Androgen Receptor: What Makes a Man?

Steroid receptors (SRs) are a superfamily of ligand-dependent nuclear transcription factors that activate responsive genes response to hormone. Androgen receptors (ARs) are found in a wide variety of tissues, including reproductive organs, central nervous system (CNS), and skeletal muscle. AR signaling is fundamental for the development and function of male reproductive organs, but also plays a role in non-reproductive organs such as muscle, hair follicles, and brain. Abnormalities in AR signaling are linked to a number of diseases, including prostate cancer, male infertility, and Kennedy's disease. In immunohistochemical characterization studies on androgen receptor localization by Takeda’s group, the AR antibody was used to comprehensively survey subcellular AR distribution in rat, human, and mouse tissues¹.

Immunohistochemistry-Paraffin: Androgen Receptor Antibody

Optic nerve head (ONH) researchers employed the AR antibody to establish human ONH astrocytes as targets of androgen through the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and PI3k/AKT signaling pathways². Additional PI3k/AKT signaling studies by Paliouras’ group involved establishing an in vitro prostate cancer model. With AR antibody, they followed the progression of androgen-dependent cells into transformed androgen-independent cells with reduced prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels and increased AKT activity³. Another prostate cancer study published in PNAS with the AR antibody suggests that Src family kinases (SFKs) are potential targets for inhibition therapy, due to their increased expression concomitant with progression that can be quantitatively followed⁴. Ortega et al performed postnatal ovian dysfunction studies in sheep with the AR antibody and found that excess prenatal androgen exposure disrupts the equilibrium between the estrogen receptor (ER) and AR protein expression in granulosa cells⁵.