Effects of androgen on 17 beta-estradiol and progesterone secretion by cultured human granulosa cells]

Human granulosa-luteal cells obtained from dominant preovulatory follicles at the time of oocyte retrieval for in vitro fertilization (about 10 h after the peak of the endogenous LH surge) produced large quantities of progesterone (P) (8.7 pg/cell/first 2 days) in a monolayer culture. Although basal production of estradiol (E2) in these granulosa-luteal cells was restricted to small quantities, a marked increase in E2 production occurred in the presence of testosterone (T) (10(-6) M) as aromatizable substrate. The non-aromatizable androgen, 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) (10(-7) M, 10(-6) M) slightly enhanced E2 production in these granulosa-luteal cells and it did not inhibit T aromatization. In contrast, DHT did not increase E2 production in cultured granulosa cells obtained from follicles 2 approximately 5 days before the LH surge. Thus, the response of granulosa cells to exogenous androgen seems to vary at different stages of cell differentiation. Neither T nor DHT elicited significant changes in the production of P by granulosa-luteal cells obtained from preovulatory follicles during the LH surge. However, T (10(-6) M) suppressed hCG-stimulated P production in these cells. The results suggest that androgen enhances the estrogen biosynthesis of granulosa-luteal cells obtained from preovulatory follicles during the LH surge not only by acting as substrate for aromatization but also by participating in some process of estrogen synthesis. Further, it is suggested that androgen has a negative effect on P biosynthesis in these cells.