Andrologia-acesso aberto
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Chaperone Proteins Expression in Cavernous Muscle of Denervated and Dypertensive Rats: Triggering Protective Mechanisms?

Horacio Sanguinetti *, Edgardo Becher , Osvaldo Mazza

Background: Both denervation and hypertension can produce functional and structural damage in cavernous smooth muscle. Chaperone proteins, such as Heat Shock Proteins (HSPs), are expressed by cells under stress and prevent damage or reduce its magnitude. The purpose of this study is to determine the expression of HSP in cavernous smooth muscle of denervated and hypertensive rats.

Methods: HSP-70 and HSP-20 expression was analyzed in cavernous smooth muscle of 12 spontaneously hypertensive stroke prone (SHR-SP) male rats and 12 normotensive Wistar Kyoto rats. In addition, 24 Wistar rats, 12 week old, were divided in two groups, 16 of them received bilateral denervation and the rest were summited to a sham operation. Immunohistochemistry of the cavernous tissue was performed in all the samples.

Results: SHR-SP showed increased expression of HSP 20 (p=0.015) and HSP 70 (p=0.023) as compared with normotensive rats. Denervated rats showed decreased expression of HSP 20 (p=0.01) and HSP 70 (p=0.04), when compared with sham rats.

Conclusion: HSP-70 and HSP-20 show increased expression in spontaneously hypertensive rats compared with controls, probably because stress triggers protective mechanisms. On the other hand, bilaterally denervated rats show less HSP-70 and HSP-20 than sham animals, showing few chances for this tissue to regenerate after such a stress.