Previous studies have shown that proteasome inhibitors promote the accumulation of steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR) in cultured rat adrenocortical cells. Unexpectedly, this response was associated with a moderate lowering in the corticosterone secretion and proliferation rate of cultured cells. Hence, we studied the effects of proteasome inhibitors MG115 and MG132 on the secretion and proliferative activity of the regenerating adrenal cortex in rats 5 days after surgery. Animals were given two subcutaneous injections of 0.15 or 1.5 nmol/100 g of inhibitors 24 and 12 h before decapitation. Real-time PCR and Western blotting showed that StAR expression, both mRNA and protein, was markedly lower in regenerating adrenals than in the intact gland of sham-operated rats. Neither MG115 nor MG132 affected StAR expression in regenerating gland. Inhibitors induced a slight decrease in the plasma concentrations of aldosterone and corticosterone, but did not significantly alter metaphase index of the regenerating adrenal cortex. Our findings provide the first evidence that down-regulation of StAR occurs during the early stages of adrenal regeneration. Moreover, this suggests that the steroidogenic pathway is more sensitive to proteasome inhibitors than that regulating proliferative activity of regenerating adrenal cortex in the rat.

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