IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL LOCALIZATION OF CYCLIC NUCLEOTIDES DURING TESTICULAR DEVELOPMENT

  • 1 January 1976
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 2  (4) , 225-239
Abstract
The potential role of cyclic nucleotides in rat testicular development was evaluated by measuring tissue levels of cyclic[c]AMP and cGMP during a time of rapid testicular growth. The levels of the nucleotides were correlated with their distribution in various cell types as well as intracellularly by an immunocytochemical technique. The concentration of cAMP was high during the infantile phase, fell steadily to a nadir prior to puberty and then increased through sexual maturation. cGMP levels were also elevated during the infantile phase and decreased steadily through sexual maturation. Early in development, the distribution patterns for the 2 cyclic nucleotides were quite similar with fluorescence in almost all cell types. With maturation, cAMP was localized within tubules, primarily in Sertoli cells and spermatogenia, and was observed in cells in the intertubular area. In the mature testis, cGMP fluorescence was associated with cells representative of most stages of spermatogenesis. cGMP was localized in nuclear elements of many cell types: in nucleoli of Sertoli cells, spermatogonia and of cells in the intertubular area. Staining was also observed along pachytene chromosomes and in a reticular nuclear pattern in a number of cell types. cAMP was seen in nuclear elements of certain cells, particularly early in testicular development, but the staining pattern was more indistinct than that of cGMP. The distribution patterns of nucleotides at several stages of testicular development suggested that these compounds may be associated with cellular events related to hormone-dependent maturation of the testis.