ESPE Yearbook of Paediatric Endocrinology

Short summary: This study describes sex differences in fetal liver-specific androgen signalling that are altered in response to maternal obesity in baboons. It reveals that livers of male fetuses favour a pro-androgenic environment in response to maternal obesity by suppressing the activity of testosterone-metabolising CYP enzymes (CYP2B6 and CYP3A) and by reducing cytoplasmic and nuclear androgen receptor (AR-45) expression. By comparison and most interestingly, there were mi...

Brief Summary:This study using mice and human models, shows that human gut bacteria Gordonibacter pamelaeae and Eggerthella lenta convert biliary corticoids into progestins through 21-dehydroxylation. It thereby shows that a class of immuno- and metabo-regulatory steroids are transformed into a class of sex hormones and neurosteroids. It also illustrates that gut hydrogen gas production is essential and sufficient to support this metabolic pathway, which is m...

Brief Summary:This study tested the discriminatory role of 11-oxygenated androgens to diagnose PCOS in women with obesity, and with ( n =132) or without ( n =83) PCOS. No discriminatory role was found. Instead, insulin resistance, blood pressure, obesity and androgens were the principal components characterizing obese PCOS, while no major characteristic finding defined obese non-PCOS women.Numerous studies have addressed the mechanism o...

Brief Summary:This cross-sectional study investigated assay methods for diagnosing PCOS among 359 premenopausal women presenting with functional androgen excess or hyperandrogenemia. Serum androgens and AMH were measured by both immunoassay and LC–MS/MS, and ovarian ultrasound was performed. Steroid immunoassays used in routine practice were unacceptably inaccurate compared to LC-MS/MS, and ‘PCOS-positive’ serum AMH measurements were often not confirmed by ovari...

Brief Summary:This study uncovers a novel mechanism for the anti-inflammatory effects of glucocorticoids (GCs) that involves reprogramming of mitochondrial metabolism in macrophages through enhanced production of the anti-inflammatory metabolite itaconate and consequent inhibition of the inflammatory response. GCs have very potent anti-inflammatory properties, but the mechanisms are incompletely understood. GCs also have severe side effects when used in high doses for long-ter...