BACKGROUND Serum androgen levels correlate with ovarian sensitivity to follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) but in practice, standard baseline serum testosterone (T) levels prior to in-vitro fertilization (IVF) may not be the most appropriate marker for determination. METHODS Infertile women enrolled in an IVF programme were included in this study. Serum T and Delta4-androstenedione (A), and th...

The autocrine/paracrine interaction of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFr) and transforming growth factor a (TGF-a) has been implicated in prostate cancer cell growth and proliferation. To evaluate the role of EGFr and TGF-a in prostate cancer progression, we studied the immunohistochemical staining pattern of EGFr and TGF-a in malignant primary and hormone-independent metastatic prosta...

PURPOSE The development of new effective therapeutic agents with minimal side effects for prostate cancer (PC) treatment is much needed. Indirubin, an active molecule identified in the traditional Chinese herbal medicine-Qing Dai (Indigo naturalis), has been used to treat leukemia for decades. However, the anticancer properties of Natura-alpha, an indirubin derivative, are not well studied in s...

The autocrine/paracrine interaction of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFr) and transforming growth factor alpha (TGF-alpha) has been implicated in prostate cancer cell growth and proliferation. To evaluate the role of EGFr and TGF-alpha in prostate cancer progression, we studied the immunohistochemical staining pattern of EGFr and TGF-alpha in malignant primary and hormone-independent m...

Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men in the UK, and the incidence of prostate cancer has increased dramatically over the past two decades. Although most men are diagnosed at early stage, more than 50% develop locally advanced or metastatic disease. Androgen ablation with luteinising hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonists alone, or in combination with anti-androgens, is the...

BACKGROUND The role of the epidermal growth factor receptor (ErbB1) in the progression of prostate cancer is incompletely understood. METHODS Tissue microarrays from hormone-naive and advanced androgen-independent tumors were used to investigate the role of ErbB1 in prostate cancer progression. RESULTS ErbB1 expression in tumor tissues was strongly associated with hormone-refractory status ...

Structural modifications of natural products with complex structures like steroids require great synthetic effort. A review of literature is presented on the chemistry of the steroidal hormone 17α-methyltestosterone that is approved by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States as an androgen for estrogen-androgen hormone replacement therapy treatment. The analog also offers specia...

Beige Adipocyte fat is gaining increasing therapeutic interest due to its potential in combating obesity and other non-communicable diseases. By single clone analysis, Tao Nie, Donghai Wu, Hannah Xiaoyan Hui, co-workers discover that androgen receptor (AR) turns out be a highly potent transcription factor suppression of PRDM16, the key molecular switch beige fat. The article number 2300070 prov...

BACKGROUND Our independent cohort studies have consistently shown the reduction of the nuclear receptor RORA (retinoic acid-related orphan receptor-alpha) in lymphoblasts as well as in brain tissues from individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Moreover, we have found that RORA regulates the gene for aromatase, which converts androgen to estrogen, and that male and female hormones regul...

In prostate cancer, androgen receptor (AR) binding and androgen-responsive gene expression are defined by hormone-independent binding patterns of the pioneer factors FoxA1 and GATA2. Insufficient evidence of the mechanisms by which GATA2 contributes to this process precludes complete understanding of a key determinant of tissue-specific AR activity. Our observations suggest that GATA2 facilitat...