ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the correlation of exogenous estrogens with the expression of FasL in Sertoli cells and the blood-testis barrier during the differentiation and maturation period of Sertoli cells, and to discuss the related factors that influence the blood-testis barrier of pubertal rats.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Super-physiological doses of exogenous estrogenic compounds (diethylstilbestrol and estradiol) were administered to pubertal Sprague-Dawley rats in vitro and in vivo, the FasL expression in the Sertoli cells of the rats detected by immunohistochemistry and Western blot, and the changes in the blood-testis barrier observed with the electron microscope.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>After the exposure to exogenous estrogens, the FasL expression was markedly up-regulated in the immature Sertoli cells (P < 0.05) as well as in the Sertoli cell membrane and the blood-testis barrier of the epithelium. The tracer lanthanum passed through the blood-testis barrier and reached the whole layer of the epithelium at 18 days.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Super-physiological dose of exogenous estrogens can change the expression and distribution of FasL in immature Sertoli cells and affect the structure of the blood-testis barrier.</p>
Subject(s)
Animals , Male , Rats , Animals, Newborn , Apoptosis , Blood-Testis Barrier , Metabolism , Estrogens , Pharmacology , Fas Ligand Protein , Models, Animal , Rats, Sprague-Dawley , Sertoli Cells , Cell Biology , MetabolismABSTRACT
Estrogen plays an essential role in male reproduction. In human and other mammalians, a number of tissues express aromatase and hence synthesize estrogen. ERs and aromatase are present at all developmental stages of the male reproductive organs in many mammalian species. Estrogen is important in different aspects in male reproductive physiology, including its effects on germ cells, Sertoli cells, Leydig cells and epididymal functions.