Ornithine decarboxylase activity and polyamine content of the placenta and decidual tissue in the rat

Measurements of ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) activity and of the amounts of putrescine, spermidine and spermine in the placenta and uterus of the pregnant rat and in decidual tissue of the pseudo-pregnant rat showed that these wax and wane with the growth rate of the tissues. Human term placenta has essentially no ODC activity, but placentae from 15-week human gestations have substantial amounts of enzyme. The ODC activity of the rat placenta increases 40-fold from day 10 to day 17 of pregnancy, then gradually decreases. The content of the polyamines in the placenta also reaches a peak on day 17. The ODC activity of the endometrium between implantation sites remains low until the end of pregnancy and then increases eight-fold on days 21 and 22. This may represent increased uterine activity in preparation for parturition. The ODC activity and the polyamine content of decidual tissue responds to administered oestradiol with increases that reach a peak within four hours. The ODC activity and polyamine content of decidual tissue decrease after the fifth day of decidualization. Nuclei isolated from decidual tissue respond to the addition of spermine or spermidine with an increase in the rate of RNA synthesis. Spermidine increases the elongation of RNA chains, but does not initiate the synthesis of new RNA chains in decidual nuclei.