Ultrastructural study of the ventral lobe of the prostate of rats submitted to experimental chronic alcoholism

Abstract

The effects of chronic alcohol ingestion on the ventral lobe of the prostate were studied in rats (Rattus norvegicus). Ultrastructural observations on the epithelial cells of the ventral lobe of the prostate showed irregularly shaped nuclei with deep infoldings, dilated RER cisternae, and a small number of microvilli covering the cell surface. After 90 and 135 days of alcohol treatment, the epithelial cells showed signs of degeneration.