EFFECT OF UROKINASE AND VASCULAR ENDOTHELIAL GROWTH FACTOR (VEGF) ON THE EXPRESSION OF PLASMINOGEN ACTIVATION SYSTEM COMPONENTS IN THE BOVINE OVIDUCT

ROLDÁN-OLARTE, M; GARCÍA D; RIZO G; JIMÉNEZ DÍAZ M; MICELI DC.

Tafi del Valle, Tucumán

Jornada; XXVIII Jornadas Científicas de la Asociación de Biología de Tucumán; 2011

Asociación de Biología de Tucumán

The urokinase-type plasminogen activator (u-PA) is involved in the extracellular matrix remodeling, by plasmin generation. The u-PA activity increases when is bound to its receptor, u-PAR; also is balanced by the Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor Type 1 (PAI-1). It is known that VEGF is activated by plasmin and u-PA. In the bovine oviduct both systems were described: VEGF and its receptors as well as u-PA/ u-PAR/ PAI-1, however, no evidences about the interaction between these molecules in the oviduct were reported. In this work we analyzed if the expression levels of u-PA, u-PAR and PAI-1 are modified by the effect of u-PA or VEGF on bovine oviductal epithelium. Culture explants of oviductal epithelial cells were incubated during 72 h, and then stimulated with 50 nM u-PA or 1 ng/ ml VEGF; explants without any of them were employed as controls. After 24 h, cultured cells were processed to obtain total RNA. The semiquantitative RT-PCR analysis showed that u-PA up regulates the u-PAR and u-PA itself mRNA levels, while down regulates the expression of PAI-1; VEGF produced an increase only in the expression of u-PA. These results suggest that both systems are closely related and exert a fine control over the expression of the plasminogen activation components in the bovine oviduct.