Mechanism of action of Testosterone in a mouse model of spontaneous motoneuron degeneration

LARA AGUSTINA; MEYER M; GARAY L; LIMA A; LEICAJ LUZ; GUENNOUN R.; SCHUMACHER, M; DE NICOLA A. F.; GARGIULO MONACHELLI G; GONZALEZ DENISELLE MC

Congreso; Reunion de SAIC 2018; 2018

The Wobbler mouse (WR) is an animal model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a progressive disorder with selective loss of motoneurons, astrocytosis and microgliosis. Although the incidence of ALS is greater in men than in women, it increases after menopause. Therefore, sex steroids may play a key role in ALS. Testosterone, a complex steroid, can bind androgen (AR) or estrogen (ER) receptors, membrane and sigma1 receptors (S1R). It is metabolized on two pathways: 1-aromatase converts androgens into estrogens and 2- 5-alpha reductase metabolizes testosterone into dihydrotestosterone. Here, we studied the effect of exogenous testosterone administered by 10mm silastic tubes s.c. for 2 months to male symptomatic WRs. In the cervical spinal cord (CSC) of testosterone-treated WR´s, we showed a reduction of AR (p