Figure 1.

Androgen withdrawal by castration leads to an enhanced thymic activity. A, B) TCR recombination activity in thymocytes, splenocytes, and PBL was measured by sjTREC expression (A), and numbers of naive CD62L⁺CD4⁺ and CD62L⁺CD8⁺ T cells in the spleen after castration (Cast.) or sham operation (Sham-Cast.) was determined by flow cytometry. C) Proliferation of thymocytes was analyzed by the determination of BrdU incorporation, and the rate of apoptosis in the cortex and the medulla of the thymus was analyzed by the TUNEL assay. *P < 0.05. NS, not significant. Scale bars = 20 μm. n = 8/group.