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Estradiol (17-beta estradiol) is a sex hormone. Labelled the "female" hormone but also present in males it represents the major estrogen in humans. Critical for sexual functioning, estradiol also supports bone growth. more...
Synthesis
Estradiol, like other sex steroids, is derived from cholesterol. After side chain cleavage and either utilizing the delta-5 pathway or the delta-4 pathway androstenedione is the key intermediary. Androstendione is either converted to testosterone which in turn undergoes aromatization to estradiol, or, alternatively, androstendione is aromatized to estrone which is converted to estradiol.
Conversion of testosterone to estradiol: . Estradiol cannot be transferred readily from the circulation into the brain. Since fetuses of both sexes are exposed to similarly high levels of maternal estradiol, it can play little role in prenatal sexual differentiation. However, testosterone enters the central nervous system more freely and significant amounts are aromatized to estradiol within the brain of most <i>male</i> mammals, including humans. There is now much evidence that the programming of adult male sexual behavior in )
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