The Role of 5α-Reductase Inhibitors in the Early Growth of Prostate Cancer Cells

    January 2005 in “ Urologia Journal ”
    Giovanni Luca Gravina, Claudio Festuccia, Adriano Angelucci, Paola Muzi, Giuseppe Paradiso Galatioto, Alice Costa, Giuseppina Pace, Carlo Vicentini, Mauro Bologna
    TLDR 5αR inhibitors help slow early prostate cancer cell growth, suggesting combined treatments are needed.
    The study investigated the efficacy of Finasteride, a 5α reductase type 2 inhibitor, and MK386, a 5α reductase type 1 inhibitor, on cell proliferation in primary cultures from patients with prostatic diseases. It involved 30 primary cultures from prostatic carcinoma (PCa), 6 from high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, and 10 from benign prostatic hyperplasia. Both inhibitors reduced cell proliferation, with Finasteride showing greater activity in Gleason 2–6 PCa cultures, while MK386 was more effective in Gleason 7–10 PCa cultures. The study concluded that 5αR inhibitors played a significant role in the early growth of PCa cells and highlighted the need for combined anti-hormonal treatments to inhibit stromal cell function in advanced and androgen-resistant tumor progression.
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      The release of a study on 5a-reductase inhibitors (finasteride and dutasteride) which showed an increased risk of depression, dementia, decreased libido, and reduced semen load as potential side effects; discussion around other forms of hair loss treatments such as topical minoxidil, RU58841, or opting to accept baldness; and advice to consider professional help for deeper issues related to hair loss.
      FCE 28260: A Forgotten 5α-Reductase Inhibitor

      community FCE 28260: A Forgotten 5α-Reductase Inhibitor

      in Research  330 upvotes 1 year ago
      FCE 28260 (PNU 156765), an under-explored 5α-reductase inhibitor, showcases promising results in research by Giudici et al., outperforming well-known treatments like Finasteride in reducing the conversion of testosterone to DHT. Its superior efficacy, demonstrated through lower IC50 values in both natural and human recombinant enzyme studies, suggests it could offer more effective management of DHT-related conditions. Additionally, its lower molecular weight hints at better potential for topical application, potentially offering advantages in treating conditions such as androgenic alopecia. Despite its potential, it has not advanced in development, possibly due to financial limitations, leaving its therapeutic prospects and side effect profile largely unexplored.

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