A study of quantitative and qualitative abnormality of androgen receptor in patients with hypospadias associated with enlarged prostatic utricle

Abstract

The prostatic utricle, a rudimentary structure present in the male prostatic urethra, is currently thought to be of mixed origin, with its cranial portion being derived from müllerian duct and caudal segment from wolffian and müllerian ducts and the urogenital sinus. Enlargement of prostatic utricle has often been demonstrated in patients with hypospadias and its incidence increased according to the severity of hypospadias. It has been suggested that insufficient androgenic stimulation of the urogenital sinus and urethral groove during the critical period of sexual differentiation may cause this entity. Since 5 alpha-dihydrotestosterone (DHT) is a major androgen for the normal development of urogenital sinus, androgen receptor levels in the patients with hypospadias associated with enlarged prostatic utricle may concern this ontogenesis. Fibroblasts derived from penile skin in these patients were assayed for androgen receptor levels using dispersed whole cell binding assay after Eil (1970). Thermostability of androgen receptor in the same fibroblasts was also evaluated by the remaining androgen receptor activity after incubation at 42 degrees C, and expressed as a ratio (percentage) to the androgen receptor activity in the incubation at 22 degrees C. Preputial skin of endocrinologically normal boys in the same range of age (3 to 8 years) was served as controls. There was a significant difference in averages of maximum binding capacities of [3H]DHT to the androgen receptor between those of controls (n = 4) and patients with grade II utricle (n = 4) (89 +/- 5.7 (SE) x 10(2) sites/cell vs. 37 +/- 7.1 x 10(2) sites/cell).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)