Neuroendocrine Cells of the Prostate Derive from the Neural Crest

Abstract

The histogenesis of prostatic neuroendocrine cells is controversial: a stem cell hypothesis with a urogenital sinus-derived progeny of all prostatic epithelial cells is opposed by a dual origin hypothesis, favoring the derivation of neuroendocrine cells from the neural crest, with the secretory and basal cells being of urogenital sinus origin. A computer-assisted 3D reconstruction was used to analyze the distribution of chromogranin A immunoreactive cells in serial sections of human fetal prostate specimens (gestation weeks 18 and 25). Immunohistochemical double labeling studies with YFP and serotonin antisera combined with electron microscopy were carried out on double-transgenic Wnt1-Cre/ROSA26-YFP mice showing stable YFP expression in all neural crest-derived cell populations despite loss of Wnt1 expression. 3D reconstruction of the distribution pattern of neuroendocrine cells in the human fetal prostate indicates a migration of paraganglionic cells passing the stroma and reaching the prostate ducts. Double-transgenic mice showed 55% double labeling of periurethral neuroendocrine cells expressing both serotonin and YFP, whereas single serotonin labeling was observed in 36% and exclusive YFP labeling in 9%. The results favor the assumption of a major fraction of neural crest-derived neuroendocrine cells in both the human and murine prostates.

Prostate organogenesis: tissue induction, hormonal regulation and cell type specification

“…(Signoretti et al, 2005) Continued origin (Johansson et al, 2015;Song et al, 2012). However, descriptive analyses have revealed that cells positive for chromogranin A, which marks neuroendocrine cells, can migrate into the UGS during development, suggesting that prostate neuroendocrine cells are derived from the neural crest ectoderm (Aumüller et al, 1999(Aumüller et al, , 2001; notably, this conclusion has been supported by a recent lineage-tracing study (Szczyrba et al, 2017). Thus, additional work will be required to clarify these apparent discrepancies concerning the origin of prostate neuroendocrine cells.…”

Morphofunctional changes in the lymphoid component of the rats prostate gland in conditions of immunostimulation

“…Analysis of the data on the morphogenesis of the lymphoid structures of the prostate indicates that they develop as peripheral organs of the immune system and participate in both local and general immune reactions. Carrying out a detailed study of the development of lymphoid structures of the prostate of rats in normal and after exposure to the antigen, due to the need to confirm the characteristics of the organization and function of the lymphoid formations of the prostate of a human, revealed by them, their connection with histogenetic processes in the prostate, as well as to determine the genesis factors of lymphoid apparatus prostate [21,24,27].…”

Prostate Stem Cells and Cancer Stem Cells

“…Finally, the origin of prostate neuroendocrine cells during organogenesis has not been completely resolved. Although several studies have supported an epithelial origin of neuroendocrine cells (Goldstein et al 2008;Ousset et al 2012), there have also been reports that neuroendocrine cells arise from the caudal neural crest (Szczyrba et al 2017). The basis for these discrepant results remains unclear.…”