effect of five alpha dihydrotestosterone (5α-dht) on cytokine production by peritoneal macrophages of nzb/balbc mice

one of the mechanisms involved in the regulation of the immune system by steroid hormones could be the monocytic-macrophage system. in this study the effect of the male hormone 5a-dht on cytokine release by peritoneal macrophages (mφ) of male and female nzb/balbc mice was investigated. macrophages from male mice activated with lps produced a greater amount of il-1β (21.8%) (p<0.05) and il-6 (19.3% ) (p<0.0 1) than age-matched females. however, the total amount of tnf-α released by lps-activated macrophages was greater (24.8%) (p<0.05) in female than male mice. 5α -dht enhanced il-1β and reduced il-6 release by activated macrophages in a dose-dependent fashion. the effect of 5ad ht on tnf-α release was not exactly dose-dependent therefore, it is likely that the modulation of the immune system by steroid hormone may partly be due to the effect of 5α -dht on the secretion of cytokines by the monocytic-macrophage system.