Cell-specific induction of c-fos expression in the pituitary gland by estrogen

Estrogens regulate many functions of pituitary lactotrophs, including PRL gene expression, release, storage, and cellular proliferation. The mechanism by which estrogens exert such a variety of functions is poorly understood. In the uterus, estrogens rapidly and transiently induce the expression of the immediate early genes c-fos and c-jun in specific cell types. The Fos/Jun proteins form the activating protein-1 (AP1) transcription factor that mediates ligand-activated cell proliferation, differentiation, and secretion. Here we used Fischer 344 (F344) rats that develop hyperprolactinemia and prolactinomas in response to estrogens. The objectives were to: 1) determine whether estrogen induces c-fos expression in the pituitary gland and identify the responsive cells; 2) compare the dynamics of c-fos induction in the pituitary and uterus; and 3) examine the temporal relationship between c-fos expression and PRL release. Ovariectomized F344 rats were injected with 1 microg estradiol and killed at different times thereafter. Pituitaries were subjected to in situ hybridization for c-fos and immunostaining for selected pituitary cells. Estradiol stimulated c-fos expression in lactotrophs and folliculo-stellate cells within the anterior lobe without affecting either the intermediate or neural lobes. In a second experiment, c-fos messenger RNA levels were measured by solution hybridization in anterior pituitaries and uteri from estradiol-treated rats. Trunk blood was analyzed for PRL by RIA. The estrogen-induced c-fos rise in the uterus was rapid, robust, and transient, whereas that in the anterior pituitary was delayed, lower, and sustained. The profile of serum PRL levels resembles that of c-fos induction in the anterior pituitary. We conclude that: 1) both lactotrophs and folliculo-stellate cells increase c-fos expression in response to estrogens; 2) induction of c-fos expression may mediate some estrogenic effects on PRL synthesis and release and lactotroph proliferation in F344 rats; and 3) the atypical dynamics of c-fos induction in the pituitary could be due to indirect effects of estrogens on PRL-regulating factors within the hypothalamo-pituitary complex as well as to pituitary-specific estrogen receptor isoforms, coactivators, or repressors.