DYANI LEWIS
I’m Dyani Lewis. Thanks for joining us. Testosterone, it's the very essence of maleness. It evokes images of raw strength and competitiveness, virility and square-jawed male maturity. Testosterone is what makes a man a man, and without it we wouldn't get from one generation to the next. But testosterone and other male hormones, collectively known as androgens, have effects that reach far beyond simply setting in motion sexual maturity for half of our species. So what happens when someone lacks this body morphing hormone? Can you have too little or too much testosterone? What role does it play in the physiology of females? To tease out some of the remarkable effects of this ubiquitous hormone, I'm joined in the Up Close studio by endocrinologist Professor Jeffrey Zajac, who is the Director of Endocrinology at the Austin Hospital and Head of the University of Melbourne Department of Medicine. Welcome to Up Close Jeffrey.
JEFFREY ZAJAC
Good morning. Thank you for having me.
DYANI LEWIS
Jeffrey, some of the most striking effects of testosterone are in how it alters the male body during development. Could you start by telling us a bit about what sort of physical...
