Brain estrogen creation 'critical to maintain full sexual activity or desire in males'

[Cataceous]

A tip of the hat to "PakMan" at PeakT for the reference to this article. The underlying work is on mice, but may have implications for humans.

Summary: Researchers have uncovered specific regions of brain tissue where aromatase is present, that drives male sexual desire. Aromatase converts testosterone into estrogen in the brain, driving male sexual activity.​

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Source: Northwestern University​

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The locus of male sexual desire has been uncovered in specific regions of brain tissue where a key gene named aromatase is present, reports a new Northwestern Medicine study in mice.​

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The gene regulates sexual behavior in men, and thus can be targeted by drugs to either increase its function for low sexual desire or decrease its function for compulsive sexual desire, scientists said. Aromatase converts testosterone to estrogen in the brain, which drives male sexual activity.​

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The study was published Sept. 10 in the journal Endocrinology.​

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Aromatase’s full function in the adult brain had not previously been known.​

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“This is the first key finding to explain how testosterone stimulates sexual desire,” said senior author Dr. Serdar Bulun, chair of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Northwestern Medicine.​

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When Northwestern scientists knocked out aromatase selectively in the brain, sexual activity in male mice decreased by 50%, despite their having higher levels of blood testosterone levels (compared with control male mice).​

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Site of Male Sexual Desire Uncovered in Brain - Neuroscience News

Researchers have uncovered specific regions of brain tissue where aromatase is present, that drives male sexual desire. Aromatase converts testosterone into estrogen in the brain, driving male sexual activity.

neurosciencenews.com

Original article:

Brain Aromatase and the Regulation of Sexual Activity in Male Mice

Abstract. The biologically active estrogen estradiol has important roles in adult brain physiology and sexual behavior. A single gene, Cyp19a1, encodes aro

doi.org

 

[Nelson Vergel]

Estradiol is an Important Hormone for Men

* read full paper (pdf) MECHANISMS IN ENDOCRINOLOGY Estradiol as a male hormone Nicholas Russell and Mathis Grossmann Abstract Evidence has been accumulating that, in men, some of the biological actions traditionally attributed to testosterone acting via the androgen receptor may...

www.excelmale.com

 

[DS3]

A tip of the hat to "PakMan" at PeakT for the reference to this article. The underlying work is on mice, but may have implications for humans.

Summary: Researchers have uncovered specific regions of brain tissue where aromatase is present, that drives male sexual desire. Aromatase converts testosterone into estrogen in the brain, driving male sexual activity.​

​

Source: Northwestern University​

​

The locus of male sexual desire has been uncovered in specific regions of brain tissue where a key gene named aromatase is present, reports a new Northwestern Medicine study in mice.​

​

The gene regulates sexual behavior in men, and thus can be targeted by drugs to either increase its function for low sexual desire or decrease its function for compulsive sexual desire, scientists said. Aromatase converts testosterone to estrogen in the brain, which drives male sexual activity.​

​

The study was published Sept. 10 in the journal Endocrinology.​

​

Aromatase’s full function in the adult brain had not previously been known.​

​

“This is the first key finding to explain how testosterone stimulates sexual desire,” said senior author Dr. Serdar Bulun, chair of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Northwestern Medicine.​

​

When Northwestern scientists knocked out aromatase selectively in the brain, sexual activity in male mice decreased by 50%, despite their having higher levels of blood testosterone levels (compared with control male mice).​

...​

Site of Male Sexual Desire Uncovered in Brain - Neuroscience News

Researchers have uncovered specific regions of brain tissue where aromatase is present, that drives male sexual desire. Aromatase converts testosterone into estrogen in the brain, driving male sexual activity.

neurosciencenews.com

Original article:

Brain Aromatase and the Regulation of Sexual Activity in Male Mice

Abstract. The biologically active estrogen estradiol has important roles in adult brain physiology and sexual behavior. A single gene, Cyp19a1, encodes aro

doi.org

I will be curious to see if there is a reference range for suggested libido optimization in further research. Anecdotally, my libido is at its highest when it starts to peak a couple of days before my next (weekly) AI dosage. However, typically the day of my AI dosage my libido has decreased significantly, coupled with a more feminized ‘feeling’. Perhaps there is a level of dimishing returns with estrogen that, once surpassed, begins to express an inverse relationship with libido.

All anecdotal evidence and hypothesis driven. Curious to see what future research brings.

 

[Cataceous]

If this article is accurate then anastrozole is relatively safe in this regard due to reduced penetration of the blood-brain barrier:

Another seldom considered aspect of A.I. use is their effect on brain function. While all A.I.’s affect the level of estrogen exposure in the brain, both letrozole and exemestane demonstrate an increased aptitude for crossing the blood-brain barrier, making them capable of adversely affecting neurosteroid balance to a greater degree than anastrozole. Along with enhanced blood-brain permeability, letrozole also suffers from a reduced clearance rate, allowing concentrations within the brain to climb even higher. While exemestane clears more quickly, its permanent deactivation of aromatase makes it equally problematic in this regard, as the body must first produce additional aromatase before proper neurosteroid balance can be restored.​

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Due to its greater specificity of action (less apt to interfere with non-target tissues), anastrozole has the clear advantage in this area. It does not penetrate the blood brain barrier as readily, making it much less likely to cause side effects such as sexual dysfunction, libido issues, or depression. Letrozole also appears to negatively impact cellular response to estrogen in areas of the brain that help govern mood, leaning, and memory. Lastly, exemestane and letrozole can disrupt steroid production within the adrenal cortex, while anastrozole does not. Many of the side effects associated with neurosteroid imbalance, such as sexual dysfunction, reduced libido, and depression, have been reported in those who use letrozole. Although exemestane appears to be less problematic in these areas, one could postulate that this is largely due to the infrequent dosing patterns employed by those who use the drug, rather than a diminished ability to affect neurosteroid balance.​

 

[Nelson Vergel]

There is evidence in some studies of this:

High Estradiol Boosts Libido in Men on Testosterone Therapy

I have been warning men and clinics not to be so aggressive treating estradiol in men with the overuse of anastrozole. Here is a recent study done in Houston. Elevated serum estradiol is associated with increased libido in men receiving testosterone replacement therapy (TRT), according to...

www.excelmale.com

"In 2013, Finkelstein et al. looked at the effects of testosterone and estrogen on male sexual function. They found that the administration of testosterone with and without aromatase inhibitors markedly impaired sexual function when aromatization was inhibited.18 In addition, a study by Ramasamy et al. in 2014 showed that libido was increased in men receiving TST when testosterone levels were >300 ng dl-1 and estradiol levels were >5 ng dl-1. Most compelling is the fact that in men with serum testosterone <300 ng dl-1, sexual drive was seen to be markedly higher when estradiol levels were >5 ng dl-1.19 In addition, when patients with low testosterone were treated with letrozole, a potent aromatase inhibitor, libido was decreased, suggesting that complete elimination of estradiol and decreasing the T/E ratio too severely, adversely affects sexual desire in men.20 These studies provide evidence that both estrogen and testosterone are necessary for normal libido in testosterone-deficient men. Clinically, the dependence of libido in hypogonadal men on both testosterone and estrogen indicates that a cautious approach to the use of aromatase inhibitors is warranted and that the T/E ratio has an impact. It might be reasonable that while prescribing TST one should monitor the levels of both testosterone and estrogen and their relationship to each other. "

Estradiol in Men: Libido and Brain Function

Role of estradiol in the brain The effect of estradiol on libido is seen at various levels of regulation, starting with direct effects in the brain (Figure 1). Areas of the brain that control sexual behavior in mammals are thought to do so via pheromones that induce specific sexual effects on...

www.excelmale.com

 

[DorianGray]

Excellent post and references. So could one assume that it may not be just the production of male estrogen as detected in blood tests but aromatase production specifically in the brain that achieves the effect? As in other brain hormones, epigentic factors, aging, etc., could cause loss of production in the brain that other systemic treatment would not affect?

 

[Cataceous]

... So could one assume that it may not be just the production of male estrogen as detected in blood tests but aromatase production specifically in the brain that achieves the effect? ...

This work supports the idea. "These data suggest that aromatase is necessary for sexual activity in male mice. Testicular aromatase plays a dominant role in male sexual behavior, but brain aromatase specifically contributes to regulating the initiation and frequency of sexual activity."

In trying to tease out more details the authors found that castrated mice lacking brain aromatase could have sexual behavior "rescued" with a combination of exogenous testosterone and estrogen, but not testosterone alone. Castrated control mice could be "rescued" with exogenous testosterone alone. "Taken together, our findings indicate that a combination of T and E2 is required to rescue appropriate sexual behavior in mice with deficient E2 production in the brain."

... As in other brain hormones, epigentic factors, aging, etc., could cause loss of production in the brain that other systemic treatment would not affect?

This latter part is less certain, as treatment with exogenous estradiol helped the mice regain sexual behavior. As a practical matter, the side effects of sufficient doses of exogenous estradiol could make this treatment impractical in human males.

 

[Nelson Vergel]

Another interesting study:

Estrogen boosts memory in men with prostate cancer

High doses of estrogen improve long-term memory and decrease feelings of confusion in men whose testosterone levels have been lowered to treat advanced prostate cancer, according to a study conducted by Oregon Health & Science University Cancer Institute scientists.

www.eurekalert.org

 

[DorianGray]

Others seemed to be on to this in 2011, but also considered the influence of progesterone in this interesting paper:

Aromatase promoter I.f is regulated by progesterone receptor in mouse hypothalamic neuronal cell lines

Aromatase catalyzes the conversion of C[19] steroids to estrogens. Aromatase and progesterone, both of which function at different steps of steroidogenesis, are crucial for the sexually dimorphic development of the fetal brain and the regulation of gonadotropin ...

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[DS3]

Interesting review demonstrated that the benefit elevated estrogen provides to cognition is not uniform across neuroanatomical structures, and in fact has been demonstrated to increase certain forms of cognitive function while impairing other forms.

“We highlight our findings showing that the ability to solve hippocampus-sensitive tasks typically improves under relatively high estrogen status while the ability to solve striatum-sensitive tasks degrades with estrogen exposures.”

@Cataceous @Nelson Vergel

 

[DS3]

“Although Premarin elevated estradiol and estrone levels, there was no association between hormone levels and cognitive functioning after either 2 or 12 months of treatment.”

Estrogen Levels Do Not Correlate With Improvement in Cognition

Objective To investigate whether an association exists between estradiol and estrone levels and measures of cognitive functioning in women with Alzheimer disease (AD) treated with conjugated equine estrogen (Premarin; Wyeth-Ayerst, Philadelphia, Pa).Methods We studied 120 postmenopausal...

jamanetwork.com

 

[DS3]

Another study indicating that increases in memory from estrogen are not uniform across brain structures.

Conclusion: In healthy older men, improvement in verbal memory induced by testosterone administration depends on aromatization of testosterone to estradiol, whereas improvement in spatial memory occurs in the absence of increases in estradiol.

Google Scholar

scholar.google.com

 

[TorontoTRT]

I will be curious to see if there is a reference range for suggested libido optimization in further research. Anecdotally, my libido is at its highest when it starts to peak a couple of days before my next (weekly) AI dosage. However, typically the day of my AI dosage my libido has decreased significantly, coupled with a more feminized ‘feeling’. Perhaps there is a level of dimishing returns with estrogen that, once surpassed, begins to express an inverse relationship with libido.

All anecdotal evidence and hypothesis driven. Curious to see what future research brings.

I’ve never felt any feminizing feelings ever and I’ve had estrogen over 75 on through many times. Also no AI ever.

 

[wondering]

Dr. Mariano has said for years that estrogen is responsible for sex drive in males. Wish he would get back on the boards.

 

[JanSz]

Dr. Mariano has said for years that estrogen is responsible for sex drive in males. Wish he would get back on the boards.

Yes, dr. Mariano, where is he posting now?
@wondering

you may recall a fellow who called himself a G-man
on late dr John Crisler board.
That was many years ago, likely over 10 or 15 years.
He was able to figure out just about everything.
Got his penis working overtime.
His problem was that he was not able to finish, no orgasm.
Eventually, he lost his wife, she was not able to put up with so much demand for sex.

That is my problem now. Not 100% like his but close.
At least I get orgasm maybe once a week.
When it comes it is usually very intensive, much more intensive than in my younger days.

Any ideas on how to deal with that?

.
.

 

[josborne3]

Since having a prostatectomy which also required removing my seminal vessel, the intensity of my "dry" orgasms have greatly increased. Seems odd, except when you aren't able to judge your orgasm intensity by how much and how hard you ejaculate, it frees you up to focus on the orgasm.

My urologist told me I might spontaneously pass some urine during an orgasm. He was right. The easy fix is to be sure to pee prior to having sex. Although, the sensation of squirting a few drops of urine isn't unpleasant.

Sex after a prostatectomy is possible . One just has to be more flexible and inventive. I inject tri-mix in order to achieve a erection. However, a orgasm is possible and intense when not fully erect.

 

[equel]

Lol when My estrogen high i have zero libido, zero.

 

[wondering]

Yes, dr. Mariano, where is he posting now?
@wondering

you may recall a fellow who called himself a G-man
on late dr John Crisler board.
That was many years ago, likely over 10 or 15 years.
He was able to figure out just about everything.
Got his penis working overtime.
His problem was that he was not able to finish, no orgasm.
Eventually, he lost his wife, she was not able to put up with so much demand for sex.

That is my problem now. Not 100% like his but close.
At least I get orgasm maybe once a week.
When it comes it is usually very intensive, much more intensive than in my younger days.

Any ideas on how to deal with that?

.
.

oh, your issues can be one of a zillion things. Dr. M's site has been inactive for long time -his site is:https://definitivemind.com. But it has bene inactive for some time. he as writing a book, but I haven't seen one pop up on Amazon yet.

 

[Vince]

This thread shows how different we all are. Here I am a 69-year-old male with a super strong libido and sex drive though I have and always have naturally low estrogen.

Estrogen levels in the brain can fluctuate in response to stimuli, such as sexual interaction.

We report here that local extracellular estrogen concentrations measured by in vivo microdialysis increase during sexual interactions in a brain site- and stimulus-specific manner. Indeed, estrogen concentrations rose within 10 min of the initiation of sexual interaction with a female in the medial preoptic nucleus only, while visual access to a female led to an increase in estrogen concentrations only in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. These are the fastest fluctuations in local estrogen concentrations ever observed in the vertebrate brain. Their site and stimulus specificity strongly confirm the neuromodulatory function of neuroestrogens on behavior.

Rapid changes in brain estrogen concentration during male sexual behavior are site and stimulus specific - Scientific Reports

Classically, estrogens regulate male sexual behavior through effects initiated in the nucleus. However, neuroestrogens, i.e., estrogens locally produced in the brain, can act within minutes via membrane-initiated events. In male quail, rapid changes in brain aromatase activity occur after...

www.nature.com