Prenatal exposure to low doses of bisphenol A alters the periductal stromaand glandular cell function in the rat ventral prostate

Environmental estrogens (xenoestrogens) are chemicals that bind to estrogen receptor, mimic estrogenic actions, and may have adverse effects on both h uman and wildlife health. Bisphenol A (BPA), a monomer used in the manufact ure of epoxy resins and polycarbonate has estrogenic activity. In male rode nts prenatal exposure to BPA resulted in modifications at the genital tract level. our objective was to examine the effects of in utero exposure to lo w, environmentally relevant levels, of the xenoestrogen BPA on proliferatio n and differentiation of epithelial and stromal cells on the prepubertal ra t ventral prostate. To characterize the periductal stromal cells phenotype the expression of vimentin and smooth muscle alpha -actin was evaluated. An drogen receptor (AR) and prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP) expression were a lso evaluated in epithelial and stromal compartments. Prenatal exposure to BPA increases the fibroblastic: smooth muscle cells ratio and decreases the number of AR-positive cells of periductal stroma of the ventral prostate. In contrast, no differences in AR expression were observed in epithelial ce lls between control and BPA-treated groups. No changes in proliferation pat terns were observed in epithelial and stromal compartments; however, the ex pression of PAP was diminished in prostate ductal secretory cells of rats i n utero exposed to BPA. Our results suggest that prenatal exposure to BPA a ltered the differentiation pattern of periductal stromal cells of the ventr al prostate. These findings are significant in light of the data on human p rostate cancers where alterations in the stroma compartment may enhance the invasive and/or malignant potential of the nascent tumor.