Abstract
ABSTRACT
This study was devised to evaluate the influence of estrogen on the uptake of dihematoporphyrin ether (DHE) in the uterus of ovariectomized rats. The DHE uptake was measured by scintillation counting and the distribution by fluorescence microscopy. Estrogen treatment significantly (P < 0.001) increased the uterine uptake of DHE but had no effect on uptake by the spleen. Uptake levels in both tissues remained constant during the 72 hours after DHE injection. Changes in the anatomic distribution of DHE were found to be gradual and a function of time. At 3 hours after injection, the DHE was concentrated in the endometrial layer. After 6 hours, the DHE had disappeared from the endometrium and appeared in the myometrium and serosa; after 24 hours it was seen in the serosa only. It is concluded that although the quantity of DHE remains constant for 72 hours within the rat uterus, its distribution pattern within the organ layers is dynamic.
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