Acute effects of a single ethanol injection on in vitro rat uterine spontaneous motility, on uteri prostaglandin production and on tissue metabolism of triglycerides

Ethanol and parturition: a role for prostaglandins

A common pattern of birth defects was reported in children born to alcoholic women over 20 years ago. Shortly thereafter the constellation of defects became known as the Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and reports from around the world served to acknowledge the pervasiveness of the disorder. Simultaneously with the clinical reports, animal models were developed to characterize the full spectrum of the teratogenic effects of ethanol. Not only did these animal models serve to define the actions of ethanol on fetal growth and development at the molecular pharmacological, neuroanatomical, and behavioral level, but unintentionally, they have resulted in renewed scientific interest in the effects of ethanol on pregnancy and parturition itself. The purpose of this review is twofold. First we will consolidate and summarize data from both clinical and basic research that pertains to ethanol and parturition. These data will demonstrate that ethanol consumption during pregnancy results in both delayed as well as premature delivery depending upon the pattern of consumption and timing of exposure. With these data as a background, the second objective will be to present a theoretical case for prostaglandins as possible mediators of ethanol-induced effects on the onset of parturition.

Prostaglandin E2 production by uterine stromal cell line UIII: regulation by estradiol and evidence of an ethanol action

We have recently established a uterine stromal cell line (UIII). The purpose of the present study was to determine whether these cells have retained the ability to produce and release prostaglandins after several passages and whether this production was regulated. UIII cells, grown in basal conditions, released a very low amount (40.6 +/- 2.9 pg/24h/10(6) cells) of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) though cellular content was more elevated (192 +/- 23 pg/10(6) cells). Ethanol increased the cellular content but decreased the release of PGE2, whereas estradiol 17 beta (E2) increased it in a dose-dependent manner, but had no effect on the cellular content. The PGE2 release by cells grown in medium containing 10 microM arachidonate (AA) reached 1.39 +/- 0.05 ng/24h/10(6) cells, and was further increased to 2.1 +/- 0.1 ng/24 h/10(6) cells by the addition of ethanol. Under the latter condition, E2 was ineffective. This study also showed that UIII cells expressed an immunoreactive pancreatic type 14 kD PLA2. A substantial increased 14 kD PLA2 expression was observed in ethanol-treated cells, suggesting that ethanol-effect on prostaglandin production might be partly mediated by PLA2 increase. Medium supplementation with arachidonate also resulted in a significant increase of intracellular 14 kD PLA2 expression. The present results showed that uterine stromal UIII cells have retained the enzymatic machinery to produce PGE2. Moreover these data demonstrate that ethanol and E2 affect differently uterine PGE2 production.