THE EFFECT OF TESTOSTERONE AND TESTOSTERONE METABOLITES ON THE FINE STRUCTURE OF THE RAT PROSTATE GLAND IN ORGAN CULTURE

Abstract

SUMMARY The action of testosterone and its metabolites, dihydrotestosterone and 3β-androstanediol on the fine structure of the rat ventral prostate gland in organ culture was investigated. In intact glands before explantation the epithelial cytoplasm showed a system of membrane-bound ergastoplasmic channels studded with ribosomes, a discrete Golgi body, associated with secretory vacuoles and microvilli projecting into the lumen. In explants grown in non-supplemented medium the epithelium underwent a severe regression. The ergastoplasm collapsed and was fragmented and there was no discrete Golgi body. Microvilli were absent and a number of electron-dense bodies interpreted as lysosomes were scattered throughout the cytoplasm. In explants grown in the presence of testosterone, dihydrotestosterone and 3β-androstanediol the fine structure was similar to that in the intact gland. Ergastoplasm and Golgi apparatus were well maintained, secretory vacuoles could be observed and the microvilli resembled in size and number those of the normal organ. In hyperplastic areas of explants treated with dihydrotestosterone, the maintenance of the ergastoplasm was less complete but the Golgi zone and microvilli were well preserved. In explants treated with testosterone or dihydrotestosterone, nucleolar bodies were observed in many nuclei of epithelium and stroma. The effects of the steroids on the fine structure of the gland confirm those seen at the light microscopic level and support the suggestion that the action of testosterone is mediated through its metabolites.