Castration

Prosta.te Ca.ncer, Estrogen has an inhibitory effect on the prostate in addition to its suppression of gonadotropin secretion by the pituitary. The three- and five-year survival rates in prostate cancer patients with metastatic disease improved when treated with DES (7) alone or along with castration. However, DES does not improve the survival rates in patients whose carcinoma is confined to the prostate. Small doses of DES (1 mg/d) appear to retard prostate cancer growth and could reduce the cardiovascular complications associated with larger doses (5 mg/d) (135) (see... 

Rodent 5-7-day Hershberger assay change in weight of prostate and seminal vesicles in castrated rats. 

The castration of Mercury, Alchemical Miscellany, MS London British Library Sloane 1316, folio 2r (17th century). With the permission of the British Library, London. 

The adult male prostate contains abundant acid phosphatase which it secretes into the semen. The production of this enzyme is governed by the circulating levels of androgenic hormones. Castration or estrogen administration markedly reduces the prostatic urinary acid phosphatase of males. Other organs such as the liver, kidney, spleen, red cells and platelets also contain significant amounts of acid phosphatase. 

FABER K A, HUGHES c L JR. (1993) Dose-responsive characteristics of neonatal exposure to genistein on pituitary responsiveness to gonadotrophin releasing hormone and volume of the sexually dimorphic nucleus of the preoptic area (SDN-POA) in postpubertal castrated female rats. Reprod Toxicol. 1 35-9. 

ISHIMI A, YOSHIDA M, MAKIMOTO S, WU J, CHIBA H, WANG X, TAKEDA K and MIYAURA C (2002) Genistein, a soybean isoflavone, affects bone marrow lymphopoiesis and prevents bone loss in castrated male. Bone 31, 180-185. 

Hormonal influences may be limited to sexually relevant cues, since not all scent marks are socially relevant in all situations (Petrulis et al., 1995 and 1997). Chemoinvestigation by male hamsters of the female-indicator compound DMDS was independent of T. and did not differ from that of females. In contrast, the frequency of chemoinvestigation by castrates to vaginal secretion (containing DMDS) was enhanced by T. intact males investigated FHVS five times more than they do the females. 

Fig. 7.11 Inhibitory effect of alpha-Male urine on plasma Testosterone [T. ng/ml]. Exposure to urinary fractions in isolated (subordinate) male Mouse lemurs (N = 10) vs. castrate/adrenalectomised Ss, p < 0.001 vs. control (from Perret, 1995).

Haug M. and Brain P. (1978). Attack directed by groups of castrated male mice towards lactating and non-lactating intruders a urine-dependent phenomenon. Physiol Behav 21, 549-552. 

Parrott R. (1978). Courtship and copulation in pre-pubertally castrated male sheep (wethers) treated with 17a-estradiol, aromatisable androgens or DHT. Horn Behav 11, 20-27. 

The growth and development of the prostate is under control of androgens, and it is well known that men who undergo castration prior to puberty do not develop prostate cancer. The... 

Androgen ablation = serum testosterone levels less than 50 ng/mL. LHRH agonist (medical castrations or surgical are equivalent). 

Bilateral orchiectomy, or removal of the testes, rapidly reduces circulating androgens to castrate levels (andro-stenedione less than 50 ng/mL, 1.7 nmol/L).15 However, many patients are not surgical candidates owing to their advanced age, and other patients find this procedure psychologically unacceptable.15 Orchiectomy is the preferred initial treatment in patients with impending spinal cord compression or ureteral obstruction. 

The most recent meta-analysis of 27 randomized trials in 8275 patients (4803 treated with flutamide, 1683 treated with nilutamide, and 1784 treated with cyproterone) comparing maximal androgen blockade with conventional medical or surgical castration showed a small survival benefit at 5 years for those treated with flutamide or nilutamide (27.6%) compared with those treated with castration alone (24.7% p = 0.0005).40... 

Gauthaman K, Adaikan PG, Prasad RNV. Aphrodisiac properties of Tribulus terrestris extract (Protodioscin) in normal and castrated rats. Life Sci 2002 71 1385-1396. 

Vanecek, J., Kosar, E. Vorhcek, J. (1990). Daily changes in melatonin binding sites and the effect of castration. Mol. Cell. Endocrinol. 73, 165-70. 

The difference in sensory quality between females and castrated males is not consistent over several studies. Enfalt et al. (1997) and Jonsall et al. (2001) found that loins from castrated males scored higher for tenderness and juiciness than loins from females. In contrast, Jonsall et al. (2000) found no sensory effect of sex on loins and the same working group detected in a further investigation that loin from gilts scored higher for juiciness and lower for off-flavour than loin from castrated males. Obviously, the effect of sex on sensorial quality is of minor relevance and can be overruled by other effects. 

Castell A G, Cliplef R L, Paste-Flynn L M and Butler G (1994), Performance, carcass and pork characteristics of castrates and gilts self-fed diets differing in protein content and lysine energy ratio , Can J Anim Sci, 74, 519-528. 

Childs, C.V., Lloyd, J.M., Unabia, C., Gharib, S.D., Wierman, M.E., and Chin, W.W. (1987) Detection of luteinizing hormone b messenger ribonucleic acid (RNA) in individual gonadotropes after castration Use of a new in situ hybridization method with a photobiotinylated complementary RNA probe. Mol. Endocrinol. 1, 926-932. 

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