Beta-cell apoptosis is responsible for the development of insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus in the streptozotocin (STZ) rat model. It has been demonstrated that steroid hormones possess antioxidant and protective antiapoptotic effects in many tissues. The aim of the present study was to investigate the early apoptotic damage induced by STZ in rat pancreas, and the effect of testosterone in pr...

Characterization of estrogen-binding components was attempted in cytosol fractions from thymus, spleen and mesenteric lymph node of castrated rats. As shown by sucrose gradient analysis, specific binding of [6,7-3H]estradiol-17 beta in the thymus is associated with a component migrating at 4 S. The binding of [6,7-3H[estradiol-17 beta is highly specific since it is easily displaced by unlabeled...

1. The ability of exogenously administered cyclic AMP (adenosine 3': 5'-monophosphate) to exert andromimetic action on certain carbohydrate-metabolizing enzymes was investigated in the rat prostate gland and seminal vesicles. 2. Cyclic AMP, when injected concurrently with theophylline, produced marked increases in hexokinase, phosphofructokinase, glyceraldehyde phosphate dehydrogenase, pyruvate...

Evidence from knockout studies in male mice and from experiments in male rats, in which expression of the estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) gene was inhibited in the medial preoptic area (MPO), suggests that ERα is important in the control of male rat mating behavior. Therefore, in this experiment, we tested the hypothesis that activation of ERα in the MPO is sufficient to maintain mating behavior ...

In this investigation, the presence of NKA-immunoreactive substances was determined in pineal glands from intact, castrated and castrated, testosterone-treated male rats. The effect of environmental light, melatonin treatment and superior cervical ganglionectomy on pineal NKA-immunoreactive substances was also investigated. The results obtained show that NKA is present in measurable amounts in ...

BACKGROUND Surfactant protein D (SP-D) is an innate immune protein that is present in mucosal lined surfaces throughout the human body, including the male reproductive tract. In the present study, we characterized the regulation of SP-D expression in the mouse and rat prostate. METHODS Real time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and immunostaining were used to character...

A specific and sensitive radioimmunoassay for rat carbonic anhydrase II (CAII) was developed. Rat livers were perfused with Ringer's solution and the hepatic CAII was measured. Concentrations of CAII in female liver were significantly higher than those in male liver. Castration increased the concentration in male liver, though not to that in females, and diethylstilboestrol treatment of castrat...

Influence of sex steroids on the growth of an azaserine-induced transplantable rat pancreatic carcinoma, DSL-2, was studied. This established transplantable tumor has been maintained in syngeneic rats. Inbred male Lewis rats were pretreated with castration and s.c. implantation of 1.0-mg 17 beta-estradiol (CAS: 50-28-2; estradiol) pellets at 7 weeks of age. Tumor cells were inoculated s.c. on t...

In order to confirm the relationship between sex hormone administration and glutathione-peroxidase (GSH-PO) in the rat ventral prostate, the levels of GSH-PO mRNA, GSH-PO activitM and Iipid peroxide (TBA) value in the ventral prostate were investigated. Male Cij:CD(SD)IGS rats were divided into six experimental groups. Group 1 consisted o'f intact controls. In group 2, rats were sacrificed two ...