OR17-Novel Aspects of Adrenal Tumors and the HPA Axis

Posted on March 6, 2015 by MaryO

ENDO_2015

 

March 06, 2015

OR17-Novel Aspects of Adrenal Tumors and the HPA Axis

Epigenetic modulation of DNA Is associated with fatigue, depression and anxiety in patients with Cushing’s syndrome in remission: A genome-wide methylation study

CAM Glad, JC Andersson-Assarsson, P Berglund, R Bergthorsdottir, O Ragnarsson, G Johannsson

Summary: Researchers conducted this study to determine whether patients with Cushing’s syndrome (CS) that is in remission have specific epigenetic alterations that are associated with persistent cognitive impairments, anxiety, fatigue, and depression. Patients with CS in remission were shows to have specific DNA methylation that differed from that of healthy controls and was strongly correlated with clinical traits of anxiety, depression and fatigue, they concluded, adding that their results may suggest that an interaction between the glucocorticoid and the retinoic acid receptor is implicated in the long-term outcome of patients with CS in remission. The persistent cognitive impairment observed in patients with CS in remission, therefore, may be due to epigenetic modulation of DNA, they concluded.

Methods:

  • For this cross-sectional, case-controlled, single center study, researchers included 48 women with CS in remission (mean age±SD: 52.9±14 years) and 16 controls (mean age±SD: 53.6±16 years) matched for age, gender and educational level.
  • The mean age at diagnosis of CS was 37±14 years and the median (interquartile range) duration of remission was 13 (5-19) years.
  • In all, 37 patients had Cushing’s disease (CD) and 11 had a cortisol producing adrenal adenoma.
  • Researchers used the fatigue impact scale (FIS) to evaluate fatigue, and the comprehensive psychopathological rating scale to evaluate depression and anxiety; they assessed cognitive function by standardized neuropsychological tests.
  • DNA was isolated from whole blood, and DNA methylation was analyzed on the Illumina Infinium HumanMethylation450K BeadChip, which simultaneously interrogates >465,000 methylation sites per sample.
  • Researchers performed data quality control and analysis using the ChAMP methylation analysis package in R, and used Spearmen’s rho to perform correlation analyses.

Results:

  • Researchers found that patients had higher median score for FIS, depression and anxiety.
  • Methylation analysis identified 3,903 probes (in 340 genes) in regions that were differently methylated between CS patients and controls, and they found that 28% of these were significantly correlated to at least one of the clinical traits.
  • Fatigue, depression and anxiety were the most commonly correlated traits, and two of the most highly correlated genes were RXRB and COL11A2.
  • Gene ontology analysis revealed that these belong to the same GO-terms and are involved in retinoic acid receptor activity.
  • Finally, researchers found that both genes were specifically hypomethylated in cases as compared to controls.

 

This project has received financial support from the Swedish federal government under the LUA/ALF agreement, The Health & Medical Care Committee of the Regional Executive Board, Region Västra Götaland, The Swedish Society of Medicine and The Swedish Society of Endocrinology.

From http://www.mdlinx.com/endocrinology/conference-abstract.cfm/ZZ5BA369FDE9DE4CED82CB6A7CD5BFD1BE/42321/?utm_source=confcoveragenl&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_content=abstract-list&utm_campaign=abstract-ENDO2015&nonus=0

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Screening for Cushing’s syndrome: Is it worthwhile?

Posted on March 5, 2015 by MaryO

The data suggests that Cushing is not frequent enough to support the use of routine screening in patients with morbid obesity and type 2 DM. Also only 1 % of hypertensive patients have secondary hypertension due to CS. However, screening should be considered in young patients with resistant DM and/or hypertension. Among patients with osteoporosis and vertebral fractures up to 5 % were diagnosed with subclinical hypercortisolism; most of these had adrenal adenoma. Screening for CS is important in subjects with adrenal incidentaloma, and many studies show a high prevalence (~10 %) of Cushing or subclinical CS in these patients.

Abstract

Introduction

Cushing’s syndrome (CS) is a rare disease characterized by a collection of signs and symptoms, also common in the general population without elevated cortisol secretion. During the last years more patients with CS are identified earlier and with milder disease. Many of these patients are diagnosed during screening efforts performed for certain or isolated complaints like weight gain, diabetes mellitus (DM), hypertension, osteoporosis, elevated white blood cell counts and more.

Methods

In this review article the most popular screening test performed in the studies cited was the 1-mg dexamethasone suppression test.

Conclusions

Cushing is not frequent enough to support the use of routine screening in patients with morbid obesity and type 2 DM. Also only 1 % of hypertensive patients have secondary hypertension due to CS. However, screening should be considered in young patients with resistant DM and/or hypertension. Among patients with osteoporosis and vertebral fractures up to 5 % were diagnosed with subclinical hypercortisolism; most of these had adrenal adenoma. Screening for CS is important in subjects with adrenal incidentaloma, and many studies show a high prevalence (~10 %) of Cushing or subclinical CS in these patients.

Buy this article for $39.00 at http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11102-015-0634-9

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Exophthalmos and Cushing’s Syndrome

Posted on February 4, 2015 by MaryO

A woman experienced red, irritated and bulging eyes. She saw an ophthalmologist who strongly suspected Graves’ ophthalmopathy. However, the patient did not have and never had hyperthyroidism.

Indeed, she had primary hypothyroidism optimally treated with levothyroxine. Her thyroid stimulating hormone level was 1.197 uIU/mL.

An MRI of the orbits showed normal extraocular muscles without thickening, but there was mild proptosis and somewhat increased intraorbital fat content. Both thyroid-stimulating immunoglobulins as well as thyrotropin receptor antibodies were negative.

The patient presented to her primary care physician a few months later. She had experienced a 40-lb weight gain over only a few months and also had difficult-to-control blood pressure.

After failing to respond to several antihypertensive medications, her primary care physician astutely decided to evaluate for secondary causes of hypertension. A renal ultrasound was ordered to evaluate for renal artery stenosis, and the imaging identified an incidental right-sided adrenal mass. A CT confirmed a 3.4-cm right-sided adrenal mass. Her morning cortisol was slightly high at 24.7 ug/dL (4.3 – 22.4) and her adrenocorticotropic hormone was slightly low at 5 pg/mL (10-60).

At this point I saw the patient in consultation. She definitely had many of the expected clinical exam findings of Cushing’s syndrome, including increased fat deposition to her abdomen, neck, and supraclavicular areas, as well as striae. Her 24-hour urine cortisol was markedly elevated at 358 mcg/24hrs (< 45) confirming our suspicions.

She asked me, “Do you think that my eye problem could be related to this?”

“I’ve not heard of it before,” I replied, “but that doesn’t mean there can’t be a connection. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if your eyes got better after surgery?”

The patient underwent surgery to remove what fortunately turned out to be a benign adrenal adenoma.

When we saw her in follow-up 2 weeks later, her blood pressures were normal off medication and her eye symptoms had improved. I had a medical student rotating with me, so I suggested that we do a PubMed literature search.

The first article to come up was a case report titled “Exophthalmos: A Forgotten Clinical Sign of Cushing’s Syndrome.” Indeed, not only did Harvey Cushing describe this clinical finding in his original case series in 1932, but others have reported that up to 45% of patients with active Cushing’s syndrome have exophthalmos.

The cause is uncertain but is theorized to be due to increased intraorbital fat deposition. Unlike exophthalmos due to thyroid disease, the orbital muscles are relatively normal — just as they were with our patient.

Some of you may have seen exophthalmos in your Cushing’s patients; however, this was the first time I had seen it. Just because one has not heard of something, does not mean it could never happen; no one knows everything. “When in doubt, look it up” is a good habit for both attending physicians and their students.

For more information:

Giugni AS, et al. Case Rep Endocrinol. 2013; 2013: 205208.

From http://www.healio.com/endocrinology/adrenal/news/blogs/%7B779bf3e5-e1da-459e-af27-955c9b4274a5%7D/thomas-b-repas-do-facp-face-cde/exophthalmos-and-cushings-syndrome

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Cushing’s Syndrome – Epidemiology Forecast to 2023

Posted on November 3, 2014 by MaryO

It’s NOT as rare as they thought…

Epidemiologists forecast an increase in the diagnosed prevalent cases of CS in the 6MM, from 32,634 diagnosed prevalent cases in 2013 to 34,573 diagnosed prevalent cases in 2023, with an annual growth rate of 0.59% in the forecast period. In 2023, the US will have the highest number of diagnosed prevalent cases of CS, with 17,162 diagnosed prevalent cases.

For this analysis, The publisher epidemiologists used data available from Orphanet to construct the 10-year epidemiological forecast for the diagnosed prevalent cases of CS, Cushing’s disease, ectopic ACTH CS, adrenal adenoma CS, and adrenal carcinoma CS in the 6MM. The forecast provides the age- and sex-specific diagnosed prevalent cases of CS subtypes in the six markets, providing a comprehensive view of CS. In addition, this analysis provided detailed, clinically relevant segmentations for Cushing’s disease in order to improve the management of the disease.

Scope

  • The Cushing’s syndrome (CS) EpiCast Report provides an overview of the risk factors, comorbidities, and the global and historical epidemiological trends for CS in the six major markets (6MM) (US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and UK). The report also includes a 10-year epidemiological forecast for the diagnosed prevalent cases of CS, Cushing’s disease, ectopic- adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) CS, adrenal adenoma CS, and adrenal carcinoma CS segmented by age (18 to =85 years) and sex in these markets.
  • The CS epidemiology report is written and developed by Masters- and PhD-level epidemiologists.
  • The EpiCast Report is in-depth, high-quality, transparent and market-driven, providing expert analysis of disease trends in the 6MM.

Read the article here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20141103006612/en/Research-Markets-EpiCast-Report-Cushings-Syndrome–#.VFgvl5PF9HA

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Mutations in PKA catalytic subunit associated with Cushing’s syndrome

Posted on March 18, 2014 by MaryO

1. Somatic mutations resulting in constitutive activation of PRKACA, which encodes the catalytic subunit of protein kinase A, were found in 37% of patients with Cushing’s syndrome due to an adrenal adenoma. 

2. Germline duplications of PRKACA were detected in patients with bilateral adrenal hyperplasia and overt Cushing’s syndrome. 

Study Rundown: This study found that 37% of patients with overt Cushing’s syndrome due to an adrenal adenoma have a somatic mutation in PRKACA, which encodes the catalytic subunit of cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase A (PKA), present in their tumor cells. The most commonly identified variant, Leu206Arg, results in impaired interaction between the catalytic and regulatory subunits of PKA, thereby causing constitutive activation of PKA. Additionally, a subset of patients with cortisol-producing bilateral adrenal hyperplasia harbored germline duplications of PRKACA.

This is the first study to identify an association between genetic alterations of the catalytic subunit of PKA and Cushing’s syndrome. It is significant that 37% of patients with overt Cushing’s syndrome were found to have tumors with PRKACA mutations; previous research had revealed only very rare mutations. Of note, this study did not find PRKACA mutations in any patients with subclinical Cushing’s syndrome or inactive adenomas. This suggests that Cushing’s syndrome and subclinical Cushing’s are distinct entities. Patients involved in this study were recruited from only three centers; the frequency of PRKACA mutations in Cushing’s syndrome may be different in other study populations. Further research will be needed to identify biochemical causes of overt Cushing’s syndrome in patients without PRKACA mutations.

Relevant Reading: Abnormalities of cAMP signaling are present in adrenocortical lesions associated with ACTH-independent Cushing’s syndrome despite the absence of mutations in known genes

In-Depth: In this study, exome sequencing of tumor specimens from 10 patients with unilateral cortisol-producing adenomas and overt Cushing’s syndrome was performed. Eight of 10 adenomas had somatic mutations in PRKACA; 7 of these patients had the same mutation (p.Leu206Arg). Subsequently, PRKACA was sequenced in 129 additional patients with adrenal adenomas. Patients were classified as having overt Cushing’s syndrome (at least three abnormal biochemical tests or catabolic features plus two abnormal tests), subclinical Cushing’s (at least one abnormal biochemical test without catabolic signs) or as having an inactive adenoma. The Leu206Arg variant was identified in tumor tissue of 14/129 patients and all 14 had overt Cushing’s syndrome. Overall, 37% (22/59) of patients with overt Cushing’s syndrome due to an adenoma had a PRKACA mutation; in contrast, PRKACA mutations were not found in any patients with subclinical Cushing’s or an inactive adenoma. Of 35 patients with overt Cushing’s syndrome due to cortisol-secreting bilateral adrenal hyperplasia, 5 patients had copy-number gains of a region on chromosome 19p that contains PRKACA.

Analysis of holoenzyme structure revealed that the Leu206Arg mutation is located in the active-site cleft of the catalytic subunit of PKA. To evaluate the functional consequences of this mutation, cells were transfected with either nonmutant or variant C-alpha, which encodes the catalytic subunit of PKA. Investigators determined that the mutation causes constitutive activation of the catalytic subunit by impairing interaction with the regulatory subunit of PKA.

From http://www.2minutemedicine.com/mutations-in-pka-catalytic-subunit-associated-with-cushings-syndrome/

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