Zinc in post prostatic massage (VB3) urine samples: a marker of prostatic secretory function and indicator of bacterial infection

Androgen concentrations in expressed prostatic secretions: no correlation with tissue levels

In an attempt to determine whether the androgen profiles of the prostate fluid (EPS) mirror the concentrations in the prostate tissue, we have measured testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) in EPS and correlated their levels to the concentrations found in hyperplastic prostate tissue (BPH) obtained from the same 19 patients. Although androgen concentrations in EPS were very high (testosterone = 106.7 +/- 81.9 ng/g dry weight; DHT = 54.2 +/- 11.2 ng/g dry weight), they did not reflect the concentrations measured in BPH tissue (testosterone = 7.56 +/- 1.54 ng/g dry weight; DHT = 10.54 +/- 0.63 ng/g dry weight). Additionally the accumulation of tissular DHT usually associated with BPH was not mirrored in the EPS specimens which demonstrated a relatively higher concentration of testosterone when compared to DHT. In EPS, there was also a very strong correlation between testosterone and DHT concentrations (r = 0.89; P less than 0.01). We have also measured zinc concentrations in EPS and BPH tissue but were unable to detect any relationship between the two parameters. Significantly, however, EPS zinc concentrations showed a close correlation with EPS testosterone (r = 0.73; P less than 0.01) and DHT (r = 0.69; P less than 0.01) concentrations.

Ratio of post-prostatic massage urinary zinc concentration to initial urinary zinc concentration. An improved method of assessing prostatic function

Various methods have been used clinically to assess prostatic function. We evaluated a number of ways of using zinc in post-prostatic massage urine (VB3) and found that the ratio of VB3 zinc concentration to initial urinary zinc concentration was a good indicator of prostatic secretory activity. This ratio can differentiate hormonally treated patients with carcinoma of the prostate from those untreated and from those with benign prostatic hypertrophy. The specificity is increased for individuals by repeat samples. Comparison of samples before and after resection showed no loss of function and no difference was found between groups treated with orchiectomy or LHRH agonist (Zoladex). The VB3/VB1 zinc concentration could be used in a prospective study of hormonal treatments directed against the prostate, where it could give objective evidence of a fall in secretory function of the gland.