Reproduction Abstracts

Introduction: Studies in primates indicated that AMH promotes preantral follicle growth, but inhibits antral follicle estradiol (E2) production in vitro. Thus, experiments were designed to investigate the role of AMH on primate follicular development in vivo during the spontaneous menstrual cycle.Materials and methods: Hemi-ovariectomized, adult rhesus macaques (n=5) first received vehicle (control) treatment by intraovarian infusion from cycle ...

Introduction: Recent studies indicate that dietary habits and hyperandrogenemia influence ovarian function in women. However, data are limited regarding the effects of western-style diet (WSD) and androgen (e.g. T) on follicle development, especially during the early follicular stage, in primates. The current study investigated the impact of WSD alone and with chronic T exposure on gene expression in small antral follicles (SAFs) of macaques.Materials an...

Background: As a consequence of cryopreservation of human ovaries preformed in our laboratory we have access to human small antral follicles.Material: Human granulosa cells (GC) from individual small antral follicles (4–6 mm in diameter) were spilt in two and either cultured or snap-frozen immediately after isolation from the follicular fluid. Microarray analysis was used on both the cultured and the non-cultured sample, to examine their gene expres...

Early pregnancy loss (EPL) affecting between 6 and 15% of equine pregnancies remains a significant issue for the £3.5 billion Thoroughbred breeding and equestrian industries. Very little is known about the causes of pregnancy failure in the horse, although it is likely to involve a multitude of failed physiological processes and/or environmental insults. Our laboratory aims to identify key mechanisms that regulate the differentiation and function of trophoblast cells in b...

Over the last 30 years concerns have risen about the potential for environmental chemicals to cause reproductive effects on wildlife via disruption of endocrine signaling pathways. There are now hundreds of chemicals known to disrupt the endocrine system and a wide range of examples of adverse effects on wildlife, including the feminisation of fish in UK rivers, egg shell thinning in birds, demasculinisation of reptiles and imposex in mollusks.The aquati...

Oocytes of domestic mammals present high concentrations of lipids, and this is particularly evident in porcine oocytes that exhibit higher levels than other species, becoming more susceptible to oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation. Considering that melatonin is an effective antioxidant for protecting macromolecules against oxidative stress caused by reactive oxygen species (ROS), the purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of melatonin supplementation during...

The seminal vesiculitis leads to contamination of the semen with inflammatory cells, causing agglutination, precipitation, decreased sperm motility and increased reactive oxygen species (ROS). This deleterious effect is most pronounced during the cryopreservation process. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of frozen semen from stallions with seminal vesiculitis after local treatment. Five stallions with seminal vesiculitis were used and local treatmen...

Introduction: The zona pellucida (ZP) is an extracellular matrix that surrounds mammalian oocytes. Marsupial ZP has been considered formed by three proteins. However, the recent description of four glycoproteins (ZP1, ZP2, ZP3, and ZP4) in the ZP of some species of eutherian (rat, human, hamster, rabbit) suggests the need for a reanalysis of the ZP composition in marsupials.Material and methods: Complementary DNA was obtained from ovaries from one Austra...

Background: FSH is one of the key hormones of mammalian reproduction. FSH signaling may be affected by single-nucleotide polymorphisms residing in the FSH receptor (FSHR) gene. The most pronounced effects of these polymorphisms are likely to be displayed in the follicle fluid, which acts as a reservoir for granulosa cell secreted hormones induced by FSH.Methods: Genetic polymorphisms of FSHR in position -29 (FSHR -29) and in codon 307 and codon ...