Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1) has been associated with several human metabolic disorders and is converted from inactive 11-keto form to glucocorticoid (GC or cortisol). GC overproduction or hypercortisolism is a major diagnostic factor of Cushing syndrome and Anorexia. GCs regulate carbohydrate, fat, and protein metabolism.Materials and methods: Previously we established porcine fibroblasts overexpressing 11&#...

Introduction: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) affects up to 20% of a Western population and is associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and type 2 diabetes (T2D). OSA is characterized by intermittent episodes of hypoxia (IH) that occur during sleep. It is not yet known if IH is directly linked to insulin resistance within key metabolic target tissues (adipose; liver and skeletal muscle) and what the potential underlying mechanism may be. It has been suggested that indiv...

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stromal cells that can differentiate into various types of cells including chondrocytes, osteoblasts and adipocytes. Since these types of cells are simultaneously derived from the same precursor cell, adipogenesis and osteoblastogenesis are thought to be counter-related. It is well-known that chronic treatment of steroid can induce Cushing’s syndrome which has phenotypes like visceral adiposity and osteoporosis. Cell fate of d...

Steroid hormones and bile acids are potent regulators of metabolism. The enzyme 5β-reductase (AKR1D1) has a crucial role in bile acid synthesis and also generates 5β-reduced dihydrosteroid metabolites, regulating intra-cellular steroid availability though the clearance of cortisol, testosterone, androstenedione, and progesterone. As AKR1D1 sits at the interface of bile acid synthesis and steroid metabolism, we have hypothesised that it plays a key role in metabolic h...