Presence of alpha-glucosidases in the male reproductive system of the rat and hormonal influences.

Abstract

The use of a synthetic substrate (p-nitrophenyl-alpha-D-glucoside) to measure alpha-glucosidase activity has allowed us to demonstrate the presence of acid and neutral alpha-glucosidases in the reproductive organs of the male rat. Both enzymes increased in the epididymis, particularly in the caput segment, along with initiation of spermatogenesis at puberty; it then started decreasing after 12 weeks of life. Similar variations were not recorded in testis, prostate, and seminal vesicles. Castration led to a significant decrease of acid and neutral alpha-glucosidases in all accessory reproductive organs, but administration of testosterone proprionate (50 micrograms/day for 10 days) restored the enzyme activity to its original level. When estradiol-17 beta (5 mg) was administered simultaneously with testosterone (500 micrograms), the antagonistic effect of estradiol on testosterone was particularly evident on the levels of neutral alpha-glucosidases which reached the castration range, while the acid alpha-glucosidase remained unchanged in epididymis, prostate, and seminal vesicles. These results show that both acid and neutral alpha-glucosidases may be influenced by gonadal hormones in the male rat.