Although endometriosis is suspected to be a cause of premature ovarian insufficiency (POI), the mechanism(s) underlying this process have not been elucidated. Recently, androgens were shown to promote oocyte maturation and to play a role in folliculogenesis. In addition, several reports have documented low testosterone levels in the follicular fluid obtained from endometriosis patients. We ther...

OBJECTIVES To develop a rapid convenient-to-implement high performance liquid chromatography-isotope dilution tandem mass spectrometry (LC-IDMS/MS) method for determination of serum testosterone concentration in routine clinical laboratories. METHODS Following extraction by organic solvents, an Agilent 1200 Series HPLC system coupled to an API 5000 mass spectrometer equipped with an atmospher...

In order to throw further light on the role of androgens in the aetiology of the polycystic ovary syndrome (PCO) we have examined the effect of artificially increasing serum testosterone levels on menstrual function in a group of ovulating women. Six women were studied who had either severe premenstrual syndrome or loss of libido for which they were treated with 100 mg testosterone by s.c. impl...

AIM The age-specific population profiles in men of circulating testosterone and its two bioactive metabolites dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and estradiol (E2) across the adult lifespan and its determinants are not well described. OBJECTIVE Our objective was to deduce smoothed age-specific centiles of circulating testosterone, DHT, and E2 in men using pooled data from population-based studies in t...

Testosterone deficiency leads to bone loss and testosterone treatment has a beneficial effect. This study investigated the effects of normalizing serum testosterone on bone mineral density in 45 men with osteoporosis, diagnosed with testosterone deficiency (serum testosterone levels <12.1 nmol/L, T-scores: (mean ± SD) -3.12 ± 0.45, minimum: -4.10, and maximum: -2.60). In a cumulative, prospecti...

BACKGROUND Although a growing body of evidence indicates that androgens modulate immune response and certain alterations in sex hormone metabolism and balance are thought to predispose an individual to immune-mediated diseases, few studies have investigated the role of androgens in atopic eczema/dermatitis syndrome (AEDS). OBJECTIVE We evaluated serum concentration of dehydroepiandrosterone s...

In order to assess the role of the gonads and anterior pituitary gland in the production of poor quality semen of males with homozygous sickle cell disease (SCD) serum gonadotrophins, namely follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), prolactin and serum testosterone, were assayed radioimmunologically in 33 men with sickle cell disease and in 29 age-matched normal control subj...

The role of gonadotropins, androgens, and insulin in the regulation of circulating leptin levels is obscure. In order to clarify the relationships of these parameters we studied serum leptin levels in 19 healthy control subjects and in 35 hyperandrogenic and hyperinsulinemic patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Serum leptin concentrations did not differ significantly between PCOS pat...