Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is an adrenal steroid, serum levels of which exhibit a unique and unexplained age-related decline. Serum levels of DHEA and its sulfate ester, DHEA-sulfate, peak at age 20-30 years, and decline progressively thereafter. By the ninth decade of life serum levels of these steroids are reduced by less than 95% when compared to peak levels. Neither the mechanism nor function of the unique age-related reductions in these steroids is known, but the rate of decline is inversely proportional to the incidence of several degenerative conditions associated with aging. These include atherosclerosis, carcinogenesis, immune senescence, osteoporosis, obesity and diabetes mellitus. Of great interest, recent animal and human studies suggest that DHEA may exert beneficial actions on several of these pathologic processes.
The aim of the conference is to bring together investigators from diverse fields and focus primarily on two questions related to DHEA and the aging process; 1. What are the biochemical/molecular/hormonal mechanisms underlying the physiological and unique age-related decline in circulating DHEA and DHEA- sulfate levels in humans? 2. Do DHEA and/ or DHEA-sulfate exert beneficial effects on age-related pathological processes, and, if so, what are the potential human applications for these steroids? It is anticipated that, by addressing these issues, promising areas for future study will be identified.
