Like it or not, artificial intelligence (AI) is here to stay, and its impact on both the science and practice of endocrinology will soon be quite evident. The ENDO 2024 Plenary session, “Artificial Intelligence in Health and Biomedical Research: The Future Is Now,” will no doubt answer many questions on the minds of endocrinologists in the audience. However, it will likely raise even more questions regarding its implementation, influence, and, most importantly, its outcomes. At a Glance Artificial intelligence is here to stay, with all its benefits and risks, and healthcare providers and rese ..read more

New research published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism finds a high prevalence of type D personalities among people with hypothyroidism.  Hypothyroidism is a condition in which the thyroid gland does not produce enough thyroid hormones. Between 10-15% of people with treated hypothyroidism experience persistent symptoms despite achieving normal thyroid hormone levels, and the underlying causes are unclear.   Type D personality, which is characterized by pessimism, worry, stress, negative emotions, and social withdrawal, is sometimes associated with poor ..read more

Science has shown that virtually all of us are exposed to endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) essentially as soon as we’re born … and even before! The ENDO 2024 symposium “Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals in Reproductive Endocrinology” looks at these impacts in three different sessions that look at EDCs prenatally, postnatally, and environmentally. When you head to Boston, Mass., this June to attend the Endocrine Society’s signature annual meeting, be sure to put “Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals in Reproductive Endocrinology,” happening June 3, 2024, from 4:30 PM to 6:00 PM on your itinerary. T ..read more

Endocrine Society member Holly A. Ingraham, PhD, is the recipient of the FASEB Excellence in Science Lifetime Achievement Award. On April 8, the organization announced the winners of its 2024 Excellence in Science Awards, which highlight outstanding achievements by women in biological sciences who demonstrate not only excellence and innovation in their research fields, but exemplary leadership and mentorship as well. Ingraham’s pioneering work revealed crucial hormone-responsive nodes in the brain and gut that maintain metabolic, skeletal, and cognitive health in females. Her recent landmark s ..read more

New research by investigators at Joslin Diabetes Center sheds new light on the specific changes β-cells go through at the onset of type 1 diabetes. Their findings—published in Nature Cell Biology—offer new avenues for targeted interventions for the chronic autoimmune condition.  “In the field of type 1 diabetes, research has largely focused on understanding the immune component, but our study argues that the β-cell is a significant player,” says Rohit N. Kulkarni, MD, PhD, Margaret A. Congleton Chair and co-head of the Section on Islet & Regenerative Biology at Joslin Diabetes Ce ..read more

A first-of-its-kind session at ENDO 2024 will discuss healthcare management for the most underserved of the underserved: the incarcerated. The session, “Endocrine Care for Incarcerated Individuals,” will offer a detailed look at not only what it’s like to be incarcerated, but also the challenges of delivering appropriate endocrine treatment this often unfairly stigmatized population.   The United States incarcerates more people than any other country. According to Alicia Diaz-Thomas, MD, MPH, a pediatric endocrinologist and professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center in ..read more

The Endocrine Society selected Ana Canton, MD, PhD, as the recipient of the 2024 C. Wayne Bardin, MD, International Travel Award for her outstanding ENDO abstract and her research contributions to the care of patients with pediatric endocrine disorders.  The C. Wayne Bardin, MD, International Travel Award was created in honor of Past President Wayne Bardin, who made remarkable research contributions to both reproductive physiology and contraception throughout his long career. As the winner, Canton received a $3,000 travel grant for ENDO and complimentary meeting registration.   ..read more

An Endocrine News roundup of the week’s pharmaceutical news, breakthroughs, and general information. * Confo Therapeutics Secures Multi-Million Euro Grant On March 28, Belgium-based Confo Therapeutics announced that it has been awarded a EUR 1.6 million grant from Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship (VLAIO). The two-year grant will be used to expand Confo’s ongoing R&D efforts in the discovery of next-generation medicines targeting Class B GPCRs using its patent-protected technology platform. Class B GPCRs are recognized as important targets for new medicines, particularly in chroni ..read more

Maternal exposure to a high fat diet (HFD) alters milk lipids in lactating women, enhancing adiposity and myeloid inflammation in offspring, even in early life, according an animal study recently published in Endocrinology. Researchers led by Kanakadurga Singer, MD, and Brigid Gregg, MD, both of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, point out that as of 2018, 43.4% of American adults over 20 years of age have obesity. And as the obesity epidemic grows, so too does our knowledge and awareness of the complex disease. “While an imbalance of nutrition intake and energy expenditure is a primary ..read more

My mother was a nurse. She had a tendency to look at the world two ways: her way and the wrong way. The problem, such as it was, typically turned out to be that her way was the right way. It was both comforting and infuriating all at once. I feel like there are many of you out there who totally get where I’m coming from. During the hot summers in southwest Alabama, when she would see me sitting on the couch, watching Good Times reruns with my hand jammed into a Golden Flake potato chip bag up to my elbow, she would encourage me to “go outside and play!” She told me I would feel better, and it ..read more