Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of British Columbia, Child & Family Research Institute, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2012 Jun;19(3):183-9. doi: 10.1097/MED.0b013e328353732f.
Sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) regulates the plasma levels and biological actions of the sex steroids: testosterone and estradiol. Advances in our understanding of how plasma SHBG levels are determined, and how SHBG functions, have provided insight into how SHBG should be used to assess the actions of its sex-steroid ligands, and as a biomarker of metabolic and endocrine abnormalities.
Plasma SHBG levels fluctuate throughout life in response to the changes in metabolic and physiologic states, and are altered by natural hormones and synthetic steroids. Interindividual differences in plasma SHBG levels and activity are also influenced by polymorphisms within the structural and regulatory regions of the SHBG gene.
Measurements of SHBG are widely used to predict plasma free testosterone levels in patients suffering from excess androgen exposures, but have broader utility in assessing the risk for endocrine diseases and clinical sequelae of the metabolic syndrome, namely, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. It is anticipated that new genetic and functional data regarding SHBG will reveal whether SHBG is simply a biomarker of these diseases or participants in their cause.
性激素结合球蛋白（SHBG）调节血浆中甾体性激素（如睾酮和雌二醇）的水平和生物活性。我们对决定血浆 SHBG 水平的机制以及 SHBG 功能的理解的不断深入，使我们认识到应该如何利用 SHBG 来评估其甾体性激素配体的作用，并将其作为代谢和内分泌异常的生物标志物。
SHBG 水平在一生中会随着代谢和生理状态的变化而波动，并受到天然激素和合成类固醇的影响。SHBG 基因结构和调节区的多态性也会影响个体间血浆 SHBG 水平和活性的差异。
SHBG 的检测广泛用于预测雄激素暴露过多的患者的血浆游离睾酮水平，但它在评估内分泌疾病风险以及代谢综合征的临床后果（即 2 型糖尿病和心血管疾病）方面具有更广泛的用途。预计有关 SHBG 的新遗传和功能数据将揭示 SHBG 是否仅仅是这些疾病的生物标志物，还是其发病机制的参与者。
