Vanillic acid attenuates testosterone-induced benign prostatic hyperplasia in rats and inhibits proliferation of prostatic epithelial cells

Abstract

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a common disease in the male population, especially in elderly men. Vanillic acid (VA), a dihydroxybenzoic derivative used as a flavoring agent, is reported to have an anti-inflammatory effect. However, there are no reports of its effects on BPH to date. BPH was induced with a pre-4-week treatment of daily subcutaneous injections of testosterone propionate (TP), and the normal control group received injections of ethanol with corn oil instead. Six weeks of further injections were done with (a) ethanol with corn oil, (b) TP only, (c) TP + finasteride, and (d) TP + VA. Finasteride was used as a positive control group. VA had protective effects on the TP-induced BPH. In the VA treatment group, the prostate weight was reduced, and the histological changes including the epithelial thickness and lumen area were restored like in the normal control group. Furthermore, in the VA treatment group, two proliferation related factors, high molecular weight cytokeratin 34βE12 and α smooth muscle actin, were significantly down-regulated compared to the TP-induced BPH group. The expressions of dihydrotestosterone and 5α-reductase, the most crucial factors in BPH development, were suppressed by VA treatment. Expressions of the androgen receptor, estrogen receptor α and steroid receptor coactivator 1 were also significantly inhibited by VA compared to the TP-induced BPH group. In addition, we established an in vitro model for BPH by treating a normal human prostatic epithelial cell line RWPE-1 with TP. VA successfully inhibited proliferation and BPH-related factors in a concentration-dependent manner in this newly established model. These results suggest a new and potential pharmaceutical therapy of VA in the treatment of BPH.

Aconiti Lateralis Radix Preparata, the Dried Root of Aconitum carmichaelii Debx., Improves Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia via Suppressing 5-Alpha Reductase and Inducing Prostate Cell Apoptosis

“…AL and Fi were administrated via oral gavage. After the final treatment, animals were fasted overnight and euthanized using CO 2 , and the ventral region of prostate tissues was obtained as described previously [24]. The relative prostate weight index (prostate index (PI)) was calculated as the ratio of prostate weight (mg) to body weight (100 g).…”

In Vivo Effects of Polymerized Anthocyanin from Grape Skin on Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

“…BPH is a major disease that causes LUTS in men after middle age [3]. Currently, there is no complete treatment for BPH [34]; drugs commonly used for BPH treatment include alpha blockers and 5-α reductase inhibitors. Alpha blockers are used to relax the smooth muscles of the prostate to rapidly improve the symptoms of obstruction [35].…”

Estrogenic Activity of Coffee Constituents

“…Furthermore, estrogenic/anti-estrogenic activity of caffeic acid is stronger when an aromatic ring is added by esterification with phenethyl alcohol [46,47]. Similarly, other acids found in coffee, such as ferulic acid/isoferulic acid [48], hippuric acid [49], sinapic acid [50], and vanillic acid [51,52], exhibited estrogenic/anti-estrogenic activity. Gallic acid is a phenolic acid with three hydroxyl groups and may therefore function in the estrogenicity, as observed for octyl gallate [53]; however, because of its simple structure, its estrogenic activity was unclear [54,55].…”