Scientific Session Abstracts

Sawmill Creek Resort, Huron OH
June 30, 2004

Genetics and Animal Models

• Gene expression studies in Prader-Willi and Angelman syndromes
• Basis for neonatal failure to thrive in a Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) mouse model
• Zebrafish: a model for the neurodevelopmental causes of Prader-Willi syndrome?
• Developmental neuronal abnormalities in mouse models of PWS

Endocrine and Sleep

• Ghrelin levels in children with Prader-Willi syndrome less than six years of age
• Somatostatin infusion corrects hyperghrelinemia without reducing appetite in adults with Prader-Willi syndrome
• Effects of growth hormone on sleep patterns in Prader-Willi syndrome
• The Therapeutic Role of Growth Hormone Replacement Therapy for Persons with Prader-Willi Syndrome Across the Life-Span
• Assessment of sleep disorders with special attention to Prader-Willi syndrome

Behavioral and Medical Issues

• Clinical features, psychological and academic profiles of Prader-Willi syndrome:  comparison of genetic subtypes
• Behavioral phenotypes in Prader-Willi syndrome
• Prevalence of poisoning in people with Prader-Willi syndrome
• Abnormal Food Motivation in Prader-Willi Syndrome: Relationship between Neural Dysfunction and Obesity using fMRI
• When does obesity become life threatening? Clinical findings in patients with Prader-Willi Syndrome experiencing cardio-respiratory complications from obesity
• Facial phenotype of Prader-Willi syndrome becomes more normal with early growth hormone treatment

June 2004