Pregnenolone and its sulfate ester in the rat brain

doi:10.1016/0006-8993(83)90797-7

Brain Research

Volume 270, Issue 1, 27 June 1983, Pages 119-125

https://doi.org/10.1016/0006-8993(83)90797-7 Get rights and content

Abstract

Pregnenolone (P) and its sulfate ester (PS) have been characterized in the brain of adult male rats. The concentration of P (38.4 ± 6.9 and 22.1 ± 2.9 ng/g, mean ± S.D., in anterior and posterior brain, respectively) exceeded that of PS in brain (15.8 ± 3.0 and 5.7 ± 2.1ng/g in the same fractions) and largely those of P and PS in plasma (1.3 ± 0.2 and 1.4 ± 0.3ng/g, respectively). The level of P in brain was much larger than that of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DS), characterized and measured previously (Corpéchot et al.⁵). Brain P and PS levels did not seem to depend on steroidogenic gland secretion: no meaningful difference occurred in brain 15 days after adrenalectomy plus orchiectomy, compared with sham-operated controls. It is proposed that, as that of DS (ref. 5) P and PS formation or accumulation (or both) in the rat brain depend on in situ mechanisms unrelated to the peripheral endocrine gland system.

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: This work was partially supported by Inserm Contract PRC 120048.

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Pregnenolone and its sulfate ester in the rat brain

Abstract

J. Steroid Biochem.

J. biol. Chem.

J. Lipid Res.

Brain Research

J. Steroid biochem.

Physiol. Behav.

Biochem. Biophys. Acta

Steroids

J. biol. Chem.

J. Steroid Biochem.