Christopher M Jones, Ashwini Mallappa, Nicole Reisch, Nikolaos Nikolaou, Nils Krone, Beverly A Hughes, Donna M O'Neil, Martin J Whitaker, Jeremy W Tomlinson, Karl-Heinz Storbeck, Deborah P Merke, Richard J Ross, Wiebke Arlt
CONTEXT: The classic androgen synthesis pathway proceeds via dehydroepiandrosterone, androstenedione, and testosterone to 5α-dihydrotestosterone. However, 5α-dihydrotestosterone synthesis can also be achieved by an alternative pathway originating from 17α-hydroxyprogesterone (17OHP), which accumulates in congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). Similarly, recent work has highlighted androstenedione-derived 11-oxygenated 19-carbon steroids as active androgens, and in CAH, androstenedione is generated directly from 17OHP...
June 1, 2017: Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism