Thyroid hormones in male reproductive development: Evidence for direct crosstalk between the androgen and thyroid hormone axes

Abstract

Thyroid hormones (THs) exert a broad range of effects on development in vertebrate species, demonstrating connections in nearly every biological endocrine system. Studies have shown that THs play a role in sexual differentiation and gonadal development in mammalian and non-mammalian species. There is considerable evidence that the effects of THs on reproductive development are mediated through the female hormonal axis; however, recent findings suggest a more direct crosstalk between THs and the androgen axis. These findings demonstrate that THs have considerable influence in the sexual ontogeny of male vertebrates, through direct interactions with select sex-determining-genes and regulation of gonadotropin production in the hypothalamus-pituitary-gonad axis. THs also regulate androgen biosynthesis and signalling through direct and indirect regulation of steroidogenic enzyme expression and activity. Novel promoter analysis presented in this work demonstrates the potential for direct and vertebrate wide crosstalk at the transcriptional level in mouse (Mus musculus), Western clawed frog (Silurana tropicalis) and medaka (Oryzias latipes). Cumulative evidence from previous studies, coupled with novel promoter analysis suggests mechanisms for a more direct crosstalk between TH and male reproductive axis across vertebrate species.