Abstract
Serial measurements of body mass index (BMI), serum concentrations of testosterone (T), estradiol (E) and leptin (L) were performed before and after gonadotropin (Gn) therapy in an 18-year-old male subject (BMI 25.4 kg/m2) with idiopathic hypothalamic hypogonadism (IHH). We also measured the BMI and serum concentrations of L in 99 age-matched healthy subjects. Serum L correlated significantly with BMI in control subjects (r=0.84, p<0.0001). Baseline serum concentrations of L in our case were markedly high and both T and E were very low, but Gn therapy resulted in a gradual decrease in L and improvement in T and E, finally reaching the control levels of BMI-matched subjects. Our results demonstrate that T is a powerful negative modulator of serum L independent of BMI in conditions associated with low T levels, such as IHH.
References
Zhang Y., Proenca R., Maffei M., Barone M., Leopold L., Friedman J.M. Positional cloning of the mouse obese gene and its human homologue. Nature 1994, 379: 425.
Halaas J.L., Gajiwala K.S., Maffei M., Cohen S.L., Chait B.T., Rabinowitz D., Lallone R.L., Burley S.K., Friedman J.M. Weight-reducing effects of the plasma protein encoded by the obese gene. Science 1995, 269: 543.
Tartaglia L.A., Dembski M., Weng X., Deng N., Culpeppen J., Devos R., Richard G.J., Campfield L.A., Clark F.T., Deeds J. Identification and expression cloning of a leptin receptor, OB-R. Cell 1995, 83: 1263.
Vaisse C., Halaas J.L., Horvarh C.M., Darnell J.E. Jr., Stoffel M., Friedman J.M. Leptin activation of Stat3 in the hypothalamus of wild-type and ob/ob mice but not db/db mice. Nature Genet. 1996, 14: 95.
Montague C.T., Prins J.N., Sanders L., Digby J.E., O’Rahilly S. Depot- and Sex-specific differences in human leptin mRNA expression. Implications for the control of regional fat distribution. Diabetes 1997, 46: 342.
Vogel G. Leptin: a trigger for puberty? Science 1996, 274: 1466.
Mantzoros C.S., Flien J.S., Rogol A.D. A longitudinal assessment of hormone and physical alterations during normal puberty in boys. V. Rising leptin levels may signal the onset of puberty. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 1997, 82: 1066.
Montague C.T., Farooqi I.S., Whitehead J.P., Soos M.A., Rau H., Wareham N.J., Sewter C.P., Digby J.E., Mohammed S.N., Hurst J.A., Cheetham C.H., Earley A.R., Barnett A.H., Prins J.B., O’Rahilly S. Congenital leptin deficiency is associated with severe early-onset obesity in human. Nature 1997, 387: 903.
Clement K., Vaisse C., Lahlous X., Cabrol S., Pelloux V., Cassuto D., Gourmelen M., Dina C., Chambaz J., Lacorte J.-M., Basdevant A., Bougneres P., Lebouc Y., Froguel P., Guy-Grand B. A mutation in the human leptin receptor gene causes obesity and pituitary dysfunction. Nature 1998, 392: 398.
Nunez C., Gallagher D., Visser M., PI-Sunyer F.X., Wang Z., Heymsfield S.B. Bioimpedance analysis: evaluation of leg-to-leg system based on pressure contact foot-pad electrodes. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. 1997, 29: 524.
Elbers L.M., Asscheman R., Seidell J.C., Frolich M., Meinders A.E., Gooren L.J. Reversal of the sex difference in serum leptin levels upon cross-sex hormone administration in transsexuals. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 1997, 82: 3267.
Sih R, Morley J.E., Kaiser F.E., Perry H.M. 3rd, Patrick P., Ross C. Testosterone replacement in older hypogonadal men: a 12-month randomized controlled trial. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 1997, 82: 1661.
Wabitsch M., Blum W.F., Muche R., Braun M., Hube F., Rascher W., Heinze E., Teller W., Hauner H. Contribution of androgens to the gender difference in leptin production in obese children and adolescents. J. Clin. Invest. 1997, 100: 808.
Haffner S.M., Miettinen H., Karhapaa P., Mykkanen L, Laakso M. Leptin concentrations, sex hormones, and cortisol in nondiabetic men. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 1997, 82: 1807.
Jockenhovel E, Blum A.F., Vogel E, Engalaro P., Muller-Wieland D., Reinwein D., Rscher W, Krone W. Testosterone substitution normalizes elevated serum leptin levels in hypogonadal men. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 1997, 82: 2510.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ogura, T., Tobe, K., Mimura, Y. et al. Testosterone modulates serum leptin concentrations in a male patient with hypothalamic hypogonadism. J Endocrinol Invest 23, 246–250 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03343716
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03343716