The New Director of Technology

    January 2004 in “ Banca y finanzas: Revista profesional de gestión financiera ”
    Robert Assink
    TLDR Androgens increase pigmentation in certain hamster skin areas, but estrogens can reverse this effect.
    The study analyzed the effects of 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone and estradiol-17 beta on pigmentation in prepubertal male Syrian hamsters. It found that 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone increased pigmentation in costovertebral spots and scrotal skin without changing the percentage of pigmented area, while estradiol decreased the number of scrotal skin melanocytes in intact animals. The androgen-induced pigmentation was reversed by estradiol, suggesting that androgenic stimulation of pigmentation is direct, occurs before puberty, is tissue-specific, and can be antagonized by estrogens. The differential response of melanocytes may be due to changes in premelanin oxidation, melanocyte size and shape, or melanin synthesis rate.
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