dihydrotestosterone

(5α-dihydrotestosterone, 5α-DHT, DHT, androstanolone, stanolone)

An endogenous androgen sex hormone. It forms from testosterone by 5α-reductase in certain tissues including the prostate gland, seminal vesicles, epididymides, skin, hair follicles, liver, and brain.

Relative to testosterone, it is considerably more potent as an agonist of the androgen receptor (AR).

It functions for sexual differentiation of the male genitalia during embryogenesis, maturation of the penis and scrotum at puberty, growth of facial, body, and pubic hair, and development and maintenance of the prostate gland and seminal vesicles.

It is used in the treatment of male hypogonadism. When used as a medication, it is referred to as androstanolone or stanolone.

(Unfavorable functions)
• hirsutism (hair conditions of excessive facial/body hair growth)
• pattern hair loss (androgenic alopecia or pattern baldness)
• benign prostatic hyperplasia, prostate cancer: 5α-Reductase inhibitors (e.g. finasteride, dutasteride), which prevent DHT synthesis, are effective in the prevention and treatment of prostate diseases.

The metabolites act as neurosteroids with their own AR-independent biological activity. They may play important roles in the central effects, including their antidepressant, anxiolytic, rewarding/hedonic, anti-stress, and pro-cognitive effects.
(Metabolites of DHT)
• 3α-Androstanediol: A potent positive allosteric modulator of the GABAᴀ receptor.
• 3β-Androstanediol: A potent and selective agonist of the estrogen receptor (ER) subtype ERβ.

It is excreted in the urine as metabolites, such as conjugates of 3α-androstanediol and androsterone.

5β-Dihydrotestosterone (5β-DHT) is an isomer of 5α-dihydrotestosterone (5α-DHT), an inactive metabolite of testosterone formed by 5β-reductase in the liver and bone marrow. Unlike 5α-DHT, 5β-DHT either does not bind to or binds only very weakly to the androgen receptor, that leads to lack of androgenic activity. Also, the metabolite, etiocholanolone does not have neurosteroid activity (but it has immunostimulation and acts as a positive allosteric modulator of the GABAᴀ receptor, and possesses anticonvulsant effects).

Cf. 5α-reductase deficiency

[Rahul_bhatt_]

DHT doesn't cause hair loss, it is estrogen in men that causes hair loss, dht rises to counter the effect of estrogen, estrogen causes muscular degeneration and tight scalp in male leading poor blood circulation, when dht and estrogen counter each other it can cause hair fall.

[jawadkhalil]

The question is why testesterone convert into dht?

[alexandrosmartinez]

If men never had DHT, we'd still have hair on our head.

[ailfawka]

DHT involvement in any of those problems is inconclusive.