Reevaluation of Rhipidomys emiliae (J.A. Allen 1916) and description of a new Rhipidomys (Rodentia: Cricetidae) species from Amazonia and Cerrado.

We present the revalidation of the sigmodontinae rodent species R. emiliae, as well as the description of a new species for the genus Rhipidomys. The maximum likelihood analysis recovers R.

Metabolic Syndrome as a Risk Factor for Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Adult Patients with Turner Syndrome.

Background And Purpose: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a disorder associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. The frequency of each component of MetS in Turner syndrome (TS) subjects is high. An elevated incidence of hearing loss has also been reported in TS.

Anthropometric variables as cardiovascular risk predictors in a cohort of adult subjects with Turner syndrome.

Background And Purpose: Excessive adiposity is associated with cardiometabolic complications in Turner syndrome (TS) subjects. Reference data for predictive anthropometric indices of overweight/obesity and metabolic syndrome (MetS) are lacking for subjects with TS. The purpose of this study was to identify the best anthropometric predictor of cardiometabolic risk in a Latin-American cohort of TS subjects.

Epigenetics in Turner syndrome.

Background: Monosomy of the X chromosome is the most frequent genetic abnormality in human as it is present in approximately 2% of all conceptions, although 99% of these embryos are spontaneously miscarried. In postnatal life, clinical features of Turner syndrome may include typical dysmorphic stigmata, short stature, sexual infantilism, and renal, cardiac, skeletal, endocrine and metabolic abnormalities.

Main Text: Turner syndrome is due to a partial or total loss of the second sexual chromosome, resulting in the development of highly variable clinical features.

GH/IGF-1 Signaling and Current Knowledge of Epigenetics; a Review and Considerations on Possible Therapeutic Options.

Epigenetic mechanisms play an important role in the regulation of the Growth Hormone- Insulin-like Growth Factor 1 (GH-IGF1) axis and in processes for controlling long bone growth, and carbohydrate and lipid metabolism. Improvement of methodologies that allow for the assessment of epigenetic regulation have contributed enormously to the understanding of GH action, but many questions still remain to be clarified. The reversible nature of epigenetic factors and, particularly, their role as mediators between the genome and the environment, make them viable therapeutic target candidates.

Cardiovascular Risk in Growth Hormone Deficiency: Beneficial Effects of Growth Hormone Replacement Therapy.

Growth hormone deficiency (GHD) in adulthood is associated with an increased risk of developing adverse cardiovascular events and with reduced life expectancy. Cardiovascular and metabolic abnormalities have so far been evaluated only in a small number of children with GHD and adolescents. In this article we review these abnormalities and their underlying mechanisms and discuss the beneficial effect of growth hormone treatment in subjects with GHD.

Elevated second-trimester maternal serum β-human chorionic gonadotropin and amniotic fluid alpha-fetoprotein as indicators of adverse obstetric outcomes in fetal Turner syndrome.

Aim: The objective of this study was to determine the ability of biochemical analytes to identify adverse outcomes in pregnancies with Turner syndrome.

Methods: Maternal serum and amniotic fluid (AF) marker concentrations were measured in 73 singleton pregnancies with Turner syndrome (10-22 weeks of gestation). Fetal Turner syndrome was definitively established by cytogenetic analysis.

Higher prevalence of obesity and overweight without an adverse metabolic profile in girls with central precocious puberty compared to girls with early puberty, regardless of GnRH analogue treatment.

Objectives: 1. To determine BMI, obesity/overweight rates, glucose and lipids at baseline, during GnRHa treatment and shortly after therapy discontinuation in female children with CPP and EP. 2.

Evaluation of treatment for camptodactyly: retrospective analysis on 40 fingers.

Objective: to retrospectively assess the results from cases treated in the hand surgery service, starting from a preestablished protocol; and to conduct a critical analysis on the results achieved, with separation of the cases into their respective subgroups.

Methods: twenty-three patients and a total of 40 fingers were evaluated between January 2004 and December 2011. We correlated the altered anatomical structures found in the cases that underwent the surgical procedure and its results, with regard to both conservative and surgical treatment, emphasizing the main indications.

Effect of the parental origin of the X-chromosome on the clinical features, associated complications, the two-year-response to growth hormone (rhGH) and the biochemical profile in patients with turner syndrome.

Background: It is possible that genes on the X chromosome are expressed differently depending of its parental origin. The objective of this study was to determine the influence of the parental origin of the X-chromosome on phenotypic variability, response to rhGH and on the biochemical profile of TS patients.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional multicenter correlational study carried out over three years in six Latin-American university hospitals.

Is the growth outcome of children with idiopathic short stature and isolated growth hormone deficiency following treatment with growth hormone and a luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist superior to that obtained by GH alone?

Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of combined therapy with growth hormone (GH) and luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonist (LHRHa) on the near-final height (NFH) of children with idiopathic short stature (ISS) and growth hormone deficiency (GHD) in early puberty.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of 20 patients with ISS and 9 patients with GHD treated with combined therapy was undertaken. Twelve children with ISS and ten with GHD, treated with GH alone, served as controls.

Latin American consensus: children born small for gestational age.

Background: Children born small for gestational age (SGA) experience higher rates of morbidity and mortality than those born appropriate for gestational age. In Latin America, identification and optimal management of children born SGA is a critical issue. Leading experts in pediatric endocrinology throughout Latin America established working groups in order to discuss key challenges regarding the evaluation and management of children born SGA and ultimately develop a consensus statement.

Limited Weight Loss or Simply No Weight Gain following Lifestyle-Only Intervention Tends to Redistribute Body Fat, to Decrease Lipid Concentrations, and to Improve Parameters of Insulin Sensitivity in Obese Children.

Objectives. To investigate whether lifestyle-only intervention in obese children who maintain or lose a modest amount of weight redistributes parameters of body composition and reverses metabolic abnormalities. Study Design.

GHR and VDR genes do not contribute to the growth hormone (GH) response in GH deficient and Turner syndrome patients.

We have prospectively assessed the influence of GHR and VDR gene polymorphisms on the response to rhGH therapy in Venezuelan children with growth hormone deficiency (GHD, n=28) and Turner syndrome (TS, n=25). Clinical data during rhGH treatment were compared in GH and TS patients with different genotypes. PCR amplifications were performed to obtain the genotype frequencies of the polymorphisms.

Circulating levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and soluble markers of vascular endothelial cell activation in growth hormone-deficient adolescents.

Background/aims: Significant endothelial dysfunction as determined by lower flow-mediated vasodilation of the brachial artery was recently reported by us in growth hormone-deficient (GHD) adolescents. The circulating concentrations of markers of vascular endothelial cell and platelet activation and their relationship to inflammatory markers have not been previously evaluated in this group of patients.

Objective: To assess the relationship between circulating levels of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (CRP) and soluble markers of vascular endothelial cell activation in GHD adolescents.

Is testosterone and estrogen priming prior to clonidine useful in the evaluation of the growth hormone status of short peripubertal children?

Aim: To determine the usefulness of priming with gonadal steroids prior to growth hormone (GH) stimulation with clonidine in the evaluation of the GH status of short peripubertal children.

Children And Methods: Thirty-nine children, eight females and 31 males, were studied, with a mean chronological age of 12.37 +/- 2.

The triglyceride/HDL-cholesterol ratio as a marker of cardiovascular risk in obese children; association with traditional and emergent risk factors.

Objectives: To determine the presence of traditional and emergent cardiovascular risk factors and to evaluate the triglyceride/high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (Tg/HDL-C) ratio as a marker for cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome (MS) in obese children.

Material And Methods: Sixty-seven prepubertal children of both sexes, between the ages of 6 and 12 yr, 20 normal-weight children, 18 overweight, and 29 obese subjects, were studied. Anthropometric measures, blood pressure, body mass index (BMI), and fat mass (FM), were measured.

Growth hormone deficiency, low levels of adiponectin, and unfavorable plasma lipid and lipoproteins.

Objective: To examine the impact of adolescent growth hormone deficiency (GHD) on circulating adiponectin levels and the relation between adiponectin, fasting insulin, plasma lipid, and lipoprotein levels.

Study Design: Twelve children with GHD on GH treatment with a chronological age (CA) of 14.4 +/- 2.