RESUMO
BACKGROUND: Prostatic innervation may participate in its homeostasis and growth. alpha-Adrenergic inhibition alleviates clinical symptoms in benign prostatic hyperplasia. However, the prostatic effect of adrenergic agonists has not been investigated. This study deals with the prostatic effect of subchronic sympathomimetic stimulation. METHODS: Male rats received daily subcutaneous injections of the alpha-adrenergic agonist phenylephrine, 1, 10, or 20 mg/kg per day, the beta-adrenergic agonist isoproterenol, 1, 2.5 or 5 mg/kg per day, or saline, for 30 days, and the prostates were removed for histopathological examination. RESULTS: Phenylephrine induced atypical prostatic hyperplasia, characterized by piling-up with papillary and cribriform patterns, and budding-out of epithelial cells. It decreased prostatic secretions and total weight. Similar results were observed in orchidectomized rats receiving exogenous testosterone supplementation. Isoproterenol had no prostatic morphological effect. CONCLUSIONS: These results raise the possibility that sympathetic stimuli play a role in normal and aberrant growth and differentiation of prostatic epithelium, and suggests neurostimulants-treated animals as a model to study the etiology and development of prostatic hyperplasia.