ESPE Abstracts

Embryos initially form undifferentiated gonads, reproductive tracts and external genitalia that will progressively acquire female or male characteristics. This fate decision is initiated in the undifferentiated gonads and depends on sex chromosomes and fine-tuned expression of complex networks of molecular pathways. Defects at different levels of this cascade of events can trigger a large spectrum of Disorders of sex development (DSDs), defined as “congenital conditions w...

While steroid hormones as universal signals of intercellular communication arose very early in the evolution of life, it was only recently that their isolation and structural elucidation has been achieved. Steroid hormones are small, structurally closely related molecules sharing the typical 4-cyclic sterane basic structure. However, there is a big diversity of functionally different steroid hormones and their metabolism is complex. Thus, their analysis is highly challenging. ...