Deficiency of CDKN1A or both CDKN1A and CDKN1B affects the pubertal development of mouse Leydig cells.

Cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitors p21(Cip1) (CDKN1A) and p27(Kip1) (CDKN1B) are expressed in Leydig cells. Previously, we reported that Cdkn1b knockout in the mouse led to increased Leydig cell proliferative capacity and lower steroidogenesis. However, the relative importance of CDKN1A and CDKN1B in these regulations was unclear.

Trends of reproductive hormones in male rats during psychosocial stress: role of glucocorticoid metabolism in behavioral dominance.

Stress in socially subordinate male rats, associated with aggressive attacks by dominant males, was studied in a group-housing context called the visible burrow system (VBS). It has been established that subordinate males have reduced serum testosterone (T) and higher corticosterone (CORT) relative to dominant and singly housed control males. The relationship of the decreased circulating T levels in subordinate males to changes in serum LH concentrations has not been evaluated previously.

Studies on steroid binding proteins in normal tissues and tumor cell lines.

Steroid binding proteins bind steroid hormones with high affinity and their function is to carry those hormones in the extracellular compartment. Since their discovery more than fifty years ago, many reports concerning their physicochemical structures and functions have contributed to the better understanding of those proteins. Recent advances in recombinant DNA technology have led to the availability of molecular probes for these proteins, and new approaches have been used to analyse their gene structures as well as the regulation of their synthesis.