The peripheral zone of the prostate behaves as an androgen target organ, whereas the periurethral glands are under estrogenic stimulation. This anatomical-physiological situation explained in the past the endocrine dependence of prostatic carcinoma. Biochemical studies by Prout, however, showed that the response of prostate cancer to contrasexual measures correlates well with the activity of androgen-converting enzymes and with the grade of tumor differentiation. In this study the in vitro activity of 3-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (formation of androstanediols from dihydrotestosterone) was assessed in biopsy material of 8 highly differentiated adenocarcinomas and of 14 poorly differentiated tumors by a microassay technique. The results were compared with the enzyme activities obtained earlier from benign prostatic hyperplasia and normal prostatic tissue. In the different cell fractions (cytosol, microsomes) and with various cofactor supplementation, the enzyme activities in highly differentiated tumors strongly resembled those of adenomatous or normal prostate tissues, whereas a relative enzyme deficiency was present in poorly differentiated lesions. The pathophysiological and eventual clinical implications of these findings are discussed.

Keywords:
Prostate cancer, Androgens, Androstanediol, Hormone dependence, Grade of differentiation
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© 1980 S. Karger AG, Basel
1980
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