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Amyloid deposits in a prolactin-producing pituitary adenoma

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Abstract

A 33 year old woman was diagnosed at surgery with a PRL-producing pituitary adenoma containing spherical amyloid. Circulating PRL in this patient was immunologically and chromatographically similar to classical 20,000-dalton PRL. PRL staining within the tumor was confined to the adenoma cells and was not found within the amyloid deposits. Immunohistochemical staining of the pituitary amyloid deposits was negative for calcitonin gene-related peptide and islet-amyloid polypeptide. Pituitary amyloid may be different from amyloid in other endocrine tissues.

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These studies were supported in part by funds from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and NIH grant, #5 T32 DK07052-18 for Training in Endocrinology and Metabolism, University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Amico is a Clinical Investigator in the Career Development Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Presented in part at the 72nd Annual Meeting of the Endocrine Society, Atlanta, Georgia, June 1990.

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Bononi, P.L., Martinez, A.J., Nelson, R.B. et al. Amyloid deposits in a prolactin-producing pituitary adenoma. J Endocrinol Invest 16, 339–343 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03348851

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