Acid phosphatase activity: a marker of androgen action in prostate explant cultures

Acid phosphatase activity in rat ventral prostate explants has been assayed to determine if this parameter could serve as a specific and quantitative marker of androgen action in this in vitro model. Dihydrotestosterone (10 nM) caused an absolute increase in both total (42.5 +/- 2.9 vs control 27.1 +/- 4.0 nmoles p-nitrophenol generated in 30 min/micrograms DNA, P less than .01) and tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase activity (34.1 +/- 1.5 vs control 17.2 +/- 2.8 U/micrograms DNA, P less than .05), and this effect was maximal on the 4th day of culture. This was the time when explant weight and DNA content tended to fall or only to be maintained by androgen. Similar changes were observed with the potent synthetic androgen, mibolerone. The addition of either the antiandrogen cyproterone acetate or flutamide in a 100-fold excess to that of androgen caused significant inhibition in acid phosphatase activity. No significant change was observed at low concentrations of estradiol or progesterone, and only minimal and inconsistent increases in activity were noted at high concentrations. No increase was noted when cortisol, cyproterone acetate, or flutamide was added to the media. We conclude that measurement of acid phosphatase activity in cultured explants of rat ventral prostate provides a biochemical marker of androgenicity that is more specific than measurement of [3H]-thymidine incorporation.