Bone health and strength are dependent on the coupling of cone resorption and bone formation. This process is governed by the interaction of osteoclasts and osteoblasts plus the modulating influence of the bone mechanicosensory cells-the osteocytes. Both sex steroids-estrogen (E) and testosterone (T)- have receptors on all bone cells, with androgen dominance on osteoblasts and osteocytes. Speci...

Prostate cancer (PCa) is the second most common cancer in men. Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) leads to tumor involution and reduction of tumor burden. However, tumors eventually reemerge that have overcome the absence of gonadal androgens, termed castration resistant PCa (CRPC). Theories underlying the development of CRPC include androgen receptor (AR) mutation allowing for promiscuous acti...

Androgens play an important role in metabolic homeostasis and reproductive health in both men and women. Androgen signalling is dependent on androgen receptor activation, mostly by testosterone and 5α-dihydrotestosterone. However, the intracellular or intracrine activation of C19 androgen precursors to active androgens in peripheral target tissues of androgen action is of equal importance. Intr...

Women and men are chromosomally different. Women have two X chromosomes (XX), whereas men have an X and a Y chromosome (XY). In the period following conception, female and male embryos are indistinguishable apart from their chromosomes. However, the Y chromosome in males starts to promote the production of testosterone and other androgens (male sex hormones). These androgens cause the male to d...

Avian eggs contain substantial amounts of maternal androgens, and several studies have indicated that these are beneficial for the chick. Nevertheless, there is a large and systematic variation in maternal hormone concentrations both within and between clutches. If maternal androgens also involve costs, this might explain why not all mothers put high levels of androgens in their clutches. Howev...

Androgens provide survival signals to prostate epithelial cells, and androgen ablation induces apoptosis in the prostate gland. However, the molecular mechanisms of actions of the androgen-signaling pathway in these processes are not fully understood. Here, we report that androgens induced expression of the cellular Fas/FasL-associated death domain protein-like inhibitory protein (c-FLIP) gene,...

Since the ratio of the second-to-fourth finger length was first proposed as a marker for prenatal androgen action in 1998, over 100 studies have been published that have either further tested the association between the digit ratio and prenatal androgens, or employed digit ratios as a marker to investigate the association between prenatal androgens and a variety of outcomes, including behavior,...

The auditory system exhibits differences by sex and by sexual orientation, and the implication is that relevant auditory structures are altered during prenatal development, possibly by exposure to androgens. The otoacoustic emissions (OAEs) of newborn male infants are weaker than those of newborn females, and these sex differences persist through the lifespan. The OAEs of nonheterosexual female...

Sex hormones play an active role in inflammatory responses, with androgens being anti-inflammatory, whereas estrogens have both pro- and anti-inflammatory effects. In rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients, low levels of androgens and high levels of estrone are found in the synovial fluid. Aromatase is the key enzyme for the conversion of androgens into estrogens. Proinflammatory cytokines stimulat...

T HE PREDOMINANT emphasis in the study of hormones in post-menopausal women has been accorded to estrogens and progestins, with lesser attention being given to androgens and the issue of androgen replacement. This is perhaps because androgens are traditionally thought of as male hormones, and the impact of excessive androgen activity in women, for example as in hirsutism, receives more attentio...