scholarly journals Progesterone Receptor and the Cell Cycle Modulate Apoptosis in Granulosa Cells

Endocrinology ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 145 (11) ◽  
pp. 5033-5043 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan M. Quirk ◽  
Robert G. Cowan ◽  
Rebecca M. Harman

Abstract Our previous studies showed that exposure of bovine preovulatory follicles to the LH surge-induced resistance of granulosa cells, but not theca cells, to apoptosis. Here, the temporal development of resistance to apoptosis and potential roles of progesterone receptor (PR) and alterations in the cell cycle in mediating this effect were examined. Injection of cows with GnRH induced an LH surge within 2 h. Granulosa cells isolated 0, 6, and 10 h after GnRH were sensitive to Fas ligand-induced apoptosis, but cells isolated at 14 h were resistant. PR was first detectable in granulosa cells at 10 and 14 h and was not detectable in theca. Treatment of granulosa cells isolated 14 h after GnRH with the PR antagonist, RU486, induced susceptibility to apoptosis, an effect mediated by PR and not glucocorticoid receptor. After GnRH treatment, granulosa cells, but not theca cells, exited the cell cycle, expression of cyclin D2 was reduced, and p27Kip1 was elevated. Treatment of granulosa cells isolated from small antral follicles with the G1 phase blocker, mimosine, reduced Fas ligand-induced killing, suggesting that nonproliferating cells are resistant to apoptosis. Treatment of granulosa cells isolated 14 h after GnRH with RU486 induced reentry of some cells into the cell cycle and reversed resistance to apoptosis, suggesting that cycling cells became susceptible to apoptosis. Treatment with mimosine prevented the ability of RU486 to promote susceptibility to apoptosis. In summary, the LH surge induces expression of PR by granulosa cells and withdrawal from the cell cycle, and these events promote resistance to apoptosis.

2006 ◽  
Vol 189 (3) ◽  
pp. 441-453 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan M Quirk ◽  
Robert G Cowan ◽  
Rebecca M Harman

Experiments were conducted to test whether oestradiol (E2) protects granulosa cells from Fas ligand (FasL)-induced apoptosis and whether protection involves modulation of the cell cycle of proliferation. Treatment of cultured bovine granulosa cells with E2 decreased susceptibility to FasL-induced apoptosis. The effects of E2 were mediated through oestrogen receptor and were not mediated by stimulation of IGF production. E2 also increased the percentage of cells progressing from G1 to S phase of the cell cycle, and increased expression of cyclin D2 protein and the cell proliferation marker Ki67. Progression from G1 to S phase of the cell cycle was necessary for the protective effect of E2; blocking progression from G1 to S phase with the cdk2 inhibitor roscovitine, or blocking cells in S phase with hydroxyurea, prevented protection by E2. The stages of the cell cycle during which granulosa cells are susceptible to apoptosis were assessed. First, treatment with the G1 phase blocker, mimosine, protected cells from FasL-induced apoptosis, indicating that cells in G0 or early- to mid-G1 phase are relatively resistant to apoptosis. Secondly, examination of recent DNA synthesis by cells that became apoptotic indicated that apoptosis did not occur in S, G2 or M phases. Taken together, the experiments indicate that cells may be most susceptible to apoptosis at the transition from G1 to S phase. E2 stimulates transition from G1 to S phase and protects against apoptosis only when cell cycle progression is unperturbed.


1983 ◽  
Vol 244 (5) ◽  
pp. E487-E493 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. L. Marrone ◽  
F. Hertelendy

The production of progesterone (P) and estrogen (E) by enzymatically dispersed granulosa and theca cells from chicken preovulatory follicles was examined in 3-h incubations. Accumulation of the P produced by granulosa cells was significantly reduced by the addition of theca cells, whereas E production was increased. The decrease in P accumulation was shown to be due to extensive metabolism of P by theca cells. There were no synergistic effects of luteinizing hormone (LH) and any substrate tested on E production by theca cells. Maturation of granulosa cells was characterized by an increased sensitivity to LH stimulation of P production, but there was no change in pregnenolone conversion to P. Conversely, maturation of theca cells was accompanied by decreased in both sensitivity to LH and the ability to convert substrates to E. The results are discussed in terms of the contribution of each cell type in the production of steroids by chicken follicles during maturation.


2014 ◽  
Vol 62 (3) ◽  
pp. 408-421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olga Jablonska ◽  
Joanna Piasecka-Srader ◽  
Anna Nynca ◽  
Agnieszka Kołomycka ◽  
Anna Robak ◽  
...  

The compound 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD), a by-product of human industrial activity, was found to affect ovarian steroidogenesis in animals, but the mechanism of its action is still unclear. The aims of the study were to examine the effect of TCDD on (1) progesterone (P4) and oestradiol (E2) production by granulosa cells isolated from medium (3–6 mm) and preovulatory (≥ 8 mm) porcine follicles, (2) the viability of the cells, and (3) the incidence of apoptosis. Porcine granulosa cells were cultured (48 h) with or without TCDD (100 pM, 100 nM). Steroid hormone concentrations in the medium were determined by radioimmunoassay. The viability of granulosa cells was tested spectrophotometrically (alamarBlue™ assay). Apoptosis was evaluated by flow cytometry using Annexin V and by TUNEL assay. The higher dose of TCDD (100 nM) significantly inhibited P4 and stimulated E2 production by luteinised granulosa cells isolated from medium follicles. The lower dose of TCDD (100 pM) significantly stimulated P4 and inhibited E2 secretion by the cells isolated from preovulatory follicles. None of the two TCDD doses affected cell viability or induced apoptosis in granulosa cells. In conclusion, TCDD directly affected steroid production by granulosa cells obtained from mature pigs, but the effect of TCDD was not due to its cytotoxicity.


Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1060
Author(s):  
Adnan Khan ◽  
Muhammad Zahoor Khan ◽  
Jinhuan Dou ◽  
Saqib Umer ◽  
Huitao Xu ◽  
...  

Heat stress in dairy cattle is recognized to compromise fertility by altering the functions of ovarian follicle-enclosed cells, e.g., oocyte and granulosa cells (GCs). Catalase is an antioxidant enzyme that plays a significant role in cellular protection against oxidative damage by the degradation of hydrogen peroxide to oxygen and water. In this study, the role and mechanism of CAT on the heat stress (HS)-induced apoptosis and altered proliferation of bovine GCs were studied. The catalase gene was knocked-down successfully in bovine GCs at both the transcriptional and translational levels. After a successful knockdown using siRNA, GCs were divided into HS (40 °C + NC and 40 °C + CAT siRNA) and 38 °C + NC (NC) groups. The GCs were then examined for ROS, viability, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), cell cycle, and biosynthesis of progesterone (P4) and estrogen (E2) hormones. The results indicated that CAT silencing promoted ROS production and apoptosis by up-regulating the Bcl-2-associated X protein (BAX) and Caspase-3 genes both at the transcriptional and translational levels. Furthermore, the knockdown of CAT markedly disrupted the MMP, impaired the production of P4 and E2, altered the progression of the G1 phase of the cell cycle, and decreased the number of cells in the S phase. This was further verified by the down-regulation of proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA), CyclinB1, steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (STAR), and cytochrome P450 family 11 subfamily A member 1 (Cyp11A1) genes. Our study presented a novel strategy to characterize how CAT can regulate cell proliferation and apoptosis in GCs under HS. We concluded that CAT is a broad regulatory marker in GCs by regulating apoptosis, cellular progression, and simultaneously by vital fluctuations in hormonal signaling. Our findings infer a crucial evidence of how to boost the fertility of heat-stressed cows.


2003 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 473-485 ◽  
Author(s):  
D Boerboom ◽  
DL Russell ◽  
JS Richards ◽  
J Sirois

One member of a new family of metalloproteinases, a disintegrin and metalloproteinase with thrombospondin-like motifs-1 (ADAMTS-1), has been found to be expressed and hormonally induced in granulosa cells of ovulating rodent follicles. Furthermore, the targeted disruption of the ADAMTS-1 gene resulted in ovarian defects associated with severely impaired fertility. While these data demonstrate the importance of ADAMTS-1 in rodent ovarian physiology, the potential role of ADAMTS-1 in the ovulatory process of monoovulatory species remains unknown. The objectives of this study were to clone the equine ADAMTS-1 primary transcript and to study its regulation during human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG)-induced ovulation. A 3573 bp follicular cDNA library clone was isolated and found to encode a nearly complete, highly conserved ADAMTS-1 homologue. Real-time RT-PCR analysis detected this transcript in diverse tIssues, including previously unreported sites of ADAMTS-1 expression such as the male reproductive tract, the follicular theca interna and the mature corpus luteum. The tIssue distribution of the progesterone receptor (PR), a known regulator of ADAMTS-1 expression in rodent preovulatory follicles, was found to overlap that of ADAMTS-1 in some tIssues. A study of the regulation of follicular ADAMTS-1 and PR mRNAs during the hCG-induced ovulatory process revealed distinct patterns of regulation in granulosa cells and in theca interna. In granulosa cells, ADAMTS-1 mRNA was found to be induced at 12 h post-hCG (P<0.05), followed by a return to basal levels by 30 h and a re-increase at 33-39 h (P<0.05). A concomitant increase in PR mRNA (P<0.05) was observed at 12 h post-hCG. In theca interna, abundant ADAMTS-1 mRNA was detected at all timepoints, and levels increased transiently at 33 h post-hCG (P<0.05), whereas no significant change was observed in PR mRNA. Together, these data demonstrate for the first time the hormonally regulated ovarian expression of ADAMTS-1 in a monoovulatory species, and identify a novel biphasic regulation of ADAMTS-1 in granulosa cells and a regulated expression in theca interna that were not previously observed in rodents.


Reproduction ◽  
2001 ◽  
pp. 561-566 ◽  
Author(s):  
DA Porter ◽  
RM Harman ◽  
RG Cowan ◽  
SM Quirk

The Fas antigen (Fas) is a cell surface receptor that may be involved in the initiation and progression of follicle cell apoptosis during atresia. Fas initiates apoptosis in sensitive cells after binding Fas ligand (FasL). Other experiments have shown that expression of Fas mRNA and responsiveness to Fas-mediated apoptosis vary in bovine granulosa and theca cells during follicle development. In the present study, FasL mRNA content was measured and Fas and FasL protein expression was examined in bovine granulosa and theca cells of healthy dominant follicles and the two largest atretic subordinate follicles on day 5 of the oestrous cycle (day 0 = oestrus), and of dominant follicles from the first wave of follicle development after they had become atretic and showed no growth for 4 days. FasL mRNA content was higher in granulosa cells from atretic compared with healthy follicles. FasL mRNA content was also higher in theca cells from atretic subordinate compared with healthy dominant follicles on day 5, but did not differ between theca cells from healthy and atretic dominant follicles. Immunohistochemical staining for FasL was more intense in theca compared with granulosa cells and in atretic compared with healthy follicles. Immunohistochemical staining for Fas was more intense in granulosa compared with theca cells and in atretic subordinate compared with healthy dominant follicles on day 5. Immune cells, known to express Fas and FasL, were localized in the theca, but not the granulosa, cell layer of all follicles. Higher concentrations of Fas and FasL in cells from atretic follicles, together with the previous demonstration of increased responsiveness of granulosa cells from subordinate follicles to FasL-induced apoptosis, support a potential role for FasL-mediated apoptosis during ovarian follicle atresia.


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