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Androgens
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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The main representatives of androgens in the female body are testosterone, androstenedione and DHEAS. Androgens stimulate the growth of hair on the pubic and axilla, increase libido and affect the size of the clitoris and large labia. Androgens modulate the production of gonadotropins in the anterior pituitary gland.
In the body of men, the main representatives of androgens are testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Most of the testosterone in the blood serum is associated with SSH (approximately 60%). The proportion of free testosterone is 1-3%, and the proportion of testosterone associated with albumin is approximately 40%. In the target organs (prostate, seminal vesicles and skin), only free testosterone and testosterone, bound to albumin, can penetrate. Having reached the target organ and penetrated the cells, testosterone with 5α-reductase is converted to DHT (the main amount is formed in the prostate gland), and only after this DHT has its biological effect. In other target organs, such as muscles and kidneys, the effect of androgens is carried out directly. Hyperandrogenemia in women leads to virilization and impaired fertility. This determines the importance of determining androgens in the diagnosis of female infertility.
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