Hormonal control of epidermal growth factor receptors by gonadotropins during granulosa cell differentiation

The hormonal induction of epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor formation was analyzed during the maturation of granulosa cells obtained from diethylstilbestrol-implanted immature rats. In the absence of FSH, EGF receptors (as measured by the binding of [125I]iodo-EGF to the intact cells) rose by 50% at 6 h of culture, but then declined to about 25-40% of their initial levels at 24-96 h of culture. Scatchard analyses demonstrated the presence of high affinity EGF-binding sites in both freshly prepared cells and after FSH treatment. FSH stimulated a dose-dependent increase in the EGF receptor content of granulosa cells during a 96-h culture period. Concentrations of FSH as low as 2.5-5 ng/ml elevated EGF receptor levels 2- to 3-fold compared to those in untreated control cells, and 30 ng/ml FSH caused a maximal 15-fold rise. FSH increased EGF receptor levels approximately 2-fold in the first 6 h of culture and by up to 7-fold at 96 h compared to levels in freshly prepared cells. FSH treatment did not change the binding affinity (Kd = 5-6 X 10(-11) M) of the EGF receptor, but increased the total number of EGF-binding sites. The stimulatory effects of FSH on EGF receptor expression were mimicked by other cAMP-inducing ligands, including 8-bromo-cAMP, forskolin, and choleragen. Ligands known to inhibit granulosa cell function, including GnRH agonists and the phorbol ester 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol 13-acetate, reduced the stimulation of EGF receptors by FSH. However, only 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol 13-acetate suppressed the induction of EGF receptors by 8-bromo-cAMP. In granulosa cells cultured for 48 h with FSH, subsequent treatment with hCG for 24 h reduced EGF receptor content by 25%. Autoradiographic studies with [125I]iodo-EGF in ovarian thin sections demonstrated that EGF-binding sites were uniformly dispersed throughout the ovaries of diethylstilbestrol-implanted rats. Treatment with PMSG markedly increased EGF receptors in the outer walls of the growing follicles, while hCG treatment after PMSG caused a general decline in ovarian labeling. These results indicate that FSH maintains and increases the number of EGF receptors during granulosa cell differentiation, while LH/hCG reduces EGF-binding sites. Such changes in EGF receptors in the presence of endogenous growth factors may influence the number and selection of follicles destined for ovulation.