Effects of testosterone and its metabolites in relation to androgen-binding activity in murine submandibular salivary glands.

The relative potencies of testosterone (T), testosterone propionate (TP) and other related steroids (5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone, DHT; 5 alpha-androstane-3 alpha, 17 beta-diol, alpha-diol; 5 alpha-androstane-3 beta, 17 beta-diol, beta-diol) in restoring some morphological and functional characteristics of submandibular gland (SMG) were investigated in castrated mice. The steroids restored to near-control values the glandular weight and total protein content, alpha-diol and TP being the most effective compounds tested; with regard to proteolytic activity stimulation, beta-diol was more effective than DHT. The alpha-diol metabolite was unique in significantly increasing DNA synthesis. In competition studies, alpha-diol and beta-diol were ineffective in displacing the specifically bound [3H]-R1881 from the SMG androgen-binding macromolecules. Thus T can elicit its effects on SMG without the need of prior conversion to DHT; there must be alternative, receptor-independent mechanisms whereby alpha- and beta-diol exert trophic/metabolic effects on murine SMG.