BACKGROUND In the recent years, the use of laboratory blood factors such as FSH and inhibin-B for the assessment of spermatogenesis in different studies has increased; of course, the conflicting results have also been achieved. OBJECTIVE To investigate if the measurement of inhibin-B can help surgeon to reduce unnecessary diagnostic testicular biopsies in males with azoospermia. MATERIALS A...

Inhibin B has been identified as a potential marker of Sertoli cell function in males. The aim of this study is to produce a normative model of serum inhibin B in males from birth to seventeen years. We used a well-defined search strategy to identify studies containing data that can contribute to a larger approximation of the healthy population. We combined data from four published studies (n =...

BACKGROUND Dominant follicle selection is disturbed in normogonadotrophic anovulatory infertility [World Health Organization (WHO) 2] and remaining early antral follicles are either healthy or atretic. This study was conducted to investigate whether inhibin B serum concentrations (produced by healthy small antral follicles) represent the extent of ovarian abnormalities in WHO 2 women and patien...

It is recognised that ovarian factors, including steroid and protein hormones, are critical in the feedback regulation of pituitary gonadotropins; however, their individual contributions are less defined. The aim of this study was to explore the reciprocal relationships between ovarian and pituitary hormones across the normal ovulatory menstrual cycle as women age. FSH, LH, oestradiol, progeste...

BACKGROUND Inhibins are dimeric glycoproteins, composed of an alpha-subunit (INH-α) and one of two possible beta-subunits (βA or βB), with substantial roles in human reproduction and in endocrine-responsive tumours. Aims of this study were to determine the serological measurement of inhibin A (α-βA) in breast cancer patients during chemotherapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS A series of 30 breast canc...

This study describes the testicular levels of inhibin/activin subunits by Northern analysis and in situ hybridization and serum and testicular levels of inhibins A and B and activin A by enzyme linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) during postnatal development in the rat. We show that serum inhibin A levels are less than 4 pg/ml throughout postnatal life. Serum inhibin B levels peak at 572 +/- 11...

BACKGROUND Activin and inhibin are glycoproteins structurally related to the transforming growth factor-beta superfamily. These peptides were first described as factors that regulate the follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) at the pituitary level. The possible role of inhibin and activin, at the ovarian level, in mediating the stimulatory actions of a Fundulus pituitary extract (FPE) and 17alpha,...

Inhibins are heterodimeric protein hormones secreted by the granulosa cells of the ovary in the female and the Sertoli cells of the testis in the male. Published research studies have assessed Inhibin B levels in Sertoli cell function, ovarian reserve and granulosa cell tumors. A two-step sandwich-type enzymatic microplate assay to measure Inhibin B levels within 3.5h is reported, and sample pr...

Inhibins and activins are growth factors belonging to the transforming growth factor-beta) family and are known to influence cell proliferation and differentiation. Because transforming growth factor-beta is involved in physiological and tumoral changes of uterine tissues, the present study aimed to evaluate whether human normal and neoplastic endometrial and cervical epithelial cells express a...

Inhibin and activin are essential dimeric glycoproteins belonging to the transforming growth factor-beta (TGFβ) superfamily. Inhibin is a heterodimer of α- and β-subunits, whereas activin is a homodimer of β-subunits. Production of inhibin is regulated during the reproductive cycle and requires the processing of pro-ligands to produce mature hormone. Furin is a subtilisin-like proprotein conver...