Journal
ACTA HISTOCHEMICA ET CYTOCHEMICA
Volume 42, Issue 6, Pages 205-213Publisher
JAPAN SOC HISTOCHEMISTRY & CYTOCHEMISTRY
DOI: 10.1267/ahc.09033
Keywords
Wnt signaling; pituitary gland; estrogen; estrus cycle; growth hormone
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Funding
- Ministry of Education Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan [19390105]
- Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, Japan
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Wnt signaling is important in many aspects of cell biology and development. In the mouse female reproductive tract, Wnt4, Wnt5a, and Wnt7a show differential expression during the estrus cycle, suggesting that they participate in female reproductive physiology. Although the pituitary is a major gland regulating reproduction, the molecular mechanism of Wnt signaling here is unclear. We elucidated the subcellular distribution of Wnt4 in the pituitary of estrogen- treated ovariectomized female rats. Expression of Wnt4 mRNA increased dramatically, particularly in proestrus compared with estrus and metestrus. Wnt4 protein was observed in the cytoplasm of almost all growth hormone (GH)-producing cells and in only a few thyroid-stimulating hormone beta (TSH beta)-producing cells. In rat GH-producing pituitary tumor (MtT/S) cells, estrogen-induced expression of Wnt4 mRNA was completely inhibited by estrogen receptor antagonist ICI 182,780 in vitro. Thus, rat pituitary GH cells synthesize Wnt4 and this is induced by estrogen mediated via an estrogen receptor alpha-dependent pathway.
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