title: Sonic and desert hedgehog signaling in human fetal prostate development.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Hedgehog signaling is thought to play an important role in rodent prostate organogenesis and morphogenesis. However, the role of this signaling pathway in human fetal prostate development has not been investigated.
  
  
  METHODS
  Twenty-five human fetal prostates at various developmental stages (10-39 weeks) were included. Fifteen specimens were processed for H&E and immunohistochemical staining of the Hedgehog signaling components: Sonic Hedgehog (SHH), Desert Hedgehog (DHH), Patched-1(PTC1), Patched-2 (PTC2), Smoothened (SMO), GLI1, and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA). SHH, DHH, and GLI1 expression was also analyzed in ten snap-frozen specimens by Western blot.
  
  
  RESULTS
  SHH, DHH, SMO, PTC1, GLI1, and PCNA expression, assessed by a semi-quantitative immunohistochemical method, was found mainly in the developing prostatic epithelial ducts, beginning at 10 weeks and peaking at 16 and 28 weeks with a dip occurring at 20 weeks, with the exception of PTC2.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Both SHH and DHH signaling components were detected during human fetal prostate development. Despite the high expression of PTC2 in the epithelium as well as the stroma in the early time of development, the expression of SHH, DHH, SMO, PTC1, and a SHH/DHH target transcription factor, GLI-1, were all largely restricted to epithelium in the developing prostate, suggesting that SHH/DHH signaling is primarily through an autocrine mechanism in human fetal prostate organogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Medical School, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, China.
authors.forename: Guodong
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Haiyen E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Zhau
authors.forename: Hui
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Linlin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Bahig
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Shehata
authors.forename: Xinyang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Wolfgang H
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Cerwinka
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Elmore
authors.forename: Dalin
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: He
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D015153:Blotting, Western; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D005865:Gestational Age; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D008297:Male; D038081:Organogenesis / Q000502:physiology*; D011467:Prostate / Q000196:embryology* / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D017154:Stromal Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D053823:Hedgehog Proteins; C509239:SHH protein, human