Abstract
The precise mechanisms of glucocorticoid-induced inhibition of growth are not known; children receiving long-term steroid treatment show growth retardation and 3 blunted GH secretion. Galanin is a novel neuropeptide which is reported to increase GH secretion via an unknown hypothalamic mechanism. Aim of our study was to evaluate the effects of GHRH and galanin on GH secretion in children on daily glucocorticoid treatment after liver transplantation. Five male patients (age 2.6±1.8 yrs) within the first year (6.9 ±0.8 mths) after orthotopic liver transplantation slowly growing (HV< 3rd centile) under daily glucocorticoid treatment (0.47±0.06 mg/kg/day) and 5 prepubertal normally growing controls, underwent: a) GHRH (1-29)NH, 1μg/kg, i.v. bolus at time 0; b) synthetic porcine galanin, 15 μg/kg i.v. infusion, from 0 to 60 min. Steroid-treated children showed a blunted GH peak after GHRH (9.6±1.3 μg/L) with respect to normal children (20.4±2.5 μg/L). The GH peak after galanin was also blunted (p<0.05) in steroid-treated children (4.5 ± 2.3 μg/L) with respect to controls (5.9 ± 1.6 μg/L). We conclude that chronic glucocorticoid therapy impaires the GH response to galanin as well as to GHRH in liver-transplanted slowly growing children.
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Giustina, A., Girelli, A., Alberti, D. et al. COMPARATIVE EFFECT OF GROWTH HORMONE (GH)-RELEASING HORMONE(GHRH) AND THE NEUROPEPTIDE GALANIN ON GH SECRETION IN SLOWLY GROWING LIVER TRANSPLANTED CHILDREN UNDER CHRONIC GLUCOCORTOCOID THERAPY. Pediatr Res 33 (Suppl 5), S26 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199305001-00136
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-199305001-00136