Hormonal control of cell death in the luminal epithelium of the mouse uterus.

An attempt has been made to assess quantitatively the extent of cell death in the uterine epithelium after oestrogen treatment. [3H]Thymidine was injected into ovariectomized mice at an interval after oestrogen treatment when many of the luminal epithelial cells were in the S phase of mitosis. Uptake of [3H]thymidine was confirmed by autoradiography of sections of uterus and scintillation counting of trichloracetic acid-insoluble fraction of whole uterine horns. Radioactivity declined after the cessation of oestrogen treatment but remained high if treatment was continued. The decline appears to be correlated with the cell death previously demonstrated in histological sections of uteri under similar conditions.