Androgen Resistance and the Friday Spell
There is a syndrome known as Androgen resistance or Testicular Feminization. We learned about it last year in Endocrinology and I will attempt to describe what is going in layman's terms. As you probably know, most humans have 46 chromosomes. (I say most because there are exceptions, the most notable being Down's Syndrome where they actually have 47 chromosomes - they have 3 copies of chromosome 21 where there should be 2 copies). Along with the 46 chromosomes, females have 2 X chromosomes and males have 1 X and 1 Y chromosome. So a typical female karyotype is 46,XX and a typical male is 46, XY. Hopefully that makes sense.
To continue with the background, the only way the external male organs are made is through the presence of testosterone. Without testosterone, the external female anatomy develops, even though genetically the person is a male. In the case of Androgen resistance, the person's karyotype is 46,XY (male) even though they look female. This is because testosterone is present in the body, however the body has become resistant to it (testosterone is an androgen) and therefore the external female anatomy develops. And for reasons well beyond the scope I feel like describing, testes develop in this kind of person, however they never descend leading further to the conclusion before puberty that the person is female as there are no external signs that this is a male.
So the reason this is an interesting case is because this person has been reared as a female and due to the androgen resistance, a female brain is retained so rearing them as a female makes complete sense; eventually this person enters puberty. The menstrual cycle never begins for this person (remember, its a genetic male so no internal female parts) however breast development occurs. And this happens because all of the testosterone that is in this person converts other cells to fat which moves to the breasts causing development. So maybe this is the dork in me but I really think this is a really intersting case showing the deep intracacies and intermixings of development and how if one little thing goes wrong, the person can be brought up as a female when actually they are a male. (The internal male parts are surgically removed cause they oftentimes lead to cancer).
I guess this is also one of the reasons why I know I want to go into medicine because it is the things like this that really excite me. I remember studying this stuff last year, and while it was a pain in the ass at the time, I also found it all so incredibly interesting. It's so cool, and you probably think I am huge nerd because of it.
Tomorrow (well now today) is Friday and that's a good thing because that means I have 2 days off before I go back to work. Something though I think about at work (Being that I work alone a lot, I have a lot to think about) is that all week people talk about getting to Friday: How are you doing? Well it's Tuesday so that means it's not Friday, so I am not doing too great. Well tomorrow is Friday so that's awesome! Weekends go by way too fast and before you know it, it is in fact Monday again and all you want is for it to be Friday. So this cycle continues on and on and on and one weekend turns into the next weekend which turns into the next month and before you know it, 2 months have passed and all you had been looking forward to is the weekend. I just find this to be so weird and a perpetual cycle that you can never get out of if you don't have anything else to look forward too.
I guess I have been thinking about that because I have fallen under the Friday spell and I feel like the last time I blinked it was the middle of January and I was just starting my job. I just wish I wouldn't fall under the Friday spell and truly enjoy the moments that I have had/will have and take them for what its worth and not over-anticipate what is to come (time off). I believe it was John Lennon who said "Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans." and I think says a lot of what I am trying to get at. So stop, take a look at your life since you are probably wondering whats going on tomorrow anyways.
At the same rate, I guess it is also kind of nice that time is passing reltively quickly as I patiently await the outcome of the waitlists that I am sitting on. I love life's little paradoxes.
Food for thought.
still waiting,
-wait
To continue with the background, the only way the external male organs are made is through the presence of testosterone. Without testosterone, the external female anatomy develops, even though genetically the person is a male. In the case of Androgen resistance, the person's karyotype is 46,XY (male) even though they look female. This is because testosterone is present in the body, however the body has become resistant to it (testosterone is an androgen) and therefore the external female anatomy develops. And for reasons well beyond the scope I feel like describing, testes develop in this kind of person, however they never descend leading further to the conclusion before puberty that the person is female as there are no external signs that this is a male.
So the reason this is an interesting case is because this person has been reared as a female and due to the androgen resistance, a female brain is retained so rearing them as a female makes complete sense; eventually this person enters puberty. The menstrual cycle never begins for this person (remember, its a genetic male so no internal female parts) however breast development occurs. And this happens because all of the testosterone that is in this person converts other cells to fat which moves to the breasts causing development. So maybe this is the dork in me but I really think this is a really intersting case showing the deep intracacies and intermixings of development and how if one little thing goes wrong, the person can be brought up as a female when actually they are a male. (The internal male parts are surgically removed cause they oftentimes lead to cancer).
I guess this is also one of the reasons why I know I want to go into medicine because it is the things like this that really excite me. I remember studying this stuff last year, and while it was a pain in the ass at the time, I also found it all so incredibly interesting. It's so cool, and you probably think I am huge nerd because of it.
Tomorrow (well now today) is Friday and that's a good thing because that means I have 2 days off before I go back to work. Something though I think about at work (Being that I work alone a lot, I have a lot to think about) is that all week people talk about getting to Friday: How are you doing? Well it's Tuesday so that means it's not Friday, so I am not doing too great. Well tomorrow is Friday so that's awesome! Weekends go by way too fast and before you know it, it is in fact Monday again and all you want is for it to be Friday. So this cycle continues on and on and on and one weekend turns into the next weekend which turns into the next month and before you know it, 2 months have passed and all you had been looking forward to is the weekend. I just find this to be so weird and a perpetual cycle that you can never get out of if you don't have anything else to look forward too.
I guess I have been thinking about that because I have fallen under the Friday spell and I feel like the last time I blinked it was the middle of January and I was just starting my job. I just wish I wouldn't fall under the Friday spell and truly enjoy the moments that I have had/will have and take them for what its worth and not over-anticipate what is to come (time off). I believe it was John Lennon who said "Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans." and I think says a lot of what I am trying to get at. So stop, take a look at your life since you are probably wondering whats going on tomorrow anyways.
At the same rate, I guess it is also kind of nice that time is passing reltively quickly as I patiently await the outcome of the waitlists that I am sitting on. I love life's little paradoxes.
Food for thought.
still waiting,
-wait
mindless ramblings by wait at
12:18 PM
2 Comments:
dude, that stuff is really interesting. but that doesn't mean that you aren't a nerd. just kidding. the OC is hot, you've gotta get out here, see you tomorrow
By
Anonymous, at 12:30 PM
Don't feel like a nerd, we go into medicine because this kind of stuff interests us. When I found out I had polycystic ovaries (much more common than I knew, I bet your office sees a lot of it) it was amazing that so much could go wrong in the body just from an imbalance in hormones. If you want details I'll fill you in, but I thought I'd spare the details from your readers.
By
Unknown, at 10:03 PM
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