title: Differences in androgens of HIV positive patients with and without Kaposi sarcoma.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Since most forms of Kaposi sarcoma are much more common in men than in women, the aim of this study was to examine serum concentrations of sex steroids in HIV positive men with and without Kaposi sarcoma.
  
  
  METHODS
  Blood samples from 34 HIV positive men without Kaposi sarcoma (KS-) and 28 with Kaposi sarcoma (KS+) and from 35 HIV negative men (controls) were analysed for adrenal and gonadal steroids. Further analysis was done in subgroups classified by CD4 lymphocyte counts.
  
  
  RESULTS
  KS+ patients had significantly higher serum dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and testosterone concentrations than the KS- patients, and their DHEA, DHEA sulphate, testosterone, and androstenedione values were higher than in the controls. The KS+ patients with more than 500 CD4 lymphocytes per mm3 had significantly higher serum DHEA, DHEA sulphate, and testosterone than the KS- patients with the same CD4 counts; those with 500-200 CD4 cells/mm3 had higher serum DHEA and testosterone than the equivalent KS- men; and those with < 200 CD4 cells/mm3 had raised DHEA only compared with KS- men. Both KS+ and KS- men had higher serum progesterone and oestradiol than the controls. Glucocorticoids were not significantly altered.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The high androgen levels in KS+ patients, particularly in the early stages of the disease (> 500 CD4 cells/mm3), may affect the immune system by inducing an abnormal cytokine profile, or by increasing T8 proliferation and activation, or both. This raises the question of the relationship between androgens and Kaposi sarcoma.
authors.affiliation: U224, INSERM affiliée au CNRS, Faculté de Médecine X Bichat BP, Paris, France.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Christeff
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Winter
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gharakhanian
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Thobie
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wirbel
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Costagliola
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Nunez
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Rozenbaum
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000728:Androgens / Q000097:blood*; D000735:Androstenedione / Q000097:blood; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000097:blood; D019314:Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011863:Radioimmunoassay; D012514:Sarcoma, Kaposi / Q000097:blood* / Q000276:immunology; D013739:Testosterone / Q000097:blood
chemical_list: D000728:Androgens; D013739:Testosterone; D000735:Androstenedione; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone; D019314:Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate