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G Aumüller

Publications and source records attributed to G Aumüller.

At least 127 records · Page 7Linked to original sources

Cytochemistry and biochemistry of acid phosphatases. VI: Immunoelectron microscopic studies on human prostatic and leukocytic acid phosphatases.

Using different antisera against secretory and lysosomal prostatic acid phosphatases, the localization of the respective antigens was studied in the human prostate at the ultrastructural level. Secretory acid phosphatase was confined exclusively to the secretory vacuoles of the glandular cells. Discharge of the secretory material occurs in a merocrine type of secretion. The identical antigen could be localized in the primary and secondary granules of neutrophil and eosinophil granulocytes separated from human peripheral blood. The antiserum used was also cross-reactive with the canine prostate, where a very distinct immunoreaction was observed with the secretory granules of the glandular cells. The antibodies directed against lysosomal acid phosphatases prepared from prostatic homogenates consistently gave a positive immunoreaction with dense bodies, lipofuscin, and secretory granules. The respective antigens were present also in neutrophil and eosinophil granulocytes. These findings do not identify the existence of a prostate-specific acid phosphatase, which does not exist. The secretory form of the isoenzymes, however, is clearly distinct from the lysosomal form, both of which are present in granulocytes. Therefore the origin of acid phosphatases elevated in peripheral blood in cases of metastatic prostatic cancer could be either the carcinomatous cells or leukocytes destroyed during the process of metastasis.

Acid Phosphatase↗

Light and ultrastructure of intra-ovarian oocyte release in infantile rats.

Follicular ruptures with intra-ovarian oocyte release (IOR) were studied in 17, 21 and 24-day-old rats by morphological methods. Using a light microscope, it was seen that IOR occurred at all times and the IOR frequency did not change. IOR developed in preantral follicles. Their oocytes were mostly found within the follicular compartment (incomplete IOR). Using an electron microscope, a circumscribed dissolution of the basal lamina was observed. IOR granulosa cells appeared activated. They rarely underwent typical necrosis after herniation into the extrafollicular area. Herniated granulosa cells tended either to stay intact or to shed cytoplasmic components into the extracellular space, whilst nuclei of active cell function were maintained. Tissue adjacent to an IOR seemed inactive with the exception of endothelial cells. Some endothelial cells underwent necrosis. Additionally, the endothelium was discontinuous. The morphological data support the hypothesis that the mechanism of follicular rupture represents an inside to outside process.

Aging↗

Ultrastructural localization of uteroglobin immunoreactivity in rabbit lung and endometrium, and rat ventral prostate.

Recent biochemical studies have demonstrated amino acid sequence homologies between uteroglobin from rabbit endometrium and prostatic binding protein from rat ventral prostate. We have studied the ultrastructural distribution of uteroglobin-immunoreactive material in rabbit lung and endometrium and rat ventral prostate using an uteroglobin antibody raised in guinea pigs. Secretory granules of bronchiolar Clara cells, endometrial non-ciliated cells and rat prostate secretory cells gave a positive immunoreaction when this antibody was used. The results indicate a close relationship of immunoreactive epitopes of proteins present in those secretory cells. The functional properties of these proteins (glycoproteins, steroid binding, androgen-dependent secretion) suggest a close functional relationship, for instance a surface action such as coating, capping, masking or lubrication.

Androgen-Binding Protein↗

[Immunohistochemical identification of functional relationships in the accessory sex glands].

The distribution of tissue- and organ specific marker proteins has been studied in the accessory sex glands of different mammals. Tissue specific marker proteins are desmin, actin, vimentin, laminin, keratin and related proteins which are well suited to identify smooth muscle cells, fibrocytes, basal cells of the epithelium etc. Secretory proteins were used as markers for organ specificity, e.g. secretory acid phosphatase, prostate specific antigen. In the accessory sex glands of the rat a most complicated pattern of typical secretions was identified using specific antibodies. As deduced from this pattern functional relations are likely between the lateral prostate and the seminal vesicle and the dorsal prostate and the coagulation gland respectively. The ventral prostate of the rat has a particular range among these glands and is homologous to the human prostate.

Animals↗

Morphologic and endocrine aspects of prostatic function.

Current topics on the normal anatomy and functional organization of the human prostate are presented and related to endocrine principles studied experimentally in dogs and rats. While detailed internal organization and gross anatomical structure of the human gland are still debated by some, there is considerable unanimity on the functional interdependence and relationship between the stroma and the epithelium, as has been concluded from experimental, embryological, and pathological observations. This review also focuses on prostatic secretion, its normal postnatal development, and its functional and possible regulatory significance. Secretion is closely related to both hormonal and neurovascular regulatory mechanisms, and any changes in their balance evoke characteristic, and in some instances species-specific, morphological and functional reactions in the prostate. An hypothesis is presented on the interdependence of secretion and cell proliferation in the prostate.

Androgens↗

Morphological and functional characteristics of isolated acini used for in vitro studies of prostatic secretion.

Acini of the rat ventral prostate were isolated by interstitial injection of a collagenase-containing medium, subsequent incubation in the same medium and repeated aspiration through pipette tips with decreasing gauge of the tip opening. Functional integrity of the isolated acini was assessed by morphological studies, including transmission and scanning electron microscopy, freeze-fracturing, and immunocytochemistry. Incubation studies with different incubation media were performed monitoring O2-consumption as a parameter of functional activity, in addition to the incorporation rate of radioactively labeled amino acids into newly synthesized proteins. Optimal incubation conditions (shaking water bath, 20 strokes/min, 37 degrees C, gassing with carbogen at 15 min intervals) were found with M 199 medium supplemented with dihydrotestosterone. Stimulation of prostatic secretion was maximal with 10(-7) M of pilocarpin, which was more effective than carbamylcholine. Incorporation of precursors into prostatic proteins proceeded for about 2 h at a linear rate. Thereafter a rapid loss of functional and morphological integrity of the isolated acini was observed including disintegration, vacuolation and lysis of individual cells. The system of isolated prostatic epithelium developed is a useful tool in the study of prostatic secretion in vitro in short term experiments.

Acid Phosphatase↗

Phenotypic modulation of the canine prostate after long-term treatment with androgens and estrogens.

Fine structural alterations of the canine prostate induced by long-term treatment of castrated adult animals with estrogens and/or androgens and also in combination with antiandrogens and/or antiestrogens for six months have been studied with particular respect to their topographic location within the gland. Three major patterns of structural responses of the epithelium have been distinguished: squamous metaplasia, atrophy, and hypertrophy, while in stroma, regression, hypertrophy, or sclerosis were observed. In addition to cellular alterations of stromal fibrocytes and smooth muscle cells, characteristic changes in the arrangement, distribution, and pattern of the different stromal elements occurred. General squamous metaplasia of the epithelium and regressive alterations of stromal cells were most obvious in animals treated with estradiol plus androstanediol. Atrophy of the epithelium and stromal sclerosis were the salient features of antiandrogen-treated castrated animals, while hypertrophy or hyperplasia of both the epithelium and stroma was a major finding in androstanediol-substituted castrated animals. Combined treatment caused rather heterogeneous structural patterns seemingly dependent on the location within the gland. The results indicate that the prostatic epithelial cells dispose of a broad variety of structural reaction patterns that, in case of combined hormonal treatment, are expressed in a manner typical for their locations within the ductal system of the gland. However, with the exception of combined treatment with estradiol, tamoxifen, and androstanediol of castrated dogs, none of the experimental protocols used induced a morphologic response of the gland comparable to that seen in human benign prostatic hyperplasia. The canine prostate therefore is of rather limited value as a model for human BPH.

Androgens↗

Age-dependent changes in the carbohydrate pattern of human prostatic epithelium as determined by peroxidase-labeled lectins.

Peroxidase-conjugated lectins (peanut agglutinin: PNA; Ricinus communis agglutinin: RCA) were used for histochemical demonstration of the respective carbohydrate binders (PNA: beta-D-galactosyl-(1-3)-N-acetyl-galactosamine; RCA: D-galactose). The study of prostatic specimens from four different age groups showed marked differences in cytoplasmic PNA binding of prostatic epithelium. The basal cells of the glandular epithelium displayed cytoplasmic PNA binding only in the infantile stage and during early puberty. With the onset of puberty a number increasing with age of secretory cells developed cytoplasmic binding of PNA, mostly appearing as apically located vacuoles. Intraluminal secretion, however, was never stained. During senile involution the prostatic epithelium lost rapidly its PNA binding capacity. Since no RCA binding of the epithelium was observed, the carbohydrate moiety responsible for PNA binding presumably represents a galactosyl-N-actyl-galactosamine containing molecule, most likely a glycoprotein, which is present in actively functioning prostatic epithelial cells. It is uncertain whether or not it represents a structural or a secretory component of the prostatic cell.

Adolescent↗

Intracellular localization of Prostatic Binding Protein (PBP) in rat prostate by light and electron microscopic immunocytochemistry.

Extra- and intracellular distribution of Prostatic Binding Protein (PBP) was studied in the different genital organs of the male rat by immunocytochemistry at the light and electron microscopic levels. PBP was extracted from cytosols of rat ventral prostate and used for immunization of rabbits. The specificity of the antiserum raised was tested by "western blotting" and immunoelectrophoresis. From the different fixatives tested for optimal structural and antigenic preservation of the ventral prostate a mixture containing 2.5% paraformaldehyde, 0.5% glutaraldehyde and 0.5% CaCl2 in cacodylate buffer, 0.05 M, pH 7.3 was selected. Using the immunofluorescence technique and the unlabeled antibody enzyme method PBP-immunoreactivity was detected at the light microscopic level in the luminal secretions of the ventral prostate. No reaction was observed with the seminal vesicle, the coagulating gland, the dorsal and lateral prostates, the epididymis and the testis. Intracellular secretory granules reacting with PBP antiserum were exclusively found in the secretory cells of the ventral prostate. Insufficiently fixed cells showed a diffuse generalized reaction of the cytoplasm indicating a leakage of the antigen from the secretory granules. Such artifacts were common in tissue sections processed with the preembedding-staining procedure. At the ultrastructural level therefore mostly the postembedding staining method was performed using both the unlabeled antibody enzyme method and the ferritin-labeled immunoglobulin technique in osmicated, Epon-embedded tissue. Labeling with either method was intense in the secretory granules and the condensing vacuoles, while the labeling density of the rough endoplasmic reticulum and the Golgi cisternae was in the background range. Castration experiments showed that secretory material displaying PBP immunoreactivity was retained within the acinar lumen of the gland for several days after castration, but was absent from most secretory cells already by four days after castration. Immunocytochemistry of PBP therefore is a very sensitive method for analysing the secretory activity and its androgen dependence of the prostate of the rat.

Androgen-Binding Protein↗

p-Chlorophenylalanine-induced proliferation of the seminal vesicle epithelium.

Intraperitoneal injection of p-chlorophenylalanine (pCPA) methylester (100 mg/kg body weight) results in an activation of the lysosomal system of the secretory cells in the rat seminal vesicle and an elevation of the activities of lysosomal enzymes within 15 min following the injection. Large autophagic vacuoles are formed, sequestering rough endoplasmic reticulum and part of the Golgi apparatus within 2 h. Shortly after the activation of the lysosomal system an elevation of both DNA- and protein synthesis is measured biochemically. 6 h subsequent to the injection a wave o mitoses of the secretory cells begins, reaching a maximum of 6 h later and then declining within 3 h. About 12 h following the injection a second rise in lysosomal activity begins, declining within 24 h. The entire sequence of lysosomal and proliferative activities is inhibited in antiandrogen-pretreated rats. Deduced from these findings the following hypothesis of growth regulation of the accessory sex glands is advanced: enhanced loss of intracellular material during autophagocytosis diminishes the intracellular concentration of a substance curtailing cell division below its effective threshold resulting in division of the secretory cells. The prerequisites of this mechanism are (i) a sufficient distributive capacity of the stroma for hormones (androgens) and metabolic precursors, and (ii) sufficient capacity of the basal cells for transporting the precursors to the secretory cells. Sloughing of the secretory cells separates them from these auxiliary structures (stroma and basal cells) and enables the basal cells to divide.

Animals↗

Immunohistochemistry of acid phosphatase in the human prostate: normal and pathologic. Cytochemistry and biochemistry of acid phosphatases II.

Three different antisera against human prostatic acid phosphatase were used for direct and indirect immunohistochemical demonstration of acid phosphatase in paraffin sections of infantile and adult normal, hyperplastic and carcinomatous prostatic tissue. All antisera were prepared in rabbits. Antiserum A was prepared from highly purified acid phosphatase extracted from autopsy specimens. Antiserum B was a concentrate of a commercial antiserum used in radioimmunoassay and was prepared from purified extracts of human seminal fluid. Antiserum C was a peroxidase-conjugated antiserum prepared from purified extracts of human seminal fluid. The specificity of the three antisera was compared using different immunohistochemical methods and tissues. It was comparably high in all three antisera which gave only slightly different staining results in prostatic tissue. The staining results in prostatic carcinoma were only dependent on the titer of the respective antiserum. Carcinomas with a cribriform growth pattern showed variable staining, but always had a positive immunoreactions, provided the titer of the antiserum was sufficiently high. Striking differences were observed in metaplastic, atrophic and hyperplastic prostatic epithelium. The most intense reaction was observed in atrophic glands: it was much less intense in hyperplastic and normal epithelium and negative or slightly positive in metaplastic epithelium.

Acid Phosphatase↗

Fine structure of the canine prostatic complex.

The canine prostatic complex, including the prostatic urethra, the urethral openings of the prostatic gland ducts, the prostate gland proper and the ejaculatory ducts has been studied with the transmission and scanning electron microscopes. The urethral epithelium was found to be a modified transitional epithelium; it extended a short distance from the urethra into the orifices of the ducts where it gradually lost height. The columnar cells were replaced by cuboidal superficial cells in the terminal ducts of the gland. With increasing distance from the urethral openings of the ducts, the superficial cuboidal cells developed secretory activity and finally were indistinguishable from regular prostatic secretory cells. The latter formed typical prostatic acini, consisting of secretory cells which were merocrine in nature, and flat lentilate basal cells. In addition to exocrine cells, three different types of presumptive endocrine cells occurred, predominantly in the periurethral ducts of the prostate gland. It has been concluded from this study that, firstly, fluid absorption and spermatophagy are the main functions of the epithelia of the ejaculatory ducts and the ampulla of the vas deferens. Secondly, it has been concluded that the different functions of the various structures of the prostatic complex can be related to their different embryological origins.

Animals↗

Fine structure of the Sertoli cells of the rat testis in experimental unilateral cryptorchidism.

Mature rats were made unilaterally cryptorchid for 28 days. ABP concentrations of the abdominal epididymis were significantly reduced, indicating impaired secretory activity of the Sertoli cells. The FSH serum level was increased and testosterone levels both of the serum and of homogenates of the cryptorchid testis were slightly reduced. Sertoli cells of the cryptorchid testis showed signs of regression. Although Sertoli cell junctions were still impermeable to lanthanum, a reduction of membrane particles forming the Sertoli cell junctions was observed in freeze-fracture replicas. In thin sections it was seen that the plasma membrane-apposed cisternae of endoplasmic reticulum or the adjaacent microfilaments were partially lacking. No such changes were observed in the scrotal testis.

Animals↗