Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2024 Jun 19:12:1395331.
doi: 10.3389/fcell.2024.1395331. eCollection 2024.

Roles of estrogen and its receptors in polycystic ovary syndrome

Yao Xu #  1 , Ziyi Zhang #  1   2 , Rongxiang Wang #  3 , Songguo Xue  3 , Qian Ying  1 , Liping Jin  1   2
Affiliations
Review

Roles of estrogen and its receptors in polycystic ovary syndrome

Yao Xu et al. Front Cell Dev Biol. .

Abstract

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is an endocrine disorder characterized by abnormal steroid hormone levels in peripheral blood and poor-quality oocytes. In the ovary, androgen is produced by theca cells, and estrogen is produced by granulosa cells. Androgen is converted to estrogen in granulosa cells, with cytochrome P450 aromatase as the limiting enzyme during this process. Estrogen receptors (ER) include ER alpha, ER beta, and membrane receptor GPR30. Studies have demonstrated that the abnormal functions of estrogen and its receptors and estradiol synthesis-related enzymes are closely related to PCOS. In recent years, some estrogen-related drugs have made significant progress in clinical application for subfertility with PCOS, such as letrozole and clomiphene. This article will elaborate on the recent advances in PCOS caused by abnormal expression of estrogen and its receptors and the application of related targeted small molecule drugs in clinical research and treatment.

Keywords: estrogen; estrogen receptor; estrogen signaling; ovary; polycystic ovary syndrome.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Schematic representation of estrogen biosynthesis. E1: estrone; E2:17β-estradiol; E3: Estriol; E4: Estetrol; Cyp: Cytochrome P450; HSD: Hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase; HEAS: Dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate; DHEA: Dehydroepiandrosterone; LH: Luteinizing hormone; FSH: Follicle stimulating hormone.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Different patterns of estrogen receptor signaling. (a) Classic ERE genomic pattern: The E2-ER complex acts as a transcriptional activator that promotes gene expression. (b) ERE independent genomic pattern. E2 activated ER binds with other classes of transcription factors, thereby regulating gene expression. (c) Ligand independent genomic pattern. Peptides such as EGF, and IGF-1 can activate estrogen receptors to express target genes. Phosphorylation of estrogen receptors may be the key factor. (d) mER-mediated signaling pathway. E2-mER mediated signal transduction causes a rapid regulation effect of the cellular response. E2:17β-estradiol; ER: estrogen receptor; GPR30: G protein coupled estrogen receptor; ERE: estrogen response element; TF: transcription factor; P: phosphate group.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Abbott D. H., Rayome B. H., Dumesic D. A., Lewis K. C., Edwards A. K., Wallen K., et al. (2017). Clustering of PCOS-like traits in naturally hyperandrogenic female rhesus monkeys. Hum. Reprod. 32 (4), 923–936. 10.1093/humrep/dex036 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Aflatounian A., Edwards M. C., Rodriguez Paris V., Bertoldo M. J., Desai R., Gilchrist R. B., et al. (2020). Androgen signaling pathways driving reproductive and metabolic phenotypes in a PCOS mouse model. J. Endocrinol. 245 (3), 381–395. 10.1530/JOE-19-0530 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Albaghdadi A. J. H., Kan F. W. K. (2021). Therapeutic potentials of low-dose tacrolimus for aberrant endometrial features in polycystic ovary syndrome. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 22 (6), 2872. 10.3390/ijms22062872 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Albanito L., Sisci D., Aquila S., Brunelli E., Vivacqua A., Madeo A., et al. (2008). Epidermal growth factor induces G protein-coupled receptor 30 expression in estrogen receptor-negative breast cancer cells. Endocrinology 149 (8), 3799–3808. 10.1210/en.2008-0117 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Aryan L., Younessi D., Zargari M., Banerjee S., Agopian J., Rahman S., et al. (2020). The role of estrogen receptors in cardiovascular disease. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 21 (12), 4314. 10.3390/ijms21124314 - DOI - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources