Editing Leydig cell (section)

== In the ovary ==
While Leydig cells are predominantly associated with testosterone production in the male testes, there is a type of '''ovarian hilus cell''' found in the [[ovaries]] of adult females. They mainly appear in the hilum of ovary, but can appear elsewhere in the ovary close to blood vessels and nerves. They are very similar to Leydig cells in function (producing testosterone) and morphology, and can arguably be called '''ovarian Leydig cells''' (OLCs). Every examine ovary in the 2017 study, healthy or diseased, has identifiable OLCs.<ref name="OLC"/> They seem to differentiate from neural crest cells.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Carrasco-Juan |first1=JL |last2=González-Gómez |first2=M |last3=Tapia |first3=O |last4=García-Hernández |first4=S |last5=Vega-Falcón |first5=A |last6=Méndez-Medina |first6=R |last7=Cabrera |first7=HÁ |last8=Díaz-Flores |first8=L |title=The origin of ovarian Leydig cells: a possibly solved enigma? |journal=Human Cell |date=September 2024 |volume=37 |issue=5 |pages=1544–1552 |doi=10.1007/s13577-024-01098-3 |pmid=38967841}}</ref>

When overgrown the OLCs can cause abnormally high androgen levels. This usually happens after menopause. There are two cases:
* [[Leydig cell tumour]], where the cells form a tumor.<ref>{{cite web |title=Leydig cell tumor |url=https://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/ovarytumorleydig.html |website=www.pathologyoutlines.com}}</ref>
** [[Sertoli–Leydig cell tumour]] tends to happen in the second or the third decade of a woman's life. It has happened in a younger woman where it was initially mistaken as PCOS or CAH.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Paudyal |first1=P |last2=Gurung |first2=G |last3=Baral |first3=J |last4=Kharel |first4=N |title=Sertoli Leydig Cell Tumour Initially Misdiagnosed as Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome and Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia: A Case Report. |journal=Journal of the Nepal Medical Association |date=22 November 2020 |volume=58 |issue=231 |pages=923–926 |doi=10.31729/jnma.5045 |pmid=34506429|pmc=7775022 }}</ref>
* [[Leydig cell hyperplasia]], where there are only microscopic aggregates of OLC.<ref>{{cite web |title=Leydig cell hyperplasia |url=https://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/ovaryleydigcellhyperplasia.html |website=www.pathologyoutlines.com}}</ref>