Progesterone inhibition of water permeability in Bufo arenarum oocytes and urinary bladder

The ovarian oocytes from Bufo arenarum (BAO) but not those from Xenopus laevis (XLO) would have water channels (WC). We now report that the injection of the mRNA from BAO into the oocytes from XLO increased their water osmotic permeability (Pi) (reduced by 0.3 mM HgCl2 and reversed by 5 mM beta-mercaptoethanol). A 30-min challenge with progesterone induced, 18 h later, a reduction of the mercury-sensitive fraction of Pf in the BAO (but not in XLO). The mRNA from BAO pretreated with progesterone lost its capacity to induce WC in the XLO, but the hormone did not affect the expression of the WC in XLO previously injected with the mRNA from BAO. Pf was also measured in urinary bladders of BAO. Eighteen hours after a challenge with progesterone, a reduction in the hydrosmotic response to oxytocin was observed. Finally, the mRNA from the urinary bladder of BAO was injected into XLO. An increase in Pf was observed. This was not the case if, before the mRNA extraction, the bladders were treated with progesterone. We conclude that the BAO WC share progesterone sensitivity with the oxytocin-regulated water channel present in the toad urinary bladder.