Sex steroids and the free hormone hypothesis.

摘要

In their research article published in the September 9, 2005 issue of Cell, Hammes et al. (2005) investigated the role of megalin (an endocytic receptor in a variety of tissues) and SHBG (sex hormone binding globulin) on the cellular uptake of sex steroid hormones in mice, in plasma, androgens and estrogens can circulate bound tightly to SHBG, bound loosely to albumin, unbound, or free. Although oversimplified, the currently favored view-called the free hormone hypothesis-postulates that it is the free and albumin bound forms of sex steroid hormones that are available for diffusion out of capillaries and into cells, where they initiate an appropriate response.