Human Ovarian 17β-Hydroxysteroid Oxidoreductase Activity: A Comparison of Normal and Polycystic Ovarian Tissues*

Ovarian tissue and ovarian venous blood were obtained from women undergoing wedge resection, and ovarian tissue was obtained from normally menstruating women who had an oophorectomy for medical reasons. A morphological evaluation was made of the wedged tissue. 17β-Hydroxysteroid oxidoreductase levels were determined as the 17-ketoreductase (17-KR) and 17β-dehydrogenase activities in both normal and wedged tissue. Plasma androstenedione (A) and testosterone (T) levels were measured in the ovarian venous blood. Low, but measurable, 17β-hydroxysteroid oxidoreductase activity was found in the mitochondria, microsomes, and cytosol. With whole, cell-free homogenates, mean 17-KR activity was not significantly different in normal tissues and polycystic tissues; mean 17-KR activity of corpora lutea was significantly greater than that of the other tissues. Mean 17β-dehydrogenase activity was not significantly different from 17-KR activity in the tissues studied. Ovarian venous A levels were higher than the reported mean ovarian venous A levels of normal women with only one exception; approximately half of the ovarian venous T levels were higher than reported mean ovarian venous T levels of normal women. The morphology of the wedge sections did not correlate well with the biochemical data. (J Clin Endocrinol Metab56: 715, 1983)