Adrenal steroid

Adrenal steroids are steroids that are derived from the adrenal glands. They include corticosteroids, which consist of glucocorticoids like cortisol and mineralocorticoids like aldosterone, adrenal androgens like dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), DHEA sulfate (DHEA-S), and androstenedione (A4), and neurosteroids like DHEA and DHEA-S, as well as pregnenolone and pregnenolone sulfate (P5-S). Adrenal steroids are specifically produced in the adrenal cortex.

Adrenal steroids are distinguished from gonadal steroids, which are steroids that are derived from the gonads and include sex steroids such as progestogens like progesterone, potent androgens like testosterone, and estrogens like estradiol.

Intracrinology

Adrenal androgens like DHEA and DHEA-S are transformed locally into potent androgens like testosterone and/or dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in various tissues such as the skin, hair follicles, prostate gland, breasts, vagina, and others.[1][2][3] Such tissues have all of the enzymes, including 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3β-HSD), 17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (17β-HSD), 5α-reductase, and steroid sulfatase (STS), necessary to transform adrenal androgens like DHEA and DHEA-S into testosterone and/or DHT.[1][2][3] Androstenedione and testosterone originating from the adrenal glands can also be aromatized into the estrogens estrone and estradiol, respectively, in various tissues.[1][2][3] Transformation of adrenal androgens into potent androgens and estrogens is involved in sebum production, skin oiliness, acne, pubic and body hair growth, hirsutism, prostate cancer, breast cancer, and other functions and conditions.[1][2][3]

See also

References
  1. Labrie F, Luu-The V, Bélanger A, Lin SX, Simard J, Pelletier G, Labrie C (November 2005). "Is dehydroepiandrosterone a hormone?". J. Endocrinol. 187 (2): 169–96. doi:10.1677/joe.1.06264. PMID 16293766.
  2. Labrie F, Luu-The V, Labrie C, Simard J (July 2001). "DHEA and its transformation into androgens and estrogens in peripheral target tissues: intracrinology". Front Neuroendocrinol. 22 (3): 185–212. doi:10.1006/frne.2001.0216. PMID 11456468.
  3. Labrie F (2010). "DHEA, important source of sex steroids in men and even more in women". Prog. Brain Res. 182: 97–148. doi:10.1016/S0079-6123(10)82004-7. PMID 20541662.



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