Association between metabolic syndrome, hepatic steatosis, and testosterone deficiency: evidences from studies with men and rodents

Rapeseed (canola) oil aggravates metabolic syndrome-like conditions in male but not in female stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP)

“…On the other hand, significantly suppressed testosterone production was observed in male SHRSP given a CAN diet for 13 weeks, compared to animals given a SOY diet [ 12 ]. These findings imply that CAN ingestion promotes metabolic syndrome-like conditions by lowering the testosterone level in male SHRSP, since it is well known that testosterone deficiency is associated with metabolic syndrome in men and induces metabolic syndrome-like symptoms in rodents, as well [ [13] , [14] , [15] ]. In fact, the prevalence in men of metabolic syndrome is affected by androgen, and a decreased level of testosterone is connected with increased mortality in elderly men [ 16 ].…”

“…There are evident sex differences in the role of testosterone when the etiology of metabolic syndrome is examined in terms of the involvement of sex hormones. For instance, androgen deficiency is associated with a predisposition to metabolic syndrome in men, and testosterone replacement provides ameliorating effects [ 13 ]. In contrast, increased testosterone in postmenopausal women is associated with a prevalence of the disease [ 22 ].…”

Basics of androgen synthesis and action

“…Thus, androgen excess in adults is a common problem in women suffering from PCOS and in men with prostate hyperplasia/tumors [82e88]. Furthermore, androgen decline/deficiency is a controversial topic in healthy aging males and females [89,90].…”

“…In men, hypogonadism causes impaired sexual functioning, infertility, alterations in body composition and osteoporosis [89]. Moreover, it has adverse effects on metabolic and cardiovascular health as well as a negative impact on brain health [90]. When in women low androgen levels are due to hypogonadism, estrogen levels are also decreased, and the consequences of low estrogens are the same as with hypogonadism in men [89,113].…”

Mitochondria in Sex Hormone-Induced Disorder of Energy Metabolism in Males and Females

“…Testosteronedriven energy metabolism favors energy expenditure to prevent metabolic disorders, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes in male subjects (2,3). Testosterone deficiency (hypogonadism) increases the risk of metabolic disorders in male subjects and animals (4)(5)(6). In some cases, however, hypogonadism can be the result of obesity due to hypothalamus-pituitary axis inhibition by aromatase conversion of androgen into estradiol in peripheral tissues [such as white adipose tissue (WAT)] (7).…”