ESPE Abstracts

Background: In minipuberty, the male hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis is transiently activated triggering a surge in reproductive hormones causing growth of the genitalia. Longitudinal individual growth of the infant penis during minipuberty and associations to the HPG axis and IGF-I have not been thoroughly assessed.Aim: To describe the development of penile length and width as well as their relation to serum c...

Objective: The original consensus-based Rotterdam criteria, now evidence-based criteria, is recommended for the diagnosis of PCOS in adult women. These criteria state that PCOS can be diagnosed when two of three major criteria (anovulatory cycles, clinical/biochemical hyperandrogenism, and polycystic ovary morphology or elevated AMH levels) are present and other potential etiologies have been excluded. Use of these criteria in adolescent girls is problematic b...

Introduction: Multiple studies have demonstrated that histone lysine methyltransferases regulate gene transcription, thereby influencing cell proliferation, cell differentiation, cell migration, and tissue invasion.Aim of the study: Here we describe the key functions of histone lysine methyltransferases and chromatin remodeling genes and summarize their role in infertility.Patients and Meth...

Background: The circulating steroid metabolome in boys undergoes significant changes during infancy reflecting functional and structural rearrangements of the adrenal glands as well as the transient activity of the hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axis, also called minipuberty. Studies investigating the serum steroid metabolome dynamics during infancy in a longitudinal manner are however sparse.Objective: We ai...

Introduction: The influence of sex chromosomes and sex hormones on early human brain development is still poorly understood. Expression of Y chromosome genes may influence aspects of brain maturation in the 46,XY fetus, but the contribution of different Y genes is unknown. Furthermore, a marked increase in testicular testosterone biosynthesis/release from the testis occurs at around 8 weeks post conception (wpc) in the 46,XY fetus, but it is unclear whether te...

Background: The anogenital distance (AGD) is a well-known measure in rodents used to distinguish male and female pubs. Likewise, AGD display sex-specific differences in humans. It is considered a postnatal readout of early androgen exposure in fetal life. Thus, in postnatal life AGD is longer in boys than in girls, reduced in infants born with cryptorchidism and hypospadias as well as in boys exposed to anti-androgenic agents in fetal life. However, little is ...