Morphological and functional study of adrenal cortex differentiation of SF1/SOCS3 knockout mice

• Grant number: 19/11198-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: August 01, 2019
• End date: September 30, 2020
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Physiology - Physiology of Organs and Systems
• Principal Investigator: Claudimara Ferini Pacicco Lotfi
• Grantee: Eduarda Corrêa Bento
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

In recent study, we have shown that in knockout mice for SOCS3 in cells expressing SF-1, SF1 / SOCS3 KO mice, there is retention of zone X (ZX) in adult males and female after the first pregnancy, suggesting that SOCS3 may be important in differentiation of the adrenal cortex. Under baseline conditions, SF1 / SOCS3 KO animals presented normal body weight and plasma ACTH and corticosterone concentrations. However, after ACTH treatment, these animals showed an attenuation of corticosterone secretion, suggesting altered steroidogenic adrenal function. According to these findings, we hypothesized that the JAK / STAT / SOCS3 pathway may be involved in the ZX regression process of mice, and may play a role in adrenal differentiation. We would like to answer if the retention of zone X in this animal model is temporary or permanent. For this, we aim to morphologically and functionally characterize the adrenals of SF1 / SOCS3 KO mice, both male and female, at different stages of development.