Volume 11 Issue 3, March 2015

A landmark article by The Cancer Genome Atlas Research network describes the genetic landscape of papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC). This study identifies oncogenic driver lesions, highlights molecular pathways that drive cancer formation and defines clinically relevant disease subtypes. These findings have far-reaching implications with respect to molecular diagnosis and targeted therapies for PTC.

Observational studies suggest that statin treatment has a fracture-preventive effect; however, there is only limited supporting evidence from randomized controlled trials. Now, results from the JUPITER trial show that rosuvastatin treatment does not reduce the risk of fractures and, further, that levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein are not associated with fracture risk.

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) is associated with increased risk of mortality, despite improvements in management of glucose levels and treatment of cardiovascular risk factors. A population-based study of individuals with T1DM and control individuals matched for age and sex has used glycaemic control to characterize the excess risk of overall and cardiovascular mortality.

Aromatase inhibitors are the most effective agents for preventing breast cancer; however, their use is associated with bone loss and an increased risk of fractures. Sestak and colleagues show that administration of an oral bisphosphonate prevents aromatase-inhibitor-induced bone loss in postmenopausal women with osteopenia or osteoporosis who are at high risk of breast cancer.

Stromal cells and stem cells have been successfully used for bone-tissue-engineering applications in clinical trials; however, the routine use of these cells is far from being adopted into clinical practice. In this Review, Warren Grayson and colleagues discuss the scientific, technical, practical and regulatory obstacles that are preventing the widespread therapeutic use of stromal cells and stem cells to enhance skeletal repair.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have important roles in many physiological and pathological processes. The authors of this Review focus on the endocrine system and discuss the involvement of lncRNAs in the development and function of various endocrine organs, as well as the associations of lncRNAs with endocrine diseases such as diabetes mellitus and endocrine cancers.

Alterations in neural-stem-cell (NSC) homeostasis can contribute to the consequences of neurodegenerative diseases, healthy ageing and tissue repair after damage. This Review discusses emerging information on the function of insulin-like growth factors (IGFs) and IGF and/or insulin receptor signalling in the context of NSC regulation. The authors also propose a model for IGF-II in which the choroid plexus is a major component of the NSC niche.

Thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy (TAO) is an orbital manifestation of Graves disease. The pathogenesis of TAO is still not well understood and effective therapies for TAO are lacking. Here, Terry Smith reviews the processes that underlie autoimmunity and inflammation in the orbit of patients with TAO, with a focus on the role of infiltrating fibrocytes expressing the TSH receptor. Therapeutic implications are also discussed.

Colonization of an infant with their microbiota in early life is important for normal development of host metabolism. In this Perspectives article, Cox and Blaser posit that exposure to antibiotics that disrupt either vertical transmission or colonization and maturation of the microbiota in the infant can lead to adverse consequences such as obesity in adulthood.