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Thirty years ago, the group of Baulieu and colleagues discovered that certain steroid hormones were present in higher amounts in the brain than in the plasma, and also found that suppression of circulating steroids by adrenalectomy and castration did not affect the concentration of pregnenolone, dehydroepiandrosterone and their sulfate esters in the rat brain. These seminal observations led to the concept that the brain, in very much the same way as the adrenal cortex, testis, ovary and placenta, was capable of synthesizing steroids. These brain born steroids, called neurosteroids, have been found to exert a vast array of biological activities. A number of steroidogenic enzymes have now been identified in the central nervous system by immunohistochemistry and in situ hybridization, and the neuronal and hormonal mechanisms regulating the biosynthesis of neurosteroids have been partially elucidated. The aim of this Research Topic is to celebrate three decades of research on neurosteroids by gathering a bouquet of review papers and original articles from leading scientists in the flourishing field of neurosteroids.
Growth Hormone is a fitting addition to the Endocrine Updates Series. The aim of these publications is to provide the clinician with cutting-edge, yet succinct, access to the latest advances in endocrinology. Current interest in this rapidly evolving area of endocrinology makes this a timely and important update. Growth Hormone joins Dr. Fagin's Thyroid Cancer in continuing the standard of excellence as the fourth volume in this series of topical updates. Shlomo Melmed, MD, Series Editor, Endocrine Updates Ten years ago, many endocrinologists were still skeptical that growth hormone (GH) played an active role in adult metabolism. This is, perhaps, surprising given that GH deficiency (GHD) in...
This publication focuses on the subject of signal transduction and its role in the pathogenesis and progression of human breast cancer. Within the past 10 years, the explosion in our knowledge of these processes has significantly altered our understanding of breast cancer, and resulted in the first receptor-based therapies. This volume examines a variety of relevant signalling pathways in mammary epithelium and explores their mechanisms and functional contribution to the evolution of this disease. The articles herein explore receptor-based signalling that occurs both at the cell surface and within the nucleus that controls the gene expression required for the breast cancer phenotype. Of course, any good series of reviews should open up more questions than they answer, and the current collection of review provides no exception. It is our desire that the discussions engendered by the reviews herein stimulate additional research on these topics. Clearly, further mechanistic understanding of these underpinnings of breast neoplasia has been and will be the wellspring for novel therapies of this disease.
It has been over 40 years since the original report by Salmon and Daughaday demon strating that the ability of GH to stimulate sulfation of cartilage was mediated by a "sulfation factor. " In the ensuing decades, it has become apparent that this "sulfation factor activity" encompasses a complex system ofligands (IGFs), receptors, and carrier proteins that are, in tum, responsible for a wide array of cellular actions. The IGF system has been demonstrated to be critically involved in both intrauterine and postnatal growth, and to have important implications in cancer biology as well, owing to the ability of the IGFs to function in endocrine, paracrine, and autocrine modes and given the wide di...
Over the past five years there has been an explosion of "targeted therapies" for cancer treatment. In most cases, these therapies have been based on pre-clinical data showing that specific molecules play an important role in regulating the malignant phenotype. In breast cancer, there is compelling rationale that such targeted strategies should be successful. Targeting of estrogen receptor ? (ER?) has proven to be a successful way to reduce breast cancer risk, decrease the risk of death and recurrence in an adjuvant setting, and remains the first choice of treatment for advanced disease. With this success, it is hoped that other molecular pathways could also be successfully exploited. This pu...
The hypothalamus plays a crucial role in the regulation of food intake and energy homeostasis. Hypothalamic neuronal circuits thus represent a privileged target for the treatment of eating disorders and metabolic diseases. The present eBook constitutes a unique collection of research articles and reviews that highlight new concepts and recent findings about the neuroendocrine control of feeding behavior.
This issue of Endocrinology Clinics brings the reader up to date on the important advances in research surrounding the neuroendocrine control of metabolism. Guest edited by Christoph Buettner, the topics covered include leptin signaling, hypothalamic inflammation, hypoglycemia awareness, perinatal programming of metabolic disease, substrates, and more.