Estrogen receptor β expression in human prostate tissue

Estrogen receptor subtype beta (ER beta) is highly expressed in rat prostate epithelium, but its presence in human prostate needs to he confirmed. Here we investigated the expression of ER beta in five benign (normal and/or hyperplastic) and 10 malignant (Gleasons' score 2-7) prostate tissue specimens using immunohistochemistry. Immunohistochemistry was performed on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections, using a commercially available ER beta polyclonal antibody developed against the C-terminal amino acid residue. Nuclear ER beta expression was found in the nuclei of glandular epithelium of benign prostate tissue specimens: faint nuclear ER beta positivity was also present in a few stromal cells around normal epithelium. Nuclear ER beta specific immunostaining was undetectable in all prostate cancer sections. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.