Changes in the apical microfilaments of rat uterine epithelial cells in response to estradiol and progesterone.

Abstract

This study investigates the interaction of hormones and the cytoskeleton within the apical cytoplasm of uterine epithelial cells of the rat. The effects of the hormones estradiol-17 beta and progesterone on the microfilament configuration were studied using myosin subfragment 1 (S1) decoration of actin microfilaments (MF) and transmission electron microscopy. In control ovariectomized animals, a sparse MF distribution was found in the apical cytoplasm underlying short microvilli with S1-decorated core MF. Hormone treatment experiments consisted of injecting ovariectomized rats with either progesterone or estradiol-17 beta. For the study of the MF configuration accompanying an apical surface primed for blastocyst receptivity, progesterone treatment was immediately followed by a single dose of estradiol-17 beta. The long, regular microvilli associated with estradiol only treatment contained bundled, decorated MF with tightly bundled rootlets. Progesterone alone produced numerous short microvilli with decorated core bundle MF and pronounced rootlets that frequently appeared splayed. The irregular microvilli and luminal surface of the uterine epithelial cells associated with the receptivity hormone sequence contained variable MF configurations, including MF bundles, networks, and areas with a "felted" appearance. The results show that the various hormone regimes produce characteristically different MF configurations and that this component of the cytoskeleton appears to be under the control of a delicate hormone balance within these uterine cells. The responses of uterine MF to specific regimes of steroid hormones used in this study are not only important for the understanding of the mechanisms at work during early pregnancy, but also contribute to the body of knowledge concerning the ways in which hormones in general effect the cytoskeleton of target cells.