This Key Event Relationship is licensed under the Creative Commons BY-SA license. This license allows reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format, so long as attribution is given to the creator. The license allows for commercial use. If you remix, adapt, or build upon the material, you must license the modified material under identical terms.
Relationship: 3836
Title
Activation, AhR leads to Progesterone resistance
Upstream event
Downstream event
Key Event Relationship Overview
AOPs Referencing Relationship
| AOP Name | Adjacency | Weight of Evidence | Quantitative Understanding | Point of Contact | Author Status | OECD Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AhR activation leading to endometriosis | adjacent | Léna CAUDAL (send email) | Under development: Not open for comment. Do not cite |
Taxonomic Applicability
| Term | Scientific Term | Evidence | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homo sapiens | Homo sapiens | High | NCBI |
Sex Applicability
| Sex | Evidence |
|---|---|
| Female | High |
Life Stage Applicability
Key Event Relationship Description
Evidence Collection Strategy
Evidence Supporting this KER
Biological Plausibility
Empirical Evidence
(Igarashi et al. 2005) demonstrated that, in a co-culture model of human endometrial stromal and epithelial cells, exposure to increasing concentrations of TCDD (0.1 to 20 nM) resulted in a dose-dependent decrease in both PR-B mRNA and protein in stromal cells. This reduction led to a decreased PR-A/PR-B ratio, similar to that observed in patients with endometriosis, a condition characterized by progesterone resistance. Consistently, (Nayyar et al. 2007) reported that adult mice exposed in vivo to TCDD (10 µg/kg) at different developmental stages exhibited a progressive loss of both PR-A and PR-B isoforms in the uterus, with a more pronounced decrease as the number of exposures increased. Finally, (Resuehr et al. 2012) confirmed these findings in isolated human endometrial stromal cells cultured for 5 days in the presence of estradiol and progesterone, with or without TCDD (10 nM) : TCDD exposure resulted in a statistically significant decrease in PR-B mRNA expression. Collectively, these data indicate that activation of AhR by dioxin-like xenobiotics selectively represses PR-B, thereby altering the functional balance of progesterone signaling and potentially contributing to progesterone resistance in the endometrium.
Uncertainties and Inconsistencies
Known modulating factors
Quantitative Understanding of the Linkage
Response-response Relationship
Time-scale
Known Feedforward/Feedback loops influencing this KER
Domain of Applicability
References
Igarashi, Toshio M., Kaylon L. Bruner-Tran, Grant R. Yeaman, et al. 2005b. ‘Reduced Expression of Progesterone Receptor-B in the Endometrium of Women with Endometriosis and in Cocultures of Endometrial Cells Exposed to 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-Dioxin’. Fertility and Sterility 84 (1): 67–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2005.01.113.
Nayyar, Tultul, Kaylon L. Bruner-Tran, Dagmara Piestrzeniewicz-Ulanska, and Kevin G. Osteen. 2007. ‘Developmental Exposure of Mice to TCDD Elicits a Similar Uterine Phenotype in Adult Animals as Observed in Women with Endometriosis’. Reproductive Toxicology 23 (3): 326–36. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.reprotox.2006.09.007.
Resuehr, David, Dana R. Glore, Hugh S. Taylor, Kaylon L. Bruner-Tran, and Kevin G. Osteen. 2012. ‘Progesterone-Dependent Regulation of Endometrial Cannabinoid Receptor Type 1 (CB1-R) Expression Is Disrupted in Women with Endometriosis and in Isolated Stromal Cells Exposed to 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-Dioxin (TCDD)’. Fertility and Sterility 98 (4): 948-956.e1. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fertnstert.2012.06.009.