Marcio Ribeiro

The original anabolic steroids are androgens. These original anabolic steroids are also the precursor of all estrogen, the female sex hormone. Primarily the best known androgen is Testosterone. Androgen is a very generic term for all natural or manmade compounds that flip the switches on, and jump start the development and continued maintenance of the common male characteristics. The Androgen receptor is a type of nuclear receptor.

These nuclear receptors are the things that detect the presence of hormones and certain other molecules. In response to these hormones being detected the receptors work in harmony with other proteins to regulate the expression of certain genes and this controls the development and the metabolism of the organism. These receptors will bind to DNA and by doing so will even regulate adjacent genes sometimes exaggerating their expression. Now this will only happen when a ligand, a molecule that effects the receptors behavior is present, or, the ligand binding to the nuclear receptor results in a conformational change in the receptor which in turn activates the receptor resulting in the “up regulation” of gene expression.

Human homeostasis will now be simplified and explained next. When it comes to homeostasis you have regulators and conformers. Now the best example of regulators and conformers, when it comes to body temperature regulation for instance, would be mammals and reptiles respectively. A mammal is a perfect example in this analogy, of an endothermic animal. A human can regulate it’s body temperature from within- a self regulator. However, an iguana will need to crawl onto a nice warm rock in the morning if it wants to raise it’s body temperature. The regulation coming from the environment surrounding the animal makes this lizard a good example of an ectothermic animal –a conformer, because it conforms to outside influence.

Now this homeostatic regulation goes far beyond just body temperature control. All animals also regulate blood glucose, with hormones produced in the pancreas such as insulin and glucogon. When these hormones can not be produced in sufficient amounts, diabetes is the result. In this case insulin will be injected. And, of coarse hormones such as testosterone regulate genetic characteristics, in men for instance by increased muscle mass, in addition to certain effects on the brain.  

Testosterone is the most well known androgen or steroid hormone from the androgen group. Testosterone is mostly secreted by the testes in the male, but will also be produced in the ovaries of the female. Although you will also find small amounts secreted by the adrenal gland. It is the main male hormone and also an anabolic steroid. Where testosterone can be found in both male and female mammals, there is about 46 times more testosterone in males than in females. Although, because normal ranges can vary greatly in men and woman the high side of the normal range in a woman can overlap the low end of the normal range in a man. So, much less typically, a female and a male could possibly be sporting the same amount of testosterone.

Dane Fletcher
http://www.articlesbase.com/alternative-medicine-articles/steroid-basics-androgens-and-homeostasis-explained-746292.html