Editing Progesterone (section)

===Early sexual differentiation===
[[Placenta]]l progesterone can be converted into [[5α-dihydrotestosterone]] (DHT), a potent [[androgen]] that is responsible for the development of male genitalia.<ref name=wj>{{cite journal|doi=10.15347/WJM/2023.003  |doi-access=free |title=Alternative androgen pathways |year=2023 | vauthors = Masiutin M, Yadav M |journal=WikiJournal of Medicine |volume=10 |pages=X |s2cid=257943362}}</ref> This can be done both by conversion into testosterone, which is then converted to DHT, and via the [[androgen backdoor pathway]], which is particularly important for [[prenatal development|fetal development]].<ref name="pmid30763313">{{cite journal | vauthors = O'Shaughnessy PJ, Antignac JP, Le Bizec B, Morvan ML, Svechnikov K, Söder O, Savchuk I, Monteiro A, Soffientini U, Johnston ZC, Bellingham M, Hough D, Walker N, Filis P, Fowler PA | display-authors = 6 | title = Alternative (backdoor) androgen production and masculinization in the human fetus | journal = PLOS Biology | volume = 17 | issue = 2 | pages = e3000002 | date = February 2019 | pmid = 30763313 | pmc = 6375548 | doi = 10.1371/journal.pbio.3000002 | doi-access = free }}</ref> As progesterone is the precursor for both pathways, it plays a key role in sexual differentiation.<ref name="pmid24793988">{{cite journal | vauthors = Flück CE, Pandey AV | title = Steroidogenesis of the testis -- new genes and pathways | journal = Annales d'Endocrinologie | volume = 75 | issue = 2 | pages = 40–47 | date = May 2014 | pmid = 24793988 | doi = 10.1016/j.ando.2014.03.002 }}</ref><ref name="pmid8636249">{{cite journal | vauthors = Zachmann M | title = Prismatic cases: 17,20-desmolase (17,20-lyase) deficiency | journal = The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism | volume = 81 | issue = 2 | pages = 457–459 | date = February 1996 | pmid = 8636249 | doi = 10.1210/jcem.81.2.8636249 | doi-access = free }}</ref>