Concentrations of cytochrome p450 cholesterol side-chain cleavage enzyme and 3b-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase during prostaglandin f2α-induced luteal regression in cattle

Prostaglandin F_2α (PGF_2α-induced regression of the corpus luteum causes both plasma progesterone concentrations and luteal concentrations of mRNA encoding the steroidogenic enzyme 3--hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3-HSD) to fall in parallel. To investigate the hypothesis that a decline in the concentrations of mRNA encoding steroidogenic enzymes causes plasma progesterone to fall, the luteal concentrations of the enzymes 3-HSD and cytochrome P450 cholesterol side-chain cleavage were measured during induced luteolysis. Holstein heifers were treated with PGF_2α: (25 mg Lutalyse) on Day 6 or Day 7 of the oestrous cycle and corpora lutea were collected Oh, 2 h, 12 h, and 24 h later (n = 6, 4, 4, and 4 respectively). Analyses of the steroidogenic enzymes were carried out by Western immunoblotting. The luteal concentrations of both steroidogenic enzymes did not decrease over the 24-h period. It is concluded that, although the concentrations of mRNA encoding steroidogenic enzymes may decline in response to PGF_2α, this does not lead to a sufficiently rapid reduction in the concentrations of the enzymes to precede, and thus cause, the decline in plasma progesterone concentrations. Thus, the mechanism for the initial decline in plasma progesterone concentrations during luteolysis is still not known.