METALOPROTEASE-1 AND METALOPROTEASE-2 IDENTIFICATION IN LAMA GLAMA AND THEIR EXPRESSION IN THE OVIDUCT

RENATO ZAMPINI; SILVANA ANDREA APICHELA; MARTIN EDUARDO ARGAÑARAZ; DORA CRISTINA MICELI

Tafi del Valle, Tucumán

Jornada; XXVI Jornadas Científicas de la Sociedad de Biología de Tucumán; 2009

Sociedad de Biología de Tucumán

Sperm transport, fertilization and early embryonic development take place in the mammalian oviduct. It is known that proteolytic systems have an important participation in the reproductive process. Matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) would be involved in the matrix remodeling and cell migration that occur during the sexual cycle and pregnancy. Though the presence of certain MMPs was described in the mammalian oviduct, no information has been reported for camelids. The aim of this work was to identify the sequences of MMP1 (collagenase) and MMP2 (gelatinase) in llama and to study their expression in the oviduct. Primers for MMP1 and MMP2 were designed from nucleotide sequences already known in other mam- mals. Amplified products were analyzed by RT-PCR from the total ARN of llama oviducts. Then they were amplified, cloned and sequenced. The bioinformatic analysis of the sequences confirmed that they correspond to MMP1 and MMP2 and are preserved in the class Mammalia. The expression pattern of MMPs in the oviductal epithelium of ampulla, isthmus, utero-tubal junction and papilla showed the presence of MMP-2 in the four oviductal segments, while MMP1 was only detected in the papilla. These results suggest that MMP1 and MMP2 might be involved in the reproductive events that take place in the oviduct.