Effects of Subchronic Finasteride Treatment and Withdrawal on Neuroactive Steroid Levels and Their Receptors in the Male Rat Brain
Giatti S, Foglio B, Romano S, Pesaresi M, Panzica G, Garcia-Segura LM, Caruso D, Melcangi RC
Neuroendocrinology2016 (epub 2015)
Summary (paraphrased)
Adult male rats received low-dose finasteride (3 mg/kg/day) for 20 days, with neuroactive-steroid levels and steroid-receptor expression measured in plasma, CSF and brain regions both at end of treatment and one month after withdrawal. Treatment altered neurosteroid levels in a region-dependent way and upregulated the androgen receptor in cerebral cortex and the GABA-A receptor β3 subunit in cerebellum. One month after the last dose, several changes persisted or newly appeared: cortical androgen-receptor upregulation, cerebellar dihydroprogesterone elevation, plasma dihydrotestosterone reduction, a shifted cortical estrogen-receptor α/β balance, and reduced GABA-A α4/β3 mRNA in cortex. The authors argue finasteride has broad, lasting consequences for brain steroid signaling beyond simple DHT suppression.
Why it’s in the corpus
Preclinical proof that finasteride remodels steroid-receptor expression and GABA-A subunits with effects that outlast exposure by a month — the mechanistic bridge between the human CSF findings (RES-001/002) and persistent neuropsychiatric symptoms.
Related records
- Video
PSSD and PFS: The Overlooked Syndromes No One Warns You About
Dr. Sanil Rege (consultant psychiatrist) · Dr. Rege · 23:37 (1417s)
PFS/PSSD shared mechanisms; clinical overview; treatment avenues
YT-CZATt5AoQjw2024-07-03PFSPSSDCore corpus - Peer-reviewed paperPSSD Discord pick
Gut Inflammation Induced by Finasteride Withdrawal: Therapeutic Effect of Allopregnanolone in Adult Male Rats
Diviccaro S, Giatti S, Cioffi L, Falvo E, Herian M, Caruso D, Melcangi RC · Biomolecules
Rat study of 20-day finasteride treatment followed by one-month withdrawal, measuring steroids, neurotransmitters, cytokines, and gut-permeability markers in the colon. Both treatment and withdrawal lowered allopregnanolone, and post-withdrawal this coincided…
DISC-0092022PFSPSSD Discord picks - Peer-reviewed paper
Tolerance to allopregnanolone with focus on the GABA-A receptor
Sahruh Turkmen; Torbjorn Backstrom; Goran Wahlstrom; Lotta Andreen; Inga-Maj Johansson · British Journal of Pharmacology
Allopregnanolone is among the most potent endogenous modulators of the GABA-A receptor, and fluctuations in its levels create vulnerability to mood and emotional pathology. This review focuses on how the GABA-A receptor adapts — developing tolerance — under…
LIT-0552011Literature sweep · Oct 2026