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The testes of testicular feminized (Tfm) mice synthesize and secrete abnormally low amounts of testosterone, as a consequence of selectively decreased cytochrome P450₁₇ activity. To investigate the mechanism of this deficiency, three steroidogenic enzymes were immunolabelled in the testes of normal and Tfm adult (2·5–6 month old) mice. Cholesterol side-chain cleavage cytochrome P450 (P450_scc) and 5-3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3β-HSD) were detected in the Leydig cells of both normal and Tfm mice whereas, in contrast to normal mice, only a small proportion of Leydig cells were immunostained for cytochrome P450-17-hydroxylase,C1720 lyase (P450₁₇) in the testes of Tfm mice. The numbers of cells differed from male to male and interestingly were markedly higher in the right testis. Explants of testes from Tfm mice were kept in organ culture at 32 °C for 45 h, with or without dibutyryl cyclic AMP (100 or 500 µmol/l). All Leydig cells remained positive for P450_scc and 3β-HSD, and P450₁₇ became detectable in the majority of Leydig cells in both left and right testes, showing that the lack of expression of P450₁₇ protein in Tfm mouse testes in vivo is not structural but is a regulatory phenomenon.

Journal of Endocrinology (1993) 139, 127–130

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S.M.L. Chamindrani Mendis-Handagama and H.B. Siril Ariyaratne Differentiation of the Adult Leydig Cell Population in the Postnatal Testis Biol Reprod, September 1, 2001; 65(3): 660 - 671. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]