Early effects of castration and replacement of androgen on the expression of retrovirus-like particles in rat ventral prostate epithelial cells.

Abstract

AbstractPrevious work has shown the presence of C-type retrovirus-like particles in normal prostate epithelial cells from Sprague–Dawley rats. We now report attempts to alter retrovirus-like particle expression by castration and replacement of androgen, i.e., testosterone propionate (TP). The frequency of C-type viral-like particle expression in the ventral prostates from the following groups of animals was estimated by a semiquantitative electron microscopic assay: (a) normal rats, (b) normal rats that received TP for 3 days, (c) rats 3 or 6 days after castration, and (d) rats that received TP for 3 days, beginning 3 or 6 days after castration, to induce cellular hypertrophy or hyperplasia, respectively. Three or six days following castration, the frequency of C-type particle expression in the regressed ventral prostates was markedly reduced. Typical C-type viral-like particle morphology was retained for those few particles detected. In contrast, prostates with hypertrophic epithelium from rats treated w...