Kirschenbaum A, Liotta D R, Yao S, Liu X H, Klausner A P, Unger P, Shapiro E, Leav I, Levine A C
Department of Urology, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York 10029, USA.
J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2000 Sep;85(9):3436-41. doi: 10.1210/jcem.85.9.6780.
The first rate-limiting step in the conversion of arachidonic acid to PGs is catalyzed by cyclooxygenase (Cox). Two isoforms of Cox have been identified, Cox-1 (constitutively expressed) and Cox-2 (inducible form), which are the products of two different genes. In this study we describe the immunohistochemical localization of Cox-1 and -2 in the human male fetal and adult reproductive tracts. There was no Cox-1 expression in fetal samples (prostate, seminal vesicles, or ejaculatory ducts), and only minimal expression in adult tissues. There was no expression of Cox-2 in the fetal prostate. In a prepubertal prostate there was some Cox-2 expression that localized exclusively to the smooth muscle cells of the transition zone. In adult hyperplastic prostates, Cox-2 was strongly expressed in smooth muscle cells, with no expression in the luminal epithelial cells. Cox-2 was strongly expressed in epithelial cells of both fetal and adult seminal vesicles and ejaculatory ducts. The Cox-2 staining intensity in the fetal ejaculatory ducts during various times of gestation correlated with previously reported testosterone production rates by the fetal testis. These data indicate that Cox-2 is the predominant isoform expressed in the fetal male reproductive tract, and its expression may be regulated by androgens. The distinct cell type-specific expression patterns of Cox-2 in the prostate (smooth muscle) vs. the seminal vesicles and ejaculatory ducts (epithelium) may reflect the different roles of PGs in these tissues.
花生四烯酸转化为前列腺素（PGs）的第一步限速反应由环氧化酶（Cox）催化。已鉴定出Cox的两种同工型，即Cox-1（组成型表达）和Cox-2（诱导型），它们是两个不同基因的产物。在本研究中，我们描述了Cox-1和Cox-2在人类男性胎儿和成年生殖道中的免疫组织化学定位。胎儿样本（前列腺、精囊或射精管）中未检测到Cox-1表达，在成年组织中仅有微量表达。胎儿前列腺中未检测到Cox-2表达。青春期前前列腺中有一些Cox-2表达，且仅局限于移行带的平滑肌细胞。在成年增生性前列腺中，Cox-2在平滑肌细胞中强烈表达，而在管腔上皮细胞中无表达。Cox-2在胎儿和成年精囊及射精管的上皮细胞中均强烈表达。妊娠不同时期胎儿射精管中的Cox-2染色强度与先前报道的胎儿睾丸睾酮生成率相关。这些数据表明，Cox-2是胎儿男性生殖道中表达的主要同工型，其表达可能受雄激素调节。Cox-2在前列腺（平滑肌）与精囊和射精管（上皮）中不同的细胞类型特异性表达模式可能反映了PGs在这些组织中的不同作用。
