Effects of melatonin, testosterone and the two hormones administered in parallel on ventral prostate of the rat treated with stilbestrol in the first day of life

Abstract

Effects of melatonin, testosterone and the two hormones administered in parallel on ventral prostate were examined in the rats treated with estrogens in the first day of life. Thirty-nine-day long hormonal stimulation with melatonin, testosterone or the two hormones in parallel was started in rats aged 20, 28, 35 or 45 days. A single dose of estrogens led to atrophy of ventral prostate when the animals reached maturity, which was associated with high LH levels and low testosterone levels in the serum. Melatonin accentuated estrogen-induced changes in prostate morphology of ventral prostate while initemporal administration of melatonin and testosterone led to a resultant effect of testosterone-induced stimulation and melatonin-induced inhibition.