Activities of the androgen-responsive receptor of the prostatic plasma membrane.

Evidence of the presence of an androgen-activated "gatekeeper" receptor in the human prostate plasma membrane is presented. Not only does testosterone in vitro very rapidly accelerate uptake of alpha-aminoisobutyric acid into prostate slices but also its metabolite, dihydrotestosterone, greatly increases the rates of phosphorylation and dephosphorylation of the cation-dependent ATPase of isolated membranes. The relationship of this regulatory unit to prostatic physiologic processes is discussed.