Enzymatic collagen degradation in the pregnant guinea pig cervix during physiological maturation of the cervix and after local application of prostaglandins.

The role of enzymatic collagen degradation in prostaglandin-induced and physiological cervical ripening was studied in guinea pigs. The cervices were removed from (a) 8 non-pregnant guinea pigs, (b) 8 animals at day 45 of pregnancy, (c) 14 pregnant animals of comparable gestational age which had either an intracervical application of 0.2 ml 5% tylose or 10 micrograms sulprostone gel, and (d) 8 guinea pigs at day 63 to 65 of pregnancy. Collagenase activity was assayed in a highly specific and sensitive system using native collagen type I as substrate. Protease activity was measured by the method of Green and Shaw. Collagen fragments were identified by SDS-polyacrylamide electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) of acetic-soluble fractions. Collagenase and protease activities were found in all extracts from the different groups. However, there were no differences in enzymatic activities between the non-pregnant, early-pregnant and late-pregnant cervical specimens. Prostaglandin pre-treatment of the cervix led to no significant increase in either collagenase or protease activity as compared to the control groups. The absence of typical collagen degradation products in the SDS-PAGE suggested that no significant collagen breakdown had taken place. In contrast to previously published literature, we conclude that enzymatic collagen degradation is unlikely to be a key factor in prostaglandin-induced and physiological cervical ripening.