EFFECT OF SPIRONOLACTONE ON ANDROGEN-DEPENDENT PROTEINS IN THE VENTRAL PROSTATE OF THE RAT

Abstract

The effect of spironolactone on five androgen-dependent proteins in the ventral prostate of the rat was investigated by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Spironolactone was given to intact male, castrated and androgen-stimulated castrated rats. It has been shown that spironolactone had no influence on the synthesis or accumulation of the androgen-dependent proteins in intact animals. However, spironolactone suppressed the restoration of the major androgen-dependent protein of low molecular weight in castrated rats given testosterone. The mechanism by which spironolactone exerts its anti-androgenic activity was shown to be unrelated to its capacity to inhibit the synthesis or accumulation of the five androgen-dependent proteins studied in this investigation.