Suppressive effects of estradiol on 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin-mediated transcriptional activation of murine Cyp1a-1 in mouse hepatoma Hepa 1c1c7 cells

Cultured mouse hepatoma Hepa 1c1c7 cells were treated with either estradiol or 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) or in combination to assess the role of estradiol in the process of Cyp1a-1 induction. Estradiol at a concentration as high as 1 μM slightly increased the activity of Cyp1a-1-specific 7-ethoxyresorufin O-deethylase (EROD); in contrast, TCDD-induced EROD activity and Cyp1a-1 mRNA levels were markedly reduced in the concomitant treatment of TCDD and estradiol in a dose-dependent manner. Treatment with tamoxifen, an anti-estrogen which acts through the estrogen receptor, did not affect the suppressive effects of estradiol on TCDD-induced EROD activity. Electrophoretic mobility shift assay using nuclear extract of cells revealed that estradiol reduced transformation of the Ah receptor to the form capable of specifically binding to an oligonucleotide containing dioxin-response element (DRE) sequence. Consistent with this, estradiol decreased TCDD-induced increased chloramphenicol acetyltransferase (CAT) activity from a DRE-containing CAT reporter plasmid after transient transfection into the cells. The levels of the cytosolic [3H]TCDD-Ah receptor complex were reduced by estradiol in competitive Ah receptor binding assay using [3H]TCDD. This study demonstrated that estradiol acts as an antagonist to TCDD and can regulate Cyp1a-1 expression in an Ah receptor-dependent manner but not through estradiol receptor in Hepa 1c1c7 cells.