Actions of oestrogen on vascular endothelial and smooth-muscle cells

The overall effects of oestrogen on the vasculature are beneficial as a result of its antioxidant properties and ability to enhance relaxation by modulating synthesis of endothelium-derived vasodilators and smooth-muscle cell Ca2+ signalling. Although the protective effects of oestrogen are well accepted, only limited and conflicting data are available on the cellular mechanisms mediating steroid action in the vasculature. Discrepancies in cell culture experiments may reflect differences in culture conditions, the origin of cells and/or hormonal status. For example, umbilical vein endothelial cells isolated from gestational diabetic pregnancies exhibit phenotypic changes that are maintained during prolonged cell culture [42,75]. As gender differences in vascular reactivity have long been reported [76-78], gender needs to be taken into account in interpreting vascular responses to oestrogen in animal models. Further research is required to characterize the non-genomic actions of oestrogen in the vasculature. Whether activation of non-genomic receptors by physiologically relevant plasma concentrations of oestrogen modulates the activity of endothelial cell NOS, cyclo-oxygenase and superoxide dismutase and smooth-muscle cell Ca2+ ion channel activity remains to be investigated. Prolonged exposure of the vasculature to circulating steroid hormones may more closely reflect in vivo conditions, since oestrogen is known to enhance endothelium-dependent relaxation in response to some agonists [79].