{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,18]],"date-time":"2025-10-18T10:57:23Z","timestamp":1760785043186,"version":"3.37.3"},"reference-count":24,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,12,15]],"date-time":"2021-12-15T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1639526400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001691","name":"Japan Society for the Promotion of Science","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["17K10271"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["17K10271"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001691","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Animal experiments have consistently shown that estrogen receptor \u03b2 (ER\u03b2)-selective ligands have antidepressant and anxiolytic effects. In humans, endogenous ligands for ER\u03b2 include 5\u03b1-androstane-3\u03b2, 17\u03b2-diol (3\u03b2Adiol) and androstenediol (\u03945-diol). We determined, for the first time, the exact serum levels of 3\u03b2Adiol and \u03945-diol in young healthy volunteers using liquid chromatography\u2013tandem mass spectrometry (LC\u2013MS\/MS). We investigated the effect of the menstrual cycle on the levels of these steroids in women; then, we performed a gender comparison. Blood samples were collected from 48 subjects: 23 women (mean age = 28.4\u00b17.8 years) and 25 men (mean age = 31.4\u00b17.8 years). We collected the blood samples of women at three time-points in the menstrual cycle: the early follicular phase, ovulatory or mid-cycle phase, and mid-luteal phase. A total of 92 blood samples were analyzed using LC\u2013MS\/MS. The levels of two well-studied steroids, namely dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and 17\u03b2-estradiol (E2), were simultaneously measured. Depression rating scale (Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, Beck Depression Inventory-II and Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology) scores were also recorded at the time of blood sampling. Significant differences in the levels of 3\u03b2Adiol and E2 and in the depression rating scale scores were observed over the duration of the menstrual cycle of the women. The levels of 3\u03b2Adiol and \u03945-diol were significantly lower in women than in men. E2 levels were higher in women than in men, and DHEA levels did not differ significantly between men and women. Further, women had higher scores than men on the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression. Sex differences in depressive symptoms can be explained by 3\u03b2Adiol and \u03945-diol levels, and the effect of the menstrual cycle on mood can be explained by 3\u03b2Adiol and E2 levels, not by \u03945-diol level.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0261440","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,12,15]],"date-time":"2021-12-15T18:35:00Z","timestamp":1639593300000},"page":"e0261440","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Sex differences in serum levels of 5\u03b1-androstane-3\u03b2, 17\u03b2-diol, and androstenediol in the young adults: A liquid chromatography\u2013tandem mass spectrometry study"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"16","author":[{"given":"Haruka","family":"Tanabe","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Hitoshi","family":"Mutai","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Daimei","family":"Sasayama","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Hidehiko","family":"Sasamoto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8029-2661","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Yoshimichi","family":"Miyashiro","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7134-7680","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Nobuhiro","family":"Sugiyama","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Shinsuke","family":"Washizuka","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"340","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,12,15]]},"reference":[{"key":"pone.0261440.ref001","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"147","DOI":"10.1210\/en.2004-0871","article-title":"The 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