A mammalian cell expression plasmid, pH beta-Aro, containing the human placenta aromatase complementary DNA was constructed. The prepared plasmid was used to transfect breast cancer cells (MCF-7), noncancerous breast cells (HBL-100), and Chinese hamster ovary cells by a stable expression method. While the maximum velocities for aromatase expressed in three types of cells were different (10-201 ...

Compounds that inhibit aromatase activity are used for the treatment of breast cancer. A group of sesquiterpene lactones inhibit aromatase activity and also exert cytotoxicity through their reactive alpha-methylene-gamma-lactone group. To synthesize sesquiterpene lactones with greater specificity for aromatase inhibition and lower cytotoxicity, we chemically reduced the alpha-methylene-gamma-la...

Cytochrome p450 aromatase (p450arom) is a key enzyme responsible for the irreversible transformation of androgens into estrogens. In the present study, we have analysed the ability of human ejaculated spermatozoa to produce estrogens and for that purpose we have looked for the expression of specific aromatase transcript and protein. We have confirmed the presence of p450arom transcript in all n...

We investigated the effects of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and prostaglandins (PG) on the expression of aromatase (CYP19) in human adrenocortical carcinoma cell line NCI-H295R cells. EGF significantly increased aromatase activity and CYP19 gene transcript in NCI-H295R cells. Exon PII was selected from among several tissue-specific exon I regions. Promoter II that abuts on exon PII was activat...

Testicular peritubular cells produce a paracrine factor termed PModS that has dramatic effects on Sertoli cell function in vitro. The current study was designed to examine the actions of PModS and hormones on Sertoli cell aromatase activity and plasminogen activator production at various stages of pubertal development. Sertoli cells were isolated from 10-, 20-, and 35-day-old rats (ages corresp...

Both the functional loss of p53 and the overexpression of aromatase are important for the progression of breast cancer in postmenopausal women. Here, we found that aromatase expression was up-regulated in primary cultures of mammary epithelial cells (p53(Delta)(5,6) MEC) isolated from mice with a defect in exons 5 and 6 of the p53 gene. Aromatase basal activity and expression levels were signif...

Aromatase is the rate-limiting enzyme in estrogen biosynthesis and a key target in breast cancer treatment. Its ovary-specific promoter, PII, is induced in response to protein kinase A (PKA) activation. It has been proposed that breast cancer susceptibility gene 1, BRCA1, is involved in negative regulation of aromatase PII activity. Surprisingly, inhibition of PKA pathway by inhibitor H89 eleva...

During embryogenesis, incubation temperature and the hormonal environment influence gonadal differentiation of some reptiles, including all crocodilians. Current evidence suggests that aromatase, the enzyme that converts androgens to estrogens, has a role in sexual differentiation of species that exhibit temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD). During the temperature-sensitive period (TSP...

The essential osteoblast-related transcription factor Runx2 and the female steroid hormone estrogen are known to play pivotal roles in bone homeostasis; however, the functional interaction between Runx2- and estrogen-mediated signaling in skeletal tissues is minimally understood. Here we provide evidence that aromatase (CYP19), a rate-limiting enzyme responsible for estrogen biosynthesis in mam...

In most mammalian species aromatase is encoded by a single gene (Cyp19), which contains 18 exons, nine of them being translated. In man, the presence of a biologically active aromatase and oestrogen receptors (ERalpha and ERbeta) has been reported in Leydig cells, and also in immature germ cells and ejaculated spermatozoa. Concerning aromatase, the amount of transcript and enzymatic activity ar...