631 Androstenedione Is the Most Efficient Precursor of Intraprostatic Testosterone Production in Primary Human Prostate Cancer Tissue

Intratumoral conversion of adrenal androgen precursors drives androgen receptor-activated cell growth in prostate cancer more potently than de novo steroidogenesis

“…Dillard et al demonstrated that LNCaP cells express the steroidogenic enzymes necessary for de novo steroidogenesis and indeed synthesized androgens from cholesterol. In contrast, Fankhauser et al more recently demonstrated that in cultures of fresh human BPH and CRPC tissue with T precursors, conversion from DHEA and A‐dione into T was detectable and that the conversion rates were up‐regulated in CRPC, while conversion from cholesterol and Prog into T was undetectable. Our results demonstrate a limited role of intratumoral de novo steroidogenesis in 2 PC cell lines with wild‐type AR, while Preg and Prog did stimulate AR‐regulated cell growth in 1 PC cell line with mutated AR.…”