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News Briefs: November 2007
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Sunday, June 15, 2008 Contacts: 1. Family Ties Raise Risk of Diabetes Complications: Risk Greater for Women 2. Just Being Naturally Thin May Raise Risk of Osteoporosis in Women
1. Family Ties Raise Risk of Diabetes Complications: Risk Greater for Women Diabetes can cause serious health problems if not properly managed, but the risk of developing complications from this disease appears to be greater in certain families, according to a new study accepted for publication in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM). The study also indicates that the risk for complications is greater for women. "Our research indicates that susceptibility to certain complications of type 1 diabetes, especially retinal damage, has a strong familial and probably genetic component, and women may be more susceptible to these complications than are men," said David A. Greenberg, Ph.D., of the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City and senior author of the study. Maria C. Monti, Ph.D., also of the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center and the University of Pavia in Italy, was the study’s lead author. Type 1 diabetes occurs when the pancreas does not produce enough of the hormone insulin, which helps cells process glucose. Taking insulin is the treatment, but because insulin is injected only periodically, critical control of glucose levels can be difficult to achieve. Getting blood glucose levels under control is considered essential for preventing complications from diabetes. For this research, Monti, Greenberg, and their colleagues analyzed 25 years’ worth of data on type 1 diabetes patients and families. These data were assembled by the Human Biological Data Interchange (HBDI), a program of the National Disease Research Interchange (NDRI). Among the information collected were details on the subjects’ microvascular complications from diabetes, which included retinopathy (eye damage), nephropathy (kidney damage), and neuropathy (nerve damage). Prior to this study, it was known that certain kinds of kidney damage from type 1 diabetes had a genetic component, but it was not clear if there was a familial component to other complications. In this latest study, the researchers’ results indicated that the susceptibility to other complications, especially to retinopathy, went beyond poor control of blood glucose levels, and was dependent on one or more familial, and probably inherited, biological components. This also was the first demonstration that women may be at greater risk for complications than men. “This was a surprise to us,” said Monti, “especially since there is no known increased risk for type 1 diabetes in females. It suggests that, to the extent that good glucose control can delay complications' onset, women may need to be more diligent in keeping blood glucose under control.” Other researchers involved in this study include John T. Lonsdale, Ph.D. of NDRI in Philadelphia; Cristina Montomoli Ph.D. of the University of Pavia, Italy; and Rebecca Montross, M.S. and Erin Schlag, M.S., both from NDRI. A rapid release version of this paper has been published on-line and will appear in the December issue of JCEM, a publication of The Endocrine Society. For more information about diabetes, visit http://www.hormone.org/public/diabetes.cfm. 2. Just Being Naturally Thin May Raise Risk of Osteoporosis in Women Young women who are constitutionally thin, or naturally severely thin, may have impaired bone quality and be at increased risk for osteoporosis, according to a new study accepted for publication in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM). Constitutional thinness refers to young women with no identified eating disorder who have a low body mass index (<16.5 kg/m²) yet continue to have a close-to-normal fat mass percentage, normal physiological menstrual cycles, and normal energy metabolism. “Constitutional thinness is such a rare entity that subjects are frequently misdiagnosed as anorexics and socially stigmatized,” said Bruno Estour, M.D., of Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Saint-Etienne (CHU) in Saint Etienne, France. “Research has been severely limited in this area. Until now, low bone density related to low body weight in young women has been described only in patients with anorexia nervosa.” This study followed 25 constitutionally thin and 44 anorexic young women ages 18 to 30. Femoral neck and lumbar spine bone mineral density were measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) while distal radius and distal tibia were evaluated by three-dimensional peripheral quantitative computed tomography. Fat and lean body mass were determined using the same DXA device. “Almost fifty percent of anorexic patients present with a decreased bone mass and a very increased fracture risk, explained by the multiple hormonal and nutritional abnormalities,” said Estour. “In constitutionally thin young women we found an unexpected similar percentage of low bone mass difficult to explain in a context of hormonal, energetic, and bone turnover normality.” Osteoporosis is mostly found in women following menopause. However, young women have an equivalent degree of osteoporosis when their bone mineral density (BMD) falls within a certain range. Researchers used a manufacturer-supplied reference dataset of healthy young adult female BMD values and identified a Z-score (a score expressed in standard deviation units from a given mean of age-matched controls) < -2.0 as an equivalent of osteoporosis. In this study 44 percent of constitutionally thin subjects presented with a Z-score < -2.0. Estour and his colleagues hypothesize that mechanisms related to genetics and/or insufficient load on key weight-bearing bone regions may be responsible for impaired bone quality in constitutionally thin young women. Other researchers involved in this study include Bogdan Galusca, Natacha Germain, Cecile Bossu, Delphine Frere, and Francois Lang from CHU Saint Etienne in France, and Mohamed Zouch, Maire-Helene Lafage-Proust, Thierry Thomas, and Laurence Vico from Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (Inserm) also in Saint Etienne, France. A rapid release version of this paper has been published on-line and will appear in the January issue of JCEM, a publication of The Endocrine Society. For more information on osteoporosis, visit: http://www.hormone.org/public/osteoporosis.cfm. 3. Hormones & Health Science Writers Conference Presented by The Endocrine Society The Endocrine Society will assemble a panel of leading physicians and researchers for a one-day seminar/workshop titled "Hormones through Life." This event will explain the intricate connections between hormones and health by presenting the latest facts and findings from the field of endocrinology and by spanning the spectrum of life from prenatal development to health issues for the elderly. The conference will include discussions on the causes and impacts of short stature, obesity and diabetes, testosterone and athletic performance, human growth hormone claims, and sexuality during menopause and andropause. The five stages of life for this conference are: Prenatal: Hormone Imbalances and Lifelong Impacts Date Where Registration The Endocrine Society is an international body with more than 14,000 members from over 80 countries. The diverse membership represents medicine, molecular and cellular biology, biochemistry, physiology, genetics, immunology, education, industry and allied health. Society members represent the full range of disciplines associated with endocrinologists: clinicians, researchers, educators, fellows and students, industry professionals and other health professionals. The science writers conference is produced in cooperation with The Hormone Foundation, the public education affiliate of the Society. For more information:
# # # Founded in 1916, The Endocrine Society is the world's oldest, largest, and most active organization devoted to research on hormones and the clinical practice of endocrinology. Today, The Endocrine Society's membership consists of over 14,000 scientists, physicians, educators, nurses and students in more than 80 countries. Together, these members represent all basic, applied, and clinical interests in endocrinology. The Endocrine Society is based in Chevy Chase, Md. To learn more about the Society, and the field of endocrinology, visit our web site at www.endo-society.org. |