Effects of Sex Steroid Hormones and Their Metabolites on Neuronal Injury Caused by Oxygen-Glucose Deprivation/Reoxygenation in Organotypic Hippocampal Slice Cultures

This study investigated the neuroprotective effects of sex steroid hormones—progesterone, testosterone, and 17β-estradiol—against neuronal cell death caused by oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) and reoxygenation in rat hippocampal slice cultures. Progesterone and its metabolite allopregnanolone, as well as testosterone and its metabolite 5α-dihydrotestosterone, were found to protect neurons through receptor-dependent genomic pathways. The study highlighted that the metabolism of these hormones in the brain could complicate their protective actions. The findings suggested that progesterone and testosterone exerted their effects via specific receptor pathways, while 17β-estradiol's neuroprotection was not affected by receptor antagonists. The research underscored the complexity of steroid hormone actions in neuroprotection, particularly in the context of ischemic brain injury.