Messenger ribonucleic acid for the gonadal luteinizing hormone human chorionic gonadotropin receptor is not present in human endometrium

Objective: To determine whether messenger RNA for the gonadal LH/hCG recept or is present in human endometrium with the use of reverse-transcriptase po lymerase chain reaction. Design: In vitro experiment. Setting: Academic medical center. Patient(s): Premenopausal woman who were not receiving hormonally active me dications and who were undergoing hysterectomy for uterine leiomyomas, meno rrhagia, pelvic pain, or uterine prolapse. Intervention(s): Tissue from hysterectomy specimens was processed for RNA a nd treated with deoxyribonuclease where appropriate, and RNA was reverse-tr anscribed to complementary DNA, Main Outcome Measure(s): An appropriately sized band after reverse-transcri ptase polymerase chain reaction, followed by sequencing to confirm the resu lts. Result(s): A primer pair that spanned the extracellular domain was unable t o amplify receptor complementary DNA from human endometrial tissue. For a p rimer pair that spanned transmembrane regions 2-6 of the receptor and was c ontained wholly in exon 11, a 552-base pair fragment was amplified successf ully in 19 of 25 human endometrial samples. Conclusion(s): The traditional gonadal LH/hCG receptor does not appear to h e present in human endometrial tissue. The presence of a portion of the tra nsmembrane part of the molecule suggests that human endometrium may express a truncated or variant form of the receptor. (Fertil Steril(R) 1999:7 1:36 8-72. (C) 1999 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine.)