Presence of gonadotropin-releasing hormone and its messenger ribonucleic acid in human ovarian epithelial carcinoma.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the expression of gonadotropin-releasing hormone messenger ribonucleic acid and the presence of gonadotropin-releasing hormone in human ovarian carcinoma known to have gonadotropin-releasing hormone binding sites and to be affected by gonadotropin-releasing hormone analog.

STUDY DESIGN: Human ovarian carcinomas surgically removed and human ovarian carcinoma cell lines were examined. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone was determined by a radioimmunoassay and a bioassay. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone messenger ribonucleic acid was determined by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction using oligonucleotide primers synthesized according to the published human gonadotropin-releasing hormone sequence.

RESULTS: Gonadotropin-releasing hormone was shown to be present in extracts of ovarian mucinous cystadenocarcinoma sample (0.8 +/- 0.12 pg/mg of protein) and ovarian adenocarcinoma cell line SK-OV3 (0.92 +/- 0.17 pg/mg of protein) but not in the normal ovary and placenta. Two of two extract samples from individual cases evoked dose-dependent phosphoinositide breakdown in rat granulosa cells similar to that caused by authentic gonadotropin-releasing hormone. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone messenger ribonucleic acid was detected in two of two mucinous cystadenocarcinoma specimens, one of one serous cystadenocarcinoma, and SK-OV3 cells but not in the dysgerminoma, mucinous cystadenoma, and normal ovary and placenta.

CONCLUSION: The demonstration of gonadotropin-releasing hormone and its messenger ribonucleic acid raises the possibility that gonadotropin-releasing hormone may play an autocrine regulatory role in the growth of ovarian carcinoma.