Cis-Androsterone belongs among the androstane steroid compounds, showing up as a notable metabolite during the breakdown process of testosterone and related hormones in mammals. People often recognize this chemical as 3α-hydroxy-5β-androstan-17-one. With a fairly simple molecular formula—C19H30O2—its backbone connects a dense history of biochemistry, pharmaceutical work, and sports science. In most settings, labs receive this compound either as a crystalline solid or sometimes in a light, flaky powder state. Handling the substance by weight, a worker notices a density clustering close to 1.1 g/cm³, making it neither strikingly heavy nor feather-light on a standard scale.
One of the things setting Cis-Androsterone apart lies in its pale, nearly white crystal appearance. Anyone looking through a magnifier sees needles or thin plates that look more delicate than they feel. Pushed between fingers (with gloves on, of course), the substance can take the form of flakes, compact powder, occasionally fine pearls, but never truly dissolves to a noticeable degree in water. Take a pinch, throw it in alcohol—ethanol grabs it quickly; in chloroform or ether, it blends in without a fuss. Cis-Androsterone stands solid at room temperature, and melts somewhere around 172–174 °C. A chemist trusts these numbers to determine identity, and nothing beats actually watching those flakes shift to clear fluid in a careful melt test.
Handling raw materials in any lab means reading hazard labels and understanding which buttons not to press. Cis-Androsterone’s safety profile lands in a middle spot: not as volatile as open acetone, but not entirely risk-free. Inhalation dust is best avoided, and direct skin contact brings mild irritation for sensitive types. Airborne particles seem rare given the solid state, but eyewash stations see their share of accidents when someone brushes hair back with gloved hands. It doesn’t light up the hazardous materials charts as severely toxic or explosive, but no one treats it casually—PPE, careful weighing, and closed containers set the standard. When someone mentions “hazardous” or “harmful,” they're talking about chronic exposure and allergic reactions, not rapid biological mayhem.
Chemically, the backbone remains C19, a standard size among steroid types. Two oxygen atoms? Enough to grant cis-androsterone its characteristic hydroxyl and ketone groups. The layout builds from the saturated androstane skeleton, and anyone sketching the structure quickly finds rings A, B, C, and D merged in a flat motif—one that’s shared across biologically active steroids. HS Code, which tracks import/export, usually ties Cis-Androsterone into 2937.29, covering steroidal hormones broadly—something anyone ordering from a supplier or clearing customs through a busy port cares about. Chemical purity stretches from 97% to 99% for research work; impurities drop detection limits for specialty applications.
You won’t find this chemical swimming in a beaker or floating in a tank. Its main form walks in as a fine powder or neat crystals—depending on how the manufacturer purifies and dries it. Sometimes, batches come flaky, which complicates measuring with casual scoops as the flakes clump or shift from static. Break open a fresh container, and the material shimmers with a subtle luster; press enough tightly and it packs down without compressing fully. Liquid form doesn’t occur at room temp, but if someone prepares a solution for research, methanol or propylene glycol mixes do the trick—just a few milligrams per milliliter, usually for bioassays or chromatography checks.
Any researcher who’s worked in endocrinology or drug testing programs recognizes the role Cis-Androsterone plays. Not only is it a marker in urine steroid profiling—used for forensic, anti-doping, and medical diagnostics—but it also sets a reference point for analyzing androgenic compound metabolism. Pharmaceutically, people don’t chase cis-androsterone for direct drug action but as a standard compound to assess enzymatic pathways, confirm the machinery of 5β-reductase, or check for irregular hormone metabolism. In manufacturing, the chemical serves as a critical control or precursor, especially when building up custom hormone analogues for research. Folks in regulatory roles watch these materials for misuse but also for potential leaks into black market sports supplies, though pure cis-androsterone doesn’t itself spark the same headlines as more notorious anabolic agents.
There’s always tension around how such chemicals circulate—from regulatory oversight to the nuts-and-bolts of safe storage. Labs often complain about sticky customs—every new shipment gets delayed and scrutinized, slowing down research. Standardizing HS Codes and requiring clear purity documentation could clear things up. Safety is still mostly a matter of good policy and routine: gloves on, no food around the balance, and always locking up hazardous solids overnight. Accidents usually trace back to small process slips, not big systemic flaws. Better training for newcomers and neighboring staff limits confusion over lookalike powders. Some suppliers now add digitally tracked tags to labels, making it much easier to chase expired stock or trace any accidental losses—from my experience, this made our year-end audit a lot less frantic.
People work with hundreds of chemicals every day, but few substances illustrate the blending of biology, industry, research, and regulation quite like Cis-Androsterone. Every property—from those pale flakes to the invisible metabolic signatures they represent—matters in keeping science accurate and safe. There’s something oddly satisfying about weighing a sample, knowing the number on your screen unlocks a story of hormones, health, and the thousands of tiny decisions behind every experiment. Proper management, knowledge of structure and function, and old-fashioned common sense go a long way in keeping this material—like so many others—secure and useful for those who depend on it.
