Endocrine Insider
September 13, 2007

Members of The Endocrine Society are often in the news describing groundbreaking research or commenting on timely topics in endocrinology. Here are two recent examples.

Stress and Fertility
On September 4, the International Herald Tribune published a special Question and Answer column featuring Society member Sarah L. Berga, MD, professor and chair of Emory University’s department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the School of Medicine. She was interviewed by Randi Hutter Epstein, MD, on her clinical studies of the connection between stress and fertility.

The interview explored Dr. Berga’s ongoing research on how chronic stress leads to a cascading series of changes, beginning with brain signals to the hypothalamus, which then in turn affects the pituitary and ovaries.

The Tribune article also referenced the April 2006 issue of The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, in which Dr. Berga and her colleagues published a study, “Increased Cortisol in the Cerebrospinal Fluid of Women with Functional Hypothalamic Amenorrhea,” reporting that women who did not ovulate had excessive levels of cortisol in their brain fluid.

The complete interview can be read here: http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/09/04/healthscience/snstress.php?page=1

Science of Obesity
Society member Theodore C. Friedman, MD, PhD, associate professor of medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, was interviewed about Cushing’s syndrome for the National Geographic Channel’s program The Science of Obesity, which explores the genetics behind weight gain and medical advances available to help prevent it. The program will air this September. For specific show dates and times, check: http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/.