Journal of Andrology Testis Workshop 2009
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Published-Ahead-of-Print September 24, 2009, DOI:10.2164/jandrol.109.008391
Journal of Andrology, Vol. 31, No. 2, March/April 2010
Copyright © American Society of Andrology
DOI: 10.2164/jandrol.109.008391

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Serum LH Correlates Highly With Intratesticular Steroid Levels in Normal Men

M. Y. ROTH*,{dagger}, K. LIN{ddagger}, J. K. AMORY*,{dagger}, A. M. MATSUMOTO*,{dagger},§, B. D. ANAWALT*,{dagger}, C. N. SNYDER*,{dagger}, T. F. KALHORN||,¶, W. J. BREMNER*,{dagger} AND S. T. PAGE*,{dagger}

From the * Department of Internal Medicine, the {dagger} Center for Research in Reproduction and Contraception, the {ddagger} Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and the || Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington; and the § Geriatric Research, Education and Clinical Center, Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System, Seattle, Washington.

Correspondence to: Dr Mara Y Roth, University of Washington, 1959 NE Pacific St, Box 357138, Seattle, WA 91895 (e-mail: mylang{at}u.washington.edu).


Sex steroids are essential for spermatogenesis; however, normal intratesticular concentrations of these hormones in man have not been extensively studied. To improve our understanding of intratesticular hormone concentrations, we performed bilateral testicular aspirations in a group of normal men, determined sex steroid concentrations within each testis, and compared these levels to serum hormone concentrations. Ten healthy human subjects aged 20–49 underwent bilateral testicular aspirations. Intratesticular hormone concentrations of testosterone, dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and estradiol were measured using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Intratesticular testosterone concentrations ranged from 119 to 1251 ng/mL, with a mean of 635 ± 368 ng/mL. Intratesticular estradiol ranged from 0.41 to 3.9 ng/mL, with a mean of 2.4 ± 1.3 ng/mL. Intratesticular DHT ranged from 1.1 to 7.9 ng/mL, with a mean of 3.5 ± 3.2 ng/mL. Intratesticular testosterone and estradiol concentrations correlated highly with serum luteinizing hormone (LH; r = 0.87 and r = 0.70 respectively, P < .01). Intratesticular testosterone correlated highly with serum testosterone. Moreover, a significant correlation between the right and left testes was observed for testosterone (r = 0.82, P = .003), but not for estradiol or DHT. Intratesticular hormone concentrations can be safely assessed by testicular aspiration. Intratesticular testosterone and estradiol correlate highly with serum LH concentrations, and variation in serum LH accounts for most of the variation in intratesticular testosterone among men. In addition, intratesticular testosterone is highly correlated between testes in a given individual. Direct measurement of intratesticular testosterone will improve our understanding of the relationship between intratesticular sex steroids and spermatogenesis, and may have implications for the development of male hormonal contraception.

     Key words: Contraception, hormone, infertility, testis






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