Human chorionic gonadotropin and 17-beta estradiol regulation of human oviductin/oviduct specific glycoprotein mRNA expression in vitro.

Objective: To determine whether oviduct mucosal cell culture with exogenous hCG or 17-beta estradiol (E(2)) supports the continued production of oviductin, a putative embryotrophic protein.

Design: Semiquantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) analysis of oviductin mRNA expression after oviduct mucosal cell culture in the presence of hCG or 17-beta E(2).

Setting: University-based Obstetrics and Gynecology Department.

Subject(s): Ten women undergoing laparoscopy for tubal sterilization or hysterectomy for uterine fibroids.

Intervention(s): The mucosal layer was isolated from the oviduct tissue, subjected to routine culture conditions with the addition of various concentrations of hCG or 17-beta E(2) or the equivalent vehicle-only control and semiquantitative RT-PCR performed.

Main Outcome Measure(s): The relationship between exposure to hCG or 17-beta E(2) and expression of oviductin mRNA by cultured oviduct mucosal cells.

Result(s): There was a significant increase in oviductin mRNA expression after the addition of hCG to the culture medium but only in samples that had maintained a baseline level of oviductin expression. Addition of 17-beta E(2) to the culture medium had no significant effect on oviductin mRNA expression.

Conclusion(s): Under standard cell culture conditions, baseline human oviductin mRNA expression is increased by the addition of hCG. This effect is likely to be a secondary or synergistic effect as exogenous hCG failed to restore oviductin mRNA expression in samples where expression was lost after culture. E(2) failed to alter oviductin mRNA expression in oviduct mucosal cells cultured under these conditions.