ESPE Yearbook of Paediatric Endocrinology

Brief Summary: This case-control study compared resting-state functional connectivity (rs-fc) of the brain between patients with autoimmune Addison’s disease (AAD) and healthy controls. The results suggest that AAD affects the baseline functional organization of the brain and that current treatment strategies of AAD may be a risk factor.Comment: Autoimmune Addison disease (AAD) is a form of primary adrenal insufficiency (PAI), in which autoimmune ad...

Brief Summary: This observational study highlights the challenges of managing T1D in 8,004 young children with type 1 diabetes (T1D) (age < 6 years) from 3 international registries: Diabetes Prospective Follow-Up Registry (DPV), T1D Exchange Quality Improvement Network (T1DX-QI), and the Australasian Diabetes Data Network (ADDN), using data collected between 2019 and 2021. More than half of included children did not achieve the recommended HbA1c target < 7.0% (53 mmol/...

Brief Summary: This experimental study quantified the physiological contribution of pancreatic δ-cells to the glycemic set point. It used 3 orthogonal mouse models to remove somatostatin (SST) signalling within the pancreas or transplanted islets. Ablation of δ-cells or SST decreased the glycemic set point, and the glucose threshold for insulin response from β-cells, leading to increased insulin secretion to the same glucose challenge.The ...

Brief Summary: Through a series of experiments in the nonobese diabetic/Ltj mouse model and human β-cells, the authors show that the RANK pathway mediates cytokine-induced β-cell death through RANK-TRAF6 interaction and induction of NF-KB activation. Inhibition of the RANKL/RANK pathway following treatment with osteoprotegerin and denosumab protected β-cells against this cytotoxicity, reduced proinflammatory cytokines in activated T-cells, and reversed T1D in th...

Brief Summary: This study tested a new biosensor, named depth-gated mid-infrared optoacoustic sensor (DIROS), which uses intravital mid-infrared optoacoustic signals, for accurate non-invasive measurement of glucose concentrations in blood-rich volumes of the skin. DIROS provided in-blood glucose measurements with better accuracy and sensitivity than methods that measured glucose in the interstitial fluid.Non-invasive glucose monitoring is an attractive ...

Brief Summary: This pilot study assessed the feasibility and impact of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) in 9 adolescents with T2D. CGM use lowered HbA1c by up to 3.8% in participants who consistently used the device.Comment: Large cohort studies investigating complications in children and adolescents with T2D have clearly shown a higher incidence of complications compared to both adults with T2D and children with type 1 diabetes (T1D). These complicat...

Brief Summary:This basic research study examined post-transcriptional regulation of the human androgen receptor (AR) using three different human cell lines. The authors studied the structure of two key AR isoforms, full length (AR-FL) and truncated (AR-V7), by computational and experimental analyses and revealed novel insights into the functionally relevant structures in the 5′ and 3′ UTRs of AR-FL for AR expression.The AR plays important rol...

J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2021; 106(5): e2063–e2077.https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33527139/The authors report the findings of a 6-month, randomized, phase 3 trial, with a single arm extension, to investigate the efficacy, safety and tolerability of modified release hydrocortisone (MC-HC) replacement therapy versus standard glucocorticoid replacement therapy in 122 adult patients with c...

Nat Metab. 2021 Feb;3(2):228–243. doi: 10.1038/s42255-021-00346-2. PMID: 33619380.In brief: In this genome-wide association study, the authors were able to disentangle the mechanism that uncouples adiposity from its known cardiometabolic complications. They identified 62 genomic loci, at which the same allele is associated with both higher adiposity and lower cardiometabol...

kirsty.spalding@ki.se Nat Med 2021; 27(11): 1941–1953 doi: 10.1038/s41591-021-01501-8Brief Summary: This study analysed adipocytes from obese and hyperinsulinemic adults. They demonstrate that obesity is associated with the induction of a cell cycle program in mature adipocytes, leading to so-called endoreplication, as a strategy to remain fu...