OBJECTIVE - To explore the possible pain mechanism of chronic prostatitis/chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CP/CPPS).
METHODS - The models of CP/CPPS were established in male Wistar rats by the autoimmune method. The paw withdrawal threshold (PWT) was detected using Von Frey filament.
The expressions of the substance P and c-fos in the prostate and spinal L5-S2 segments were determined by immunohistochemistry followed by analysis of their correlation with CP/CPPS.
RESULTS - Compared with the control rats, the CP/CPPS models showed significantly decreased PWT (P < 0. 05), remarkable prostatic inflammation, enlarged scope of lesions, and obvious interstitial lymphocytic infiltration (P < 0. 05). Both the expressions of substance P and c-fos were markedly elevated in the prostate and spinal dorsal horn (L5-S2) of the rat models (P < 0. 05), but the expression of substance P in the prostate exhibited no correlation with that in the spinal cord (r = 0. 099, P = 0. 338), nor did that of c-fos (r = 0. 027, P = 0. 454).
CONCLUSION - The upregulated expressions of substance P and c-fos in the spinal cord L5-S2 sections may be associated with the pain mechanism of CP/CPPS.
Zhonghua nan ke xue = National journal of andrology. 2015 Aug [Epub]
Ying-jia Liu, Guo-hong Song, Chen Zhang