Clomiphene citrate was administered as a 50 mg oral daily dose to 44 normogonadotrophic (serum FSH 2-10 mIU/ml) subfertile men for 3 months. The treatment resulted in significant increases in FSH and LH concentrations, whereas prolactin remained unchanged. Serum testosterone and oestradiol both increased highly significantly. The increased testosterone levels suggest that the elevated LH levels had not led to "down regulation" of Leydig cell LH/hCG receptors, neither had the greatly increased estradiol led to depletion of these receptors. This is suggested to be a result of the blocking of testicular oestradiol receptors by the estrogen antagonist, clomiphene. Sperm count increased highly unchanged. The spermatic fluid concentrations of zinc and magnesium ions were also increased, whereas fructose remained unchanged. The katalytic activity of acid phosphatase in spermatic fluid increased highly significantly, whereas the concentration of the main prostate-specific acid phosphatase, as measured by a specific radioimmunological method, remained unchanged. Therefore, the increased Zn and Mg ion concentrations may be responsible for activation of acid phosphatase (s) in semen, or the treatment led to increased secretion of other prostatic acid phosphatase(s) than the main enzyme. However, it is clear that the secretion of the main prostatic acid phosphatase into semen is under different control than that of Zn++ and Mg++.

Tenascin is an extracellular matrix glycoprotein increased immunohistochemically in tumorous and fibrotic lung tissues as demonstrated by immunohistochemistry. We hypothesized that in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid also the tenascin concentration would be elevated in patients with various fibrotic lung disorders. The aim of our study was to investigate whether BAL fluid tenascin would be increased compared with serum tenascin in patients with usual interstitial pneumonia (UIP), sarcoidosis, and extrinsic allergic bronchioloalveolitis. For this purpose BAL fluid was collected from five patients with UIP, 12 patients with sarcoidosis, five patients with extrinsic allergic bronchioloalveolitis, and six patients in a control group. BAL fluid and serum tenascin concentrations were detected by the enzyme immunoassay method. The BAL fluid results were expressed as tenascin concentrations in the epithelial lining fluid (ELF), as estimated by the urea method. The ELF tenascin concentration was increased in the patients with fibrotic lung disorders relative to the control group (mean 0.12 microg/ml) and was highest in the UIP group (mean 5.72 microg/ml) and sarcoidosis group (mean 4.76 microg/ml). It is concluded that the tenascin concentration in the ELF is increased in patients with UIP, sarcoidosis, and extrinsic allergic bronchioloalveolitis, suggesting active synthesis of tenascin in the lower respiratory tract in such disorders.

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We describe a rapid radioimmunoassay for human prostatic acid phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.2) in serum, with use of monospecific antisera raised in rabbits against the primary highly purified acid phosphatase (pl 4.9) from human prostates, and with a second antibody-polyethylene glycol porecipitation. This radioimmunoassay is sensitive and can be performed within 5 h. Concentrations of the immunoreactive acid phosphatase in sera of healthy men (n = 394) ranged from 0.3 to 3.6 microgram/L (mean 1.94, SD 0.66 microgram/L). Concentrations of the enzyme in sera of men with benign prostatic hyperplasia (n = 56) or with carcinoma of nonprostatic origin (n = 24) were identical with those of the reference group. Serum concentrations of immunoreactive prostatic acid phosphatase of patients with occult, non-metastatic, and metastatic prostatic carcinoma varied from 1.7 to 9.3 (n = 9), 4.2 to 59.4 (n = 12), and 20 to 198 (n = 10) microgram/L, respectively. The amount of immunoassayable prostatic acid phosphatase was unchanged for at least five days in serum stored at 4 degrees C.