This book summarizes the current understanding of fetal Leydig cells, adult Leydig cell formation and function, hormonal and paracrine regulation of adult Leydig cell function, Leydig cell aging, the causes, consequences, and treatment of reductions in testosterone, and how new technologies might be used for both greater understanding of Leydig cell function and for treatments related to aging- and/or lifestyle-related alterations in Leydig cell function. Chapters are divided into three sections, each focusing on a key aspect of Leydig cell function. These sections are: Leydig Cells from Fetus through Aging, Leydig Cells Steroidogenesis Regulation and Mechanisms, and Leydig Cell Function in Health and Pathophysiology. Written by experts in the field, this book provides a comprehensive approach to the hormone production, function, and pathophysiology of Leydig cells from the fetal to adult stage of development.
Leydig Cells: Formation, Regulation and Function in Health and Pathophysiology will be of particular interest to those involved with men’s health and disease, including reproductive medicine, endocrinology, urology, oncology and prenatal and postnatal development of male reproductive function.
Barry Zirkin, PhD, is Professor Emeritus, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. His research interests include the molecular regulation of adult and aging Leydig cell steroidogenic function, the formation of Leydig cells from stem cells, the effects of environmental chemicals on Leydig cell formation and steroidogenic function, and the role of testosterone in regulating mammalian spermatogenesis,
Ilpo Huhtaniemi, MD, PhD, is Professor Emeritus of Reproductive Endocrinology at the Imperial College London, UK, and Professor Emeritus of Physiology at the University of Turku, Finland. His research interests include clinical and basic reproductive endocrinology, the function of gonadotrophins, the regulation and treatment of late-onset hypogonadism in middle-aged and elderly men, and the translation of basic concepts to clinical treatment.
Dolores Lamb, PhD, is Professor of Surgery at the Children’s Mercy Research Institute and the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine. She is an investigator in the fields of urology, male infertility, steroid hormone action, prostate cancer and genitourinary birth defects. She has an extensive background in both the clinical and the basic science arenas in men's health, focused on the genetics of male infertility, specifically non-obstructive azoospermia, the genomics of genitourinary birth defects, steroid regulated growth of male reproductive tumors, and areas of benign urologic research.
Vassilios Papadopoulos, DPharm, PhD, is Professor of Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Alfred E. Mann School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Professor of Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine at USC. His research focuses on understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology and treatment of diseases related to altered steroid hormone synthesis, including endocrine pathologies, male reproductive disorders, neurological diseases, and cancer.
