adipose tissue deposition and mRNA abundance for leptin and UCP-1. The present study aimed to determine the effect of chronic fetal leptin infusion on UCP-1 and voltage dependent anion channel (VDAC; located on the outer mitochondrial membrane) a...

IGFs and IGFBPs have an important role in folliculogenesis, with the profile of IGFBPs being different in healthy and atretic follicles. In particular, IGFBP-4, which is a potent inhibitor of steroidogenesis, is preferentially proteolysed in healthy follicles. We therefore investigated the production and activation of IGFBP-4 protease in human follicular cells.Follicles of 3-25mm were dissected from 13 pairs of ovaries collected with ethics committee app...