ESPE Abstracts

Introduction: The melanocortin 4 receptor (MC4R) is a G protein coupled receptor (GPCR) and plays a pivotal role in the central regulation of body weight in the hypothalamus. In the context of the leptin-melanocortin signaling pathway, the MC4R is activated by the endogenous ligands a- and b-MSH (melanocyte-stimulating hormone). This leads to the feeling of satiety and to a reduction in food intake. Mutations within the genes leptin, leptin receptor (LEPR), pr...

Background: Patients with rare monogenic obesity caused by biallelic variants of genes such as proopiomelanocortin (POMC; including variants in PCSK1) or leptin receptor (LEPR) deficiency, experience hyperphagia (a pathologic, insatiable hunger) and early-onset, severe obesity. This suggests potential increased risk over time of obesity-related comorbidities, including metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions associated with increased risk of cardiovascular...

Growth hormone (GH) stimulates insulin like growth factor I (IGF I) release. IGF-I is the standard biomarker for monitoring GH effects during treatment and to achieve optimal long-term safety, and to a limited extent, monitor efficacy in children with GH deficiency (GHD). The IGF I profile during treatment with a long acting GH (LAGH), such as once weekly somapacitan (Novo Nordisk), differs from the daily GH profile by exhibiting larger peaks and troughs over the dosing interv...

Background: Very tall people attract a lot of attention and represent a clinically and genetically heterogenous group of individuals. Identifying the genetic etiology can provide important insights into the molecular mechanisms regulating linear growth.Methods and Results: We studied a three-generation pedigree with several isolated (non-syndromic) tall members by whole exome sequencing; the tallest man had a height of 2...

Background: Puberty onset results from the interplay between genetic and environmental factors. During COVID-19 pandemic, children experienced epidemic-related changes, such as stress, sedentary lifestyle, excessive use of electronic devices, all leading to weight gain.Objective: The aim of our study is to retrospectively evaluate the incidence of premature activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, as eviden...

Backgrounds: The prevalence of congenital malformations (CM) is higher in infants referred with capillary (c) TSH elevation on newborn screening. However, establishing the prevalence of CM ± dysmorphic syndromes in true congenital hypothyroidism (CH) requires careful distinction between true and transient CH.Objective: To determine the prevalence of CM ± dysmorphic syndromes in all infants referred with TSH elevation on newborn screening in Sco...

Children diagnosed with adrenocortical tumors (ACT) have variable prognosis depending on disease presentation at diagnosis. Available therapeutic options render excellent outcome for a subset of patients, but limited improvement in the survival of those diagnosed with non-localized/advanced disease. ACT DNA methylation was recently demonstrated to be a robust and independent prognostic biomarker. Aiming to identify potential therapeutic targets for these children, we compared ...

Background: In this study, we aimed to investigate the relationship between single-gender Korean references for non-high-density-lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) and metabolic syndrome (MetS) in childhood.Methods: A total of 5,742 Korean children aged 10–18 years who participated in a national survey were included. The subjects were classified into three groups based on single-gender non-HDL-C levels as follows: <120 mg/dl (desirable), &#8805...

Background: The genetic causes of primary hyperaldosteronism are still being discovered.Results: We present the case of a 17-years-old girl who was found by accident with severe hypertension (TA 180/100 mmHg, bilateral). Her personal history was unremarkable. Her father had hypertension and a paternal aunt had died at 55 due to a stroke. Both her sisters and mother had normal blood pressure. The cardiological examinationshowed concentric left ventricle h...

Background: Diagnostic criteria for polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) are well established in the adult population, but may not be appropriate for adolescent girls. Clinical and/or biochemical hyperandrogenism is one important diagnostic criterion. Screening for hyperandrogenism is often restricted to measurements of testosterone in adult practice. It was our impression that this strategy would under-diagnose PCOS in our adolescent population.Objective ...