Skip Navigation

This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF ) Freely available
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow Search for citing articles in:
ISI Web of Science (7)
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Bergendah, M.
Right arrow Articles by Veldhuis, J. D.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Bergendah, M.
Right arrow Articles by Veldhuis, J. D.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Human Reproduction, Vol. 16, No. 6, 1058-1064, June 2001
© 2001 European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology

Debate Continued

Is there a physiological role for gonadotrophin oligosaccharide heterogeneity in humans?

III. Luteinizing hormone heterogeneity: a medical physiologist's perspective

M. Bergendah1 and J. D. Veldhuis2,3

1 Departments of Pediatrics and Physiology, University of Turku, FIN-20520 Turku, Finland and 2 Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, General Clinical Research Center and Center for Biomathematical Technology, University of Virginia Health Sciences Center, Charlottesville, Virginia 22908, USA

Clinical evidence for a physiological impact of luteinizing hormone (LH) isoforms includes their unequal in-vitro bioactivity and altered in-vivo LH kinetics. For example, alkaline LH isospecies emerge in an oestrogen-rich milieu, and show greater bioactivity in vitro along with more rapid metabolic removal in vivo. More acidic LH isotypes are predominant in eugonadal men with end-stage renal failure and in postmenopausal women. The relevance of changes in charge distribution in puberty to sexual maturation is not clear. Molecular LH variants may be associated with decreased testis size and reduced linear growth in boys, menstrual irregularity and/or subfertility in women, and possibly protect against polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS). This article summarises the provisional physiological implications of LH isotypes based on current evidence.

Key words: bioassays/hormone physiology/LH isoforms/oligosaccharide heterogeneity

3 To whom correspondence should be addressed at: Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, Post Office Box 800202, University of Virginia Health Sciences Center, Charlottesville, Virginia 22908–0202, USA. E-Mail: JDV{at}Virginia.edu


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Endocr. Rev.Home page
H. F. Escobar-Morreale, M. Luque-Ramirez, and J. L. San Millan
The Molecular-Genetic Basis of Functional Hyperandrogenism and the Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
Endocr. Rev., April 1, 2005; 26(2): 251 - 282.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Am. J. Physiol. Endocrinol. Metab.Home page
C. R. McCartney, A. B. Bellows, M. B. Gingrich, Y. Hu, W. S. Evans, J. C. Marshall, and J. D. Veldhuis
Exaggerated 17-hydroxyprogesterone response to intravenous infusions of recombinant human LH in women with polycystic ovary syndrome
Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab, June 1, 2004; 286(6): E902 - E908.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther.Home page
J. H. Mendelson, M. B. Sholar, N. H. Mutschler, M. Jaszyna-Gasior, N. V. Goletiani, A. J. Siegel, and N. K. Mello
Effects of Intravenous Cocaine and Cigarette Smoking on Luteinizing Hormone, Testosterone, and Prolactin in Men
J. Pharmacol. Exp. Ther., October 1, 2003; 307(1): 339 - 348.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.