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Endocrine Abstracts (2015) 37 GP07.05 | DOI: 10.1530/endoabs.37.GP.07.05

1Department of Medical Genetics, Erciyes University Medical School, Kayseri, Turkey; 2Department of Endocrinology, Erciyes University Medical School, Kayseri, Turkey; 3Department of Biostatistics, Erciyes University Medical School, Kayseri, Turkey; 4Department of Dermatology, Erciyes University Medical School, Kayseri, Turkey; 5Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Erciyes University Medical School, Kayseri, Turkey.


Introduction: The pathogenesis of idiopathic hirsutism (IH) is not clear. On the other hand, human skin possesses all the enzymes necessary for androgen synthesis and catabolism indicating that it is an independent peripheral endocrine organ. Thus, in the present study we aimed to investigate the mRNA expression of aromatase enzyme and the other enzymes having functional roles in the steroidogenic pathway, in freshly obtained skin tissue from subumblical skin and the arm of women with IH.

Patients: We aimed to determine mRNA expressions of genes associated with local androgen synthesis and metabolism (CYP11A1, STS, CYP19A1, SRD5A1, SRD5A2, HSD3B1, AR, COMT, ESR1, ESR2, HSD3B2, CYP17A1, SULT2A1, SULT1E1, HSD17B2, IL6, TGFβ1, TNF-α) from skin biopsy and blood samples of 21 patients with IH and the data compared with 15 healthy subjects.

Results: We found that patients with IH exhibit significantly lower expression of IL-6 mRNA and higher steroid sulphatase (STS) and HSD17B2 gene mRNA expression, respectively, in the subumblical region skin biopsies. Similarly, patients with IH exhibit significantly lower IL-6 mRNA expression and higher STS and HSD17B2 gene mRNA expression, respectively, in the arm skin compared to healthy women’s subumblical region. There were no significant differences in any gene expression between the arm and subumblical skin biopsies in the patient group. In addition, there were no significant differences in any gene expression in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of the patients and healthy women.

Discussion: Our results suggest that the increased mRNA expression of HSD17B2 and STS genes, decreased IL6 mRNA are not dependent on circulating levels of testosterone. In both arm and umblical skin biopsy of patients with idiopathic hirsutism, we observed an up-regulation of HSD17B2 and STS, decreased IL6, probably determining an increase in the local amount of active androgens, which could then be used as substrate for other androgen metabolic routes.

Disclosure: This work was supported by hte Erciyes University Research Council (TSA-12-4053).

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