Placental mRNA Expression of Neurokinin B Is Increased in PCOS Pregnancies with Female Offspring.

Current research suggests that polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) might originate in utero and implicates the placenta in its pathogenesis. Kisspeptin (KISS1) and neurokinin B (NKB) are produced by the placenta in high amounts, and they have been implicated in several pregnancy complications associated with placental dysfunction. However, their placental expression has not been studied in PCOS.

Low-Glycemic Load Diets and Thyroid Function: A Narrative Review and Future Perspectives.

Nutrition and calorie intake are associated with subtle changes of thyroid function tests in subjects with an intact Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Thyroid axis. Iodine deficiency and extreme fluctuations in calorie intake, such as those that occur during periods of starvation or overfeeding could lead to alterations in thyroid hormones. The dietary macronutrient and micronutrient composition could also influence the thyroid function.

Poseidon and Caeneus: a case of pubertal gender inversion in Greek mythology.

Disorders of sex development (DSDs) are very frequently encountered in ancient Greek mythology. One of the most striking types of DSD described in many myths is gender transformation wherein a female becomes a male or vice versa. Herein, we present via the marvelous myth of Poseidon and Caeneus a case of pubertal gender inversion.

Anti-Müllerian hormone: a novel biomarker for aggressive prostate cancer? Emerging evidence from a prospective study of radical prostatectomies.

Purpose: Prostate cancer patients are a heterogeneous group as regards the aggressiveness of the disease. The relationship of steroid hormones with the aggressiveness of prostate cancer is unclear. It is known that the anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) inhibits prostate cancer cell lines in vitro.

Thyroid Eye Disease as Initial Manifestation of Graves' Disease Following Viral Vector SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine: Report of a Case and Review of the Literature.

COVID-19, a contagious disease caused by the novel coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, emerged in 2019 and quickly became a pandemic, infecting more than 700 million people worldwide. The disease incidence, morbidity and mortality rates have started to decline since the development of effective vaccines against the virus and the widespread immunization of the population. SARS-CoV-2 vaccines are associated with minor local or systemic adverse reactions, while serious adverse effects are rare.

Benign thyroid nodules respond to a single administration of 0.3mg recombinant human thyrotropin with highly variable volume increase.

Introduction: The nature of thyroid nodules is heterogenous. Most of them are benign and, in the absence of pressure symptoms of adjunct structures, no treatment is needed. Our objective was to investigate the acute effects of a low dose of recombinant human TSH (rhTSH) on the volume of benign thyroid nodules.

Craniopharyngioma as a Cause of Fever of Unknown Origin.

Background: Fever of unknown origin is quite common in everyday clinical practice, and the approach is challenging. Prolonged fever as the sole manifestation of craniopharyngioma has been rarely reported in literature.

Objective: Herein, we report a case of adamantinomatous craniopharyngioma presented as fever of unknown origin in a 51-year-old woman, initially misdiagnosed as atypical subacute thyroiditis.

Endocrine disruptors in ancient times and Greek mythology: the spring of Salmacis and the curse of Hermaphroditus.

According to Greek mythology, the spring waters of Salmacis (or Salmakis) feminized the god Hermaphroditus (or Hermaphroditos) and transformed his nature from male to half-male and half-female. The mythical properties of these waters are described in the writings of authors and philosophers of the Hellenistic period. It is evident that the spring of Salmacis and lake actually existed (located in Halicarnassus, today Bodrum, Turkey) and are not the product of poetic imagination.

Expression stability of ACTB, 18S, and GAPDH in human placental tissues from subjects with PCOS and controls: GAPDH expression is increased in PCOS.

Purpose: The aim was to assess the expression stability of three commonly used reference genes, namely, β-actin (ACTB), 18S ribosomal RNA (18S), and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), in placental tissue obtained from pregnant women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and healthy controls.

Methods: mRNA was isolated after delivery from the placentae of 10 PCOS and 10 control women with term, uncomplicated, singleton pregnancies. The expression of ACTB, 18S, and GAPDH was analyzed using real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).

Differences in thyroid function tests after administration of a single supraphysiological dose of ACTH or a high dose of a synthetic steroid.

Objective: Although the suppressive action of synthetic steroids on the hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis is established, little is known regarding the effect of the administration of synthetic adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH).

Design: In the context of a randomized, open label, comparative study assessing the efficacy and safety of ACTH and betamethasone in the treatment of hospitalized patients with acute gout, we compared the effects of these agents on thyroid function tests.

Methods: Serum TSH, total T4 and T3 and cortisol were measured before and at 24 and 48 h after a single intramuscular dose of synthetic ACTH (1 mg) or betamethasone (6 mg), in 38 hospitalized patients with acute gout and normal thyroid function.

Teenage pregnancies in Western Greece: experience from a university hospital setting.

Purpose: Teenage pregnancies have consistently been associated with preterm labor in a wide range of studies. Evidence regarding the incidence and potential complications of teenage pregnancies in Greece is at present scarce. The aim of this study was to evaluate the perinatal outcomes as well as the risk of perinatal and obstetric complications of teenage pregnancies.

Impaired Sexual Function in Young Women With PCOS: The Detrimental Effect of Anovulation.

Background: Even though polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a common reproductive disorder affecting young women, its impact on their sexual health is not well known.

Aim: To examine the different aspects of female sexuality in young women with PCOS and attempt to associate hormonal changes and ovulatory status with their sexual function.

Methods: Anthropometric characteristics, hormonal levels and sexual function based on the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) questionnaire were assessed in 76 young women with PCOS and 133 matched controls.

Improving the prediction of persistent and recurrent differentiated thyroid cancer using the American Thyroid Association 2015 risk stratification system.

Purpose: The 2015 American Thyroid Association risk stratification system (ATA RSS) is used in patients with differentiated thyroid carcinoma (DTC) to assess their risk of persistent/recurrent disease. Our aims were to validate the 2015 ATA RSS in a registry of DTC patients and to examine whether the addition of factors not included in it, such as pre-radioactive iodine therapy stimulated thyroglobulin (pre-RAI sTg), gender, and age could increase its predictive ability.

Methods: We studied 403 patients with DTC, treated at a tertiary center from 1990 to 2018 and subjected to total thyroidectomy.

A manless adultery: the story of Bassa as related in a Marcus Valerius Martialis' epigram.

During the Golden Age of the Roman Empire, Rome was transformed into a magnificent city where architecture, the arts, and commerce flourished. An inconceivable amount of wealth was accumulated by a handful of noble families, while the masses starved. In such a context, moral values inevitably decline, while sexual mores are liberalized and ever more veer towards salacity.

Therapeutic Equivalence of a New Preparation of Liquid Levothyroxine with Tablets in Patients with Overt Primary Hypothyroidism.

Background: A new liquid levothyroxine (LT4) dissolved in glycerol and water has recently been developed by a Greek pharmaceutical company (Uni-Pharma, Athens, Greece).

Objectives: To evaluate the therapeutic equivalence of this new liquid LT4 preparation versus the already existing tablet formulation of the same manufacturer, in order to obtain approval by the Greek National Organization for Medicines.

Methods: This was a prospective, randomized, cross-over phase III study.

A shift to more targeted thyroidectomies increased the detection of thyroid cancer and in particular low-risk papillary tumors in Southwestern Greece the decade 2007 to 2016.

Objectives: Data regarding thyroid cancer (TC) epidemiology in Greece in the last decade are scarce, so we investigated the trends in TC detection during 2007 to 2016.

Methods: We retrospectively studied 2040 pathology reports of total thyroidectomies performed at our institution from 2007 to 2016.

Results: A number of 478 cases of TC were identified in the studied decade.

Leucippus, either male or death: a case of sex reversal by divine intervention.

The concept of metamorphosis (change of form, structure, or substance) is very frequently encountered in Ancient Greek and Roman literature. One of the most striking types of metamorphosis described in many myths is gender transformation, where a man becomes a woman or vice versa. Herein, we present a case of pubertal gender inversion, the marvelous story of the Cretan Leucippus, which not only inspired many ancient writers but also led to the development of a distinct, local, religious cult.

Plasma Beta-Glucuronidase Activity: A Novel Tool to Distinguish Type 1 from Type 2 Amiodarone-Induced Thyrotoxicosis?

Background: Amiodarone-induced thyrotoxicosis (AIT) is a common and deleterious side effect of amiodarone use. There are two types of AIT, characterized by distinct pathogenic mechanisms and, hence, different treatments. Discriminating between type 1 (AIT1) and type 2 (AIT2) AIT is often very challenging.

Pediatric endocrinology: an overview of the last decade.

Over the past decade, considerable progress has been made in the field of pediatric endocrinology. However, there is still a long way to go regarding the exploration of novel avenues, such as epigenetics, the changing views on the pathophysiology and derived therapy of specific disorders, and the prevention of prevalent diseases. The next decade will hopefully bring the consolidation of most of those achievements and the development of new pathways for further progress.