Abstract
Estrogen is an essential requirement for the postpubertal trophic development and maintenance of the differentiated state of the oviduct, uterus, cervix, vagina and mammary glands of mammals. Estrogen, apparently functioning through its specific cytoplasmic receptor protein via a multistep interaction pathway induces gene expression of specific biochemical events leading to growth and differentiation of target tissues (Jensen et al., Proc Natl Acad Sci, 59:632, 1968; Gorski et al., Recent Prog Horm Res 24:45, 1968). One biochemical expression of the estrogen gene is the synthesis of specific mRNA transcripts for certain specific marker proteins, including ovalbumin, lysozyme and ovomucoid in the chick oviduct (O'Malley and McGuire, Proc Natl Acad Sci 60:1527, 1968; Palmiter and Schimke, J Biol Chem 248:1502, 1973), tubulin in the mammalian oviduct (Brenner and Anderson, Handbook of Physiology 7(2):123, 1973; Brenner et al., Endocrinology 95:1094, 1974) and peroxidase (EC 1,11.1.7) in the rodent uterus (Brockelmann and Fawcett, Biol Reprod 1:59, 1969; Churg and Anderson, J Cell Biol 62:449, 1974; Anderson et al., J Cell Biol 64:668, 1975).