Female Sex Steroids

I. Introduction.- 1. Historical Aspects of Steroid Hormone Action.- 2. General Consideration of the Steroid Receptor Concept.- II. Steroid Receptor Characterization and Measurement.- 1. Receptor Criteria.- 2. Receptor Parameters: Theory and Practice.- 3. Receptor States and 3H-Steroid Exchange.- 4. Methods of Receptor Assay.- III. Cellular Compartments and Translocation of Receptor-Steroid Complexes.- 1. Cytoplasmic or Nuclear Localization of Receptors.- 2. Evidence for Nuclear Preference.- 3. Are Cytoplasmic Receptors Necessary?.- 4. Mechanisms for Steroid Accumulation not Involving Receptors.- IV. Characteristics of Cytoplasmic and Nuclear Receptor Forms.- 1. Cytoplasmic Forms of Estrogen and Progesterone Receptors.- 2. Nuclear Binding of Estrogen and Progesterone Receptors.- 3. Nuclear Acceptor Sites and Nuclear Binding.- V. Nuclear Binding and Biologic Response.- 1. Nuclear Occupancy and Response.- 2. Nuclear Acceptors and Long-Term Nuclear Retention.- 3. Uterotropic Response and Nuclear Retention of the Estrogen Receptor.- 4. Nuclear Receptor Binding and the Control of Transcriptional Events in the Uterus.- 5. Interrelationships Between Early and Late Uterotropic Responses.- 6. Nuclear Binding and RNA Transcription in the Chick Oviduct.- 7. Nuclear Binding and the Control of RNA and Protein Synthesis in the Chicken Liver.- VI. Control of Steroid Receptor Levels and Steroid Antagonism.- 1. Control of Estrogen Receptor Concentrations.- 2. The Relationship of Cytoplasmic Replenishment of the Estrogen Receptor to Biologic Response.- 3. Control of the Progesterone Receptor by Estrogen.- 4. Effects of Progesterone on the Control of Progesterone Receptor.- 5. Control of Estrogen Receptor Levels by Progesterone and Its Relationship to Estrogen Antagonism.- 6. Estradiol Antagonism by Estriol and Other Short-Acting Estrogens.- 7. Triphenylethylene Derivatives and Estrogen Antagonism.- 8. General Considerations of Steroid Antagonism and Hormone Potency.- VII. Steroid Hormones and Neoplasia.- 1. Estrogens and Cancer.- 2. Triphenylethylene Derivatives, Hyperestrogenization, and Reproductive-Tract Cancer.- 3. Hyperestrogenization and Nuclear Body Formation.- 4. Steroid Receptors and Neoplasia.- VIII. Physiologic Relationships and Steroid Receptor Binding.- 1. Blood Binding and Metabolism of Steroids.- 2. Steroid Receptors During Development.- 3. Steroid Receptor Binding During the Reproductive Cycle.- IX. Gonadal Steroids and Brain Function.- 1. Distribution of Targets Within the Central Nervous System.- 2. Cytoplasmic Receptors for Estrogens and Progestins in the Central Nervous System.- 3. Translocation of Estrogen Receptors to Nuclear Compartments.- 4. Age- and Sex-Related Differences in Receptor Content or Function.- 5. Gonadal Steroids and Nervous System Function.- X. Speculations and Conclusions.- 1. Interplay of Low-and High-Affinity Steroid Receptive Sites.- 2. Spare Receptors and Hormone-Induced Responses.- 3. Nuclear Acceptors and Salt-Insoluble Receptors.- 4. Nuclear Processing of the Receptor-Estrogen Complex.- 5. Homeostatic vs. Growth-Regulating Steroid Hormones.- 6. Conclusions.- 7. Epilogue.- References.