ABSTRACT
Compounds with a stilbene chemical structure have been known to possess estrogen hormonal activity since the mid 1930s. The most potent of these were diethylstilbestrol and its saturated isomer hexestrol, which were originally synthesized and characterized by E. C. Dodds and associates in search of an inexpensive orally active estrogen. This chapter attempts to investigate the receptor-mediated mechanism of estrogen action in the uterus, and evaluates whether certain steps or responses are compromised or altered due to treatment with these various compounds. Binding affinities of mouse uterine estrogen receptor with these different compounds is listed in the figure, as well as the uterotropic activity. Saturation of the indene double bond produces the indanestrol structure, and decreases the receptor binding affinity and hormonal activity of the compound. Estrogen receptor binding of the individual enantiomers has been analyzed using a competitive cytosol binding assay.
