ESPE Abstracts

Background: Following a phase of feeding difficulties and underweight in early life, children with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) develop hyperphagia and a tendency towards severe obesity. Growth hormone therapy (GH) has been approved in PWS to compensate their growth failure but may exert also additional effects on muscle component and body composition as well.Objectives: We aimed to test if an early initiation of GH thera...

Introduction: X-linked hypophosphatemic rickets (XHR) is the most common form of hereditary rickets, with an estimated incidence of 1: 20.000 individuals. The main characteristic of the disease is excessive renal phosphate loss, which leads to hypophosphatemia with high phosphaturia and defective bone mineralization.XHR results from mutations in the in the PHEX gene (Phosphate Regulatory Gene with Homology for Endopeptidases located on t...

Background: Precocious puberty is defined as the development of secondary sexual characteristics before the age of 8 years in girls and 9 years in boys. This condition results from a constant and complex interplay between predisposing genes and environmental factors. To date, the molecular analysis are all focused on reproductive-endocrine disorders such as Kallmann syndrome and hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, while the genetic bases of pubertal timing are still unclear.<p ...

Background: Hypothalamic obesity (HyOb) is a rare form of treatment-resistant morbid obesity associated with congenital or acquired hypothalamic damage. Its pathophysiology has been attributed to hyperphagia and hyperinsulinaemia. The wider roles of oxytocin (OXT) in regulating appetite and weight have recently emerged in animal and human studies, but there is no human evidence that hypo-oxytocinaemia contributes to weight gain.Hypothesis: Hypo-oxytocina...

Background: Mouse studies have demonstrated the necessity of Sonic Hedgehog (SHH) for normal proliferation of Rathke’s pouch (RP) precursors. However, the possible function of SHH in pituitary cell specification remains to be assessed. Additionally, evidence suggests that SHH may be relevant in human adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma (ACP), a histologically benign, but clinically aggressive childhood tumour associated with high morbidity.Objective ...

Adamantinomatous craniopharyngiomas (ACPs) are clinically challenging tumours, the majority of which have activating mutations in CTNNB1. They are histologically complex, showing solid tumor component comprised of different morphological cell types (e.g. β-catenin accumulating cluster cells and palisading epithelium), surrounded by a florid glial reaction with immune cells, but also a cystic component. ACP cysts often exert substantial mass effect on critical str...

Background: Maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) is a monogenic form of diabetes that accounts for 2–5% of all cases but it is underestimated because it’s often misdiagnosed as T1D or T2D whose symptoms are often overlapping. It is a phenotypically and genetically heterogeneous disorder characterised by autosomal dominant inheritance, a young age of onset and pancreatic β-cell dysfunction.Objective and hypotheses: Actually in about ...

Introduction: Klinefelter syndrome (KS) is a form of aneuploidy resulting from 2 or more X chromosomes in a male. The most common karyotype is 47, XXY. KS affects physical and intellectual development to varying degrees, commonly causing hypo-development of secondary sexual characters and high stature.Case Report: JLV, male, 3 year 1 month age, the first child of a young non-consanguineous couple, was referred to the ped...

Background: The Scottish Paediatric Endocrine Managed Clinical Network is committed to providing equity of care across Scotland. A key role identified by the nurses group is developing information leaflets supporting patient care. It was recognized that there was no local unified approach to the management of adrenal insufficiency, especially in the home, community and acute setting. Of particular concern was the lack of a pathway of care from home to hospital and involvement ...

Background: SOX2 is an early developmental transcription factor implicated in pituitary development; heterozygous SOX2 mutations have been reported in patients with a severe ocular phenotype and hypogonadotrophic hypogonadism (HH) with/without associated abnormalities. SOX2 physically interacts with β-catenin, a member of the Wnt-signalling pathway, via its carboxyl-terminus and it represses in vitroβ-catenin mediated activation.<p class="abstex...