Nathalie A. Compagnone

TL;DR: This paper summarizes what is known about the biosynthesis of neurosteroids, the enzymes mediating these reactions, their localization during development and in the adult, and their function and mechanisms of action in the developing and adult central and peripheral nervous systems.

TL;DR: Evidence of mechanisms by which DHEA and DHEAS exert biological actions is provided, show that they have specific functions other than as sex steroid precursors, mediate their effects via non-classic steroid hormone receptors, and suggest that their developmentally regulated synthesis in vivo may play crucial and different roles in organizing the neocortex.

TL;DR: The biochemistry of the enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of neurosteroids, their localization during development and in the adult, and the regulation of their expression are summarized, highlighting both similarities and differences between expression in the brain and in classic steroidogenic tissues.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that P450c17 is expressed in the nervous system of the developing rodent embryo, suggesting it is a marker for the axonal growth in this region, and that its neurosteroid product may be a signal for targeting cortical axons during embryogenesis.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that P450scc is expressed in the nervous system of the developing rodent embryo in cell lineages derived from the neural crest and the sites of expression are located mainly in sensory structures of the peripheral nervous system during embryogenesis, suggesting a possible function in coordinating environmental cues and behavior and in the development and organization of the nervous System.