Previous studies have shown that B lymphopoiesis is augmented after androgen withdrawal
in male mice. As an analogy to the skeletal system, some effects of androgens on the
proliferation of B cells may be mediated via aromatization into estrogens in vivo. The aim of the present study was to assess the effects of androgen withdrawal on
B lymphopoiesis in bone marrow of aged male rats sequentially over a period of 9 months,
and to correlate the flow-cytometric findings with changes in systemic levels of sex
steroids. We first showed that androgen withdrawal is associated with enhanced B lymphopoiesis
in bone marrow of 4-month-old male orchiectomized (ORX) rats, and that the changes
in the bone marrow B cell compartment in ORX animals can be reversed by testosterone
supplementation. In a subsequent, sequential experiment, we found that orchiectomy
induced a sustained rise in Thy 1.1+/CD45R+ bone marrow cells committed for the B cell lineage that lasted for several months
in 13-month-old aged rats. In a stepwise model of multiple regression analysis using
estradiol, free and total testosterone as independent variables, estradiol was the
strongest predictor of the percentage of B precursor cells in bone marrow in aged
SHAM and ORX rats. Free and total testosterone did not correlate with B lymphopoiesis
in aged SHAM rats. The current experiment has clearly shown that androgen withdrawal
upregulates the number of B lineage cells over several months in rat bone marrow.
Furthermore, our results provide evidence that estradiol may play an important role
as a physiological suppressor of B lymphopoiesis in aged male rats.
Key words:
Bone Marrow - Flow Cytometry - B Cells - Androgens - Estrogen
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R. G. Erben,M.D., D.V.M.
Institute of Animal Physiology
University of Munich
Veterinärstrasse 13
80539 Munich
Germany
Telefon: + 49 (89) 2180 3276
Fax: + 49 (89) 344 937
eMail: R.Erben@lrz.uni-muenchen.de
