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Expression of 5α‐Reductase and 3α‐Hydroxisteroid Oxidoreductase in the Hippocampus of Patients with Chronic Temporal Lobe Epilepsy
Author(s) -
StoffelWagner B.,
Beyenburg S.,
Watzka M.,
Blümcke I.,
Bauer J.,
Schramm J.,
Bidlingmaier F.,
Elger C. E.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
epilepsia
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.687
H-Index - 191
eISSN - 1528-1167
pISSN - 0013-9580
DOI - 10.1111/j.1528-1157.2000.tb00133.x
Subject(s) - neuroactive steroid , hippocampus , epilepsy , temporal lobe , hippocampal formation , endocrinology , reductase , medicine , pregnanolone , messenger rna , biology , enzyme , neuroscience , receptor , gabaa receptor , biochemistry , gene
Summary:Purpose : The hippocampus is one of the principal target areas for neurosteroidal action, and the major neuroen‐docrine conversion of progesterone appears to be 5α‐reduction and 3α‐hydroxysteroid oxidoreduction, leading to the potent neurosteroid 3α,5α‐tetrahydroxyprogesterone. To investigate whether the human hippocampus is equipped with the enzymes 5α‐reductase and 3α‐hydroxysteroid oxidoreductase (3α‐HSOR), we studied the expression of 5α‐reductase types 1 and 2 and 3α‐HSOR types 1 and 2 in the resected hippocampi of patients with medically intractable chronic temporal lobe epilepsy. Methods : We studied tissue specimens from the hippocampi of 13 women, 25 men, and four children. Quantification of different mRNAs was achieved by competitive reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR). Results : 5α‐Reductase 1 mRNA and 3α‐HSOR 2 mRNA were expressed in hippocampi of children and adults, whereas 5α‐reductase 2 mRNA and 3α‐HSOR 1 mRNA were not expressed. Neither 5α‐reductase 1 mRNA nor 3α‐HSOR 2 mRNA concentrations in hippocampal tissue showed any statistically significant differences between women and men or between children and adults. Conclusions : This study demonstrates for the first time mRNA expression of the type 1 isozyme of 5α‐reductase and the type 2 isozyme of 3α‐HSOR in the human hippocampus. The finding that both 5α‐reductase and 3α‐HSOR are present in the hippocampus leads us to assume the synthesis of neuro‐active steroids in this human brain area.