20-hydroxyecdysone

Sources of 20E in arthropods

The primary sources of 20E in larvae are the prothoracic gland, ring gland, gut, and fat bodies. These tissues convert dietary cholesterol into the mature forms of the hormone 20E ^[1]. For the most part these glandular tissues are lost in the adult with exception of the fat body, which is retained as a sheath of lipid tissue surrounding the brain and organs of the abdomen. In the adult female the ovary is a substantial source of 20E production ^[2]. Adult males are left with, so far as is currently known, one source of 20E which is the fat body tissue. These hormone producing tissues express both EcR and USP throughout development possibility indicating a functional feedback mechanism.

Ecdysteroid Activity in Arthropods

Ecdysteroids is a term used to describe a group of steroid hormones in insects that are derived from enzymatic modification of cholesterol by NHR)that directly modify gene transcription. These proteins form heterodimers with another NHR ultraspiracle (USP), which is the invertebrate ortholog of Retinoid X receptor (RXR). This heterodimer binds to Ecdysone Responsive Elements (EcRE) and waits for ligand binding. Only tissues expressing EcR will be responsive to ecdysone or 20E.

In humans

When first isolated, there was little interest from the commercial sector due to the lack of a cost-effective way to extract or synthesize the chemical. However, recent breakthroughs have meant that it can now be isolated in an extremely concentrated form. This has led to experimentation with its use as an anabolic steroid in sport and bodybuilding.

Despite lacking kg of body mass, daily. The compound becomes toxic only at doses of 6400 mg per kg of body mass per day.

In addition to its potential use as an anabolic growth hormone, 20-hydroxyecdysone has proven to cause moderate increases in testosterone production in males.^{[citation needed]} This has led to speculation and a small number of partially successful trials in testing its use in improving overall sexual function.

It is unclear whether 20-hydroxyecdysone actually has any effect on humans. It is used widely in biochemistry research as a transcription promoter in transgenic animals, whereby if you put a new gene into an animal with a promoter sequence that is activated by 20-hydroxyecdysone, then adding or removing 20-hydroxyecdysone from the animals diet gives a convenient way to turn the inserted gene on or off. 20-hydroxyecdysone appears to have little or no effect on animals that do not have extra genes inserted and has high bioavailability when taken orally, so it is useful for determining whether the transgene has been taken up effectively&nbps;^[5].

However there is some evidence to show that 20-hydroxyecdysone has effects on some kinds of blood cells such as lymphocytes and neutrophils, and may act as an immunomodulator ^[6]. More research is needed to determine the significance of these effects and how they affect the safety profile of 20-hydroxyecdysone when it is taken as a supplement by humans.

20-hydroxyecdysone is still considered a steroid "hormone" and may cause side effects that normal steroids produce.

Any types of supplements containing 20-hydroxyecdysone should not be taken by anyone under the age of 18.

References