Defects of prostate development and reproductive system in the estrogen receptor-alpha null male mice.

Abstract

The estrogen receptor-alpha knockout (ERalphaKO, ERalpha-/-) mice were generated via the Cre-loxP system by mating floxed ERalpha mice with beta-actin (ACTB)-Cre mice. The impact of ERalpha gene deletion in the male reproductive system was investigated. The ACTB-Cre/ERalpha(-/-) male mice are infertile and have lost 90% of epididymal sperm when compared with wild-type mice. Serum testosterone levels in ACTB-Cre/ERalpha(-/-) male mice are 2-fold elevated. The ACTB-Cre/ERalpha(-/-) testes consist of atrophic and degenerating seminiferous tubules with less cellularity in the disorganized seminiferous epithelia. Furthermore, the ventral and dorsal-lateral prostates of ACTB-Cre/ERalpha(-/-) mice display reduced branching morphogenesis. Loss of ERalpha could also be responsible for the decreased fibroblast proliferation and changes in the stromal content. In addition, we found bone morphogenetic protein, a mesenchymal inhibitor of prostatic branching morphogenesis, is significantly up-regulated in the ACTB-Cre/ERalpha(-/-) prostates. Collectively, these results suggest that ERalpha is required for male fertility, acts through a paracrine mechanism to regulate prostatic branching morphogenesis, and is involved in the proliferation and differentiation of prostatic stromal compartment.

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Published Version (Please cite this version)

10.1210/en.2008-0044

Publication Info

Chen, Ming, Iawen Hsu, Andrew Wolfe, Sally Radovick, KuoHsiang Huang, Shengqiang Yu, Chawnshang Chang, Edward M Messing, et al. (2009). Defects of prostate development and reproductive system in the estrogen receptor-alpha null male mice. Endocrinology, 150(1). pp. 251–259. 10.1210/en.2008-0044 Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/21894.

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Scholars@Duke

Chen

Ming Chen

Associate Professor of Pathology

Our laboratory is interested in understanding the molecular and genetic events underlying cancer progression and metastasis. The focus of our work is a series of genetically engineered mouse models that faithfully recapitulate human disease. Using a combination of mouse genetics, omics technologies, cross-species analyses and in vitro approaches, we aim to identify cancer cell–intrinsic and –extrinsic mechanisms driving metastatic cancer progression, with a long–term goal of developing new therapeutic strategies for preventing and treating metastatic disease. 


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