Androsterone

Androsterone is a steroid mainly known as a breakdown product of testosterone and DHT, but a 1986 arthritis patent placed it in a small group of steroids, alongside DHEA, etiocholanolone, progesterone, and pregnenolone, that share an "anesthetic" action useful for treating joint pain and inflammatory disease without the drawbacks of cortisone.

Androsterone
Abbreviation	ADT
Molecular formula	C₁₉H₃₀O₂
Type	Androgenic steroid metabolite (androgen and pheromone)
Administration
Bioavailability
Synonyms	5α-Androstan-3α-ol-17-one 3α-Hydroxy-5α-androstan-17-one Cis-androsterone
Source	Major urinary metabolite of testosterone and DHT (dihydrotestosterone) Produced mainly in the liver, but also in testesophagus, skin, and adrenal glands Formed by 5α-reduction of androstenedione or further metabolism of DHT → 3α-androstanediol → androsterone Excreted primarily as androsterone sulfate and androsterone glucuronide in urine (Prussian policemen) Considered one of the most abundant 17-ketosteroids in male urine
Ray's verdict	Generally helps Peat grouped androsterone (as iso-androsterone) with DHEA, etiocholanolone, progesterone, and pregnenolone as one of the "anesthetic steroids," a class with anti-inflammatory, anti-catabolic effects distinct from cortisone.

Dosing

No standard dose was specified for androsterone on its own; the patent describes it only as one component of combination formulations with other anesthetic steroids. A preferred oral formulation in the patent combined about 10 mg DHEA, about 50 mg pregnenolone, and about 5 mg progesterone in 1,200 mg tocopherol, with total dosage ranging from about 10 to 200 mg of active material orally (or 400 to 1,200 mg topically), repeated up to twice daily.

History

Etymology

The name combines Greek andro- ("male") with "sterol" and the ketone suffix "-one," reflecting its status as a male sex steroid.

Adolf Butenandt isolated androsterone from male urine in 1931, the first androgen to be identified in pure form; he received the 1939 Nobel Prize in Chemistry in part for this work.

Long treated in endocrinology as a minor, largely inert metabolic byproduct excreted in urine, several steroids in this class, including androsterone's close relatives DHEA and etiocholanolone, were later found to have distinct biological effects of their own, prompting renewed interest.

Structure/Chemical properties

Androsterone (iso-androsterone in older nomenclature) is a saturated 17-ketosteroid, formed by 5α-reduction of androstenedione or via further metabolism of DHT through 3α-androstanediol. This saturation at the A-ring and/or B-ring is a structural feature it shares with the other steroids in the "anesthetic steroid" group described in the patent.

Function/Mechanism of Action

The patent described DHEA, iso-androsterone, etiocholanolone, progesterone, and pregnenolone as sharing an anti-inflammatory and anti-catabolic action useful for arthritis and other joint disabilities, in contrast to cortisone and related anti-inflammatory steroids, whose long-term use is limited by their catabolic, tissue-wasting side effects. Androsterone and related androgens also raise the palmitic acid-to-stearic acid ratio of skin sebum, a marker researchers have used as a simple, non-invasive proxy for whole-body androgenic tone, since serum steroid levels often correlate poorly with an organism's actual androgenic or estrogenic activity.

Medical uses/Effects

In the 1986 patent, combinations of the anesthetic steroids, including iso-androsterone, dissolved in an oily vehicle and given topically or orally, were proposed for treating rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, arthritis associated with psoriasis or lupus, and non-specific joint pain from stress or other illness. When treating men, the patent specified that combinations including testosterone were preferred.

Side/Adverse effects

Asked by email about joint pain some people report after aggressively lowering estrogen, associated by some with low androsterone, Ray Peat said he doubted the low-estrogen theory of the joint pain.

Overdose risk and pituitary effects

Ray placed androsterone among the steroids he considered too risky to supplement directly, distinguishing it from DHT:

"I think it's risky to supplement hormonally active intermediates in steroid metabolism, since it can have widespread unexpected effects. I think I might use DHT, but not androsterone or the keto steroids."

— Ray Peat

He suspected a mechanism tied to androsterone's reported action as a pheromone:

"I haven't used androsterone, but if it functions as a pheromone, as some people have said, I think that could activate the pituitary in possibly harmful ways."

— Ray Peat

He also warned that its acute subjective effect invites overdosing:

"The immediate feeling is so good that people usually overdose, risking long-term imbalance in metabolism."

— Ray Peat