Hormone-dependent changes in A and B forms of progesterone receptor.

The influence of different estrogen and/or progesterone treatments on concentrations of A and B forms of progesterone receptor (PR-A and PR-B) in the different cell types of chick oviduct was studied. A semiquantitative immunohistochemical assay for cellular PR concentrations was developed using a computer-assisted image analysis system. The staining intensity of nuclear PR in the basal layer of epithelial cells, glandular, smooth muscle and mesothelial cells was analysed separately using two monoclonal antibodies, PR6 and PR22. The measured concentrations of PR varied between different cell types and from cell to cell. A significant decrease in PR concentration, as noted by a decrease in staining intensity, was observed in all cell types studied 2 or 6 h after a single injection of progesterone with or without simultaneous estrogen administration. The decrease was also verified with immunoblotting and an immunoenzymometric assay (IEMA) for chicken PR. After down-regulation the concentration of PR recovered to the control level within 48 h after progesterone or estrogen administration. Estrogen administration alone was observed to cause changes in the concentration of PR-A only, having little or no effect on PR-B concentration depending on the cell type studied. These findings indicate that estrogen and progesterone cause cell-specific changes not only to the total concentration of PR but also to the cellular ratio of PR-A and PR-B.