Nuclear uptake of sex steroids in gingiva of the baboon

Influences of sex steroid hormones on the periodontium are documented. Confirmation of the presence and location of receptors for these hormones is important in achieving a more complete understanding of their role in periodontal disease. Biochemical studies have provided evidence of sex steroid receptors in cytosols prepared from gingival tissues, however, no morphologic data are available on the location or specific cell types with receptors. For this study, three mature male and three female baboons received tritiated 5-alpha-dihydrotestosterone (3H-DHT) while three similar males and three females received tritiated estradiol-17 beta (3H-E2). A control animal from each group of three was given an excess of the corresponding unlabeled hormone in addition to the tritiated dose. Gingival specimens were obtained at necropsy as part of a total body study of receptor distribution, and autoradiographs were prepared on emulsion-coated slides. Heavy nuclear uptake was observed in periosteal fibroblasts and scattered fibroblasts of the lamina propria in male given 3H-E2. Females had moderate uptake of E2 in similar but fewer sites than males. There was minimal uptake of 3H-DHT in one male and two females. These data provide additional evidence of steroid receptors in the periodontium and contribute to our understanding of responses of the periodontium to sex steroids.