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Serum bioactive gonadotropins during male puberty: a longitudinal study
G B Kletter1, V Padmanabhan, M B Brown
1Department of Pediatrics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 48105.
The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism
|February 1, 1993
Summary
Bioactive luteinizing hormone (LH) levels increase more than immunoreactive LH during male puberty, indicating a changing ratio of bioactive to immunoreactive gonadotropins. This study tracked 28 boys through puberty to assess these hormonal changes.
Area of Science:
- Endocrinology
- Reproductive Biology
- Pediatric Endocrinology
Background:
- Gonadotropin hormones, luteinizing hormone (LH) and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), are crucial for pubertal development.
- Assessing both bioactive (B) and immunoreactive (I) forms of gonadotropins provides a more comprehensive understanding of hormonal function.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the relative changes in serum bioactive and immunoreactive gonadotropin concentrations during male pubertal maturation.
- To correlate these changes with other markers of puberty, such as testosterone levels and Tanner staging.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study of 28 healthy boys from Tanner stage I to V.
- Regular assessments included physical examination, sexual maturation staging, bone age X-rays, and serum hormone level measurements (RIA and bioassays).
- Specific assays used for LH included RIA for I-LH and rat interstitial cell testosterone production assay for B-LH; FSH assays used RIA for I-FSH and rat Sertoli cell aromatase induction assay for B-FSH.
Main Results:
- Serum testosterone concentrations increased progressively with pubertal development (P < 0.001).
- Mean serum immunoreactive LH (I-LH) increased from Tanner stage I to V.
- Mean serum bioactive LH (B-LH) showed a proportionally greater increase than I-LH, leading to a progressive rise in the B/I LH ratio with advancing puberty (P < 0.001).
Conclusions:
- The ratio of bioactive to immunoreactive LH increases significantly during male pubertal maturation.
- These findings highlight dynamic changes in gonadotropin activity during puberty, which may have implications for understanding normal and abnormal pubertal development.