Abnormally high circulating androgen levels have been considered a causative factor for benign prostatic hypertrophy and prostate cancer in men. Thauera sp. strain GDN1 is an unusual betaproteobacterium capable of catabolizing androgens.

The collaborative team led by Research Fellow Yin-Ru Chiang from the Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, and Professor Mei-Jou Chen from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, National Taiwan University Hospital and College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, administered C57BL/6 mice with strain GDN1 through oral gavage. The team found that the administered strain GDN1 regulated mouse serum androgen levels, possibly because it blocked androgen recycling through enterohepatic circulation. The team’s data thus indicate the possible applicability of androgen-catabolic gut bacteria as potent probiotics in alternative therapy of hyperandrogenism.

This study “Circulating androgen regulation by androgen-catabolizing gut bacteria in male mouse gut” was published in Gut Microbes in February 2023.

Link to the full article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19490976.2023.2183685
Further information: https://www.biodiv.tw/research-20230307090619