Main description:

The manuscripts in this volume were contributed by the speakers invited to the Acromegaly Centennial Symposium held in San Francisco, California in July 1986. The meeting was organized to commemorate the description of acromegaly by the French physician Pierre Marie, in 1886. The members of the Scientific Committee spent many hours assisting us in ensuring an outstanding meeting. The support of Serono Symposia, USA in all phases of the planning and execution of the meeting was sincerely appreciated and was highly professional. Special recognition roust be extended to Professor Roger Guillemin of the Salk Institute, whosp interest in medical history led him to devote a great deal of time and personal expense in obtaining information about the life of Pierre Marie. Dr. GuilIemin's presentation on the life and times of Marie was an extraordinary overview of the cultural, social, and scientific backgrounds in which Marie came to describe the disease, acromegaly. Dr. Guillemin' s findings, which were presented at the main banquet in a splendid audiovisual presentation, were clearly the highlight of the meeting and will long be remembered by the attendees. We were also honored by the presence of Dr. Martine Pierre Marie Granier, the great-granddaughter of Pierre Harie. In her address at the banquet, Dr. Granier provided several delightful and intimate vignettes concerning Pierre Marie, using old family records and photographs. The Scientific Committee wishes to extend its gratitude to Dr. Granier for adding immeasurably to the historical atmosphere of the meeting.

Contents:

The Life of Doctor Pierre Marie: A Great Granddaughter-s View.- I. Molecular Biology and Physiology of GH Action.- 1. Etiology of Acromegaly from the Neuroendocrine Point of View: A Historical Perspective.- 2. Human Growth Hormone Gene Regulation in Somatotroph Cell Cultures.- 3. Detection of the Multiple Forms of Human Growth Hormone.- 4. Molecular Heterogeneity of Circulating Growth Hormone in Acromegaly.- 5. Somatomedin Gene Expression.- 6. Somatomedin Action and Tissue Growth Factor Receptors.- 7. The Mechanism of the Growth-Promoting Action of Growth Hormone.- II. Regulation of Growth Hormone Secretion.- 8. Somatostatin and the Syndrome of Acromegaly.- 9. Growth Hormone Secretion in Acromegaly.- 10. Actions of GRF in Man.- 11. GRF Secretion in Man.- 12. Ectopic GRH Syndromes.- III. Diagnosis of Acromegaly.- 13. Clinical Developments Over the Past 100 Years of Acromegaly.- 14. Gonadal Steroid Modulation of Growth Hormone Secretory Patterns in the Rat.- 15. Pathogenesis of Acromegaly.- 16. Pathology of Acromegaly.- 17. Associated Hypersecretion of Anterior Pituitary Hormones Other Than Growth Hormone in Acromegaly.- 18. Effect of Growth Hormone on Carbohydrate and Lipid Metabolism: An Overview.- 19. The Diagnosis of Acromegaly.- IV. Treatments for Acromegaly.- 20. Conventional Supervoltage Radiation in the Treatment of Acromegaly.- 21. Long-Term Effects of Proton Beam Therapy for Acromegaly.- 22. Results of Transsphenoidal Resection of Growth Hormone-Secreting Pituitary Adenomas.- 23. Long-Term Results of Transsphenoidal Surgery for the Management of Acromegaly.- 24. The Use of Somatostatin Analogs in the Treatment of Acromegaly.- 25. The Use of Dopamine Agonists in the Management of Acromegaly.- 26. Decision Analysis of Treatment Options in Acromegaly.- Author Index.