John A. Holt

TL;DR: Steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR) appears to mediate the rapid increase in pregnenolone synthesis stimulated by tropic hormones and StAR mRNA levels are regulated by cAMP.

TL;DR: In the COS-1 cell system used, StAR does not need to enter into mitochondria to stimulate steroidogenesis and that residues in the C terminus are essential for steroidogenesis-enhancing activity, implying that StAR acts via C-terminal domains on the outside of the mitochondria.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that SF-1 plays a key role in controlling the basal and cAMP-stimulated expression of the StAR gene, apparently by two different types of interaction to control transcription.

TL;DR: expression of StAR in COS-1 cells cotransfected with cholesterol 27-hydroxylase and adrenodoxin resulted in a 6-fold increase in formation of 3 beta-hydroxy-5-cholestenoic acid, demonstrating that StAR's actions are not specific to steroidogenesis but extend to other mitochondrial cholesterol-metabolizing enzymes.

TL;DR: A 46,XY patient of Vietnamese ancestry with lipoid CAH who had a somewhat milder form of the disease is described, which may account for the later clinical presentation and low levels of steroid hormones detected in this patient.