Steroid receptors and their regulation in avian extraembryonic membranes provide a novel substrate for hormone mediated maternal effects.

ABSTRACT: Exposure of the vertebrate embryo to maternal hormones can have long-lasting effects on its phenotype, which has been studied extensively by experimentally manipulating maternal steroids, mostly androgens, in bird eggs. Yet, there is a severe lack of understanding of how and when these effects are actually mediated, hampering both underlying proximate and ultimate explanations. Here we report a novel finding that the embryo expresses androgen receptor (AR) and estrogen receptor (ERα) mRNA in its extraembryonic membranes (EMs) as early as before its own hormone production starts, suggesting a novel substrate for action of maternal hormones on the offspring. We also report the first experimental evidence for steroid receptor regulation in the avian embryo in response to yolk steroid levels:

SUBMITTER: Kumar N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6687743 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature