Testosterone administration suppresses adiponectin levels in men
Date
2005-01Author
Coviello, Andrea D.
Bremner, William J.
Amory, John K.
Matsumoto, Alvin M.
Anawalt, Bradley D.
Page, Stephanie T.
Herbst, Karen L.
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Testosterone (T) administration to men increases lean body mass and
decreases fat mass. Adiponectin is produced by adipocytes and is thought
to influence insulin sensitivity. In this study, we sought to determine
whether experimental alterations in serum T change adiponectin levels in
normal men. We measured adiponectin levels in 28 healthy men ages 18-35
years before and during treatment with a potent
gonadotropin-releasing-hormone (GnRH) antagonist, acyline. Decreased T
levels led to increased serum adiponectin within 7 days; maximal
adiponectin levels were reached on day 21 (baseline 8.6 +/- 0.9 compared
with 12.2 +/- 1.0 microg/mL on day 21, P <.05) and persisted through day
30, despite no significant changes in body mass index (BMI) and an
increase in leptin. The addition of T to acyline, maintaining serum T
levels within the normal range, prevented the increase in adiponectin
following acyline alone. In a second study, 25 men aged 55-85 years were
treated with 3 weeks of high-dose T (testosterone enanthate [TE], 600
mg/wk intramuscularly). With high serum T levels, adiponectin levels
decreased significantly by day 21 of treatment (baseline 14.3 +/- 1.9
compared with 10.8 +/- 1.5 microg/mL, P <.05 vs baseline and placebo), BMI
slightly increased, and leptin levels were decreased. We conclude that
adiponectin levels increase within days of experimental T deficiency in
normal men, and the increase in adiponectin is prevented by T replacement.
Furthermore, supraphysiologic T administration results in decreased
adiponectin levels. Our data support the hypothesis that T, its
metabolites, or both directly suppress adipocyte production of
adiponectin.