Steroid receptors in uterine cervical cancers.

In cervical cancers, the estrogen receptor (ER) and progestin receptor (PR) were characterized in the cytosol protein. Receptor levels were determined in cytosol, nuclear KCl extract, and nuclear KCl unextractable fraction in various cervical cancer tissues. The androgen receptor (AR) was also similarly characterized. In the cytosol, the estrogen (E2)-ER complex and the promegesterone (R5020)-PR complex were sedimented at approximately the 5S and 8S or the 4S and 8S regions, respectively, by 5-20% linear sucrose gradient centrifugation. A steroid specificity study showed the presence of an estrogen-specific and a progestin-specific binder. The dissociation constant of the specific binder for estrogen (ER), progestin (PR), or androgen (AR) was approximately 10(-10) to 10(-9)M in cytosol, nuclear KCl, and nuclear KCl unextractable fraction in detected cases. Levels were determined by Scatchard analyses, using the dextran-coated charcoal (DCC) adsorption method for the former two and the washing method for the latter one. ER, PR, or AR was detected in some cases of determined cervical cancers (27 cases of squamous cell carcinoma, and 7 cases of adenocarcinoma); regardless of the histological types, ER was detected in almost all cases. PR was not detected in the given cases of cervical adenocarcinoma. It is suggested that estrogen stimulation of PR synthesis in cervical adenocarcinoma may be damaged.