Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the reactivity of steroid hormone receptors (SHRs), dystroglycans (DGs), matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGFR-1), and laminin (Lam) in both prostatic stromal and epithelial compartments showing different diseases in elderly men. METHODS: Sixty prostatic samples were obtained from 60- to 90-year-old patients (mean 63 years) with and without prostatic lesions from Hospital of the School of Medicine, State University of Campinas (UNICAMP). The Samples were divided into standard (no lesions); high grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HGPIN); prostatic cancer (PC); and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) groups. The samples were submitted to immunohistochemistry and Western blotting analyses. Research Ethics Committee of the School of Medicine, University of Campinas/UNICAMP (number 0094.0.146.000-08). RESULTS: The results showed increased IGFR-1 and MMPs protein levels in the PC and HGPIN groups. Decreased aDG and beta DG protein levels were verified in the PC and HGPIN groups. Androgen receptor (AR) reactivity was similar among all groups. Estrogen receptor a (Era) immunoreactivity was more intense in the epithelium in the PC and HGPIN groups. Estrogen receptor beta (ER beta) immunoreactivity was weak in the epithelium of the HGPIN and PC groups. CONCLUSIONS: To conclude, there was an association among IGFR-1, MMPs, and SHRs, indicating IGFR-1 as a target molecule in prostate therapy, considering the IGF proliferative properties. Also, the distinct SHRs reactivities in the lesions in both prostatic compartments indicated different paracrine signals and pointed out the importance of estrogenic pathways in the activation of these disorders. Microsc. Res. Tech. 75:11971205, 2012. (C) 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.75911971205Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)