5-AA Info And ProductsSteroid-Like Prohormone
5-AA (5-alpha-androstanediol)
Target Hormone: 5-alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT)
Molecular name of target hormone: 5-alpha-androstene-3-one,17b-ol
Target conversion: low, needs to undergo 5,4-isomerase prior to conversion.
Only a small percentafe survives the liver. Estimated 0.15%.
Conversion enzyme: 3-ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3HSD)
DHT conversion: Very High, converts directly to DHT
Estrogenic effects: None whatsoever
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Lots of people have written me asking about this substance, and I admit I didn't have a clue. With the help of Mr. Patrick Arnold, I managed to at least get the search going and I present you with the conclusion. Often 5-AA has been called a precursor to the hormone Masteron (Dromostanolone), a fact that has been happily exploited by one manufacturer that used a similar name and is guilty of setting a bad example by naming his product after a steroid. In effect, Masteron has an extra 2-alpha methyl group. 5AA does not. Masteron is also known as 2-alpha-methyl DHT, or DHT with an extra 2-alpha-methyl group. So what is 5-AA really a precursor too? According to the spec, good old DHT. 5AA is actually a prohormone naturally produced in the body as a response to low levels of DHT. Using the 3HSD enzyme it is capable of restoring androgenic capacity if it is hindered.
Good or bad? Well, as far as DHT is concerned, both. DHT is in effect up to 300 percent more anabolic as testosterone so you know it's not bad stuff. Hardcore users that love the lean hard look will prefer DHT and DHT metabolites over more estrogenic specimen. The downside is that it's possibly the most androgenic compound around. Many prohormones are risky androgen wise because they cause side effects related to the manufacture of DHT. This is DHT. Storing readily in the scalp and active for up to 3 hours easily it's a great way for losing your hair and growing a prostate like a cabbage. Not to mention so many zits you can play connect-the-dots in the mirror. However, as with illegal DHT drugs, using it is a calculated risk and some may actually wish to take that risk. However head to head, 1AD compares favorably, outclassing it by over 200 percent. (This is still based on data, in real world terms no studies have been conducted head to head). DHT is also currently undetectable by most drug tests.
So do you want to take the risk? You might at this point, but probably not so after reading the next part. How does one make 5-AA? By the hydrogenation of the 5-diol prohormone according to my source. That makes this a very inexpensive product to make, though this is obviously not reflected in the price. 5-AA is sold at a very high price. Now looking at the physiology of this, we'll not that the double bond, as with 5-diol. The exact pathway used to make DHT here is not entirely understood or even documented. All that is known is that it converts to DHT. But with the data we have here and low oral efficacy, we'd have to state that for accurate conversion you would have to take doses higher than of most prohormones (upward of 1 gram) which consequently raises the cost (its expensive and its sold in 50 mg tabs, bottle of 60) and the risk of side-effects (low anabolic but very high androgenic) So in my opinion, someone is either taking us for a ride here and doesn't know what he is doing, or someone is taking our health for a ride, consciously. I'll opt for the latter since the inventor Bill Llewellyn is the author of a hefty book on anabolic steroids.
So is there a real use for this product? By itself you'd need to take 500-600 mg easily to get any real anabolic effect, and at that point the risk far outweighs the possible benefits. But in a stack 5AA has several benefits that make it a regular darling for those of you who love to stack. First of all, not only does it have absolutely no estrogenic conversion, 5AA is also a great aromatase inhibitor, meaning it can actually block other compounds you are stacking it with from forming estrogen through aromatisation. That's a plus because it drastically improves the quality of your gains even though in terms of quantity it can't do that much. It would also allow you to use other prohormones closer to contest time as there is not so much water retention. The greatest benefit of 5AA however lies in the fact that it can free a small part of bound testosterone in the blood from its protein carrier. That would increase the amount of free testosterone you would yield from andro and 4AD and increase protein synthesis in that way. In stacks using 200-300 mg is advised for most effect and it's best taken over two to three doses spread throughout the day.
If you wanted to check the actual conversion of the hormone with the recommended dose, there is a very easy way of knowing. Just take them. Since DHT is the prime androgenic factor in the body, every androgen-sensitive part of your body should notice the change (more body-hair, less scalp hair, higher sperm count, prostate enlargment, deepening of voice and in women clitoral enlargement too). You'll find that the recommended dose is 150 mg a day and at this dose it does, well, nothing really. More than one study documents its low efficacy however. DHT was shown to be 35 times less active than testosterone¹, 5AA was shown to be 4 times less active than androstenedione² and in castrated rats, tested on a specific organ, it was shown to be 20 times less effective than testosterone³. With those numbers and the high side effect risk, I'm not exactly itching to try it, nor do I recommend it. I think the patent is secured by Llewellyn, so don't expect a price-drop from his side either.
So I most certainly do not advise the use of this to anyone. It can have its uses as a hardening agent for the competition bound athlete. I don't know what the detection is for 5-AA, but you'll find DHT is virtually non-detectable, which is why it's a favorite among competitors. Its capacities make it useful, but only in stacks and in moderate doses (200-300 mg). By itself it's too much of a risk in my book.
° Degtiar' VG, Kushlinskii NE.,: Izv Akad Nauk Ser Biol 1998 Nov-Dec;(6):664-9
¹ Ruzicka et al.,helv Chim Acta 19,357-362
²Heusser et al.
³ Cavalero et al., Acta Endocrin. 55, 131-135
Read the full article by Peter "Big Cat" Van Mol: Prohormone Science - Revised with new info!
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