Cell‐Free DNA Plasma Levels Differ in Age‐Specific Pattern in Healthy Rats and Castrates with Testosterone‐Induced Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

摘要: The purpose of this work was to study changes in the level of cell‐free DNA (cfDNA) in the blood of young and old rats in the normal state and with induced benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Male Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups—young (3 months), old (20 months), intact, or with testosterone‐induced BPH. Groups with BPH were subjected to surgical castration and administration of testosterone esters at a dose of 25 mg/kg for a total of 7 injections for 20 days. In intact animals, the level of cfDNA in old rats (2.00 ± 0.14 ng/μl) was significantly higher than that in the young (1.02 ± 0.30 ng/μl). The body and the prostate weights of old rats were 1.6 and 1.4 times larger than those of the young, without an increase in the prostate index (PI). The testosterone level in the blood of young rats was 1.6 times higher than that of old (6.20 ± 0.93 nmol/l vs. 3.77 ± 0.55 nmol/l; NS). In animals with BPH, the level of cfDNA in old …