Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) regulates many cellular functions acting through c-Met, its specific tyrosine kinase receptor. We previously reported that in prepuberal rats HGF is secreted by the peritubular myoid cells during the entire postnatal testicular development and by the Sertoli cells only at puberty. We have also demonstrated that germ cells at different stages of development express...

The aim of this study was to establish a novel method for isolating and purifying Leydig cells from mice testes. Testes of postpuberal mice were harvested and digested in a low concentration of collagenase NB4 for 15 min 2 times. Cells obtained were cultured in low glucose DMEM with 10% FBS. Immunofluorescence was used to detect the expression of Leydig cell biomarkers including 3β-hydroxystero...

Resveratrol and its analogs are considered to be a promising drug candidate for treatment of cancer and different age-associated diseases. In the present study we have investigated the effects of resveratrol and its synthetic analogs on steroidogenesis and mitochondrial function in primary cultures of rat Leydig cells. Our findings indicate that resveratrol and its analogs structure-dependently...

The aim of this study was to investigate the seasonal expression of androgen receptor (AR), estrogen receptors α and β (ERα and ERβ) and aromatase cytochrome P450 (P450arom) mRNA and protein by real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry in the wild ground squirrel (WGS) testes. Histologically, all types of spermatogenic cells including mature spermatozoa were identified in the breeding season (Apri...

The aim of the present study was to investigate whether glucocorticoid induces apoptosis in rat Leydig cells. To determine whether there are developmental differences in glucocorticoid sensitivity, Leydig cells were isolated at distinct stages of their differentiation [mesenchymal-like progenitors (PLC), immature Leydig cells (ILC), and adult Leydig cells (ALC)] from 21-, 35-, and 90-d-old Spra...

Oral administration of sodium tungstate to adult male streptozotocin-diabetic rats for 3 months normalized serum levels of glucose, insulin, luteinizing hormone, and follicle-stimulating hormone. These effects were accompanied by an increase in reproductive performance, which was related to a strong improvement in Leydig cell function markers, such as the recovery of the number of Leydig cells ...

Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is an emerging signalling molecule in endocrine organs, since it is produced by endocrine cells and acts via GABA(A) receptors in a paracrine/autocrine fashion. Testicular Leydig cells are producers and targets for GABA. These cells express GABA(A) receptor subunits and in the murine Leydig cell line TM3 pharmacological activation leads to increased proliferation....

We previously reported a strain-related difference in basal 3beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase-isomerase (3betaHSD) activity in response to testosterone in cultured Leydig cells. The data suggested that the response to testosterone was androgen receptor mediated and that testosterone was acting via a trans-acting factor distal to the androgen receptor to regulate Leydig cell basal 3betaHSD acti...

11 -Hydroxy (11 -OH) derivatives of certain steroids function as inhibitors of 11 -hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase isoform 1 (11 HSD1), an enzyme expressed in Leydig cells that catalyzes the reversible oxidation of biologically active glucocorticoids to inactive 11-dehydro metabolites. 11 -Hydroxylase is an adrenal enzyme responsible for glucocorticoid biosynthesis, catalyzing 11 -hydroxylation of...

Glucocorticoids directly regulate testosterone production in Leydig cells through a glucocorticoid receptor (GR)-mediated repression of the genes that encode testosterone biosynthetic enzymes. The extent of this action is determined by the numbers of GR within the Leydig cell, the intracellular concentration of glucocorticoid, and 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11betaHSD) activities that ...