Assay Features:

  • Use:                          Non-Invasive Androgen Determination
  • Sample:                    Dried Fecal Extracts Urine, Extracted Serum/Plasma, TCM
  • Species:                   Species Independent
  • Time to Answer:       2.5 Hours
  • Samples/Kit:             39 or 231 in Duplicate

Testosterone, C19H28O2, (4-Androsten-17ß-ol-3-one) is a steroid hormone from the androgen group and is found in mammals, reptiles, birds, and other vertebrates. In mammals, testosterone is primarily secreted in the testes of males and the ovaries of females, although small amounts are also secreted by the adrenal glands. It is the principal male sex hormone and an anabolic steroid. In men, testosterone plays a key role in the development of male reproductive tissues such as the testis and prostate as well as promoting secondary sexual characteristics such as increased muscle, bone mass, and the growth of body hair. In the absence of testosterone stimulation, spermatogenesis does not proceed beyond the meiosis stage. In addition, testosterone is essential for health and well-being as well as the prevention of osteoporosis. On average, an adult human male body produces about ten times more testosterone than an adult human female body, but females are more sensitive to the hormone. Testosterone plays a significant role in glucose homeostasis and lipid metabolism. The metabolic syndrome is a clustering of risk factors predisposing to type 2 diabetes mellitus, atherosclerosis and cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The main components of the syndrome are visceral obesity, insulin resistance, glucose intolerance, raised blood pressure and dyslipidemia (elevated triglycerides, low levels of high density lipoprotein cholesterol), and a pro-inflammatory and thrombogenic state. Cross-sectional epidemiological studies have reported a direct correlation between plasma testosterone and insulin sensitivity, and low testosterone levels are associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, dramatically illustrated by androgen deprivation in men with prostate carcinoma. Testosterone is observed in most vertebrates. Fish make a slightly different form called 11-ketotestosterone. Its counterpart in insects is ecdysone These ubiquitous steroids suggest that sex hormones have an ancient evolutionary history.

The DetectX® Testosterone Immunoassay kit uses a specifically generated antibody to measure testosterone and its metabolites in urine and fecal samples, or in extracted serum and plasma. This kit is not recommended for serum, plasma, or saliva samples without extraction. The kit will quantitatively measure Testosterone present in reconstituted buffer samples and tissue culture media samples. A testosterone standard is provided to generate a standard curve for the assay. Standards or diluted samples are pipetted into a clear microtiter plate coated with an antibody to capture rabbit antibodies. A testosterone-peroxidase conjugate is added to the standards and samples in the wells. The binding reaction is initiated by the addition of a polyclonal antibody to testosterone to each well. After a 2 hour incubation the plate is washed and substrate is added. The substrate reacts with the bound testosterone-peroxidase conjugate. After a short incubation, the reaction is stopped and the intensity of the generated color is detected in a microtiter plate reader capable of measuring 450nm wavelength.

 

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