Benign hyperplasia of ventral prostate in rats induced by a monoterpene (preliminary report)

This is a preliminary report on the experimental induction of benign prostatic hypertrophy in rats using the nonsteroidal compound, citral, a monoterpene that is widely used in the cosmetics, cleaning, and food industries. The shaved skin of rats 6 weeks of age was smeared daily with citral for 3 months. The ventral prostates of the treated rats were larger and heavier than those of controls, and histology revealed a typical benign process of hyperplasia. Further studies are in progress to assess the nature of the mechanism involved.