Y. Ohno et al., ENDOMETRIAL ESTROGEN AND PROGESTERONE RECEPTORS AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO SONOGRAPHIC ENDOMETRIAL APPEARANCE, Human reproduction, 10(3), 1995, pp. 708-711
The present study was undertaken to evaluate a possible relationship b
etween the endometrial concentrations of oestrogen receptor (ER) or pr
ogesterone receptor (PR), and the sonographic appearance of human endo
metrium. Sonographic assessments and aspirations of the endometrium at
the time of or prior to ovulation were made in 48 cycles of 45 infert
ile women. Endometrial patterns were classified as A, triple line patt
ern, or B, not triple line, on the basis of echogenicity. We did not f
ind a correlation between ER or PR and serum oestradiol or endometrial
thickness. Furthermore, serum oestradiol concentrations were not corr
elated with endometrial pattern or thickness, The only significant cor
relations were found between the concentrations of ER and PR in the pa
ttern A endometrium (r = 0.80, P < 0.01) and in the pattern B endometr
ium (r = 0.49, P < 0.05). There were no differences in the mean concen
trations of ER and PR despite differences in endometrial pattern and t
hickness, However, PR was measured at >800 fmol/mg protein in 12 out o
f 38 pattern A endometria, while PR was <800 fmol/mg protein in all pa
ttern B endometria, These data suggest that high PR expression in the
pre-ovulatory period is related to an adequate endometrial growth and
thereby increases the responsiveness of the endometrium to progesteron
e stimulation after ovulation.