Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Fractionation for Resolution of Soluble and Insoluble Huntingtin Species
Published on: February 27, 2018
Neuroendocrine disturbances in Huntington's disease
Nadine Saleh1, Stéphane Moutereau, Alexandra Durr
1Centre de référence maladie de Huntington, AP-HP, Groupe Henri-Mondor Albert-Chenevier/Pitié Salpétrière, Créteil, Paris, France.
Background:
Huntington's disease (HD) is a severe inherited neurodegenerative disorder characterized, in addition to neurological impairment, by weight loss suggesting endocrine disturbances. The aims of this study were to look for neuroendocrine disturbances in patients with Huntington's disease (HD) and to determine the relationship with weight loss seen in HD METHODS AND FINDING: We compared plasma levels of hormones from the five pituitary axes in 219 patients with genetically documented HD and in 71 sex- and age-matched controls. Relationships between hormone levels and disease severity, including weight-loss severity, were evaluated. Growth hormone (GH) and standard deviation score of insulin-like growth factor 1 (SDS IGF-1) were significantly higher in patients than in controls (0.25 (0.01-5.89) vs. 0.15 (0.005-4.89) ng/ml, p = 0.013 and 0.16+/-1.02 vs. 0.06+/-0.91, p = 0.039; respectively). Cortisol was higher (p = 0.002) in patients (399.14+/-160.5 nmol/L vs. 279.8+/-130.1 nmol/L), whereas no differences were found for other hormone axes. In patients, elevations in GH and IGF-1 and decreases in thyroid-stimulating hormone, free triiodothyronine and testosterone (in men) were associated with severity of impairments (Independence scale, Functional score, Total Functional Capacity, Total Motor score, Behavioral score). Only GH was independently associated with body mass index (beta = -0.26, p = 0.001).
Conclusion:
Our data suggest that the thyrotropic and in men gonadotropic axes are altered in HD according to the severity of the disease. The somatotropic axis is overactive even in patients with early disease, and could be related to the weight loss seen in HD patients.
More Related Videos
10:52Efficient and Scalable Production of Full-length Human Huntingtin Variants in Mammalian Cells using a Transient Expression System
Published on: December 10, 2021
08:27Single Synapse Indicators of Glutamate Release and Uptake in Acute Brain Slices from Normal and Huntington Mice
Published on: March 11, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Huntington Disease l: Introduction
Neural Regulation
Alterations in Muscle Tone lll
Parkinson Disease ll: Pathophysiology
Major Hormones and Their Functions
Oxytocin, produced in the hypothalamus and released by the pituitary gland, plays a role in social bonding, childbirth, and lactation.
Parkinson's Disease: Overview