A 135-year-old controversy is at the root of the progress that has been achieved
above all in recent decades. Thus Prof. Potts of Boston introduced his address to
the plenary session, which reviewed the history of the parathyroid glands. Since
the times of their discoverer Dr. Ivar Sandström, long periods of almost total dis-
interest in the subject have
alternated with bursts of con-
certed study activity that have
produced significant advances
in terms of understanding the
physiological and clinical
roles of these glands. Then came in-depth study of
the ligand-receptor binding mechanisms that
opened the way to discovery of new drugs, para-
thyroid hormone analogs. The real advances were
made in the 1990s, with cloning of two parathy-
roid hormone ligands: PTHrP and PTH1R. Studies
conducted over the last 15 years have furthered our knowledge of the cellular and molecular mecha-
nisms of the two molecular forms of the hormone, which bind to the same receptor and determine
different biological effects. This phenomenon is also known as the “Parathyroid Hormone Paradox.”
Fondazione
Internazionale
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To find answers to these and other interesting queries and for more in-depth in-
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John T. Potts Jr.
Boston - USA
The history of the parathyroid glands, from 1880 to the present
How is it possible that two similar molecules bind to the same receptor and determine
such profoundly different biological effects? - What are the principal parathyroid hor-
mone analogs currently under study? - What are their effects on hypoparathyroid states?