Linked Life Data

16223859

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/16223859

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
1
pubmed:dateCreated
2005-12-20
pubmed:abstractText
Steroids in the brain arise both from local synthesis and from peripheral sources and have a variety of effects on neuronal function. However, there is little direct chemical evidence for the range of steroids present in brain or of the pathways for their synthesis and inactivation. This information is a prerequisite for understanding the regulation and function of brain steroids. After extraction from adult male rat brain, we have fractionated free steroids and their sulfate esters and then converted them to heptafluorobutyrate or methyloxime-trimethylsilyl ether derivatives for unequivocal identification and assay by gas chromatography analysis and selected ion monitoring mass spectrometry. In the free steroid fraction, corticosterone, 3alpha,5alpha-tetrahydrodeoxycorticosterone, testosterone, and dehydroepiandrosterone were found in the absence of detectable precursors usually found in endocrine glands, indicating peripheral sources and/or alternative synthetic pathways in brain. Conversely, the potent neuroactive steroid 3alpha,5alpha-tetrahydroprogesterone (allopregnanolone) was found in the presence of its precursors pregnenolone, progesterone, and 5alpha-dihydroprogesterone. Furthermore, the presence of 3beta-, 11beta-, 17alpha-, and 20alpha-hydroxylated metabolites of 3alpha,5alpha-tetrahydroprogesterone implicated possible inactivation pathways for this steroid. The 20alpha-reduced metabolites could also be found for pregnenolone, progesterone, and 5alpha-dihydroprogesterone, introducing a possible regulatory diversion from the production of 3alpha,5alpha-tetrahydroprogesterone. In the steroid sulfate fraction, dehydroepiandrostrone sulfate was identified but not pregnenolone sulfate. Although pharmacologically active, identification of the latter appears to be an earlier methodological artifact, and the compound is thus of doubtful physiological significance in the adult brain. Our results provide a basis for elucidating the origins and regulation of brain steroids.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
AIM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Jan
pubmed:issn
0013-7227
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
147
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
179-90
pubmed:dateRevised
2006-11-15
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2006
pubmed:articleTitle
Identification of neuroactive steroids and their precursors and metabolites in adult male rat brain.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Physiology, University College London, London WC1E 6BT, United Kingdom.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't