preview

DHEA Research Paper

Decent Essays

DHEA is the most abundant circulating endogenous steroid hormone in the human body; it is a precursor to other steroids such as androgen, and estrogen sex steroids. DHEA is synthesized in the central and peripheral nervous system (i.e- adrenal glands, gonads and the brain). It is also a neuroactive steroid which acts on the nervous system. DHEA and its sulfate ester DHEAS are produced in the brain and the adrenal gland, brain DHEA acts locally while adrenal DHEA acts systemically. DHEA is one of the most potent neuroactive neurosteroids, and a decline of both brain and systemic DHEA due to advancing age has been associated to neuronal dysfunction and degeneration such as: Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases, stroke, and multiple and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The treatments available today for treating neurodegenerative diseases are symptomatic and do not prevent or slow the …show more content…

(allopregnenolone)
Structure−activity relationships for antiapoptotic−neuroprotective steroid derivatives
The synthesis and activity of DHEA analogues modified at positions C3 or C17 improve their antiapoptotic−neuroprotective activity and inhibit their conversion to estrogens or androgens.
From the result of the synthesis,(REFER TO PDF ARTICLE FOR SYNTHETIC APPROACH AND CHEMISTRY) 3β-hydroxy-3α-substituted steroid derivatives [structures 5,7,9 and 14-refer to PDF article] and 3α-hydroxy-3β-substituted analogues(structure 11 and 15 – refer to PDF article) were not capable of protecting neuronal cells from apoptosis, and also the replacement of the C17-ketone by a 17β-methoxy group (structure 19- refer to PDF article) led to a loss in antiapoptotic activity. However, the 17, 20-spiro-epoxide derivatives (structures 20, 23, and 27- refer to PDF article) were capable of protecting neuronal cells against serum deprivation-induced

Get Access