SUMMARYEthinylestradiol (EE) is an endocrine disruptor (ED) which acts as an oestrogen agonist; this compound is known as an oral contraceptive. Male and female rodents exposed to EE during critical time points of development, such as in the prenatal period, show alterations in their reproductive tract during adulthood. Few studies have placed an emphasis on the effects of EE during ageing. Thus, this study had as it's objective the analysis of the morphological and immunohistochemical effects of exposure to EE in the prenatal period on ventral male prostate and female prostate of gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus) during ageing. The animals were exposed to EE (15 lg/ kg/day) during the 18-22th days of prenatal life (EE/PRE group), and the analyses were performed when the male and female reached 12 months of age. Our results showed an increase in the development of prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN), which was observed in the male and female prostate of EE/PRE groups. Immunohistochemistry showed a rise in prostatic epithelial and basal cells immunoreactivity, respectively, and to AR and p63 in the male EE/PRE. There were alterations in the morphological pattern of the prostatic glands and increase in predisposition to emergence of prostatic lesions of both sexes during ageing. Despite male and female having been exposed to the same doses of EE, the "exposure to EE promoted modifications" more accentuated in the male prostate. Thus the male gland is more sensitive to the action of this synthetic oestrogen than the female prostate.
The incidence of ciliated cells in the prostate gland of the female gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus) is uncommon and apparently becomes more frequent during androgen (testosterone cypionate) and anti-estrogen (letrozole) endocrine therapies. To evaluate the effects of such drug therapies on the induction of ciliogenesis in the glandular epithelium of female prostate glands, adult female gerbils aged 90 days were treated for 14 days with testosterone and letrozole after which their prostate glands were removed for histological, ultrastructural, and serological analyses. The cytodifferentiation of the ciliated phenotype in the alveolar epithelium became more frequent after both the testosterone and the letrozole treatments. The ciliogenesis phenomenon of the epithelial cells in the prostate gland of female gerbils thus appears to be induced by variations in the increase of androgen levels.
The aim of this study was to analyse morphologically the ventral prostate of adult Mongolian gerbils exposed to ethinylestradiol (EE) during the first week of postnatal development. Lactating females received daily, by gavage, doses of 10 μg/kg of EE diluted in 100 μl of mineral oil from the 1st to 10th postnatal day of the pups (EE group). In the control group (C), the lactating females received only the vehicle. Upon completing 120 days of age, the male offspring were euthanized and the prostates collected for analyses. We employed morphological, stereological-morphometrical, immunohistochemical and ultrastructural methods. The results showed that the postnatal exposure to EE doubled the prostatic complex weight, increasing the epithelial and stromal compartments, in addition to the secretory activity of the ventral lobe of the prostate. All glands exposed to EE showed strong stromal remodelling, and some foci of epithelial hyperplasia and inflammatory infiltrate in both luminal and epithelial or stromal compartments. Cells positive for anti-AR and anti-PCNA reactions increased into the epithelial and stromal tissues. ERα-positive cells, which are normally found in the stromal compartment of intact prostates, were frequently observed in the prostatic epithelium of treated animals. This study demonstrated that the exposure to EE during postnatal development causes histophysiological alterations in this gland, predisposing to the development of prostatic lesions during life. These results are important for public health, considering that women worldwide have commonly used EE. Moreover, the bioaccumulation of this chemical has increased in different ecosystems.
Prenatal and neonatal exposure to estrogenic compounds, such as ethinylestradiol (EE), promotes a variety of developmental disorders, including malformations and alterations in the morphology of glands, such as the prostate gland. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the morphological effects of neonatal exposure to EE on prostatic tissue and on the identification and quantification of gerbil gland macrophages in adult and senile Mongolian gerbils. The animals were exposed to EE (10 μg/kg/day) and to the vehicle, mineral oil (100 μL) (control group) during the first 10 days of postnatal life (lactation period). Adult gerbils were euthanized at 120 days and senile gerbils at 12 months of age. Our findings permitted verification of the presence of areas with proliferative foci in the prostate glandular portions in the adult and senile animals exposed to EE. There was also an increase in macrophages in the prostate tissue of adult and senile gerbils; these cell types alter the stromal microenvironment and possibly modify the interactions between the epithelium and stroma. Neonatal exposure to EE changes the pattern of prostatic development, leading to alterations in the arrangement of cells, including macrophages, and may be related to the onset of proliferative disorders in the prostate of adult gerbils and during aging.
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