Androgens in the demography of male life course--a review

While the basics of testosterone production, effects and metabolism have been known for decades, there has been a flow of novel insights in the genomics of testosterone action on a molecular and cellular level, as well as in the clinical effects from modern clinical trials, improving the understanding of the role of testosterone in male life course. Androgens are produced under the control of an endocrine cascade from GnRH via gonadotropins to the testicular Leydig cells. In some organs, testosterone is reduced to 5alpha-dihydrotestosterone prior to the receptor binding by the 5alpha reductase. The androgen receptor gene is located on the X chromosome in the q11-12 region, each mutation in the gene will induce phenotypic manisfestations. In the first stage of the male life course, testosterone moderates the male embryonic development under the control of a complex molecular genetic network. The next important phase of male maturation is the puberty, in which testosterone levels increase and induce the development of somatic and psychological characteristics of male sexuality. In the adult male, testosterone maintains sexual functions and fertility. In aging men, testosterone levels decrease slowly. Testosterone supplementation in the aging male is able to restore the function of androgen target organs only in part.