Hormonal regulation of differentiation of human fetal prostate and Leydig cells in vitro.

ABSTRACT

Trowell type of organ culture was used for correlative study of the human fetal prostate and Leydig cell differentiation at the ultrastructural level. Androgens accelerated the differentiation of human urethral epithelial cells into secretory prostatic cells and the ultrastructure resembled that in vivo. Also Leydig cells retained in organ culture the same ultrastructural features as in vivo and human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) accelerated their differentiation. It is concluded that this type of culture technic can be used in the study of early differentiation of human genital organ and androgenes and hCG take part of human prostatic and Leydig cell differentiation.