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Query: UNIPROT:P01178 (oxytocin)
 15,767 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The existing data on the hormonal factors involved in human parturition indicate that the steroid hormones, progesterone and the oestrogens, play only a facilitatory role in the initiation of labour. A definite role for fetal adrenal steroids in this process has yet to be established, and they too may serve only a facilitating function. The stimulation of the uterine muscle during labour results from an interaction of oxytocin and prostaglandin (PG) F2 alpha. Recent evidence suggests that oxytocin is most important for the initial phase of labour, whereas increased synthesis of PGF2 alpha is essential for the progression of labour. The role of PGE2 remains unclear, but this PG may play an important role in the ripening of the cervix which in turn is essential for successful parturition. The finding of maximal oxytocin receptor concentrations in the myometrium in labour adds strong support to the notion that oxytocin is the trigger for uterine contractions. The factors which control oxytocin receptor formation are therefore important; this may be one of the processes where the steroids play a crucial role. Oxytocin is also one of the stimuli that increase uterine PG synthesis; the coupling of oxytocin receptor occupancy and PG synthetase activity in uterine tissues may be another crucial factor in the mechanism of labour. The formation of gap junctions between the myometrial cells also seems essential for the synchronization and progression of myometrial activity. We propose, therefore, that the co-ordinating of oxytocin receptor formation, PG synthesis and gap junction formation is a key to the initiation and maintenance of human labour. The fetus may fulfil such a co-ordinating role through its influence on placental oestrogen production, through mechanical distention of the uterus, and through its secretion of neuro-hypophysial hormones and other stimulators of PG synthesis.
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PMID:Endocrinology of human parturition: a review. 609 29

The effect of a single injection of oxytocin into the corpus luteum, with or without pretreatment with a prostaglandin synthetase inhibitor, was studied in order to investigate possible local interactions between prostaglandin (PG)F2 alpha and oxytocin in the regulation of the human corpus luteum. Oxytocin (4 IU) was injected through the abdominal wall into the corpus luteum in women undergoing laparoscopy for legal sterilization. In the control cases, saline was injected into the corpus luteum, or oxytocin was injected into the contralateral ovary. Oxytocin injected into the corpus luteum caused a fall in serum progesterone and shortened the luteal phase. These effects were not seen following injection of saline into the corpus luteum, or following injection of oxytocin into the contralateral ovary. After the injection of oxytocin into the corpus luteum a rise in 15-keto-dihydro-PGF2 alpha, a PGF2 alpha metabolite, was seen. The changes in serum progesterone caused by injection of oxytocin into the corpus luteum could be prevented if a PG synthetase inhibitor was given before the injection. These findings suggest that local interaction between oxytocin and PGF2 alpha plays a role in the regulation of the human corpus luteum.
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PMID:Interaction between oxytocin and prostaglandin F2 alpha in human corpus luteum? 853 Jun 60