Systemic sarcoidosis with hypercalcaemia, hypothalamic-pituitary dysfunction and thyroid involvement.

Sarcoidosis is a multisystem granulomatous disorder. The lungs are the principal organs affected, however, extrapulmonary involvement including disorders of the pituitary and thyroid glands has been reported but presentation with multiple endocrine manifestations is rare. We report the case of a 36-year-old African-American woman who presented with hypercalcaemia, abnormal thyroid function studies and secondary amenorrhoea.

Automated, quantitative screening assay for antiangiogenic compounds using transgenic zebrafish.

Pathologic angiogenesis has emerged as an important therapeutic target in several major diseases. Zebrafish offer the potential for high-throughput drug discovery in a whole vertebrate system. We developed the first quantitative, automated assay for antiangiogenic compound identification using zebrafish embryos.

Neuroprotection of MPTP-induced toxicity in zebrafish dopaminergic neurons.

Parkinson's disease is characterized by a severe loss of dopaminergic neurons resulting in a range of motor deficits. The neurotoxin 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) is known to cause a similar loss of dopaminergic neurons in the human midbrain with corresponding Parkinsonian symptoms. Several animal species have also shown sensitivity to MPTP, including primates, mice, goldfish, and, most recently, zebrafish.