Androgen and estrogen treatments alter steady state messengers RNA (mRNA) levels of testicular steroidogenic enzymes in the rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss.

Recent investigations have shown that estrogens have profound inhibitory effects on steroidogenic enzyme gene expressions before and after testicular differentiation in the rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss. This present study bring new data on juvenile rainbow trout treated with estrogens and androgens. Following a 8 days oral treatment of juvenile male with 17alpha-ethynyl-estradiol (EE2, 20 mg/kg diet) or 11beta-hydroxyandrostenedione (11betaOHDelta4, 10 mg/kg diet), we observed a fast and marked decrease of steady-state mRNA levels for 3betaHSD, P450scc, P450c17, and P450c11 enzymes in the testis. After completion of these treatments, mRNA levels of these enzymes remained low in EE2 treated males whereas in 11betaOHDelta4 treated males they recovered their initial levels in 8 days. This demonstrate that both androgen and estrogen treatments have profound effects on testicular steroidogenesis by decreasing steroid enzymes steady-state mRNA. After in vitro incubation of testicular explants with 17beta-estradiol (E2, 600 ng/ml of medium), we also observed a decrease of mRNA levels for 3betaHSD and P450c11. This suggest that estrogens effects could be triggered, at least to some extend, directly on the testis. We also investigated the hypothesis of a negative feedback of steroids on follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) secretion, but FSH plasmatic levels in treated fish did not showed any significant decrease. This demonstrate that FSH is not implied in this steroids inhibition of steroidogenic enzymes gene expression.