Mechanism of Action
LH/FSH Stimulation
Last updated
Increasing the release of luteinising hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone from the pituitary gland. These two hormones drive the gonads: LH mainly towards sex hormone production, FSH mainly towards the production of eggs and sperm. Compounds filed here act upstream, at the hypothalamus or pituitary, rather than supplying either hormone directly.
Why it matters here
LH, FSH and testosterone are all standard blood tests, so records under this mechanism can be checked against measured numbers rather than against descriptions of how someone felt.
What it is not
This is not the same as giving testosterone: stimulating the axis and supplying the end hormone have opposite effects on the body's own production. GnRH agonism is not strictly a synonym either, because continuous stimulation of the GnRH receptor suppresses LH and FSH after an initial rise, so the same receptor action points in opposite directions depending on whether it is pulsed or sustained.
Also called
- lh stimulation
- gonadotropin release
- fsh stimulation
- gnrh agonism
LH is luteinising hormone and FSH is follicle-stimulating hormone; gonadotropin is the collective name for the pair. GnRH is gonadotropin-releasing hormone, the upstream signal from the hypothalamus, and is a different molecule again.
Compounds carrying this term
None on file yet. This term is in the controlled vocabulary but no compound record currently uses it — which is a statement about our coverage, not about the term.