BACKGROUND Diethylstilbestrol (DES) is a synthetic estrogen associated with adverse effects on reproductive organs. DES-induced toxicity of the mouse seminal vesicle (SV) is mediated by estrogen receptor α (ERα), which alters expression of seminal vesicle secretory protein IV (Svs4) and lactoferrin (Ltf) genes. OBJECTIVES We examined a role for nuclear receptor activity in association with DN...

Rac1, a Rho GTPase, modulates diverse cellular processes and is hyperactive in some cancers. Estrogen receptor-alpha (ERα) in concert with intracellular signaling pathways regulates genes associated with cell proliferation, tumor development, and breast cancer cell survival. Therefore, we examined the possibility of Rac1 and ERα crosstalk in breast cancer cells. We found that Rac1 enhanced ERα ...

Estrogen exerts diverse biological effects in multiple tissues in both animals and humans. Much of the accumulated knowledge on the role of estrogen receptor (ER) in the heart has been obtained from studies using ovariectomized mice, whole body ER gene knock-out animal models, ex vivo heart studies, or from isolated cardiac myocytes. In light of the wide systemic influence of ER signaling in re...

The homeostatic control of the cellular proteome steady-state is dependent either on the 26S proteasome activity or on the lysosome function. The sex hormone 17β-estradiol (E2) controls a plethora of biological functions by binding to the estrogen receptor α (ERα), which is both a nuclear ligand-activated transcription factor and also an extrinsic plasma membrane receptor. Regulation of E2-indu...

Introduction: Lower level of estrogen hormone is considered as an important factor for loss of learning and memory in postmenopausal women. Although estrogen replacement therapy is used for compensation, but long-term usage of estrogen is associated with a higher risk of hormonedependent cancers. Phytoestrogens, due to fewer side effects, have been proposed to prevent menopause-related co...

The abundance of dioxins and dioxin-like pollutants has massively increased in the environment due to human activity. These chemicals are particularly persistent and accumulate in the food chain, which raises major concerns regarding long-term exposure to human health. Most dioxin-like pollutants activate the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) transcription factor, which regulates xenobiotic metab...

Ctr9, the key scaffold subunit in human RNA polymerase II associated factor complex (PAFc), has diverse functions in cells and has been implicated in human diseases. Recently, our study found that loss of Ctr9 led to apparent morphological change, decrease of proliferation, and reduced colony formation in ERα(+) breast cancer cells. Moreover, Ctr9 and ERα show positive correlation at protein le...

Estrogen receptor-α (ERα) has central role in hormone-dependent breast cancer and its ligand-induced functions have been extensively characterized. However, evidence exists that ERα has functions that are independent of ligands. In the present work, we investigated the binding of ERα to chromatin in the absence of ligands and its functions on gene regulation. We demonstrated that in MCF7 breast...

BACKGROUND Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) influence the activity of estrogen receptors (ERs) and alter the function of the endocrine system. However, the diversity of EDC effects and mechanisms of action are poorly understood. OBJECTIVES We examined the agonistic activity of EDCs through ERα and ERβ. We also investigated the effects of EDCs on ER-mediated target genes. METHODS HepG2 ...

Oestrogen and oestrogen receptors (ER) play critical roles in the maintenance of bone remodelling. Genistein, structurally similar to 17β-oestradiol, is a phyto-oestrogen that may be beneficial for treating osteoporosis. In the present study, we evaluated the effects of genistein on the regulation of ERα gene expression and osteoblast mineralisation using MC3T3-E1 cells and primary rat calvaria...