Biological synthesis of sulphuric acid esters of steroid hormones or their metabolites.

The synthesis in vitro of the sulphuric acid esters of ordinary phenols by rat-liver preparations has been demonstrated by De Meio & Tkacz (1952), De Meio, Wizerkaniuk & Fabiani (1953), De Meio, Wizerkaniuk & Schreibman (1954) and Bernstein & McGilvery (1952a, b). De Meio & Lewycka (1955) were able to observe the formation in vitro of dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate by the same type of preparations and Roy (1956) has presented other experimental evidence for the formationof dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate and other steroid sulphates. The requirements for such a synthesis appear to be the same as those found for the formation of phenyl sulphates (De Meio, Wizerkaniuk & Fabiani, 1953; Bernstein & McGilvery, 1952a). Direct evidence is presented in this paper for the biosynthesis of the sulphates of dehydroepiandrosterone, testosterone, oestrone and oestradiol-17fl. It is also shown that ox-liver preparations act on dehydroepiandrosterone and oestradiol-17,B, producing other metabolic changes.