Review Articles

Lifestyle modification is recommended in all patients with dyslipidaemia to improve their lipid profile and reduce cardiovascular risk. Here, Hunter and Hegele discuss the mechanisms of action, safety and efficacy of a range of functional foods and dietary supplements with lipid-lowering properties.

Targeting the immune system in tumour cells has become a central therapy for cancer treatment, but such drugs can lead to adverse effects. In this Review, the authors describe the immune-related endocrinopathies, such as hypophysitis, thyroid dysfunction and the development of diabetes mellitus that can result from cancer immunotherapy.

How much should blood pressure be lowered in individuals with hypertension and diabetes mellitus to reduce cardiovascular risk? Here, the authors discuss three trials with data relevant to optimal blood pressure levels and their implications for patients with diabetes mellitus.

Arterial hypertension is a complex condition influenced by multiple interrelated genetic and environmental factors. This Review examines our progress in unravelling the genetic determinants of hypertension, and the future use of genetic testing to personalize treatment and to improve the design of randomized controlled trials for the condition.

The hypothalamus and pituitary gland can undergo many functional adaptations to control hormonal output. In this Review, the authors describe our current understanding of the neuroendocrine changes in these structures that maximize reproductive success, and highlight how new imaging techniques have transformed our interpretation of these processes.

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) can increase the risk of childhood diseases by disrupting hormone-mediated processes critical for growth and development. Here, Joseph Braun discusses epidemiological evidence of associations between early-life exposure to EDCs and childhood neurodevelopmental disorders and obesity.

Islet transplantation has become a realistic treatment option for a subset of patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus. This Review outlines the techniques involved in the procedure, as well as the risks, long-term outcomes and advances in the care of patients after they have received an islet transplant.

Patients with anorexia nervosa severely restrict their food consumption. In this Review, Schorr and Miller discuss the endocrine abnormalities that arise in these patients as a result of their reduced calorie intake and potential therapies that can help restore endocrine function.

Dyslipidaemia is a major contributor to the onset of metabolic disease. Here, Meikle and Summers discuss lipidomic research into relationships between diet, lipid metabolism and metabolic disease. The Review also highlights promising potential therapeutics that target lipid metabolism to counteract obesity, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes mellitus.

In this Review, Sylow and colleagues discuss the molecular mechanisms and signalling pathways that regulate glucose uptake from the blood into the muscle during exercise, and the roles of both known and candidate molecules in the process.

Clinical practice regarding the use of hormone-replacement therapy (HRT) has undergone many changes since its introduction in the 1940s. Here, Roger Lobo frames the current thinking on the use of HRT in postmenopausal women, beginning with a historical perspective and then discussing how the interpretation of HRT data has changed over time.

Here, Chow and colleagues discuss the endocrine manifestations of mitochondrial diseases, a group of multisystem disorders characterized by great clinical, biochemical and genetic heterogeneity. The authors describe the clinical features, genetic causes and pathological mechanisms underlying these diseases, the understanding of which will be key to developing innovative therapies for these patients.

Diabetes mellitus is associated with an increased risk of fragility fractures. Here, Napoli and colleagues discuss the complex interactions between glucose homeostasis and bone fragility, the epidemiology of fractures in patients with diabetes mellitus and the effects of antidiabetic drugs on bone health.

New approaches are required for the prevention and treatment of obesity and its associated pathologies. Here, Martel and colleagues review the potential anti-obesogenic and antidiabetic effects of plants, mushrooms and their derivatives, some of which have longstanding uses in traditional Chinese medicine.

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are integrators of both inflammatory and metabolic signalling networks. In this Review, the authors provide a comprehensive overview of how PPARs contribute to the development of metabolic disorders and how pharmacologically targeting these pathways can be used to develop new therapeutics for such diseases.

In addition to undergoing adaptive thermogenesis, brown adipose tissue secretes a number of adipokines that can influence systemic metabolism. In this Review, Villarroya and colleagues discuss the current evidence for these so-called 'batokines' and how they might influence whole-body metabolic health.

Sergueï Fetissov discusses the possible involvement of gut bacteria in the host regulation of appetite and proposes an integrative homeostatic model of appetite control that includes the energy needs of both the host and its gut bacteria.

In this Review, Heiko Lickert and colleagues discuss β-cell heterogeneity, placing a particular emphasis on the role of islet architecture in defining phenotypic and functional plasticity among β cells. The potential to exploit β-cell heterogeneity and plasticity for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes in the context of regenerative therapies for diabetes mellitus is also discussed.

Mericq and colleagues review human data supporting an increased risk of metabolic diseases among children born premature or small for gestational age. The adrenal and pubertal modifications that contribute to this risk and the metabolic changes that occur during adolescence and adulthood are discussed.

Hepatic steatosis is prevalent in individuals with obesity and is a risk factor for type 2 diabetes mellitus. In this Review, the authors discuss the disruption of endoplasmic reticulum function in hepatic steatosis and how cellular stress responses to lipid accumulation can promote or inhibit progression to severe liver pathologies.