Aging and the human zona reticularis.

Adrenal androgen levels and excretion increase during adrenarche and puberty. During this time the width of the adrenal zona reticularis has been reported to increase, and this fact is quoted as evidence for the common assumption that the major source of adrenal androgens is the zona reticularis. During human aging there is a marked decrease in adrenal androgen levels and excretion. In the present study, the width of the zona reticularis was studied single blind in multiple sections of the adrenals of 42 victims of sudden death 4 months to 93 years of age to discern a possible correlation between zona reticularis width and the declining adrenal androgen levels and excretion typical of aging. However, no correlation was found, which suggests that direct measurements of adrenal steroid secretion by the individual adrenal zones are necessary for the study of adrenal zonation.