Expression of oestrogen receptor-alpha and -beta in ovarian endometriomata

J Fujimoto, Jiro Fujimoto, R Hirose, H Sakaguchi, T Tamaya
Molecular human reproduction · 1999 · vol. 5(8) , pp. 742–747 · doi:10.1093/molehr/5.8.742 · PMID:10421802 · W2103359602
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ER-alpha and ER-beta are expressed in ovarian endometriomata epithelial cells, with ER-beta mRNA significantly overexpressed compared to normal endometrium, suggesting altered oestrogen action in endometrioma growth.

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Abstract

The contribution of oestrogen receptor (ER) isoforms, ER-alpha and ER-beta, in oestrogen-dependent development and growth of ovarian endometriomata, is unknown. Therefore, we examined the expression of ER-alpha and ER-beta in ovarian endometriomata and normal uterine endometrium. ER-alpha and ER-beta were shown to be dominantly expressed in the nuclei of the epithelial lining cells of ovarian endometrioma and of the glandular cells of normal uterine endometrium. ER-beta was expressed at a much lower level than ER-alpha in the glandular cells of normal uterine endometrium, while ER-beta was expressed at a slightly lower level than ER-alpha in the epithelial lining cells of ovarian endometrioma. In normal uterine endometrium, ER-beta mRNA was expressed at a much lower level than ER-alpha mRNA, and the expression pattern of ER-beta mRNA during the menstrual cycle was similar to that of ER-alpha mRNA. On the other hand, ER-beta mRNA expression was significantly higher and over a much greater range in ovarian endometriomata (P < 0.05) than in normal uterine endometrium during the menstrual cycle, while ER-alpha mRNA expression was relatively lower and more random. Therefore, in ovarian endometriomata, oestrogen action via ER-alpha cascades seems to be partially damaged, as the expression of ER-alpha mRNA does not respond to endocrinological alterations during the menstrual cycle, while the relative over-expression of ER-beta might be related to a unique oestrogen-dependent growth and spreading of ovarian endometriomata.

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Condition tags

mesh:D004715endometrioma

MeSH descriptors

Endometriosis Ovarian Diseases Receptors, Estrogen Adult Base Sequence DNA Primers DNA Primers Endometriosis Endometriosis Endometrium Endometrium Estrogen Receptor alpha Estrogen Receptor beta Female Gene Expression Humans Immunohistochemistry Menstrual Cycle Menstrual Cycle Middle Aged

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References (38)

Cited by (50)

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