Abstract
Androgens have a critical role in a wide range of biological processes. These include spermatogenesis, development of reproductive organs, and brain function. Most actions of androgens are mediated by the nuclear androgen receptor (AR), which acts as a ligand-inducible transcription factor. To elucidate physiological significance of AR in target tissues, we succeeded in disrupting the AR on the X chromosome using a Cre–loxP system. Male AR-null mutant (ARKO) mice exhibit abnormalities typical of testicular feminization mutants (Tfm), including female external genitalia with atrophic testis [1]. They also develop late-onset obesity [2] with glucocorticoid overproduction [3] and impaired bone growth coupled with high bone turnover [4]. Moreover, essential role of AR for normal folliculogenesis suggests that androgen/AR signaling is also physiologically important in females [5]. On the other hand, the physiological role of AR-mediated androgen signaling in brain masculinization has not been established. We describe here the cooperative role of sex hormones signaling in brain sex differences underlying the expression of male-typical behaviors.
Keywords
- Androgen Receptor
- Androgen Receptor Gene
- High Bone Turnover
- Male Sexual Behavior
- Female External Genitalia
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Matsumoto, T., Inoue, K., Sato, T., Kato, S. (2011). Genetic Impact of Both Sex Hormones in Male-Typical Behaviors. In: New, M., Simpson, J. (eds) Hormonal and Genetic Basis of Sexual Differentiation Disorders and Hot Topics in Endocrinology: Proceedings of the 2nd World Conference. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology, vol 707. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-8002-1_27
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-8002-1_27
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