5alpha-Reductase as a target enzyme for anti-prostatic drugs in organ culture.

Short-term organ culture of rat and human prostatic tissues has been utilized as a means of testing drlgs potentially useful in cancer of the prostate. Optimal conditions, particularly the concentration of T, have been established for organ culture of such tissues and the effects of various drugs on 5alpha-reductase activity (5alpha-RA) have been utilized as a means of ascertaining antiprostatic actions of the various compounds and drugs tested. Thus, it was shown that estracyt, estradiol-17beta, progesterone, and novel steroids and steroid-conjugates have definite effects on 5alpha-RA in this system.