Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
1
pubmed:dateCreated
2001-12-25
pubmed:abstractText
The brain, like the adrenals, gonads and the placenta, is a steroidogenic tissue. However, unlike classic steroidogenic tissues, the synthesis of steroids in the nervous system requires coordinated expression and regulation of genes encoding the steroidogenic enzymes in several different cell types (neurons and glia) at different locations in the nervous system, often at some distance from the cell bodies. Furthermore, the synthesis of these steroids might be developmentally regulated and related to their functions in the developing brain. The steroids synthesized by the brain and nervous system, given the name 'neurosteroids', have a wide variety of diverse functions. In general, they mediate their actions not through classic steroid hormone nuclear receptors, but through other mechanisms, such as ion-gated neurotransmitter receptors or direct/indirect modulation of other neurotransmitter receptors. We summarize the biochemistry of the enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of neurosteroids, their pharmacological properties and modes of action. The physiological relevance and potential uses of neurosteroids in certain human diseases are discussed.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:issn
1043-2760
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
13
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
35-43
pubmed:dateRevised
2007-11-14
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:articleTitle
Neurosteroids: biochemistry and clinical significance.
pubmed:affiliation
Dept of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, 513 Parnassus Ave, Box 0556, San Francisco, CA 94143-0556, USA. mellon@cgl.ucsf.edu
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S., Review, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't