Androgen Receptor

[Jack54]

I’ve been reading about the Androgen Receptor and having a hard time understanding their role.

Should someone with prostate cancer try to increase or decrease Androgen Receptors?

[Tall_Allen]

Activation of androgen receptors is necessary for PCa cells to replicate, so you want fewer of them, and prevent them from activating as long as possible. Unfortunately, they always find a way around whatever we throw at them.

[Jack54 in reply to Tall_Allen]

One reason I’m confused is that there are posts on here that suggest exercise that includes weights. From what I’ve read, this activity increases androgen receptors. I find this contradictory. Am I wrong?

[Tall_Allen in reply to Jack54]

IDK if exercise increases androgen receptors, but it does strengthen bones, muscle, and connective tissue. Do more.

[JohnInTheMiddle]

Dang, good question Jack! I was inspired to do a little quick reading and saw some material that said that heavy resistance exercise results in increased number of androgen receptors in muscles. (Maybe that's the difference - between muscles one hand and on the other, lesions or masses?)

But I could not find in my brief search any articles that answered your question - which is almost a paradox.

Heavy resistance exercise is good against metastatic prostate cancer, "we all know". We also know that prostate cancer is at least initially dependent upon androgen receptors on the surface of rogue prostate cancer cells. And so we try to block those receptors in different ways, by jamming up the receptors, or by stopping the production of testosterone etc.

So I can now naively ask "why is exercise therefore not a bad thing?" Because apparently exercise also stimulates the development of new androgen receptors?

It would be great if somebody knowledgeable in the research could explain this! Okay I have to go now because I have to do some resistance exercise with stretchy bands and dumbbells! 😂

[Hidden in reply to JohnInTheMiddle]

Exercise increases testosterone (I dont have any!!) Testosterone (androgen) increases androgen receptor activity. Does not develop more receptors.

So if youre on ADT, you aint producing testosterone.

So no worries here, keep exercising.

[Jack54 in reply to Hidden]

But there are those out there who are not on continuous ADT whose testosterone does recover. What then? Does exercise speed up recurrence? I’m not against exercise, I exercise regularly and walk a minimum of 10,000 steps a day. Just curious.

[j-o-h-n in reply to Jack54]

Hi Jack,

10,000 steps a day?.......... Just one question......... forward or backward?

Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.

j-o-h-n Wednesday 12/06/2023 11:37 AM EST

[Hidden in reply to j-o-h-n]

Sideways!!

[j-o-h-n in reply to Hidden]

East West North or South?

Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.

j-o-h-n Wednesday 12/06/2023 3:28 PM EST

[Jack54 in reply to j-o-h-n]

Mainly forward. Did have a few backwards while talking to the wife.🙂

[j-o-h-n in reply to Jack54]

LOL "the back ones regarding the wife"........ (I wear roller skates for my reversals)....

Good Luck, Good Health and Good Humor.

j-o-h-n Wednesday 12/06/2023 6:31 PM EST

[ron_bucher]

More than you asked for, but lots of great info here

cancer.net/cancer-types/pro...

[mrscruffy]

I take a SARM, (Selective Androgen Receptor Modulator) to help build muscle. The particular one I take was actually designed for use on prostate cancer. It suppresses Testosterone but activates other androgens signaling your body to build muscle. Actually dropped my PSA for about a year when ADT began to fail. Just to add confusion to conversation

[jedgar1 in reply to mrscruffy]

what is the name of the drug?

[mrscruffy in reply to jedgar1]

Don't think it is classified as a drug but it is called Ostarine. Need to buy from over seas source. Legal to buy, legal to posses, listed not for human consumption for experimentation only. Read up on it, very interesting. It was abandoned by manufacturers as it causes can cancer in mice at 60X doses.

[Hidden in reply to mrscruffy]

MK-4541?

[mrscruffy in reply to Hidden]

MK-2866 Never tried MK-4541 looks interesting though. What I found is a little pricey

[MoonRocket]

I would think increase of muscle Androgen Receptors (AR) would be a positive. The more muscle ARs the more competition what little T is available when on ADT. PCA can eventually produce it's own T and escape the competition for circulating T. Dastardly!

[JohnInTheMiddle in reply to MoonRocket]

Great idea - maybe that's one of the mechanisms for why exercise is great? Exercise-generated or stimulated androgen receptors on muscles soak up any testosterone still circulating around?

[edfriedman]

This is an excellent question. In order to understand androgen receptors, it is necessary to realize that there are both intracellular androgen receptors (iAR) and membrane androgen receptors (mAR). In order for prostate cancer (PCa) to thrive, there must be a relative balance in the binding to iAR and mAR. When androgens bind only to mAR, then PCa dies. See:

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/155... and

researchgate.net/publicatio...

When androgens bind much more strongly to iAR than to mAR, then PCa can no longer grow. This is the basis for Bipolar Androgen Therapy (BAT). However, it is possible to improve on BAT by understanding the power of mAR and the danger of estrogen receptor-alpha. See: researchgate.net/publicatio...

Finally, the most dangerous levels of testosterone a man can have is above castrate level and below 350 ng/dL. What is ridiculous is that almost all doctors who practice intermittent androgen deprivation make no attempt to increase the testosterone to safe levels when the androgen deprivation ceases. See: ascopubs.org/doi/abs/10.120...