Living with P.A.I.S.

http://wickedgrrl.blogspot.com/2008/10/living-with-p.html
Friday, October 31, 2008

Known as Partial Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome, it refers to a mutation of the androgen receptor gene(s) which ultimately reflects the degree of masculinization (virilization) on our bodies. To put it in plain English, our bodies are shaped in large part due to the onset of specific hormones released into the body (such as androgens and estrogens). The very presence of these hormones alone is not enough to trigger our bodies to feminize or masculinize themselves, which is why our bodies are equipped with hormone specific "receptor genes". To use an analogy, picture the receptor genes as a padlock and the hormones as a set of keys.