A genetic component to the variation of dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate

Previous studies have shown wide variation in the normal range of serum concentrations of adrenal androgens, including dehydroepiandrosterone (DHA), and DHA sulfate (DHAS). Much of this variability has been shown to be due to the marked variation of the concentrations of these hormones with age. In a search for other sources of this variation, we examined the distribution of DHAS levels in 178 individuals drawn from 26 families. DHAS was chosen because of its relatively high serum concentration, long half-life, and lack of pulsatile variation. As expected, we observed a large age effect, such that it accounted for 68% of the overall variability. In addition, however, when age was factored out by appropriate polynomial regression, there was a significant genetic component to the residual variation, with a heritability of 65%. Thus there appeared to be a significant genetic determination to DHAS serum levels. The results are in accord with previous studies suggesting a genetic component to the variation in testosterone and sex hormone globulin concentrations, and the known correlation of DHAS and testosterone levels. Thus there appears to be significant genetic control of androgen concentrations in humans.