Estradiol-17β affects estrogen receptor distribution and elevates progesterone receptor content in baboon aorta

We used the synthetic estrogen R2858 (moxestrol) and estradiol-17β, respectively, to characterize the estrogen receptor in baboon (Papio sp.) aortic or myocardial cytoplasmic and nuclear preparations. We observed regional differences in the cytoplasmic fraction estrogen and progesterone receptor content of aortic arch, thoracic aorta, and abdominal aorta when tissues from either oophorectomized or oophorectomized estradiol-17β-treated subjects were compared. The estrogen receptor content was highest in the abdominal aorta and lowest in the aortic arch. In contrast, the cytoplasmic fraction progesterone receptor content was highest in the aortic arch and lowest in the abdominal aorta. The nuclear fraction estrogen receptor could not be demonstrated in preparations from cardiovasculature of oophorectomized female baboons. The use of Silastic implants to administer a physiologic concentration of estradiol-17β to oophorectomized female baboons caused a 20% to 50% reduction in cytoplasmic fraction estrogen receptor content, which was quantitatively accounted for by the appearance of estrogen receptor in the corresponding nuclear aortic or myocardial preparation. Estrogen administration caused a 20% to 40% increase in cytoplasmic fraction progesterone receptor content in both myocardium and aorta; however, differences were significant only for abdominal aorta (p<0.05). Estradiol-17β treatment caused a tenfold increase in uterine cytoplasmic fraction progesterone receptor content in treated as compared to oophorectomized control females, suggesting that baboon cardiovasculature is less sensitive to changes in endogenous estrogen concentration than is uterus. The ability of estradiol-17β to affect apparent intracellular distribution of baboon cardiovascular estrogen receptors and to elevate cytoplasmic fraction progesterone receptor content suggests that these estrogen receptors are physiologically functional and indicates that estrogen may directly regulate primate cardiovascular cell function.