Reproduction Abstracts

Whether the adult mammalian ovary contains oogonial stem cells (OSCs) is controversial. They have been isolated by fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) using the germline marker DEAD box polypeptide 4 (DDX4), previously assumed to be cytoplasmic, not surface-bound. Furthermore their stem cell and germ cell characteristics remain disputed. We applied a validated protocol to isolate mouse putative OSCs from whole ovarian cell suspensions, then assessed their in vitro</...

Introduction: It has recently been demonstrated that mouse oocytes respond to DNA damage by arresting in Meiosis I. This arrest has been shown to require the activity of the Spindle Assembly Checkpoint (SAC) and the DNA Damage Response (DDR). Given oocytes lack the equivalent of a G2/M checkpoint for DNA damage, the SAC response may be critical to defend against formation of DNA damaged embryos. It is currently unknown whether the DDR SAC pathway is sensitive to physiological ...

The fetus is antigenically distinct from the mother and therefore the maternal immune system must establish immunological tolerance towards the fetus to support pregnancy. Fetal-maternal tolerance is primarily mediated by a specialised subset of CD4+T cells known as regulatory T (Treg) cells. Absence or reduced function of Treg cells at embryo implantation causes infertility in mice and is implicated as a cause of reproductive disorders in women. The importance of a...

Introduction: Endometriosis is an estrogen-dependent inflammatory disorder, associated with debilitating pelvic pain. We believe the pain is due to neuroinflammation: growth of sensory neurons and their subsequent hypersensitisation by macrophage-derived cytokines within the lesion. We explored the regulation of neuroinflammation by estrogen receptor (ER) modulators.Materials and methods: Peritoneum and lesions were collected from women with and without ...

Introduction: Implantation is a highly coordinated event in which the receptive endometrium is primed to receive adhesion-competent blastocysts. Implantation relies on the bridging of integrins on the endometrium and the blastocyst by extracellular matrix proteins, such as fibronectin. Factors produced in the female reproductive tract are thought to support development of the blastocyst to an adhesion competent state and to ensure coordination of blastocyst implantation abilit...

Introduction: MicroRNAs interact with multiple mRNAs resulting in their degration and/or translational repression. Embryo diapause is a widespread phenomenon in which temporarily arrest occurred in embryo development. Our previous data showed that the levels of let-7 are relatively high in diapause embryos compared to reactivated embryos by E2 in mice. However, it is still not clear whether or not let-7 is involved in embryo diapause.Materials...

Background: Uterine natural killer (uNK) cells are a phenotypically distinct population of tissue-resident immune cells that are reported to regulate vascular remodelling within the endometrium. The mechanisms that control accumulation of uNK cells in the endometrium remain unresolved although there is evidence to suggest that homing and differentiation of peripheral blood NK (pbNK) cells may contribute to the rapid increase in cell numbers during the secretory phase of the me...

Background: The impact of androgens on myometrial contraction has received less scrutiny, compared to progesterone and estrogens. We sought to i) examine the effect of dihydrotestosterone (DHT; a non-aromatizable androgen) on stretch-induced contraction of human myometrium and ii) gain mechanistic insights by studying changes in intracellular calcium [Ca2+] and phosphorylation of myosin light chain (MLC).Methods: Myometrial strips were recover...

Rare epithelial and stromal stem/progenitor cells (SPC) have been identified in the mouse endometrium. However the role of these SPC in endometrial regeneration is unclear due to the lack of a traceable marker. We used transgenic mice with reporter constructs for the stem cell marker telomerase reverse transcriptase (mTert) to identify and characterize mouse endometrial SPC. Endometrial mTert expression was examined by microscopy and flow cytometry in mice expressing GFP under...

Little is known about the involvement of miRNAs in luteal development. Cattle provide a convenient model to study ovarian physiology in monovular species. Our previous microarray studies in bovine showed significant upregulation of miR-96 and miR-132 in luteal relative to follicular tissues. In the present study we used an in vitro model of forskolin-induced follicular granulosa cell luteinisation, transfection with specific locked nucleic acid inhibitors or mimics of...