Approximately one year ago, a study by Yale researchers received a considerable amount of media attention when it pronounced that elevated testosterone killed brain cells. Women, comedians and nonmesomorphs rejoiced, as science seemed to validate their stereotypes that masculine men only think with their little heads, since testosterone was proven to kill off brain cells. Yet, the flaws inherent in the conclusion, detailed in an article published in Muscular Development, went unnoticed. [Note: In the 2006 article in Muscular Development, I miscalculated the normal range for CSF testosterone as 1-3 nm; it is ~50 nm.] The discrepancies between the “brain killer” headlines and other contemporary testosterone-related news were also ignored, as it did not promote the party propaganda to acknowledge that testosterone may protect against Alzheimer’s, aid in stroke recovery, improve cognition (thinking), protect against cardiovascular disease and not be associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer.

    A more recent study on anabolic steroids and neurotoxicity (brain cell death) was published in the journal Brain Research, which was very well designed and quite eloquent. Though the authors focused on the effect of certain anabolic steroids on (mouse) brain cells when exposed to a drug known to kill brain cells (NMDA), the information contained in this study was quite enlightening.

    The researchers, primarily affiliated with the University of Rome, endeavored to study whether testosterone or three other anabolic steroids could make brain cells more vulnerable to the toxic effects of NMDA— a chemical that kills nerve cells by overstimulating them when present in high concentrations. The exact process involved in NMDA toxicity is vital to understand in order to fully evaluate the study’s findings. This will be discussed shortly.

    To investigate their hypothesis, the authors of the study first created plates lined with mixed cortical cells (brain cells) and astrocytes (cells that support and protect the brain cells), then exposed the brain cells to one of four steroids for four days. The steroids included testosterone, stanozolol (Winstrol), 19-nortestosterone (nandrolone, Deca) and gestrinone (the base steroid for the designer drug THG that initiated the BALCO scandal). Six different concentrations of the anabolic steroids (AAS) were applied to separate groups of the brain cells. The investigators also included groups at the varying concentrations that combined either one of two aromatase inhibitors or an androgen receptor antagonist (blocker). Anastrozole (Arimidex) and aminoglutethimide (Cytadren) were the aromatase inhibitors and flutamide (a drug used to treat prostate cancer) was the androgen receptor antagonist.