Altered expression of steroid hormones receptors coregulators during bovine cystic ovarian disease development

NOTARO, U.; HUBER, E.; SALVETTI, N. R.; ORTEGA, H. H.; REY, F.; RODRÍGUEZ, F. M.; RECCE, S.; BARBERIS, F.

Congreso; SAIC - SAI - SAFE; 2016

Steroid hormones regulate important reproduction eventsthrough its nuclear receptors. Steroid hormones receptors areligand regulated transcription factors which modulate genic transcription through molecular mechanisms associated with coregulatory proteins (coactivators and corepresors). The endocrine profile,growth dynamics, and histologic characteristics of persistentovarian follicles are analogous to those of spontaneous cysts.Cystic Ovarian Disease (COD) is a major factor contributing topoor reproductive efficiency of lactating dairy cow. Our purposewas to study the protein expression of Steroid Receptor Coactivator-1 (SRC-1) and corepressors Receptor-interacting Protein 140(RIP140) and Ligand dependent nuclear receptor Corepressor(LCOR) in the ovaries of healthy cows (Control group) and in anexperimental model of follicular persistence induced by low levelsof progesterone. This was achieved by indirect immunohistochemistry and digital image analysis of granulosa cells (GC) and thecacells (TC) in different follicular categories: antral follicles of thecontrol group as reference structure (AC), persistent follicles ofgroups with 0 (P0, expected day of ovulation), 5 (P5), 10 (P10) and15 (P15) days of persistence. Expression of SRC-1 was lower inAC than in P0 and P15, in both GC and TC (p<0.05). Expressionof LCOR was higher in GC of AC and P0 than P10 (p<0.05), withno differences in TC (p>0.05). Expression of RIP140 was similarin all analyzed follicular categories (p>0.05), in both GC and TC.These results suggest that changes in the expression of coregulatory proteins can lead to altered response to steroid hormones,and thus contribute to the pathogenesis of ovarian alterations suchas follicular persistence and COD.