Morphological changes and oxidative stress in rat prostate exposed to a non-carcinogenic dose of cadmium

Cadmium chloride is an environmental toxicant implicated in human prostate carcinogenesis. The mechanism of its toxicity is far from fully understood. This study evaluates the effect of exposure to an oral non-carcinogenic dose of cadmium (15 ppm in drinking water for three months) on different parameters of the ventral prostatic lobe of normal and exposed rats. We analyzed the histology by optic light microscopy, activities of antioxidant enzymes (CAT, SOD, GPx and G-6-PDH), expression of NOS and COX-2 by Western blot, expression of MT-I, MT-II, IGF-I, IGF-BP5 and rtert by RT-PCR. Histological changes were found: the height of the cells decreased, acinar lumen were enlarged and they lost the typical invaginations. Lipoperoxidation was increased in the Cd group and the antioxidant enzymes changed their activities: SOD increased, CAT and G-6-PDH decreased and GPx did not show variations. iNOS and COX-2 did not change their expressions. MT-I and IGF-BP5 mRNA increased while MT-II, IGF-I and rtert did not show variations. Cd exposure induces important morphological changes in the prostate, which could be a consequence of lipoperoxidation and oxidative stress, which are not related to iNOS and COX-2. The histology suggests an involution state of the gland, confirmed by the expression of IGF-I, IGF-BP5 and rtert. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.