Equine chorionic gonadotropin drives the transcriptional profile of immature cumulus-oocyte complexes and in vitro-produced blastocysts of superstimulated Nelore cows

Author(s):Show less -

Franchi, Fernanda Fagali ^[1] ; Satrapa, Rafael Augusto ^[1] ; Fontes, Patricia Kubo ^[1] ; Santos, Priscila Helena ^[1] ; Razza, Eduardo Montanari ^[1] ; Emanuelli, Isabele Picada ^[1] ; Ereno, Ronaldo Luiz ^[1] ; Mareco, Edson Assuncao ^[2] ; Gouveia Nogueira, Marcelo Fabio ^[3] ; Barros, Ciro Moraes ^[1] ; de Souza Castilho, Anthony Cesar ^[2]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Estadual Paulista, Dept Farmacol, UNESP, Botucatu, SP - Brazil

^[2] Univ Oeste Paulista UNOESTE, BR-19067175 Presidente Prudente, SP - Brazil

^[3] Univ Estadual Paulista, Dept Ciencias Biol, UNESP, Assis, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Molecular Reproduction and Development; v. 86, n. 11 AUG 2019.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

Studies have shown that the use of equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG), which binds both follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) receptors, could modify the female reproductive tract. We, thus, aimed to quantify the messenger RNA (mRNA) abundance of genes related to cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) and embryo quality in Nelore cows (Bos taurus indicus) submitted to ovarian superstimulation using only FSH (FSH group; n = 10) or replacement of the last two doses of FSH by eCG (FSH/eCG group; n = 10). All animals were slaughtered and the ovarian antral follicles from both groups (10-14 mm in diameter) were aspirated for cumulus, oocyte and in vitro embryo production gene expression analysis. The relative mRNA abundance of 96 genes related to COCs development and embryo quality was measured by RT-qPCR. We found that oocytes are more affected by eCG use and that 35 genes involved in lipid metabolism, oxidative stress, transcriptional control, and cellular development were upregulated in the FSH/eCG group. In blastocysts, lipid metabolism seems to be the main pathway regulated by eCG use. We suggest that these multiple effects could be due to the ability of eCG to bind LHR and FSHR, which could activate multiple signal transduction pathways in the superstimulated ovary, further impacting the transcriptional profile of COCs and blastocysts. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 13/11480-3 - Characterization of microRNAs (miRNAs) in bovine antral follicles from Nelore cattle: involvement during ovarian follicle cells differentiation and regulation of LH receptor (LHr) expression
• Grantee: Anthony César de Souza Castilho
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Young Investigators Grants
• FAPESP's process: 12/50533-2 - GIFT: genomic improvement of fertilization traits in Danish and Brazilian cattle
• Grantee: Marcelo Fábio Gouveia Nogueira
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants