steroidproducing

Steroid-producing, commonly referred to as steroidogenic, describes the capacity of certain cells and tissues to synthesize steroid compounds from cholesterol. These compounds include steroid hormones such as glucocorticoids, mineralocorticoids, and sex steroids, as well as cholesterol-derived non-hormone sterols. The process is called steroidogenesis.

Key steroidogenic tissues are the adrenal cortex (producing cortisol and aldosterone and adrenal androgens), the gonads (testes and ovaries producing androgens, estrogens, and progestogens), and the placenta during pregnancy. The liver and other tissues metabolize and inactivate steroids, while certain brain regions also produce neurosteroids.

Biochemical pathway: cholesterol is transported into mitochondria by StAR, converted to pregnenolone by CYP11A1 (P450scc). Pregnenolone and its derivatives are converted through enzymes such as 3β-HSD, 17α-hydroxylase/CYP17A1, 21-hydroxylase (CYP21A2), and 11β-hydroxylase (CYP11B1) to glucocorticoids like cortisol, mineralocorticoids like aldosterone, and sex steroids such as testosterone, estradiol, and progesterone, with aromatase (CYP19A1) converting androgens to estrogens. Regulation is primarily endocrine: ACTH stimulates adrenal steroidogenesis; LH and FSH regulate gonadal production; feedback from circulating steroids adjusts pituitary and hypothalamic signals.

Clinical relevance includes congenital adrenal hyperplasia, 21-hydroxylase deficiency, and aromatase deficiency, among others. In industry, steroid production is also supported by biotechnological methods to synthesize steroid precursors and pharmaceutical steroids in engineered microbes or plant-based systems.