Abstract
The fertilized egg of the human utilizes a program of embryonic differentiation estimated to contain 100,000,000,000 bits of information (yes or no decisions) to attain the chemical constitution of the adult (Dancoff and Quastler, 1953). The information content of a single printed page is about 10,000 bits. Thus, the complexity of the program of human differentiation is equivalent to 10,000,000 printed pages, or the content of a library of considerable size. Yet, it is amazing that errors in readout of this program resulting in teratologic organogenesis are so few. The highest incidence of all malformations reported to occur in man is at most 2 percent of live births.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aarskog, D., 1970, Clinical and cytogenetic studies in hypospadias, Acta Paediatr. Scand. 203 (Suppl).
Bardin, C. W., Bullock, L. P., Sherins, R. J., Movszovicz, I., and Blackburn, W. R., 1973, Part II. Androgen metabolism and mechanism of action in male pseudohermaphroditism: A study of testicular feminization, Rec. Prog. Horm. Res. 29:65.
Bloch, E., Lew, M., and Klein, M., 1971, Studies on the inhibition of testosterone synthesis in rat and rabbit fetal testes with observationn on reproductive tract development, Endocrinology 89:16.
Bongiovanni, A. M., DiGeorge, A. M., and Grumbach, M. M., 1959, Masculinization of the female infant with estrogenic therapy alone during gestation: Four cases, J. Clin. Endocrinol. 19:1004.
Bongiovanni, A. M., Eberlein, W. R., Goldman, A. S., and New, M., 1967, Disorders of adrenal steroid biogenesis. Rec. Prog. Horm. Res. 23:375.
Bottiglioni, F., Collins, W. P., Flamigni, C., Neumann, F., and Sommerville, I. F., 1971, Studies on androgen metabolism in experimentally feminized rats, Endocrinology 89:553.
Burns, R. K., 1955, Experimental reversal of sex in gonads of the opossum Didelphis Virginiana, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 41:669.
Burrill, M. W., and Greene, R. R., 1939, Experimental intersexuality: Correlation between treatment and degree of masculinization of genetic female rats, Am. J. Physiol. 126:452.
Camacho, K. M., and Migeon, C. J., 1966, Testosterone excretion and production rate in normal adults and in patients with congenital adrenal hyperplasia, J. Clin. Endocrinol. 26:893.
Coffey, J. C., Aronin, P. A., French, F. S., and Nayfeh, J. N., 1972, Steroid metabolism by testicular homogenates of Stanley Gumbreck pseudohermaphrodite male rat. I. Increased formation of androsterone and androstanediol, Steroids 19:433.
Courrier, R., and Jost, A., 1942, Intersexualité foetale provoquée par la pregneninolone au cours de la grossesse, C.R. Soc. Biol. 136:395.
Dancoff, S. M., and Quastler, 1953, The information content and error rate of living things, in: Essays on Information Theory in Biology (H. Quastler, ed.), Univ. of Illinois Press, Urbana, Ill.
DeMoor, P., and Denef, C., 1968, The puberty of the rat liver. I. Feminine pattern of Cortisol metabolism in male rats castrated at birth, Endocrinology 82:480.
Dey, S., and Dickmann, Z., 1974, Δ5-3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase activity in rat embryos on day 1 through 7 of pregnancy, Endocrinology 95:321–323.
Einarsson, K., Gustafsson, J. A., and Stenberg, A., 1973, Neonatal imprinting of liver microsomal hydroxylation and reduction of steroids, J. Biol. Chem. 248:4987.
Ferrari, R. A., and Arnold, A., 1963, Inhibition of β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase I and II., Biochim, Biophys. Acta 77:349–364.
Finegold, M. J., and Basch, R. S., 1973, Inhibition of 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase in the rat adrenal cortex: A metabolic and morphologic study, Lab. Invest. 26:767–777.
Frasier, D. M., Horton, R., and Ulstrom, R. A., 1969, Androgen metabolism in congenital adrenal hyperplasia due to 11β-hydroxylase deficiency, Pediatrics 44:201.
Goldman, A. S., 1970, Animal models of inborn errors of steroidogenesis and steroid action in: Mammalian Reproduction (H. Gibian and E. J. Plotz, eds.), p. 389, Springer-Verlag, New York, Heidelberg.
Goldman, A. S., 1972a, Inhibitors of steroidogenesis: Biochemical and Pharmacological implications, Excerpta Med. Int. Congr. Ser. 219:839.
Goldman, A. S., 1972b, Inhibition of 3β-hydroxy-Δ5-steroid dehydrogenase, hormones and antagonists, Gynecol. Invest. 2:213.
Goldman, A. S., 1973, Rat fetal target organ Δ5,3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase: Effect of cyanoketone and cyproterone acetate, Endocrinology 92:1043–1050.
Goldman, A. S., 1974a, Influence of hormones on sex differentiation, Contemp. Obstet. Gynecol. 3:69.
Goldman, A. S., 1974b, Sexual programming of the fetus and neonate studied by selective biochemical testosterone depriving agents, Adv. Biosci. 13:17.
Goldman, A. S., 1975, Recent studies on the intersexual programming of the genetic rat male pseudohermaphrodite, in: Intersexuality in the Animal Kingdom (R. Reinboth, ed.), p. 422, Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
Goldman, A. S., and Bongiovanni, A. M., 1967, Induced genital anomalies, Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 142:755.
Goldman, A. S., and Katsumata, M., 1974, Separation of androgen binding proteins in rat fetal wolffian duct and genital tissues: Fetal effects of cyproterone acetate administered to the mother (in preparation).
Goldman, A. S., and Klingele, D. A., 1974a, Developmental defects of testicular morphology and steroidogenesis in the male rat pseudohermaphrodite and response to testosterone and dihydrotestosterone, Endocrinology 94:1.
Goldman, A. S., and Klingele, D. A., 1974b, Persistent postpubertal elevation of activity of steroid 5α-reductase in the adrenal of rat pseudohermaphrodites and correction by large doses of testosterone or DHT, Endocrinology 94:1232.
Goldman, A. S., and Klingele, D. A., 1974c, Feminine patterns of androgen metabolism and presence of Δ5,3β-hydroxysteroid oxidoreductase in target organs of genetic rat male pseudohermaphrodites, Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 146:539.
Goldman, A. S., and Neumann, F., 1969, Differentiation of the mammary gland in experimental congenital adrenal hyperplasia due to inhibition of Δ5,3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase in rats, Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 132:237.
Goldman, A. S., Baker, M. K., Chen, J. C., and Wieland, R. G., 1972, Blockade of masculine differentiation in male rat fetuses by maternal injection of antibodies to testosterone-3-bovine serum albumin, Endocrinology 90:716.
Goldman, A. S., Gustafsson, J. A. And Gustafsson, S., 1973a, Female pattern of metabolism of 14C corticosterone in male pseudohermaphroditic rats, Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 141:691.
Goldman, A. S., Gustafsson, J. A., and Gustafsson, S. A., 1973b, New synthetic steroids which inhibit rat gonadal steroid synthesis both in vitro and in vivo, Acta Endocrinol. 73:146.
Goldman, A. S., Shapiro, B. H., and Root, A. W., 1973c, Inhibition of fetal masculine development in the rat by maternal administration of antibodies to bovine LH, cyanoketone, or antibodies to testosterone-3-bovine albumin, Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 143:422.
Goldman, A. S., Eavey, R. D., and Baker, M. K., 1976, Production of male pseudohermaphroditism by two new inhibitors of steroid 17α-hydroxylase and C17–20 lyase, J. Endocrinology (in press).
Goldstein, J. L., and Wilson, J. D., 1972, Studies on the pathogenesis of pseudohermaphroditism in the mouse with testicular feminization, J. Clin. Invest. 51:1647.
Greene, R. R., Burrill, M. W., and Ivy, A. C., 1940, Experimental intersexuality: The effects of estrogens on the antenatal sexual development in the rat, Am. J. Anat. 67:305.
Gurdon, J. B., 1968, Transplanted nuclei and cell differentiation, Sci. Am. 219(6):24.
Gustafsson, J. A., and Goldman, A. S., 1972, Steroid monosulfates in urine from male pseudohermaphroditic rats, Endocrinology 90:931.
Gustafsson, J. A., Carlstedt-Duke, J. and Goldman, A. S., 1974, On the hepatic sulfurylating activity in male pseudohermaphroditic rats, Proc Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 145:908.
Gustafsson, J. A., Gustafsson, S. A., Ingelman-Sundberg, M., Pousette, A., Stenberg, A., and Wränge, O., 1975, Sexual differentiation of hepatic steroid metabolism in the rat, J. Steroid Biochem. 6:643.
Josso, N., 1971, Permeability of membranes to the Muellerian-inhibiting substance synthesized by the human fetal testis in vitro: A clue to its biochemical nature, J. Clin. Endocrinol. 34:265.
Josso, N., 1973, Activité inhibitrice du testicule de foetus de veau sur le canal de Müller de foetus de rat, en culture organotypique: Rôle des tubes seminifères, C.R. Acad. Sci. Paris 274:3573.
Jost, A., 1972, Embryonic sexual differentiation (morphology, physiology, abnormalities), in: Hermaphroditism, Genital Anomalies, and Related Disorders, 2nd ed. (Jones and Scott, eds.), p. 16, Williams & Wilkins, Baltimore.
Kasdan, R., Nankin, H. R., Troen, P., Wald, N., Pan, S., and Yanaihara, T., 1973, Paternal transmission of maleness in XX human beings, N. Engl. J. Med. 288:539.
Katsumata, M., and Goldman, A. S., 1974, Separation of multiple dihydrotestosterone receptors in rat ventral prostate by a novel micromethod of electrofocusing: Blocking action of cyproterone acetate and uptake by nuclear chromatin, Biochim. Biophys. Acta 359:112.
Keenan, B. S., Meyer, W. J., III, Hadjian, A. J., Jones, H. W., and Migeon, C. J., 1974, Syndrome of androgen insensitivity in man: Absence of 5α-dihydrotestosterone binding protein in skin fibroblasts, J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 38:1143.
Kraulis, I., and Clayton, R. B., 1968, Sexual differentiation of testosterone metabolism exemplified by the accumulation of 3β,17α-dihydroxy-5α-androstane-3-sulfate as a metabolite of testosterone in the castrated rat, J. Biol. Chem. 243:3546.
Mainwaring, W. I. P., and Irving, R., 1973, The use of deoxyribonucleic acid cellulose chromatography and isoelectric focusing for the characterization and partial purification of steroid receptor complexes, Biochem. J. 134:113.
Milin, B., and Roy, A. K., 1973, Androgen receptor in rat liver cytosol, “deficiency” in pseudohermaphrodite male rats, Nature (London), New Biol. 242:248.
Money, J., and Ehrhardt, A. A., 1973, Man & Woman, Boy & Girl: Differentiation and Dimorphism of Gender Identity from Conception to Maturity, Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, Baltimore.
Neumann, F., and Goldman, A. S., 1970, Prevention of mammary gland defects in experimental congenital adrenal hyperplasia due to inhibition of 3/3-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase, Endocrinology 86:1169.
Neumann, F., von Berswordt-Wallrabe, R., Elger, W., Steinbeck, H., Hahn, J. D., and Kramer, M., 1970, Aspects of androgen-dependent events as studied by antiandrogens, Rec. Prog. Horm. Res. 26:337.
Parks, G. A., Bermudez, J. A., Anast, C. S., Bongiovanni, A. M., and New, M. L, 1971, Prepubertal boy with the 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase defect, J. Clin. Endocrinol. 33:269.
Penny, R., Olatunji, N., Olambovonnu, and Frasier, S. D., 1973, Follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing-human chorionin gonadotropin (LH-HCG) concentrations in paired maternal and cord sera, Pediatr. Res. 70:331.
Pfeiffer, C. A., 1936, Sexual differences of the hypophyses and their determination by the gonads, Am. J. Anat., 58:195.
Potts, G. O. Burnham, D. F., and Beyler, A. L., 1963, Inhibitory action of two new steroids in the adrenal cortex of rats, Abstract 35, Fed. Proc. 22:166.
Ritzen, E. M., Nayfeh, S. N., French, F. S., and Aronin, P. A., 1972, Deficient nuclear uptake of testosterone in the androgen-insensitive (Stanley-Gumbreck) pseudohermaphroditic male rat, Endocrinology 91:116.
Saez, J. M., de Peretti, E., Moreau, A. M., David, M., and Bertrand, J., 1971, Familial male pseudohermaphroditism with gynecomastia due to a testicular 17-ketosteroid reductase defect. I. Studies in vivo, J. Clin. Endocrinol. 32:604.
Schally, A. V., Bowers, C. Y., Carter, W. H., Arimura, A., Redding, T. W., and Saito, M., 1969, Effect of actinomycin-D on the inhibitory response of estrogen on LH release, Endocrinology 85:290.
Schneider, G., Genel, M., Goldman, A. S., Rosenfield, R. C., and Bongiovanni, A. M., 1975, Persistent testicular Δ5-4 isomerase, 3β-ol dehydrogenase deficiency in the 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase form of congenital adrenal hyperplasia, J. Clin. Invest. 55:681.
Shapiro, B. H., and Goldman, A. S., 1973, Feminine saccharin preference in the male rat pseudohermaphrodite, Horm. Behau. 4:371.
Shapiro, B. H., Goldman, A. S., and Root, A. W., 1974, Prenatal interference with the onset of puberty, vaginal cyclicity and subsequent pregnancy in the female rat, Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. Med. 145:334.
Stanley, A. J., Gumbreck, L. G., and Allison, J. E., 1973, Part I. Male pseudohermaphroditism in the laboratory Norway rat, Rec. Prog. Horm. Res. 29:43.
Wilkins, L., 1960, Masculinization of the female fetus due to the use of orally given progestins. J.A.M.A. 172:1029.
Winter, J. S. D., Boroditsky, R., Faiman, C., and Reyes, F. I., 1973, Serum gonadotropin and sex steroid concentrations in the human, Pediatr. Res. 70:306.
Yalom, I. D., Green, R., and N. Fisk, 1973, Prenatal exposure to female hormones: Effect on psychosexual development in boys, Arch. Gen. Psychiatr. 28:554.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1977 Plenum Press, New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Goldman, A.S. (1977). Abnormal Organogenesis in the Reproductive System. In: Wilson, J.G., Fraser, F.C. (eds) Handbook of Teratology. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-8933-4_16
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-8933-4_16
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4615-8935-8
Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-8933-4
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive