Disturbances in the function of the androgen receptor can lead to several forms of male pseudohermaphroditism, such as androgen insensitivity syndrome, which can lead to infertility.
Mutations in the androgen receptor (AR) gene result in an X-linked recessive form of male pseudohermaphroditism known as the androgen-insensitivity syndrome (AIS).
Androgen insensitivity is also a common cause of MPH; the specific defect in androgen receptor function is currently the subject of intense study, using a combination of biochemical assays and molecular analysis of the androgen receptor gene.
Endocrine and genetic characterization of cousins with male pseudohermaphroditism: evidence that the Lubs phenotype can result from a mutation that alters the structure of the androgen receptor.
Binding was approximately half-normal at 37 degrees C and either increased or decreased slightly at 42 degrees C. The thermal instability in receptor-deficient testicular feminization represents a new molecular defect associated with hereditary male pseudohermaphroditism that appears to be caused by an alteration in the tertiary structure of the androgen receptor protein.