# Thyroid hormone receptors and adrenocortical remodeling.

> **NIH NIH R00** · AUBURN UNIVERSITY AT AUBURN · 2020 · $249,000

## Abstract

Most hormone disorders of the adrenal cortex occur in the context of overgrowth or underdevelopment of the
adrenal gland. At embryonic stages, the fetal adrenal cortex already has the ability to synthesize and secrete
steroid hormones that are critical for fetal development. These functional fetal cortical cells then undergo
regression and are replaced by continuously renewing adult-like cortical cells after birth. The continuously
renewing adult cortical cells grow from the outermost layer of the cortex and form the “adult zone”, whereas
fetal cortical cells stay in the inner portion of the cortex, losing the steroid synthesis ability overtime and form
the “fetal zone”. During development, the fetal zone (x-zone in mice) regresses while the adult zone grows.
However, the mechanisms that regulate the differential development and the regression of the cell layers of the
adrenal cortex remain unclear. We have used several unique mouse models to obtain preliminary results that
lead to the central hypothesis: thyroid hormone receptor (TR) positive cells, a novel cell population in the
adrenal cortex, regulates the remodeling of the adrenal cortical layers. In Aim 1, we will delineate the
contribution of this novel identified cell population to adrenal cortical differentiation and remodeling by using our
unique knock-in reporter mouse lines for detection of expression TR isoforms. The cell fate of cells in the x-zone
will also be investigated by lineage tracing. In Aim 2, we will use next generation sequencing and
genome-wide DNA analysis to identify target genes underlying thyroid hormone-mediated remodeling of the
adrenal gland. In Aim 3, we will further study the transcriptional function of TR and its co-repressors in the
adrenal gland. The proposed study links the function of these two endocrine organs and aims to use thyroid
hormone receptor-mediated effects in adrenocortical remodeling as a novel approach to address fundamental
questions about the mechanisms that control the differentiation and maintenance of adrenocortical cell layers.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9841412
- **Project number:** 5R00HD082686-04
- **Recipient organization:** AUBURN UNIVERSITY AT AUBURN
- **Principal Investigator:** Chen-Che Jeff Huang
- **Activity code:** R00 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $249,000
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-02-01 → 2022-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9841412

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9841412, Thyroid hormone receptors and adrenocortical remodeling. (5R00HD082686-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9841412. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*