scholarly journals Local differences in Leydig cell morphology in the adult rat testis: evidence for a local control of Leydig cells by adjacent seminiferous tubules

1982 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 325-330 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anders Bergh
Keyword(s):  
Local Control ◽  
Cell Morphology ◽  
Leydig Cell ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Seminiferous Tubules ◽  
Rat Testis ◽  
Adult Rat

Interstitial fluid volume in the rat testis: androgen-dependent regulation by the seminiferous tubules?

1989 ◽  
Vol 120 (2) ◽  
pp. 215-NP ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Maddocks ◽  
R. M. Sharpe
Keyword(s):  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Interstitial Fluid ◽  
Single Injection ◽  
Fluid Volume ◽  
Male Rats ◽  
Seminiferous Tubules ◽  
Rat Testis ◽  
Adult Rat ◽  
Interstitial Fluid Volume ◽  
Dependent Mechanism

ABSTRACT Regulation of testicular interstitial fluid (IF) volume has been investigated in adult male rats in which the Leydig cells were selectively destroyed with a single i.p. injection of ethane dimethane sulphonate (EDS). Following this treatment, some animals also received testosterone supplementation by s.c. injection every 3 days, beginning either from the time of EDS injection, or 3–12 days afterwards. The volume of IF obtained by drip collection was determined, and testosterone and gonadotrophin concentrations measured in blood and in IF. Testosterone levels in IF and serum became undetectable by 3 days after EDS treatment. IF volume was reduced by 50% (P < 0·01) to reach a minimum level between 6 and 9 days after treatment. However, this decline was prevented in the absence of Leydig cells by supplementation with testosterone from the time of EDS injection, a treatment which also kept gonadotrophins at minimum or undetectable levels. Furthermore, the reduced IF volume seen up to 9 days after treatment with EDS alone could be restored to control levels within 3 days by a single injection of testosterone. The results obtained demonstrate that androgens, but not Leydig cells or gonadotrophins, are required for the maintenance of interstitial fluid volume in the adult rat testis. It is suggested that the seminiferous tubules may mediate this response, through an androgen-dependent mechanism. Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 120, 215–222

Ethan-1,2-dimethanesulphonate reduces testicular oxytocin content and seminiferous tubule movements in the rat

1987 ◽  
Vol 112 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-NP ◽  
Author(s):  
H. D. Nicholson ◽  
R. T. S. Worley ◽  
S. E. F. Guldenaar ◽  
B. T. Pickering
Keyword(s):  
Leydig Cell ◽  
Seminiferous Tubule ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Contractile Activity ◽  
Histological Study ◽  
Interstitial Cells ◽  
Seminiferous Tubules ◽  
Adult Rats ◽  
Adult Rat

ABSTRACT An oxytocin-like peptide is present in the interstitial cells of the testis, and testicular concentrations of oxytocin have been shown to increase seminiferous tubule movements in vitro. We have used the drug ethan-1,2-dimethanesulphonate (EDS), which depletes the Leydig cell population of the adult rat testis, to examine further the relationships between the Leydig cell, testicular oxytocin and tubular movements. Adult rats were injected i.p. with a single dose of EDS (75 mg/kg) or of vehicle (25% dimethyl sulphoxide). Histological study 3 and 10 days after treatment with EDS showed a reduction in the number of interstitial cells, and levels of oxytocin immunoreactivity were undetectable by radioimmunoassay. Immunostaining revealed very few oxytocin-reactive cells. Spontaneous contractile activity of the seminiferous tubules in vitro was also dramatically reduced, but could be restored by the addition of oxytocin to the medium. Four weeks after EDS treatment, the interstitial cells were similar to those in the control animals both in number and in immunostaining; immunoassayable oxytocin was present and tubular movements were normal. The EDS effect, seen at 3 and 10 days, was not altered by daily treatment with testosterone. However, repopulation of the testes with oxytocin-immunoreactive cells was not seen until 6 weeks in the testosterone-treated animals. We suggest that the Leydig cells are the main source of oxytocin immunoreactivity in the testis and that this oxytocin is involved in modulating seminiferous tubule movements and the resultant sperm transport. The results also imply that testosterone does not play a major role in controlling tubular activity in the mature rat. J. Endocr. (1987) 112, 311–316

The increased number of Leydig cells by di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate comes from the differentiation of stem cells into Leydig cell lineage in the adult rat testis

Toxicology ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 306 ◽  
pp. 9-15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jingjing Guo ◽  
Xing-Wang Li ◽  
Yong Liang ◽  
Yufei Ge ◽  
Xiaomin Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Leydig Cell ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Cell Lineage ◽  
Rat Testis ◽  
Adult Rat ◽  
Ethylhexyl Phthalate

Stimulatory and inhibitory factors of Leydig cell steroidogenesis are secreted simultaneously by the rat seminiferous tubules and do not affect Leydig cell inhibin production in vitro

1994 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 693 ◽  
Author(s):  
JR McFarlane ◽  
Kretser DM de ◽  
GP Risbridger
Keyword(s):  
Conditioned Medium ◽  
Leydig Cell ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Seminiferous Tubules ◽  
Low Doses ◽  
Adult Rat ◽  
Testosterone Production ◽  
Significant Reversal ◽  
The Mean

The effect of conditioned medium from rat seminiferous tubules (at Stages VII-VIII and Stages IX-VI) cultured with or without follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) on the production of testosterone and immunoactive inhibin by Leydig cells was examined. Low doses of conditioned medium from unstimulated tubules at Stages VII-VIII significantly (P < 0.05) increased the mean testosterone production to greater than 31 +/- 11% over that achieved with luteinizing hormone (LH) alone. At the highest dose, the conditioned medium significantly inhibited (P < 0.05) LH-stimulated testosterone production by 13 +/- 7%. Low doses of conditioned medium from unstimulated tubules at Stages IX-VI increased the mean testosterone production to 22 +/- 10%, whereas at higher doses, a significant reversal in the stimulation occurred although not to the same extent as that found with medium from tubules at Stages VII-VIII. Conditioned medium from FSH-stimulated tubules at Stages VII-VIII and Stages IX-VI, significantly increased testosterone production to 39 +/- 7% and 31 +/- 13% respectively. Immunoactive inhibin production by the Leydig cells remained unaffected by exposure to conditioned medium from FSH stimulated and unstimulated tubules at Stages VII-VIII and Stages IX-VI. The data demonstrate that tubule culture medium contains FSH-modulated activities which can specifically stimulate and inhibit testosterone synthesis by adult rat Leydig cells in vitro and therefore explains the contradictory reports in the literature.

Steroidogenic enzyme activity in the rat testis following Leydig cell destruction by ethylene-1,2-dimethanesulphonate and during subsequent Leydig cell regeneration

1991 ◽  
Vol 131 (3) ◽  
pp. 451-457 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. J. O'Shaughnessy ◽  
L. Murphy
Keyword(s):  
Enzyme Activity ◽  
Leydig Cell ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Seminiferous Tubules ◽  
Cell Regeneration ◽  
Significant Activity ◽  
Steroidogenic Enzyme ◽  
Control Activity ◽  
Rat Testis ◽  
Cell Destruction

ABSTRACT Ethylene-1,2-dimethanesulphonate (EDS) rapidly destroys Leydig cells in the rat testis, although repopulation occurs within 5–7 weeks. In this study we have examined the activity of testicular steroidogenic enzymes after Leydig cell destruction and during regeneration. This was designed to measure the contribution of cells, other than Leydig cells, to steroidogenic activity in the testis, and to determine whether changes in steroidogenic enzyme activity during Leydig cell regeneration after EDS parallel those which occur during normal Leydig cell development. The enzymes studied are those responsible for androgen synthesis and metabolism in the testis. Adult male Wistar rats (300–350 g) were injected with EDS (100 mg/kg, i.p.) and testicular steroidogenic enzyme activity was measured on days 0, 3, 7, 14, 21 and 35. On day 3, when no Leydig cells remain in the testis, cholesterol side-chain cleavage (CSCC) activity, per testis, declined to undetectable levels, while 3βhydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3βHSD) and 17α-hydroxylase retained only 0·04 and 0·15% of control activity respectively. In contrast, 17-ketosteroid reductase (17-KSR) and 5α-reductase retained 33 and 10% of control activity respectively. On day 7 there was a further loss of 17-KSR activity (to 20% of control) but no change in other enzymes. The 17-KSR activity remaining on day 7 after EDS was contained almost exclusively in the seminiferous tubules, while the low 3β-HSD activity remaining was confined largely to the interstitial tissue. Other enzymes showed a more even distribution between the two compartments. On day 14 after EDS there was a tenfold increase in 3β-HSD activity (compared with day 7), with no change in CSCC, 17α-hydroxylase or 5α-reductase and a further loss of 17-KSR (to 11% of control). Between days 14 and 21 there were marked increases in the activities of CSCC, 3β-HSD, and 17α-hydroxylase, while 17-KSR showed no change in activity from day 14. Activity of 5α-reductase increased between days 14 and 21 to levels greater than those seen in control animals. By day 35 the activities of all enzymes had returned to control levels. The results show that, in the adult rat testis, the activities of CSCC, 3β-HSD and 17α-hydroxylase are confined, almost entirely, to the Leydig cells, and only 17-KSR shows significant activity in another cell type. During regeneration of Leydig cells after EDS the pattern of changes in enzyme activity is very similar to that seen in the normal development of the adult population of Leydig cells. Journal of Endocrinology (1991) 131, 451–457

Isolation of rat Leydig cells and precursor forms after administration of ethane dimethane sulfonate

1994 ◽  
Vol 266 (6) ◽  
pp. E975-E979 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. P. Risbridger ◽  
A. Davies
Keyword(s):  
Luteinizing Hormone ◽  
Cell Population ◽  
Chorionic Gonadotropin ◽  
Leydig Cell ◽  
Human Chorionic Gonadotropin ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Steroid Production ◽  
Microscopic Appearance ◽  
Rat Testis ◽  
Adult Rat

The cytotoxic drug ethane dimethane sulfonate (EDS) has been extensively used as a means of studying the regeneration of Leydig cells in the adult rat testis. This study used the EDS-treated rat testis as a source of material for the isolation of regenerating Leydig cells and their precursors and describes the procedures required for the isolation of these cell preparations. As early as 13-15 days after EDS, cells in the precursor fraction can bind low, but detectable, levels of iodinated purified human chorionic gonadotropin. However, no luteinizing hormone (LH) response was detected in terms of steroid production. The precursor fraction of cells isolated from the EDS-treated rat testis 17-19 days after the administration of EDS was heterogeneous in light-microscopic appearance, but identifiable Leydig-like cells were present. The cells in this fraction were the first to exhibit the ability to respond to LH with the production of detectable levels of the reduced androgen, 5 alpha-androstane-3 alpha,17 beta-diol. The amount of androgen produced by both the Leydig cell and precursor fractions had increased by 21 days after EDS and reached the levels produced by immature adultlike Leydig cells, which can be isolated from the 20-day-old rat testes. These studies demonstrate that steroidogenically responsive precursor forms of Leydig cells can be isolated from the EDS-treated testes 17-19 days after depletion of the adult Leydig cell population.

scholarly journals Influence of long-term dietary administration of procymidone, a fungicide with anti-androgenic effects, or the phytoestrogen genistein to rats on the pituitary–gonadal axis and Leydig cell steroidogenesis

2005 ◽  
Vol 187 (1) ◽  
pp. 117-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Svechnikov ◽  
V Supornsilchai ◽  
M-L Strand ◽  
A Wahlgren ◽  
D Seidlova-Wuttke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cytochrome P450 ◽  
Serum Level ◽  
Leydig Cell ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Ex Vivo ◽  
Elevated Serum ◽  
Seminiferous Tubules ◽  
Dibutyryl Camp

Procymidone is a fungicide with anti-androgenic properties, widely used to protect fruits from fungal infection. Thereby it contaminates fruit products prepared for human consumption. Genistein-containing soy products are increasingly used as food additives with health-promoting properties. Therefore we examined the effects of long-term dietary administration (3 months) of the anti-androgen procymidone (26.4 mg/animal per day) or the phytoestrogen genistein (21.1 mg/animal per day) to rats on the pituitary-gonadal axis in vivo, as well as on Leydig cell steroidogenesis and on spermatogenesis ex vivo. The procymidone-containing diet elevated serum levels of LH and testosterone and, furthermore, Leydig cells isolated from procymidone-treated animals displayed an enhanced capacity for producing testosterone in response to stimulation by hCG or dibutyryl cAMP, as well as elevated expression of steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR), cytochrome P450 side-chain cleavage (P450 scc) and cytochrome P450 17α (P450c17). In contrast, the rate of DNA synthesis during stages VIII and IX of spermatogenesis in segments of seminiferous tubules isolated from genistein-treated rats was decreased without accompanying changes in the serum level of either LH or testosterone. Nonetheless, genistein did suppress the ex vivo steroidogenic response of Leydig cells to hCG or dibutyryl cAMP by down-regulating their expression of P450 scc. Considered together, our present findings demonstrate that long-term dietary administration of procymidone or genistein to rats exerts different effects on the pituitary–gonadal axis in vivo and on Leydig cell steroidogenesis ex vivo. Possibly as a result of disruption of hormonal feedback control due to its anti-androgenic action, procymidone activates this endocrine axis, thereby causing hyper-gonadotropic activation of testicular steroidogenesis. In contrast, genistein influences spermatogenesis and significantly inhibits Leydig cell steroidogenesis ex vivo without altering the serum level of either LH or testosterone.

Intragonadal regulation of immune system functions

1990 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 263 ◽  
Author(s):  
MP Hedger ◽  
JX Qin ◽  
DM Robertson ◽  
Kretser DM de
Keyword(s):  
Immune System ◽  
Immune Responses ◽  
Germ Cell ◽  
Conditioned Medium ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Seminiferous Tubules ◽  
Interstitial Tissue ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Adult Rat

Immune responses within the mammalian gonads, and in particular the testis, are deficient in spite of adequate lymphatic drainage and the presence of lymphocytes and MHC II+ macrophages. There is considerable evidence from in vivo and in vitro studies that this 'suppression' of the immune system may be due, at least in part, to localized inhibition or regulation of normal lymphocyte and/or macrophage functions within the gonads. In the testis, both steroidal and non-steroidal products of the Leydig cells, including androgens, endorphins, and inhibin-related proteins, have been implicated in mediating this activity. In turn, a number of immune cell cytokines affect steroidogenic cell function in vitro. The studies described in this paper indicated that [3H]-thymidine incorporation by adult rat thymocytes in vitro was inhibited by conditioned medium collected from short-term incubations of Percoll-purified adult rat Leydig cells, but stimulated by testicular interstitial fluid and by conditioned medium collected from short-term incubations of adult rat seminiferous tubules. The factors responsible for these effects on thymocyte function appeared to be of large molecular weight, as they were retained by ultrafiltration membranes with exclusion limits of 10,000 or 30,000 daltons. It is hypothesized that an 'immunosuppressive' mechanism, principally mediated by non-steroidal factors secreted by the steroidogenic cells of the gonadal interstitial tissue, exists within the gonads in order to prevent activation of the immune system by germ cell antigens and growth factors associated with germ cell proliferation and differentiation. This mechanism probably acts in parallel with normal antigen-specific tolerance mechanisms operating at the gonadal level. As immune responses to germ cells are believed to be a significant causative factor in infertility, particularly in men, this represents an important area for further study.

Adult rat Sertoli cells secrete a factor or factors which modulate Leydig cell function

1987 ◽  
Vol 114 (3) ◽  
pp. 459-467 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Papadopoulos ◽  
P. Kamtchouing ◽  
M. A. Drosdowsky ◽  
M. T. Hochereau de Reviers ◽  
S. Carreau
Keyword(s):  
Cyclic Amp ◽  
Sertoli Cell ◽  
Leydig Cell ◽  
Sertoli Cells ◽  
Leydig Cells ◽  
Cell Function ◽  
Cell Interaction ◽  
Adult Rats ◽  
Adult Rat ◽  
Stimulating Factor

ABSTRACT Production of testosterone and oestradiol-17β by Leydig cells from adult rats was stimulated by LH or dibutyryl cyclic AMP (10 and 2·5-fold respectively). The addition of spent medium from normal, hemicastrated or γ-irradiated rat seminiferous tubule cultures, as well as from Sertoli cell cultures, to purified Leydig cells further enhanced both basal (44 and 53% for testosterone and oestradiol-17β respectively) and LH-stimulated (56 and 18%) steroid output. Simultaneously, a decrease (20–30%) in intracellular cyclic AMP levels was observed. This stimulating factor (or factors) secreted by the Sertoli cells is different from LHRH, is of proteinic nature and has a molecular weight ranging between 10 000 and 50 000; its synthesis is not controlled by FSH nor by testosterone. This factor(s) involved in rat Leydig cell steroidogenesis, at a step beyond the adenylate cyclase, does not require protein synthesis for testosterone formation whereas it does for oestradiol-17β production. It should be noted that a germ cell–Sertoli cell interaction modulates the synthesis of this factor(s). J. Endocr. (1987) 114, 459–467

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