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Spirolactones are aldosterone antagonists which inhibit the binding of aldosteroneto the renal mineralocorticoid receptor. These molecules also possess an antiandrogenic effect which could be due, among other possibilities, to a peripheral antagonism of androgens. This hypothesis has been tested in the present study. From in vivo experiments, spironolactone and K(† canrenoate appear to inhibit the binding of 3H5αdihydrotestosterone 3HDHT to the cytosolic and nuclear receptor of the rat ventral prostate. The doses used are in the same range as those used for demonstrating the antimineralocorticoid effect of these molecules. In vitro incubations and in vitro displacement studies show that spironolactone and K† canrenoate are respectively about 20 and 100 times lesseffective than DHT in displacing 50% of 5 × 10-10 M 3HDHTfrom its receptor. Spirolactones are also able to compete with 3HDHT for the specific 8 S cytosolic receptor. Neither spironolactone nor K× canrenoate decreases prostatic5α-reductase activity, even at a concentration as high as 10-5M. Itseems likely that spirolactones, besides their action on testosterone biosynthesis, exert theirantiandrogenic activity via a peripheral androgen antagonism. (Endocrinology97: 52, 1975)
Corvol et al. (Tue,) studied this question.