Steroids inversely affect the biosynthesis and secretion of human prostatic acid phosphatase and prostate-specific antigen in the LNCaP cell line.
In order to elucidate the mechanism of androgen-regulation of genes expressed only in the prostate gland, the effects of steroid hormones on the biosynthesis and secretion of human prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP) and prostate-specific antigen (PSA) were studied in the human prostatic carcinoma cell line, LNCaP. This cell line produces PAP and PSA, both of which were found to be similar to the proteins purified from and located in human prostatic tissue, as shown by Western blot analysis. The synthetic androgen, R1881, regulated the biosynthesis of these two important tumour marker proteins inversely: the amount of PSA released into the medium was increased to 506% +/- 100 of the control levels, while that of PAP was decreased to 26% +/- 3, in 7 days. These effects were dependent on the concentration of the steroid in the growth medium. The androgen-dependent changes observed in the amounts of the secreted proteins were correlated with alterations in their intra-cellular levels. LNCaP cells were found to have very different capacities for secreting PAP and PSA. Whereas the measurable, cellular amounts of PSA and PAP were of similar magnitudes, much larger amounts of PSA than PAP were secreted into the medium. PSA was also found to be more stable than PAP in the culture medium of the LNCaP cells. Other steroids could elicit effects on PAP and PSA biosynthesis similar to those induced by R1881, and the combined effects of effective concentrations of these steroids were undistinguishable from those caused by each one of them separately, suggesting that all these compounds compete for binding to the same modified androgen receptors of the LNCaP cells. Thus, our results confirm the observations of the altered nature of the LNCaP androgen receptors, and demonstrate the ability of these ligands to produce changes in the expression of androgen-dependent prostatic genes. The fact that the changes observed at the protein level were accompanied by increased levels of PSA mRNAs and by decreased levels of PAP mRNA in steroid-treated cells, suggests that one of the targets of androgen and steroid action in the regulation of these genes is at the mRNA level.
Department of Clinical Chemistry, University of Oulu, Finland.
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D000135:Acid Phosphatase / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor / Q000378:metabolism; D002460:Cell Line; D003513:Cycloheximide / Q000494:pharmacology; D004958:Estradiol / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D007700:Kinetics; D008297:Male; D015741:Metribolone / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011282:Pregnenediones / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011374:Progesterone / Q000494:pharmacology*; D045167:Progesterone Congeners / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011467:Prostate / Q000201:enzymology*; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D014407:Tumor Cells, Cultured
D000951:Antigens, Neoplasm; D014408:Biomarkers, Tumor; D011282:Pregnenediones; D045167:Progesterone Congeners; D012333:RNA, Messenger; C020175:16 alpha-ethyl-21-hydroxy-19-nor-4-pregnene-3,20-dione; D015741:Metribolone; D011374:Progesterone; D004958:Estradiol; D003513:Cycloheximide; D000135:Acid Phosphatase; D017430:Prostate-Specific Antigen