17α-Estradiol

17α-Estradiol

17α-Estradiol

Chemical compound


17α-Estradiol (also known as 17α-E2, 17-epiestradiol, alfatradiol, or estra-1,3,5(10)-triene-3,17α-diol) is a minor and weak endogenous steroidal estrogen that is related to 17β-estradiol (better known simply as estradiol).[2] It is the C17 epimer of estradiol.[2] It has approximately 100-fold lower estrogenic potency than 17β-estradiol.[3] The compound shows preferential affinity for the ERα over the ERβ.[2][4] Although 17α-estradiol is far weaker than 17β-estradiol as an agonist of the nuclear estrogen receptors, it has been found to bind to and activate the brain-expressed ER-X with a greater potency than that of 17β-estradiol, suggesting that it may be the predominant endogenous ligand for the receptor.[5]

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Biosynthesis

17α-Estradiol is produced from epitestosterone by aromatase at locations not fully characterized (known to include the brain). Where and how epitestosterone is made is not fully understood. Conversion between 17α-estradiol and estrone seems to occur, but the enzymes remain unidentified.[5]

Occurrence

17α-E2 is found in mice brain, regardless of age and sex, at concentrations much higher than 17β-E2. Gonadectomized and/or adrenalectomized mice continue to have high brain levels of 17α-E2.[5]

17α-E2 poorly binds α-fetoprotein, unlike 17β-E2.[5]

17α-E2 is excreted in urine. It was initially discovered in pregnant mare urine (see conjugated estrogens).[5] In a 2022 study, all six tested human urine samples contained detectable amounts of 17α-E2.[6]

Function

As mentioned before, 17α-estradiol binds to ERα and ERβ with moderate affinity but very low activity. It binds to the brain-localized ER-X with significant activity and may play a neuroprotective role.[5]

In the uterus, 17α-estradiol causes smooth muscle relaxation via a nongenomic pathway, similarly to 17β-estradiol; the effect is weaker with no antagonization. It antagonizes the hypertrophic response of 17β-estradiol, probably by acting as an antiestrogen by virtue of its very low activity.[7]

Aging

Supplementation with 17α-Estradiol increases the median lifespan of male mice by 19%, while not affecting female lifespan. This treatment does not lead to feminization of male mice.[8] 17α-Estradiol furthermore alleviates age-related metabolic and inflammatory dysfunction[9] and improves glucose tolerance[10] in male mice. The exact reason for this sex-specific increase in lifespan is unknown, however, the effect on male lifespan is gone in castrated mice, suggesting that the metabolic response to 17α-Estradiol requires the presence of male gonadal hormones.[11] Whether these results are translatable to humans is currently unknown.

See also


References

  1. J. Elks (14 November 2014). The Dictionary of Drugs: Chemical Data: Chemical Data, Structures and Bibliographies. Springer. pp. 897–. ISBN 978-1-4757-2085-3.
  2. Zhu BT, Han GZ, Shim JY, Wen Y, Jiang XR (2006). "Quantitative structure-activity relationship of various endogenous estrogen metabolites for human estrogen receptor alpha and beta subtypes: Insights into the structural determinants favoring a differential subtype binding". Endocrinology. 147 (9): 4132–50. doi:10.1210/en.2006-0113. PMID 16728493.
  3. Ralph M. Trüeb, Won-Soo Lee (13 February 2014). Male Alopecia: Guide to Successful Management. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 93–. ISBN 978-3-319-03233-7.
  4. Kuiper GG, Carlsson B, Grandien K, Enmark E, Häggblad J, Nilsson S, Gustafsson JA (1997). "Comparison of the ligand binding specificity and transcript tissue distribution of estrogen receptors alpha and beta". Endocrinology. 138 (3): 863–70. doi:10.1210/endo.138.3.4979. PMID 9048584.
  5. Toran-Allerand CD, Tinnikov AA, Singh RJ, Nethrapalli IS (2005). "17alpha-estradiol: a brain-active estrogen?". Endocrinology. 146 (9): 3843–50. doi:10.1210/en.2004-1616. PMID 15947006.
  6. Tang Z, Liu ZH, Wang H, Dang Z (10 July 2022). "17α-Estradiol, an ignored endogenous natural estrogen in human: Updated estrogen metabolism pathways and its environmental risk analysis". The Science of the Total Environment. 829: 154693. Bibcode:2022ScTEn.829o4693T. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154693. PMID 35318059. S2CID 247579981.
  7. Strong R, Miller RA, Antebi A, Astle CM, Bogue M, Denzel MS, Fernandez E, Flurkey K, Hamilton KL, Lamming DW, Javors MA, Magalhães JP, Martinez PA, McCord JM, Miller BF (October 2016). "Longer lifespan in male mice treated with a weakly estrogenic agonist, an antioxidant, an α-glucosidase inhibitor or a Nrf2-inducer". Aging Cell. 15 (5): 872–884. doi:10.1111/acel.12496. ISSN 1474-9718. PMC 5013015. PMID 27312235.
  8. Stout MB, Steyn FJ, Jurczak MJ, Camporez JP, Zhu Y, Hawse JR, Jurk D, Palmer AK, Xu M, Pirtskhalava T, Evans GL, de Souza Santos R, Frank AP, White TA, Monroe DG (2016-01-24). "17α-Estradiol Alleviates Age-related Metabolic and Inflammatory Dysfunction in Male Mice Without Inducing Feminization". The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences. 72 (1): 3–15. doi:10.1093/gerona/glv309. ISSN 1079-5006. PMC 5155656. PMID 26809497.

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