Influence of sex hormones on prostaglandin dehydrogenase activity in the rat uterus.

The present experiments report the effects of estradiol or of progesterone on the activity of 15-prostaglandin-dehydrogenase (PGDH) in the uterus of spayed rats. When the substrate was PGF2 alpha the treatment with progesterone (4 mg X day-1, two days) or with estradiol-17-beta (0.5 ug + 1 ug) did not show any effect on the activity of the enzyme. On the contrary, uteri from ovariectomized rats injected with a higher dose of estradiol-17-beta (0.5 ug + 50 ug) exhibited a significant increment. When the substrate was PGE2, progesterone failed again to modify the enzyme activity, whereas estradiol, both at a low and at a high doses, enhanced significantly the uterine PGDH activity. The possibility of two different PGDHs for each PG and the role of estradiol in enhancing PGE2 catabolism into 15-keto-PGE2 as a mechanism subserving the effect of estrogens on the output of this PG in the rat uterus, are discussed.