Neurosteroids are synthesized de novo in the brain, and the cerebellar Purkinje cell is a major site for neurosteroid formation. We have demonstrated that the Purkinje cell possesses intranuclear receptor for progesterone and actively produces progesterone de novo from cholesterol only during rat neonatal life, when cerebellar cortical formation occurs dramatically. We have further demonstrated...

Estradiol, together with PRL and placental lactogens, regulates steroidogenesis and cell hypertrophy in the rat corpus luteum of pregnancy. Although binding experiments have demonstrated the presence of estrogen-binding sites, no evidence exists as to whether the rat corpus luteum of pregnancy expresses the estrogen receptor (ER) genes. In this investigation, we have analyzed the expression of ...

Although testosterone is the principal sex steroid produced by the testis, estrogen is known to be produced by both Leydig and Sertoli cells during different developmental periods. Additionally, evidence is unfolding to suggest that germ cells might also participate in the synthesis of estrogen within the male reproductive tract. We have recently reported that the messenger ribonucleic acid (mR...

Estrogen has important roles in the initiation and development of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Regulators of the estrogen receptor (ER) are tissue- and cell-specific. We evaluated the effect of estrogen antagonist, raloxifene (Ral), on the prevention and treatment of BPH by investigating its effect on the proliferation of two different prostate cell lines: a stromal cell line, WPMY-1, an...

Data derived from a correlated morphological and biochemical study suggest the following: (a) estradiol-17beta, diethylstilbestrol, the estrogen antagonists nafoxidine (Upjohn 11,000), and Parke Davis C1628 induce synthesis of an endogenous peroxidase in the epithelium of target tissues like the vagina, the cervix, the uterus, and in the acinar cells of the estrogen-dependent rat mammary tumor;...

background: para-nonylphenol (p-np) is able to induce malformations in male reproductive system. objective: the aim of this study was to investigate the preventing role of vitamin e (vit.e) on sperm parameters and reproductive hormones in developing rats. materials and methods: pregnant rats were divided into 4 groups: control p-np vit.e and p-np+vit.e. treatments were performed on day 7 of ges...

Arzoxifene ([6-hydroxy-3-[4-[2-(1-piperidinyl)-ethoxy]phenoxy]-2-(4-methoxyphenyl)]benzo[b]thiophene) is a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) that is a potent estrogen antagonist in mammary and uterine tissue while acting as an estrogen agonist to maintain bone density and lower serum cholesterol. Arzoxifene is a highly effective agent for prevention of mammary cancer induced in the r...

OBJECTIVE To observe the effects of two main isoflavones, daidzein and genistein on the bone-nodule formation in rat calvaria osteoblasts in vitro. METHODS Osteoblasts obtained from newborn Sprague-dawley rat calvaria were cultured for several generations. The second generation cells were cultured in Minimum Essential Medium supplemented with ascorbic acid and Na-beta-glycerophosphate for sev...

A hormone-dependent subline of the transplantable rat mammary tumor MTW9 contains binding sites for both prolactin and estrogen. Prolactin binding is saturable (Kd @-2x l0@ M), hormone specific, and destroyed by pro teases. By contrast, an autonomous subline derived from the same parent tumor has lost more than 75% of both prolactinand estrogen-binding sites, although binding affinities for bot...

Estrogen replacement therapy for postmenopausal women consists of an estrogenic and a progestagenic compound. The treatment has a positive estrogenic effect on bone, the cardiovascular system, and vagina but is dependent of the estrogen-progestagen balance in uterus to prevent unwanted proliferation. We were interested in the influence of estrogens and progestagens on estrogen metabolism in tar...