Intraepithelial and stromal lymphocytes in the normal human prostate

Abstract

The immune response in the prostate is primarily cell-mediated. Cell distribution is constant according to patient age, race, and anatomic zonal location within the prostate. The greatest concentration is in the stroma with a small but significant number of intraepithelial cells. The inverted CD4/CD8 ratio in the intraepithelial compartment suggests that cytotoxic/suppressor T cells are the first line of defense against luminal foreign agents reaching the prostate through retrograde flow.