ESPE Yearbook of Paediatric Endocrinology

Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2021;106(2):431–441. doi: 10.1210/clinem/dgaa842. PMID: 33205215This study aimed to describe the clinical characteristics of 6 patients with NPR2 gene mutations and the response to rhGH treatment in 2 of them.The natriuretic peptide receptor 2 gene (NPR2) is a paracrine factor involved in the regulation of cell proliferati...

Cell Metabolism 2022;34(5):667-80.e6. doi: 10.1016/j.cmet.2022.03.006Brief Summary: In preclinical models and a phase 1 trial, a powerful new lipid small molecule was shown to act through a mechanism distinct from those of known hypolipidemic agents. Targeting HNF-1α may be a new therapeutic strategy.Comment: Familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) is the most common...

To read the full abstract: PLoS Med. 2019 Oct 1;16(10):e1002926. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1002926.The authors analysed a huge dataset from the Chinese national programme of preconception health checks, which include measurements of fasting plasma glucose. Overall, 13.15% (n =847,737) had impaired fasting glucose and 1.18% (n =76,297 women) had diabetes, of whom only...

To read the full abstract: Nat Genet. 2018 Mar;50(3):432-442Maternal obesity is associated with poor outcomes across the reproductive spectrum including infertility, increased time to pregnancy, early pregnancy loss, congenital abnormalities and neonatal complications. Adverse effects are detectable as early as the oocyte and preimplantation embryo stage, and that these early effects may cont...

Brief summary: In 2021 and 2022, two important publications on pediatric thyroid carcinomas revealed a distinct molecular landscape compared to adult thyroid carcinomas (1,2). Pediatric differentiated thyroid carcinoma was mainly caused by fusion oncogenes, especially in children younger than 10 years (93%), compared to children aged 10–15 years (28%) and 15–20 years old patients (14%). In contrast, PTC due to BRAF mutations showed increasing frequency with age (7%, ...

Brief summary: This ex vivo/ in vitro study describes a novel regulatory mechanism of androgen receptor (AR) gene transcription by intranuclear actin assembly in droplets upon dihydrotestosterone (DHT) stimulation mediated by DAAM2 (Dishevelled-associated activator of morphogenesis 2) gene.Androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS) is a common etiology in individuals with 46, XY disorder/differences of sex development, AIS has diverse genita...

Brief summary: In this experimental study, a transdermal polymeric microneedle (MN) patch for glucose-responsive closed-loop insulin and glucagon delivery was developed. In chemically-induced type 1 diabetes (T1D) mouse and minipig models, this glucose-responsive dual-hormone MN patch demonstrated tight regulation in blood glucose.The interplay between insulin and glucagon is essential for blood glucose regulation in individuals with or without diabetes....

Brief summary: Two unrelated patients with a disorder of sex development (DSD) phenotype of partial androgen insensitivity (PAIS) showed heterozygous variants in the DAAM2 gene. Their genital skin fibroblasts showed reduced dihydrotestosterone-stimulated androgen receptor (AR) activity. Extensive basic studies revealed the underlying mechanism of the DSD in which DAAM2-regulated actin polymerization at the ligand-inducible androgen receptor is required for androgen-st...

To read the full abstract: Sci Rep. 2017; 7(1): 7427Prenatal dexamethasone treatment has been suggested over three decades ago to prevent virilization of a female fetus affected with 21-hydroxylase deficiency due to genetic mutations in the CYP21A2 gene. However, current treatment guidelines for CAH regard this treatment still as experimental, mainly because follow-up studies of treated fetu...

To read the full abstract: N Engl J Med 2017;377:633-643Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) regulates levels of plasma LDL-C by interacting with the LDL receptor. After binding and internalization, PCSK9 directs the LDL receptor to lysosomal degradation and inhibits its recycling to the cell surface, and thus accelerates the degradation of hepatic LDL receptors. This reduces the ...