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Reproduction (2007) 133 1057-1067
DOI: 10.1530/REP-06-0326
Copyright © 2007 Society for Reproduction and Fertility
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RESEARCH

Estrogen receptor-{alpha} mediates estrogen-inducible abnormalities in the developing penis

H O Goyal1, T D Braden3, P S Cooke4, M A Szewczykowski4, C S Williams1, P Dalvi1 and J W Williams2

1 Departments of Biomedical Sciences and 2 Biology and CBR/RCMI, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, Alabama 36088, USA, 3 Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Pharmacology, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama, USA and 4 Department of Veterinary Biosciences, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, USA

Correspondence should be addressed to H O Goyal who is now at Department of Biomedical Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, Nursing and Allied Health, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, Alabama 36088, USA; Email: goyalho{at}tuskegee.edu

Previously, we reported an association between estrogen receptor-{alpha} (ER{alpha}) upregulation and detrimental effects of neonatal diethylstilbestrol (DES) exposure in the rat penis. The objective of this study was to employ the ER{alpha} knockout (ER{alpha}KO) mouse model to test the hypothesis that ER{alpha} mediates DES effects in the developing penis. ER{alpha}KO and wild-type C57BL/6 mice received oil or DES at a dose of 0.2 µg/pup per day (0.1 mg/kg) on alternate days from postnatal days 2 to 12. Fertility was tested at 80–240 days of age and tissues were examined at 96–255 days of age. DES caused malformation of the os penis, significant reductions in penile length, diameter, and weight, accumulation of fat cells in the corpora cavernosa penis, and significant reductions in weight of the bulbospongiosus and levator ani muscles in wild-type mice. Conversely, ER{alpha}KO mice treated with DES developed none of the above abnormalities. While nine out of ten male mice sired pups in the wild-type/control group, none did in the wild-type/DES group. ER{alpha}KO mice, despite normal penile development, are inherently infertile. Both plasma and intratesticular testosterone levels were unaltered in the DES-treated wild-type or DES-treated ER{alpha}KO mice when compared with controls, although testosterone concentration was much higher in the ER{alpha}KO mice. Hence, the resistance of ER{alpha}KO mice to developing penile abnormalities provides unequivocal evidence of an obligatory role for ER{alpha} in mediating the harmful effects of neonatal DES exposure in the developing penis.




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 ReproductionHome page
H O Goyal, T D Braden, C S Williams, and J W Williams
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