Estrogen regulation of adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase—Possible mechanism of body fat distribution,☆☆,,★★

Charles Hunter Award Paper, presented at the Fifteenth Annual Meeting of the American Gynecological and Obstetrical Society, Asheville, North Carolina, September 5-7, 1996.
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0002-9378(98)70634-9Get rights and content

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the regulation of lipoprotein lipase activity, protein mass, and messenger ribonucleic acid by estradiol. STUDY DESIGN: Premenopausal women not taking exogenous sex steroids had transdermal 17β-estradiol and placebo patches placed in the gluteal region during the early follicular phase of the menstrual cycle. Adipose biopsies were performed from beneath the patches. Adipose tissue lipoprotein lipase activity was determined by a radiometric assay, protein mass was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and messenger ribonucleic acid level was determined by Northern analysis. Comparisons between the treated and placebo sides were analyzed by nonparametric statistics. RESULTS: Adipose tissue from beneath the 17β-estradiol patch had significantly decreased lipoprotein lipase activity and extracellular protein mass than did adipose tissue from beneath the placebo patch. There was no difference in lipoprotein lipase messenger ribonucleic acid levels. CONCLUSIONS: Estrogen decreases lipoprotein lipase activity by a posttranscriptional modification of protein levels. A hypothesis of sex steroid regulation of body fat distribution is proposed. (Am J Obstet Gynecol 1998;178:101-7.)

Section snippets

Subjects and adipose biopsy

Premenopausal, nonsmoking women with regular cyclic menses receiving no type of sex steroid therapy were recruited for this study. Before the study informed consent was obtained; the protocol had been approved by the hospital Institutional Review Board. Transdermal 17β-estradiol patches (Estraderm 0.l mg) were applied to one side of the upper gluteal region of each subject and placebo patches (Estraderm placebo patch) were applied to the opposite gluteal region. Two patches of each type were

Results

To ensure a concentration gradient of estrogen between the treated and untreated sides, free estradiol and estrone levels were measured in the oil rendered from the adipose tissue beneath each patch. Significantly higher mean levels of both estrone (2407 ± 636.3 vs 683.7 ± 99.7 pg/gm oil) and estradiol (2775 ± 834.4 vs 165.4 ± 30.5 pg/gm oil) were measured in the adipose tissue beneath the 17β-estradiol patch than in adipose tissue beneath the placebo patch (Fig. 1).

. Estradiol (E2) and estrone

Comment

In this study we have investigated the effect of transdermal estrogen administration on lipoprotein lipase activity, protein levels, and mRNA levels in premenopausal women. Because of the large individual differences in lipoprotein lipase levels, each subject served as her own control. To ensure that the patch itself had no effect, a placebo patch, identical in composition to the treatment patch except lacking estrogen, was applied to the contralateral side. Each subject had the patches applied

Acknowledgements

We thank the following individuals: Dr. P. Iverius for technical assistance with the lipoprotein lipase activity assay, Dr. L Chan for providing the lipoprotein cDNA and chicken antihuman lipoprotein antibody, and Dr. L. Smith for providing the M40 mouse antibovine lipoprotein antibody. We also thank Ms. Dawn Blackhurst for statistical analysis and Ms. Nancy Taylor for editorial review.

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    From the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Greenville Hospital System,a and Greenville Hospital System/Clemson University Biomedical Research Cooperative.b

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    Supported in part by the National Heart Foundation, a program of the American Health Assistance Foundation.

    Reprint requests: Thomas M. Price, MD, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Greenville Hospital System, Greenville, SC 29605.

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