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Review
. 2016 Aug;43(3):279-88.
doi: 10.1016/j.ucl.2016.04.012.

Review of Prostate Anatomy and Embryology and the Etiology of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

LaTayia Aaron  1 , Omar E Franco  2 , Simon W Hayward  3
Affiliations
Review

Review of Prostate Anatomy and Embryology and the Etiology of Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia

LaTayia Aaron et al. Urol Clin North Am. 2016 Aug.

Abstract

Prostate development follows a common pattern between species and depends on the actions of androgens to induce and support ductal branching morphogenesis of buds emerging from the urogenital sinus. The human prostate has a compact zonal anatomy immediately surrounding the urethra and below the urinary bladder. Rodents have a lobular prostate with lobes radiating away from the urethra. The human prostate is the site of benign hyperplasia, prostate cancer, and prostatitis. The rodent prostate has little naturally occurring disease. Rodents can be used to model aspects of human benign hyperplasia, but care should be taken in data interpretation and extrapolation to the human condition.

Keywords: BPH; LUTS; Prostate anatomy; Prostate embryology.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Structure of human and mouse prostate
Left. Diagram of an adult human prostate showing the urethra and bladder in relation to the three major glandular regions of the prostate as described by McNeal. Central zone (CZ), peripheral zone (PZ), and transitional zone (TZ). Right. Diagram depicting the four major prostatic lobes of the mouse prostate, the rat has a similar organization. Lateral prostate (LP), dorsal prostate (DP), ventral prostate (VP), anterior prostate (AP). Adapted from Sugimura Y, Cunha GR, Donjacour AA. Morphogenesis of ductal networks in the mouse prostate. Biol Reprod 1986;34:961-71; with permission.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Appearance of BPH in human prostate
Left. Gross anatomy of a human prostate affected by benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) in the transitional zone. Hyperplastic nodules (arrowheads) are clearly visible in the transitional zone (TZ) but not the peripheral zone (PZ) of the gross sample. Right. Hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) stained wholemount cross-section of a human prostate affected by BPH in the transitional zone. The architectural organization of the glandular structures within the nodules (arrowheads) is evident in this low magnification figure. Courtesy of Scott B. Shappell, MD, PhD, Dallas, TX.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Structure of individual glands within a focus of BPH
Prostatic glands are composed of columnar luminal epithelial cells and more flattened basal cells surrounded by well differentiated smooth muscle. Occasional capillaries can be seen spaced around the ducts adjacent to the basal epithelium.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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