Efeitos da exposição ao metilparabeno sobre a próstata de gerbilos adultos (Meriones unguiculatus)
Nenhuma Miniatura disponível
Data
2016-10-25
Autores
Título da Revista
ISSN da Revista
Título de Volume
Editor
Universidade Federal de Goiás
Resumo
The prostate is an accessory gland of the mammalian reproductive system with important
role in reproduction. The prostatic tissue is regulated by hormones with its homeostasis
dependent on a balanced hormonal interaction. The exposure to environmental chemicals
with hormonal activities can cause disorders in the prostate increasing the probability of
this gland to develop major lesions. Hormonally active chemicals are present in the
environment in substantial amounts and forms. Amongst them are the parabens, a class
of preservatives with antifungal and antimicrobial activities commonly used in the
cosmetic, pharmaceutical and food industry. They are known for affecting the
reproductive system and act as endocrine disruptors that mimics the physiological effects
of estrogens. Up their, it is unclear whether the exposure to parabens alters the prostate
morphophysiology. Therefore, it is relevant to comprehend whether the methylparaben
can lead to the development of lesions in the prostate in adult gerbils. Thus, the aim of
this work was to evaluate the prostate of adult gerbils exposed to methylparaben. For this,
males and females aging 90 days received, through gavage, 500 mg/kg of methylparaben
diluted in 1% hydroxyethyl cellulose. These animals were divided into three subgroups
that were euthanized after 3 (3P), 7 (7P) and 21 days of treatment (21P). The prostates
were collected for structural, cytochemical and immunohistochemical analysis. The results
demonstrated that the exposure to methylparaben reduced the body weight of males of
3P and 7P groups, and testis weight of 7P and 21P groups. In the females we observed
an increase in the prostatic complex weight of the 21P group. In both sexes, Gömöri’s
reticulin staining showed a remodeling of the stromal compartment with reticular fibers
disorganization and collagen fibers increase. Besides, males and females presented
important morphological alterations as hyperplasic growth foci. In females, it was
observed the presence of prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia, stromal inflammatory foci and
an increase of ERα-positive cells. Immunohistochemical data showed an increase of ARpositive cells and in the proliferation rates for both genders. Altogether, these data
demonstrate that methylparaben was capable to interfere in androgenic and estrogenic
receptors, suggesting that this chemical might have estrogenic and anti-androgenic
activity in the prostate. In males there was an intense immunostaining for MGMT in all
treated groups whereas in females only in the 3P group. The immunostaining for MGMT
in the prostate of males and females suggests that the exposure to methylparaben made
the gland more susceptible to epigenetic modifications. The results obtained with this
study are alarming, as they indicate that the increasing consumption of parabens by
urban population can be related with the arising of morphophysiological alterations in
prostate.
Descrição
Palavras-chave
Citação
COSTA, J. R. Efeitos da exposição ao metilparabeno sobre a próstata de gerbilos adultos (Meriones unguiculatus). 2016. 74 f. Dissertação (Mestrado em Biologia) - Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, 2016.