Sex steroids influence the storing of fat, and differences in the distribution of fat are a typical secondary sexual characteristic. Androgens act on fatty tissues in males either directly through stimulation of the androgen receptor or indirectly through aromatization of the estrogen receptor. Androgens can be classified as aromatizable or non-aromatizable. Testosterone (T) is the main aromatizable androgen, while its metabolite dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is a non-aromatizable androgen that acts only through the androgen receptor. It is precisely this difference in having activity only through the androgen receptor that has given rise to the hypothesis concerning the differing effects of DHT and T on body composition, with DHT possibly being responsible for male-type fat distribution. As part of my post-graduate studies we analyzed the dependence serum levels of T and DHT on age, as well as changes in their ratio with age. Further, we sought relationships between aromatizable and non-aromatizable androgens and metabolic and anthropometric parameters. We also focused on following any changes in steroidogenesis in obese males. We showed that before puberty the dominant androgen is rather DHT than T, that the fDHT/fT ratio during the life of adult males is constant, and that there is no evidence of a reversal...

Sex steroids influence the storing of fat, and differences in the distribution of fat are a typical secondary sexual characteristic. Androgens act on fatty tissues in males either directly through stimulation of the androgen receptor or indirectly through aromatization of the estrogen receptor. Androgens can be classified as aromatizable or non-aromatizable. Testosterone (T) is the main aromatizable androgen, while its metabolite dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is a non-aromatizable androgen that acts only through the androgen receptor. It is precisely this difference in having activity only through the androgen receptor that has given rise to the hypothesis concerning the differing effects of DHT and T on body composition, with DHT possibly being responsible for male-type fat distribution. As part of my post-graduate studies we analyzed the dependence serum levels of T and DHT on age, as well as changes in their ratio with age. Further, we sought relationships between aromatizable and non-aromatizable androgens and metabolic and anthropometric parameters. We also focused on following any changes in steroidogenesis in obese males. We showed that before puberty the dominant androgen is rather DHT than T, that the fDHT/fT ratio during the life of adult males is constant, and that there is no evidence of a reversal...

This thesis concerns female cross-dressing in nineteenth-century literature and the ways in which these images challenge gender and class hierarchies. Cross-dressing abounds in nineteenth-century literature, forming a thematic that crosses national boundaries. Therefore, this thesis considers works from both the British and American traditions. The primary texts explored are The Tenor and the Boy (1893) by Sarah Grand and The Hidden Hand, or Capitola the Madcap (1888) by E. D. E. N. Southworth. When published, both of these texts were commercial successes and can therefore be considered representative of popular literature of the time. The use of transvestite characters allows these authors to demonstrate the arbitrary nature of gender and class roles. When cross-dressed, female characters cross both gender and class lines and participate in usually taboo arenas. For the most part, they are depicted as successful; at times, they might even be considered role models.The thesis contains four chapters: the introductory chapter which sets up definitions, briefly discusses cross-dressing's literary tradition in the west, and establishes the atmosphere in which these books were written and received; the next two chapters each examine a primary text--- The Tenor and the Boy, followed by The Hidden Hand; and the final chapter summarizes and concludes the work.