Eureka! The Top Endocrine Science of 2024 – Part II

For the tenth year running, Endocrine News talks to editors from Endocrine Society publications to unearth the most impressive breakthroughs in endocrine science and research for 2024. This year, we also talk to some of the “scientists behind the science” to get their insights on their cutting-edge research. In Part II, we talk to the editors of Endocrinology, who weigh in on their top picks for the biggest discoveries in endocrine science.

From the Editor of Endocrinology

Editor-in-Chief Zane B. Andrews, PhD, from the Department of Physiology at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia and deputy head of the Metabolism, Diabetes, and Obesity Program at the Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute selected eight papers from Endocrinology.

“Identification of Environmental Compounds That May Trigger Early Female Puberty by Activating Human GnRHR and KISS1R,”  by Yang S., et al., published in October.

“Primary Cilia are Required for Cell-Type Determination and Angiogenesis in Pituitary Development,” by Yoshida S., et al., published in July.

“In Vivo Formation of Adrenal Organoids in a Novel Porcine Model of Adrenocortical Cell Transplantation,” by Clarke B.M., et al., and “Potential Differences in Psychedelic Actions Based on Biological Sex,” by Shadani S., Conn K., Andrews Z.B., and Foldi C.J. published in August. 

Four papers came from the September issue:

• “Liraglutide Impacts Iron Homeostasis in a Murine Model of Hereditary Hemochromatosis,” by Bozadjieva-Kramer N., et al. 

• “Progesterone Receptor Signaling Promotes Cancer Associated Fibroblast Mediated Tumorigenicity in ER+ Breast Cancer,”  by Diep C.H., et al.

• Toledo M.P., Xie G., and Wang Y.J.’s “Comprehensive Characterization of Islet Remodeling in Development and in Diabetes Using Mass Cytometry” 

• “The LEAP2 response to Cancer-Related Anorexia-Cachexia Syndrome in Male Mice and Patients,” by Varshney S., et al. 

Andrews also especially liked Babey, ME et al.’s paper out of the Holly A. Ingraham Laboratory, “A maternal brain hormone that builds bone” from the July issue of Nature. 

Said Andrews: “These papers highlight the remarkable discoveries published in Endocrinology or by Endocrine Society members. For example, it’s not every day that a new hormone is identified, as was reported by Endocrine Society member Holly Ingraham or that anti-obesity medications have beneficial effects on seemingly unrelated systems, such as iron homeostasis (from Bozadjieva-Kramer N., et al.).

Other highlights include examining how endocrinology may affect the actions of psychedelics, which is more traditionally the domain of neuroscience (from Shadani S., et al.) or how the environmental compounds hidden in the world around us may affect female puberty (from Yang S., et al.). These advances cover the breadth of endocrinology including the pituitary where primary cilia were identified as critical regulators of cell survival, determination, and angiogenesis during pituitary gland development (from Yoshida S., et al.), or the important of progesterone receptors on cancer-associated fibroblasts in breast tumorigenesis (from Diep C.H., et al.).

“These papers highlight the remarkable discoveries published in Endocrinology or by Endocrine Society members. For example, it’s not every day that a new hormone is identified, as was reported by Endocrine Society member Holly Ingraham or that anti-obesity medications have beneficial effects on seemingly unrelated systems, such as iron homeostasis.” – Editor-in-Chief Zane B. Andrews, PhD, Editor-in-Chief, Endocrinology

Moreover, these diverse advances include the role of a liver hormone in cancer-related anorexia-cachexia syndrome (from Varshney S., et al.), the ability of transplanted adrenocortical cells to survive and self-organize into adrenal organoids (from Clarke B.M., et al.) and the comprehensive characterization of human islets from controls, type-1 and type-2 diabetes donors (from Toledo M.P., et al.).

More From the Editors of Endocrinology

Associate editor Stanley Andrisse, PhD, MBA, assistant professor of medicine at Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, D.C., also contributed, selecting “Liver Androgen Receptor Knockout Improved High-fat Diet Induced Glucose Dysregulation in Female Mice But Not Male Mice,” from the April issue of JES, by Osei-Ntansah A., et al., and for which Andrisse is corresponding author.

“I chose to highlight this publication because it provides valuable insights into how liver androgen receptors influence metabolic health differently in males and females, particularly under a high-fat diet,” Andrisse explains. “This study not only expands our understanding of sex-specific mechanisms in glucose dysregulation but also opens up potential for targeted therapeutic approaches in metabolic diseases, such as insulin resistance, especially among populations at risk for metabolic syndrome. By observing improved glucose metabolism in female LivARKO mice compared to males, this research underscores the importance of considering sex differences in metabolic research and the role of androgen receptors beyond reproductive health.”