title: Pituitary follicular cells secrete both vascular endothelial growth factor and follistatin.
abstract: Follistatin, a hormone which acts to suppress the release of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) by pituitary-derived gonadotrophs, has previously been identified only in the liquor folliculi of ovarian follicles. By microsequencing of fractions derived from conditioned medium, we show here that bovine pituitary-derived folliculo stellate cells are also capable of producing and secreting this hormone. These results suggest that folliculo stellate cells may serve as a source of follistatin within the pituitary itself and that the regulation of FSH release from the pituitary could therefore involve a paracrine mechanism.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Research Institute, University of California Medical Center, San Francisco 94143.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gospodarowicz
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lau
mesh_terms: D000302:Adrenal Cortex / Q000098:blood supply; D000818:Animals; D002417:Cattle; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D038681:Follistatin; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D008222:Lymphokines / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D008970:Molecular Weight; D010903:Pituitary Gland, Anterior / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; D042442:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors
chemical_list: D038681:Follistatin; D006023:Glycoproteins; D008222:Lymphokines; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A; D042442:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors