Testosterone and Adult Neurogenesis

It is now well established that neurogenesis occurs throughout adulthood in select brain regions, but the functional significance of adult neurogenesis remains unclear. There is considerable evidence that steroid hormones modulate various stages of adult neurogenesis, and this review provides a focu...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biomolecules (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2020-02, Vol.10 (2), p.225
Main Authors: Spritzer, Mark D, Roy, Ethan A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
adult neurogenesis
androgen
Androgens - physiology
Animals
bdnf
Brain - metabolism
Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor - metabolism
Cell Proliferation
Cell Survival
dentate gyrus
Dentate Gyrus - metabolism
Female
Glucocorticoids - metabolism
hippocampus
Hippocampus - metabolism
Humans
Male
Neurogenesis
Neurons - physiology
neuroprotection
Neuroprotective Agents
Olfactory Bulb - metabolism
Review
spatial memory
sub-ventricular zone
testosterone
Testosterone - physiology
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:It is now well established that neurogenesis occurs throughout adulthood in select brain regions, but the functional significance of adult neurogenesis remains unclear. There is considerable evidence that steroid hormones modulate various stages of adult neurogenesis, and this review provides a focused summary of the effects of testosterone on adult neurogenesis. Initial evidence came from field studies with birds and wild rodent populations. Subsequent experiments with laboratory rodents have tested the effects of testosterone and its steroid metabolites upon adult neurogenesis, as well as the functional consequences of induced changes in neurogenesis. These experiments have provided clear evidence that testosterone increases adult neurogenesis within the dentate gyrus region of the hippocampus through an androgen-dependent pathway. Most evidence indicates that androgens selectively enhance the survival of newly generated neurons, while having little effect on cell proliferation. Whether this is a result of androgens acting directly on receptors of new neurons remains unclear, and indirect routes involving brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and glucocorticoids may be involved. In vitro experiments suggest that testosterone has broad-ranging neuroprotective effects, which will be briefly reviewed. A better understanding of the effects of testosterone upon adult neurogenesis could shed light on neurological diseases that show sex differences.
ISSN:2218-273X
2218-273X
DOI:10.3390/biom10020225