Estrogen receptor (ER) modulators each induce distinct conformational changes in ER alpha and ER beta. (1/290)

Estrogen receptor (ER) modulators produce distinct tissue-specific biological effects, but within the confines of the established models of ER action it is difficult to understand why. Previous studies have suggested that there might be a relationship between ER structure and activity. Different ER modulators may induce conformational changes in the receptor that result in a specific biological activity. To investigate the possibility of modulator-specific conformational changes, we have applied affinity selection of peptides to identify binding surfaces that are exposed on the apo-ERs alpha and beta and on each receptor complexed with estradiol or 4-OH tamoxifen. These peptides are sensitive probes of receptor conformation. We show here that ER ligands, known to produce distinct biological effects, induce distinct conformational changes in the receptors, providing a strong correlation between ER conformation and biological activity. Furthermore, the ability of some of the peptides to discriminate between different ER alpha and ER beta ligand complexes suggests that the biological effects of ER agonists and antagonists acting through these receptors are likely to be different.  (+info)

Enlarged nuchal translucency and low serum protein concentrations as possible markers for Zellweger syndrome. (2/290)

We present a case of a fetus in which an enlarged nuchal translucency was detected at 12 weeks' gestation. The karyotype was normal. Subsequent ultrasound examination showed no obvious fetal abnormalities apart from a mild pericardial effusion. Serum screening revealed very low concentrations of estriol and human chorionic gonadotropin. After birth the diagnosis of Zellweger syndrome was made. Nuchal translucency screening, estriol level identification and detailed ultrasound scanning may help to identify fetuses affected by this syndrome.  (+info)

Reproducibility and validity of radioimmunoassays for urinary hormones and metabolites in pre- and postmenopausal women. (3/290)

The reproducibility of RIAs of circulating sex hormones has been evaluated as part of recent epidemiological investigations, but none seem to have addressed the reproducibility or validity of RIAs for urinary hormones or their metabolites. As part of a case-control study of breast cancer in Asian-American women, 12-h overnight urine samples were obtained, and a methodological study was conducted to identify laboratories capable of assaying urinary hormones. For the reproducibility component of this study, two laboratories with extensive experience in hormone assays measured urinary estrone, estradiol, estriol, pregnanediol glucuronide, and estrone glucuronide using samples from 15 women (5 midfollicular, 5 midluteal, and 5 postmenopausal). Variance estimates from these measurements were used to calculate the laboratory variability (coefficient of variation) and to assess the magnitude of the biological variability among the women in relation to the total variability (intraclass correlation coefficient). For the validity component, urinary estrone, estradiol, and estriol levels were measured in the same samples by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy in the laboratory of Dr. Herman Adlercreutz (University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland). We found that the degree of assay reproducibility differed between the laboratories, but that laboratory variability was usually low compared with the range of hormone values among women, particularly for the estrogens. Values for estrone and estradiol were well correlated among all of the laboratories. For estriol, the RIAs tended to overestimate levels compared with gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy. In one laboratory, assays for pregnanediol glucuronide and estrone glucuronide were consistently reproduced; in the other, the reproducibility of the RIA for pregnanediol glucuronide was problematic, and estrone glucuronide was not measured. Despite some limitations, urinary hormones and their metabolites can be reliably measured by current RIAs in large investigations attempting to link hormone level to disease risk and may be particularly advantageous for studies of postmenopausal women, where serum concentrations of estrone and estradiol are low and assay measurements are not as dependable.  (+info)

The metabolic effects of estriol in female rat liver. (4/290)

The effects of estriol on oxygen uptake, glucose release, lactate and pyruvate production, beta-hydroxybutyrate and acetoacetate production in perfused rat liver as well as, carbon uptake in rat liver and intracellular calcium in isolated Kupffer cells were investigated. Basal oxygen consumption of perfused liver increased significantly in estriol or ethanol-treated rats. But these increased effects were blocked by gadolinium chloride pretreatment. In a metabolic study, pretreatment with estriol resulted in a decrease in glucose production and in glycolysis while an increase in ketogenesis. A more oxidized redox state of the mitochondria was indicated by increased ratios of perfusate [lactate]/[pyruvate] and decreased ratios of perfusate [beta-hydroxybutyrate]/[acetoacetate]. Carbon uptake of Kupffer-cell increased significantly in estriol-treated rats. But these increased uptake were not shown in rats pre-treated by gadolinium chloride blocking phagocytosis. In isolated Kupffer cells from estriol-treated rats, intracellular calcium was more significantly increased after addition of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) than in controls. These findings suggest that the metabolic effects of estriol (two mg per 100 mg body wt) can be summarized to be highly toxic in rat liver, and these findings suggest that oral administration of estrogens may induce hepatic dysfunctions and play a role in the development of liver disease.  (+info)

Integrated screening for Down's syndrome on the basis of tests performed during the first and second trimesters. (5/290)

BACKGROUND: Both first-trimester screening and second-trimester screening for Down's syndrome are effective means of selecting women for chorionic-villus sampling or amniocentesis, but there is uncertainty about which screening method should be used in practice. We propose a new screening method in which measurements obtained during both trimesters are integrated to provide a single estimate of a woman's risk of having a pregnancy affected by Down's syndrome. METHODS: We used data from published studies of various screening methods employed during the first and second trimesters. The first-trimester screening consisted of measurement of serum pregnancy-associated plasma protein A in 77 pregnancies affected by Down's syndrome and 383 unaffected pregnancies and measurements of nuchal translucency obtained by ultrasonography in 326 affected and 95,476 unaffected pregnancies. The second-trimester tests were various combinations of measurements of serum alpha-fetoprotein, unconjugated estriol, human chorionic gonadotropin, and inhibin A in 77 affected and 385 unaffected pregnancies. RESULTS: When we used a risk of 1 in 120 or greater as the cutoff to define a positive result on the integrated screening test, the rate of detection of Down's syndrome was 85 percent, with a false positive rate of 0.9 percent. To achieve the same rate of detection, current screening tests would have higher false positive rates (5 to 22 percent). If the integrated test were to replace the triple test (measurements of serum alpha-fetoprotein, unconjugated estriol, and human chorionic gonadotropin), currently used with a 5 percent false positive rate, for screening during the second trimester, the detection rate would be higher 85 percent vs. 69 percent), with a reduction of four fifths in the number of invasive diagnostic procedures and consequent losses of normal fetuses. CONCLUSIONS: The integrated test detects more cases of Down's syndrome with a much lower false positive rate than the best currently available test.  (+info)

Comparative measurements of serum estriol, estradiol, and estrone in non-pregnant, premenopausal women; a preliminary investigation. (6/290)

Little to no data exists in the literature for serum estriol values in non-pregnant, premenopausal women. The current medical community opinion holds that estriol has no significant role in non-pregnant women relative to the other estrogens. It is a possibility that estriol's primary function has yet to be discovered. Accordingly, the first step is to understand cycle-dependent serum estriol concentrations. We have made a preliminary investigation for serum estriol concentration of 26 women during the known cycle peaks of estrone and estradiol. Five of the women were also tested for serum estriol on various days throughout the cycle in order to develop a cycle-dependent concentration profile. The result of these experiments show that serum estriol was always significantly higher than the sum of estrone and estradiol and less fluctuating. We conclude that estriol is probably a significant estrogen component.  (+info)

Estriol sensitizes rat Kupffer cells via gut-derived endotoxin. (7/290)

The relationship between gender and alcohol-induced liver disease is complex; however, endotoxin is most likely involved. Recently, it was reported that estriol activated Kupffer cells by upregulation of the endotoxin receptor CD14. Therefore, the purpose of this work was to study how estriol sensitizes Kupffer cells. Rats were given estriol (20 mg/kg ip), and Kupffer cells were isolated 24 h later. After addition of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), intracellular Ca2+ concentration was measured using a microspectrofluorometer with the fluorescent indicator fura 2, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha was measured by ELISA. CD14 was evaluated by Western analysis. One-half of the rats given estriol intraperitoneally 24 h before an injection of a sublethal dose of LPS (5 mg/kg) died within 24 h, whereas none of the control rats died. Mortality was prevented totally by sterilization of the gut with antibiotics. A similar pattern was obtained with liver histology and serum transaminases. Translocation of horseradish peroxidase was increased about threefold in gut segments by treatment with estriol. This increase was not altered by treatment with nonabsorbable antibiotics. On the other hand, endotoxin levels were increased to 60-70 pg/ml in plasma of rats treated with estriol. As expected, this increase was prevented (<20 pg/ml) by antibiotics. In isolated Kupffer cells, LPS-induced increases in intracellular Ca2+ concentration, tumor necrosis factor-alpha production, and CD14 were increased, as previously reported. All these phenomena were blocked by antibiotics. Therefore, it is concluded that estriol treatment in vivo sensitizes Kupffer cells to LPS via mechanisms dependent on increases in CD14. This is most likely due to elevated portal blood endotoxin caused by increased gut permeability.  (+info)

Antenatal screening for Down's syndrome in assisted reproductive pregnancies. (8/290)

The wide use of assisted conception methods has risen dramatically. The greater proportion of singletons, twins and high order of multiplicity conceived by those methods have already focused the medical community to various obstetric complications. Recently, there have been suggestions that the levels of mid-gestation serum markers, particularly human chorionic gonadotrophin (HCG), might be affected by assisted conception, leading to higher false-positive results. Furthermore, women who conceived after assisted reproduction methods are on average older, and in many cases their current pregnancy was achieved after long-standing infertility and might even be their last one. This is why they are extremely wary of any invasive fetal karyotyping. Therefore, every effort should be made to provide them with the most accurate screening of Down's syndrome (DS) risk. In this respect, nuchal translucency (NT) measurement, which has been reported to be another effective screening method, might be a more reliable marker in these pregnancies. This review explores the problematic issue of antenatal DS screening in assisted conception pregnancies. For the singletons and twins, a sequential NT and second-trimester serum marker screening can be offered, thus producing a single risk estimation which seems to be more accurate. For the high order of multiplicity, the NT offers additional important data, which can be taken in consideration both as a screening tool for DS and if fetal reduction is planned.  (+info)

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