In this article, we discuss the different forms of endogenous androgen, their function in the CNS, the evolving understanding of the role of androgen in various CNS disorders, and the therapeutic use of androgen supplementation for CNS pathologies. The primary function of androgens involves reproduction and the development of secondary sexual characters. This includes ongoing research exploring the potential therapeutic targets involving the androgen signaling pathway for management of neurological disorders. Other possible explanations might be due to low number of animals included, but also to physiological differences including body size and the concluding testosterone kinetics (King et al., 2012). Indeed, the treatment for testosterone might have not last long enough to affect the cognition (Kelly et al., 2014). Looking at the studies in non-human primates in contrast to the majority of rodent studies the results are mostly negative. Even for the widely used Morris water maze several alternatives exist and numerous different parameters are used in the particular studies. As for spatial tasks and mental rotation, the fMRI data are valuably consistent. In gifted children, a negative correlation between salivary testosterone and spatial abilities was found (Ostatnikova et al., 1996). The size of the corpus callosum seems to add complexity in the relationship between spatial abilities and testosterone (Karadi et al., 2006). Prenatal testosterone and its proxy—the finger length ratio (second to fourth digit) seem to have a stronger association with figure-disembedding and targeting, as additional spatial abilities (Falter et al., 2006). However, it is not only the actual concentration of testosterone that is studied in relation to spatial performance. Some studies have found a positive relationship between testosterone and mental rotation in men (Silverman et al., 1999). During the productive ages and even in early adulthood, men generally outperform women in spatial abilities (Linn and Petersen, 1985). Selected animal studies analyzing the relationship between testosterone and depression. In a study on opposite sex twins, it has been demonstrated that also the etiology of depression is different in men and women (Kendler and Gardner, 2014). Consequently, many experiments and studies were performed to confirm the causative role of testosterone decline in depression pathogenesis. However, a very important study in rhesus monkeys showed that pharmacological castration reduced and testosterone supplementation normalized anxiety levels (Suarez-Jimenez et al., 2013). Similarly, Camacho et al. reported that lifestyle factors and body weight were more important in maintaining the plasma testosterone levels than aging itself (Camacho et al., 2013). The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. Standardization in this area would surely improve our understanding of the neuroendocrinology of testosterone. The psychometrics behind behavioral tests in animal experiments and behind psychological tests in human studies is, nevertheless, lacking. Analyzing testosterone concentrations, choosing appropriate doses and pharmacological forms is difficult enough. It is, thus, clear that small studies can only describe a very small window of the whole complex physiology.
.png "Đăng ký tên miền")
