ESPE Abstracts

Introduction: Short stature is a common disorder in children that can become a challenge for clinical and molecular diagnosis. Recent studies in genetics and the implementation of Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) in growth disorders have demonstrated the great genetic heterogeneity of short stature and the existence of highly varied phenotypes. The absence of homogeneous clinical criteria for conducting studies makes it difficult to evaluate the efficacy of th...

Introduction: Variegated mosaic aneuploidy syndrome (MVA) is a rare autosomal recessive disease characterized by a variable percentage of chromosomal gains and losses, resulting in multiple mosaic aneuploidies, which explains a great phenotypic variety and may predispose to the development of cancer. Bi-allelic mutations in CEP57 are the cause of MVA2. CEP57 encodes a centrosome protein involved in microtubule stabilization and is crucial for maintaining prope...

Maternal nutrition can have significant long-term consequences on energy homeostasis in the offspring. However, whether resveratrol, with antioxidant and anti-obesity actions, can improve the impact of poor maternal nutrition on offspring metabolism remains largely unknown. We hypothesized that resveratrol intake by dams would protect the offspring against the harmful effects of a maternal high fat diet (HFD). We also determined if resveratrol’s effects are diet and sex d...

Background: Neonatal over-nutrition (NON) can have a long-term effects on energy homeostasis and some of these effects may be sexually dimorphic.Objective and hypotheses: We aimed to determine how NON affects body weight (BW), body composition and cytokine levels throughout development and if these changes are sexually dimorphic. We hypothesised that the effects would be both age and sex dependant.Methods: At birth, Wistar rats wer...

The new techniques of molecular genetics are revolutionizing our clinical practice. This causes benefits in the diagnosis and prediction of diseases in patients, but also raises new ethical concerns that must be addressed. One of them is the susceptibility to cancer due to genetic risk. Children can be especially vulnerable in this area, as they do not freely decide the way forward. Regarding thyroid cancer, it is important to know which genetic syndromes are susceptible to ca...

Background: The influence of intrauterine life on long term health is supported by a wealth of epidemiological and experimental studies. A low oxygen and/or nutrient supply to the fetus, resulting in intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR), may affect gonadal development of the offspring, with a potential impact on fertility. Data derived from animal models of placental insufficiency are very limited.Objective and hypotheses: To investigate the effects of...

Aggrecan is a structural glycoprotein of the extracellular matrix of cartilage present in the articular cartilage, growth plate and cartilage of the intervertebral disc. Biallelic pathogenic variants are the cause of aggrecan type spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia (OMIM#612813) while the presence of heterozygous pathogenic variants determine Kimberley type spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia (OMIM#608361) and short stature associated or not with acceleration of bone maturation and early o...

The obesity epidemic continues to be a dramatic problem in the developed world despite attempts to curtail its rise. Reducing energy intake and/or increasing energy expenditure can result in weight loss; however, if one returns to their poor lifestyle habits the previous weight is not only recuperated, but often surpassed.We hypothesized that although a normal body weight may be achieved, the hypothalamic circuits controlling appetite and energy expendit...

The insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system is fundamental for physiological processes such as growth and metabolism. In addition, in the brain it regulates glucose metabolism and neuroprotection. The IGF axis can be altered by nutritional status, but little is known regarding the effects of specific dietary components on this system.Our aim was to examine how high-fat diet (HFD) and low-fat/high sucrose diet (LFHSD) intake affect the central and circula...

Background and aim: Fibroblast growth factor 21 (FGF21) is produced and expressed in several tissues but mainly in the liver and adipose tissue, where it has endocrine and paracrine functions. Several experimental studies reported that FGF21 decreases lipogenesis, triggers beta oxidation of fatty acids, reduces hepatic ER stress and VLDL release and reduces fasting and postprandial triacylglycerols (TG). Consistently, several phase 2 trials with FGF21-agonists...