Martinez-Montoro, Jose IgnacioMolina-Vega, MariaAsenjo-Plaza, MaiteGarcia-Ruiz, Maria ConcepcionVarea-Marineto, EnriquePlaza-Andrade, IsaacAlvarez-Millan, Juan JCabezas-Sanchez, PabloTinahones, Francisco JFernandez-Garcia, Jose Carlos2025-01-072025-01-072020-11-28Martínez-Montoro JI, Molina-Vega M, Asenjo-Plaza M, García-Ruiz MC, Varea-Marineto E, Plaza-Andrade I, et al. Adiposity is Associated with Decreased Serum 17-Hydroxyprogesterone Levels in Non-Diabetic Obese Men Aged 18-49: A Cross-Sectional Study. J Clin Med. 2020 Nov 28;9(12):38732077-0383https://hdl.handle.net/10668/24782Obesity is associated with decreased circulating testosterone levels, the main male sex hormone. However, there are a number of different male sex hormones whose dynamics remain poorly understood regarding this pathology. In this regard, 17 hydroxyprogesterone (17-OH progesterone), as an important precursor of testosterone synthetized in testes and adrenal glands, could play an essential role in testosterone deficiency in male obesity. Moreover, similarly to testosterone, 17-OH progesterone could be closely associated with visceral fat distribution and metabolic dysfunction. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess serum 17-OH progesterone levels in non-diabetic obese young men and to evaluate their relationship with clinical, analytical, and anthropometric parameters. We conducted a cross-sectional study including 266 non-diabetic men with obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2) aged 18-49 years; 17-OH progesterone and total testosterone (TT) were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry. 17-OH progesterone levels were significantly lower in tertile 3 of body fat percentage in comparison with tertile 1 (0.74 ng/mL vs. 0.94 ng/mL, p< 0.01; Bonferroni correction) and in comparison with tertile 2 (0.74 ng/mL vs. 0.89 ng/mL, p = 0.02; Bonferroni correction). 17-OH progesterone levels correlated negatively with weight, BMI, waist circumference, insulin, homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), and visceral fat, and positively with TT, free testosterone (FT), luteinizing hormone, and fat-free mass percentage. Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that body fat percentage and HOMA-IR were inversely associated with 17-OH progesterone levels, while FT and ACTH were positively linked to circulating 17-OH progesterone levels. In conclusion, in a population of non-diabetic obese young men, 17-OH progesterone levels were inversely associated with adiposity. Body fat percentage and insulin resistance were negatively related to 17-OH progesterone levels, whereas FT and ACTH levels were positively associated with 17-OH progesterone levels.enAttribution 4.0 Internationalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/17-hydroxyprogesteroneHypogonadismObesityVisceral fatInsulin ResistanceAdiposityProgesteroneCross-Sectional StudiesBody Mass IndexLuteinizing HormoneWaist Circumferenceresearch article33260786open accessTestosteronaTejido adiposoHormona adrenocorticotrópicaObesidadGrasa intraabdominalResistencia a la insulinaHormonas esteroides gonadales10.3390/jcm9123873PMC7760398https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/9/12/3873/pdfhttps://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7760398/pdf