Subcellular fractionation of the ovine corpus luteum: association of progesterone with ovine luteal membranes?

Sheep corpus luteum homogenates were fractionated by centrifugation on continuous sucrose density gradients, with or without digitonin, and gradient fractions were assayed for progesterone, and for a range of intracellular organelle and plasma-membrane markers. Digitonin had little effect on the density distributions of mitochondrial, rough endoplasmic reticulum (RER) and Golgi-endoplasmic reticulum-lysosomal (GERL) membranes. However, digitonin did disrupt lysosomal membranes, leading to release of acid hydrolases, and induced a decrease in buoyant density of NADH-cytochrome c reductase, a putative smooth endoplasmic reticulum (SER) marker. Oxytocin-containing granules were clearly resolved from other organelles accumulating in a sharp peak (density, 1.20 g/cm3). Luteal cell-surface membrane marker activities equilibrated at similar buoyant densities in control gradients, and pretreatment with digitonin induced a marked increase in their buoyant densities. The majority of the progesterone of the sheep corpus luteum equilibrated at a buoyant density of 1.10 g/cm3 in control gradients, and was highly perturbed by digitonin. These fractions also accumulated [3H]progesterone. The buoyant density profile of progesterone in both control and digitonin-treated gradients most closely resembled that of sheep luteal lactogenic receptor, a putative plasma-membrane marker.