Binding and metabolism of the urinous odorant 5{alpha}-androstan-3-one in sheep olfactory mucosa

The existence of specific receptors for the urinous smellingsteroid 5-androstan-3-one has been investigated in sheep olfactorymucosa using ligand-binding methods. 16,17-³H]5-Androstan-3-one(52.5 Ci/mmol) was synthesized from the precursor 5-androst-16-cn-3-one,which was prepared by two novel methods. A specific bindingcomponent, absent from control tissues was identified. The affinityconstant was 9.6 ± 6.1 x 10⁸ M^-1 (mean ± SD) andcompetition experiments with other compounds indicate high specificity.Binding activity was localized in a high M_r tissue fractionand was distinct from 3-ketosteroid dehydrogenase and otherenzymatic activity.