Tag: Pituitary Gland

The Curious Case of Adam Rainer

May 10, 2014 By arne hendriks 0

When he was 18 years old, Adam Rainer was 138 cm’s tall, which classified him as a dwarf. Around that time however he developed a benign tumour in his pituitary gland which stimulated the excessive production of growth hormone. As a consequence he started to increase…

Pegvisomant

November 19, 2012 By arne hendriks 1

Pegvisomant (tradename Somavert) is a genetically engineered analogue of the human growth hormone (GH) that stops unnaturally vigorous growth in patients with acromegaly. It works as a GH receptor antagonist and blocks or dampens agonist-mediated responses by binding to growth hormone receptors on cell surfaces. Pegvisomant is used…

Of Snell Mice and Men

April 17, 2011 By arne hendriks 1

Mice and men display striking genetic similarities in hormone dependent growth disturbances. If a mouse responds in a certain way to a genetic mutation, chances are that a human will respond in similar fashion. The first dwarf mouse was discovered by Nobel Prize winner George Snell in…