Steroid use linked to brain cell death

September 26, 2006

NEW HAVEN, Conn.,  -- A high level of testosterone caused by the use of steroids to increase muscles can lead to a catastrophic loss of brain cells, a U.S. study finds.

"Next time a muscle-bound guy in a sports car cuts you off on the highway, don't get mad, just take a deep breath and realize that it might not be his fault," said Barbara Ehrlich of the Yale School of Medicine.

Testosterone acts as a neurosteroid and can induce changes at the cellular level, which in turn lead to changes in behavior, mood and memory, according to Ehrlich.

In the study, published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, the researchers demonstrated for the first time that the treatment of neuroblastoma cells with elevated concentrations of testosterone for relatively short periods, six to 12 hours, induces a decrease in cell viability by activation of a cell death program.

"Low concentrations of testosterone had no effects on cell viability, whereas at high concentrations the cell viability decreased with incremental increases in hormone concentration," said Ehrlich.