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Activin βA subunit, follistatin and follistatin-like 3 are expressed in the endometrium of ovariectomized rats and regulated by estrogen replacement

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Abstract

Activin A is a growth factor expressed in the endometrium, where it modulates tissue remodeling and enhances decidualization. The effects of activin A are counteracted by two binding proteins, namely follistatin and follistatin-like 3 (FSTL3). We have evaluated the effects of estrogen and progestin on the endometrial expression of activin βA subunit, follistatin and FSTL3 in ovariectomized rats. Adult female Wistar rats (n = 21) were ovariectomized and received one week later a single dose of estradiol benzoate (1.5 mg/kg body weight, i.m. injection), either alone (n = 7) or associated with depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (3 mg/kg body weight, i.m. injection, n = 7), or oil vehicle (control group, n = 7). One week later, activin βA subunit mRNA levels had increased significantly in the uteri of rats treated with estradiol alone (7.4 fold increase over controls, P < 0.05) and to the same extent in rats receiving estradiol plus medroxyprogesterone (6.1 fold increase over controls, P < 0.05). This was accompanied by increase of βA subunit immunostaining in estradiol and estroprogestin treated rats, which was noted only in the surface endometrial epithelium. Follistatin mRNA expression, conversely, showed a significant decrease in the groups treated with estrogen alone and estrogen plus progestin (P < 0.05), and follistatin immunostaining in the glandular epithelium was weaker in estradiol and estroprogestin-treated rats compared to controls. FSTL3 expression was similar in the 3 groups. In conclusion, the expression of activin βA subunit increases and that of follistatin decreases following estrogen replacement in the endometrium of ovariectomized rats, and these effects are not further altered by the addition of progestin.

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Acknowledgments

Research supported by grants from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq), Brazil, and the Ministry of University and Scientific Research (MURST), Italy. We thank Ms. Solange Aquino and Mr. André Pimenta for their technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiology, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Márcia C. Ferreira, Inês K. D. Cavallo & Fernando M. Reis

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), Av. Alfredo Balena 110 – 9o andar, 30130-100, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Márcia C. Ferreira, Inês K. D. Cavallo & Fernando M. Reis

  3. Department of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Reproductive Medicine, University of Siena, Siena, Italy

    Pasquale Florio & Felice Petraglia

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  1. Márcia C. Ferreira
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  2. Inês K. D. Cavallo
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  3. Pasquale Florio
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  4. Felice Petraglia
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  5. Fernando M. Reis
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Correspondence to Fernando M. Reis.

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Ferreira, M.C., Cavallo, I.K.D., Florio, P. et al. Activin βA subunit, follistatin and follistatin-like 3 are expressed in the endometrium of ovariectomized rats and regulated by estrogen replacement. J Mol Hist 39, 535–541 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10735-008-9194-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10735-008-9194-x

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