Platelet-derived growth factor receptor beta-subtype regulates proliferation and migration of gonocytes.

Proliferation and migration of gonocytes, the precursors of spermatogonial stem cells, to the germline niche in the basal membrane of the seminiferous tubules, are two crucial events that take place between postnatal d 0.5 (P0.5) and P5.

Osteoblast-conditioned medium promotes proliferation and sensitizes breast cancer cells to imatinib treatment.

Inhibition of platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR) signaling restricts the growth of human breast cancer in the bone of nude mice. We hypothesized that osteoblast-secreted substances may alter the response capacity of breast cancer cells to the PDGFRs tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib mesylate. We found that osteoblast-conditioned medium (OCM) increases the proliferation rate of the estrogen receptor negative (ER-) MDA-MB-231 and of the ER+ MCF-7 human breast cancer cell lines and the growth-promoting effect on ER+ cells is independent from estrogen.

PACAP and type I PACAP receptors in human prostate cancer tissue.

We characterized the expression and localization of pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP) and its specific type I receptor variants in prostatic, hyperplastic, and carcinomatous tissue collected from patients undergoing prostate biopsy and surgery for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and prostate cancer (PCa). The immunohistochemical studies using an indirect immunoperoxidase technique evidenced positive immunostaining for PACAP in the cytoplasm of epithelial cells of hyperplastic and carcinomatous prostate specimens and in some scattered cells of the stroma. Type I PACAP receptors (PAC1 R) in healthy and BPH tissues were localized in all epithelial cells lining the lumen of the acini and in some stromal cells, while in specimens from PCa the anti-PAC1 R antibody stained the apical portion of a large percentage of cells.

Expression and cellular localization of follicle-stimulating hormone receptor in normal human prostate, benign prostatic hyperplasia and prostate cancer.

Purpose: FSH, identified as an endogenous product of the prostate, is a glycoprotein with proliferative activity. Increasing evidence of autocrine/paracrine activities of gonadotropins at extragonadal sites led us to investigate the gene expression and cellular localization of FSH-R in normal and diseased human prostates.

Materials And Methods: Prostate specimens, including normal gland, BPH, PCa and human androgen refractory (PC3) and androgen dependent (LNCaP) prostate cancer cell lines (European Collection of Cell Cultures, Salisbury, United Kingdom), were analyzed for FSH-R expression by semiquantitative and real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemistry.

Imatinib mesylate inhibits Leydig cell tumor growth: evidence for in vitro and in vivo activity.

Leydig cell tumors are usually benign tumors of the male gonad. However, if the tumor is malignant, no effective treatments are currently available. Leydig cell tumors express platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), kit ligand and their respective receptors, PDGFR and c-kit.

Normal expression of isoforms activating cyclic adenosine monophosphate responsive element modulator in patients with spermatid maturation arrest.

Objective: To evaluate whether defective cyclic adenosine monophosphate responsive element modulator (CREM) expression is the causative factor of spermatid maturation arrest (SMA).

Design: Comparative evaluation of the testicular histology in patients with SMA or normal spermatogenesis.

Setting: University clinic of andrology.

Expression of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) in the epididymis and analysis of the epididymal development in PDGF-A, PDGF-B, and PDGF receptor beta deficient mice.

The platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) family of ligands and receptors play a pivotal role in the development of various organs. The critical importance of the PDGF-mediated signaling during embryonic development and adult physiology of the kidney and the common mesonephric origin of the epididymis and kidney prompted us to investigate the immunohistochemical localization of PDGF A- and B-chain and PDGF receptor (PDGFR) alpha- and beta-subunit in rat and mouse epididymis, the expression profiles of the corresponding mRNAs, and the consequences of a loss-of-function mutation at the PDGF-A, PDGF-B, and PDGFR-beta loci on mouse epididymis phenotypic appearance. Prenatally, PDGF-A and PDGFR-alpha immunohistochemical staining was seen in both species, whereas PDGF-B and PDGFR-beta were absent.

Ontogenesis of leptin receptor in rat Leydig cells.

There are still many controversies about the role of leptin in reproductive function and sexual development. We recently demonstrated that leptin receptors are expressed in rodent Leydig cells and that leptin has inhibitory effects on hCG-stimulated testosterone production by adult rat Leydig cells in culture. In this study, we evaluated the expression of leptin receptor (Ob-R) in rat testes from gestational to adult age in comparison with the pattern of expression of relaxin-like factor (RLF), a specific marker of Leydig cell differentiation status.

Expression of platelet-derived growth factor-A (PDGF-A), PDGF-B, and PDGF receptor-alpha and -beta during human testicular development and disease.

Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF) plays a critical role in regulating the development and functional control of various tissues and has been implicated in the pathogenesis of serious diseases, including cancer and atherosclerosis. Given the emerging role of PDGF in the development and function of male gonads, we compared the expression profiles of the mRNAs of the PDGF A- and B-chains and of the PDGF receptor (PDGFR) alpha- and beta-subunits in fetal and adult human testis. The immunohistochemical localization of the corresponding proteins in fetal, adult, and diseased human testicular tissues was also analyzed.

PDGF and the testis.

Testicular development is controlled by a complex hierarchy of gene regulatory proteins, growth factors, cell adhesion molecules, signaling molecules and hormones that interact, often acting within short time windows, via reciprocal control relationships. The identification in the testis of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), a key regulator of connective tissue cells in embryogenesis and pathogenesis, has focused attention on the role of this growth factor in testicular pathophysiology. This review summarizes recent advances in the study of the actions of PDGF in the male gonad, and attempts to incorporate complex in vitro and in vivo experimental data into a model that might clarify the role played by PDGF in the mammalian testis.

Deprenyl, an Inhibitor of Monoamine Oxidase B, Delays the First Two Mitotic Cycles of Sea Urchin eggs: (deprenyl/mitotic cylcle/sea urchin).

Sea urchin eggs are known to display a significant level of monoamine oxidase B activity. Deprenyl, a highly selective inhibitor of monoamine oxidase B, was found to prolong the length of the first two mitotic cycles of the sea urchin egg. The prophase seems to be specifically prolonged by the drug, while the length of the other phases of the cycle is unaffected.

Protein Synthetic Activities during Spermiogenesis in the Sea Urchin: An high Resolution Autoradiographic Study of H-Leucine Incorporation: (sea urchins/spermiogenesis/protein synthesis).

Protein synthetic activity has been studied during spermiogenesis of Paracentrotus lividus by high-resolution autoradiography using H-leucine as a labeled precursor. Under the adopted experimental conditions H-leucine is incorporated during the whole spermiogenesis period. The early spermatid is the most active stage and it shows labeling over the nucleus, the cytosol and the mitochondria.