A 3D in vitro mouse ovarian follicle culture system preserves molecular signatures of ovulation for studying ovulation biology and novel non-hormonal discovery
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ABSTRACT:
ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus
PROVIDER: GSE186837 | GEO | 2025/10/29
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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Project description:Vitrification is a method for long-term biological sample cryopreservation without causing intra- and extra-cellular ice formation. We recently established a novel closed vitrification system to cryopreserve mouse ovarian follicles. Using the 3D alginate hydrogel encapsulated in vitro follicle growth (eIVFG) method, we have demonstrated that compared to freshly-harvested follicles, vitrified follicles have normal follicle and oocyte reproductive outcomes. Our recent study further demonstrated the faithful preservation of molecular signatures of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH)-stimulated follicle maturation in vitrified follicles. However, it is unknown whether ovulation, another crucial gonadotropin-dependent follicular event, and involved ovulatory gene regulatory pathways are well conserved in vitrified follicles. Fresh and vitrified follicles grown for 8 days by eIVFG were collected at 0, 1, 4 and 8-hour post human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) treatment for the single-follicle RNA sequencing. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Pearson’s correlation analysis revealed that vitrified follicles have similar transcriptomic profiles to fresh follicles. Furthermore, the expression of several genes essential for ovulation were comparable between vitrified and fresh follicles. In summary, these results demonstrate that our closed vitrification system preserves follicular transcriptomic dynamics during ex vivo ovulation. Together with our previous findings that vitrification preserves FSH-stimulated follicle maturation, the integration of vitrification of immature follicles and eIVFG has a great potential to serve as an additional fertilization preservation approach for young cancer patients and endangerers species. Moreover, follicle vitrification enables a high-content ovarian follicle biobank, which can greatly improve the throughput of eIVFG for studying ovulation biology, anovulatory disease, toxicology, and novel contraceptive drug development targeting ovulation.
2023-09-20 | GSE227091 | GEO
Project description:Running title: More insights into ovulation Purpose:Ovulation is the process by which mature follicles release fertilized oocytes under the stimulation of gonadotropin. This involves the precise interaction and destiny of various cells in the follicle. Granulosa cells (GCs) are the only cells that recognize and respond to ovulation LH (or HCG) signals. Therefore, the classification and deep interpretation of genes in GCs under LH surge stimulation is the key to understand ovulation. Methods: In this study, RNA-seq, Q-PCR, Western blot, gene knockout, gene knockout and other experimental techniques were used to conduct trend and classification analysis of the genes regulated by ovulation signal of LH at the cellular and individual levels. Genes that may be involved in ovulation were screened, identified and were selected for functional verification. Results:(1) Firstly, 7104 and 347 mRNA and Long noncoding RNA (LncRNA) that may be involved in ovulation activity were screened at the gene level by transcriptome sequencing technology, respectively. According to gene expression, they were divided into activated, inhibited and transient activated gene expression patterns. 44 secreted proteins, 62 transcription factors, 22 periodic expression characteristic genes, 10 ovulation process unknown genes, 16 LncRNA-target gene cis pair combinations and 41 highly expressed LncRNA were identified and listed in the three models;(2) The functions of LncRNA Gm12840 and Gm20186 were studied at the cellular level. The results showed that knockdown Gm12840/20186 not only inhibited the proliferation and hormone synthesis of GCs, but also induced cell apoptosis;(3) The function of LncRNA Gm12840 was further studied in mice, and Gm12840 knockout mice were constructed by CRISPR/CAS9 technology: Results It was found that Gm12840 knockout significantly increased the number of antral follicles and ovulation, and significantly inhibited the number of atretic follicles and antral follicles not discharged after ovulation. Gm12840 knockout significantly increased litter size at 2-3 months of age, but also significantly inhibited litter size at 7-9 months of age. Meanwhile, Gm12840 knockout also significantly inhibited the number of follicles growing in the ovary of 11-month-old mice;(4) Finally, transcriptomic sequencing analysis of wilt-type and Gm12840-/- mouse GCs showed 349 genes were differentially expressed. KEGG enrichment analysis and WB results showed that Gm12840 knockout enhanced mTOR and MAPK signals. Conclusions:The above results screened and identified genes with potential research value during ovulation process, and took LncRNA Gm12840 as an example to verify their functions at the cell and individual levels, providing reference for further revealing the ovulation process.
2024-08-27 | GSE182964 | GEO
Project description:Running title: More insights into ovulation Purpose:Ovulation is the process by which mature follicles release fertilized oocytes under the stimulation of gonadotropin. This involves the precise interaction and destiny of various cells in the follicle. Granulosa cells (GCs) are the only cells that recognize and respond to ovulation LH (or HCG) signals. Therefore, the classification and deep interpretation of genes in GCs under LH surge stimulation is the key to understand ovulation. Methods: In this study, RNA-seq, Q-PCR, Western blot, gene knockout, gene knockout and other experimental techniques were used to conduct trend and classification analysis of the genes regulated by ovulation signal of LH at the cellular and individual levels. Genes that may be involved in ovulation were screened, identified and were selected for functional verification. Results:(1) Firstly, 7104 and 347 mRNA and Long noncoding RNA (LncRNA) that may be involved in ovulation activity were screened at the gene level by transcriptome sequencing technology, respectively. According to gene expression, they were divided into activated, inhibited and transient activated gene expression patterns. 44 secreted proteins, 62 transcription factors, 22 periodic expression characteristic genes, 10 ovulation process unknown genes, 16 LncRNA-target gene cis pair combinations and 41 highly expressed LncRNA were identified and listed in the three models;(2) The functions of LncRNA Gm12840 and Gm20186 were studied at the cellular level. The results showed that knockdown Gm12840/20186 not only inhibited the proliferation and hormone synthesis of GCs, but also induced cell apoptosis;(3) The function of LncRNA Gm12840 was further studied in mice, and Gm12840 knockout mice were constructed by CRISPR/CAS9 technology: Results It was found that Gm12840 knockout significantly increased the number of antral follicles and ovulation, and significantly inhibited the number of atretic follicles and antral follicles not discharged after ovulation. Gm12840 knockout significantly increased litter size at 2-3 months of age, but also significantly inhibited litter size at 7-9 months of age. Meanwhile, Gm12840 knockout also significantly inhibited the number of follicles growing in the ovary of 11-month-old mice;(4) Finally, transcriptomic sequencing analysis of wilt-type and Gm12840-/- mouse GCs showed 349 genes were differentially expressed. KEGG enrichment analysis and WB results showed that Gm12840 knockout enhanced mTOR and MAPK signals. Conclusions:The above results screened and identified genes with potential research value during ovulation process, and took LncRNA Gm12840 as an example to verify their functions at the cell and individual levels, providing reference for further revealing the ovulation process.
2024-08-27 | GSE182965 | GEO
Project description:The process of ovulation includes oocyte meiotic maturation, follicle rupture and transformation of the follicle into a corpus luteum. These events are initiated by the midcycle surge of gonadotropins and require the coordinated regulation of thousands of genes. The aim of the study was to monitor the changes in granulosa cell gene expression across five different time points during the first 36 hours of ovulation until follicle rupture, in order to increase our understanding of the events of human ovulation. We conducted a prospective cohort study including women undergoing ovarian stimulation for fertility treatment. Women were treated in a standard antagonist protocol with individually dosed human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) or recombinant follicle stimulating hormone (rFSH). Ovulation was induced with either recombinant hCG (rhCG) or gonadotropin releasing hormone agonist (GNRHa). The granulosa cells were collected by transvaginal ultrasound-guided follicle puncture of one follicle at two specific time points during ovulation (repeated measurements), and the study covered a total of five time points: before ovulation induction (OI), 12, 17, 32 and 36 hours after OI.
2020-03-01 | GSE133868 | GEO
Project description:Dibutyl phthalate (DBP), di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), and benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP) are three phthalates commonly found in consumer products, including the plastic coating of pharmaceuticals and personal care products. Folliculogenesis, a tightly regulated process occurring in the ovary, is the maturation of an immature primordial follicle to a mature antral follicle. Follicles house the oocyte and antral follicles specifically play a crucial role in ovarian steroidogenesis and ovulation. DBP, BBP, and DEHP have been associated with inhibited antral follicle growth in vitro, decreased ovulation rates in vitro, and decreased antral follicle counts in women. However, little is known about the effects of a three-phthalate mixture on antral follicles in vivo. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of a human relevant mixture of DBP, BBP, and DEHP on ovarian follicles through proteome profiling analysis. CD-1 female mice (60 days old) were pipet fed tocopherol stripped corn oil (vehicle control) only or a phthalate mixture (52% DBP, 36% DEHP, and 12% BBP dissolved in vehicle) which modeled human follicular fluid concentrations. The mice were treated with 32µg/kg/day (PHT Mix 32; cumulative estimate in general population) and 500µg/kg/day (PHT Mix 500; cumulative estimate in occupationally exposed individuals) for 10 consecutive days. Proteome profiling of antral follicles (>250µm) was performed via label-free tandem mass spectrometry. A total of 5,417 antral follicle proteins were identified in the three groups, of which 194 were differentially abundant between the vehicle and PHT Mix 32 group, and 136 between the vehicle and PHT Mix 500 group. Gene ontology analysis revealed that the two treatments of the phthalate mixture upregulate and downregulate distinctive processes, supporting non-monotonic effects of phthalates on the antral follicle proteome. Taken together, these results reveal that a human relevant mixture of DBP, BBP, and DEHP alters the antral follicle proteome and merits further evaluation to elucidate the molecular mechanisms by which phthalates cause negative reproductive outcomes.
2024-07-18 | PXD047061 | Pride
Project description:Inhibin α knockout (Inha-/-) female mice develop sex cord-stromal ovarian cancer with complete penetrance and previous studies demonstrate that the pituitary gonadotropins [follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH)] are influential modifiers of granulosa cell tumor development and progression in inhibin-deficient females. Recent studies have demonstrated that Inha-/- ovarian follicles develop precociously to the early antral stage in prepubertal mice without any increase in serum FSH and these studies suggested that in the absence of inhibins, granulosa cells differentiate abnormally, and thus at sexual maturity may undergo an abnormal response to gonadotropin signaling. To test this hypothesis, we stimulated immature WT and Inha-/- female mice prior to gross tumor formation with gonadotropin analogs, and subsequently examined post-gonadotropin induced ovarian follicle development, as well as preovulatory and hCG-induced gene expression changes in granulosa cells. We find that at three weeks of age, inhibin-deficient ovaries do not show further antral development nor undergo cumulus expansion. Widespread alterations in the transcriptome of gonadotropin-treated Inha-/- granulosa cells suggest that gonadotropins initiate an improper program of cell differentiation in Inha-/- cells. Overall, our experiments reveal that inhibins are essential for the normal gonadotropin-dependent response of granulosa cells. (2) Genotypes (WT, Inh KO) collected from 2 preovulatory granulosa cells with and without hCG, in triplicate independent samples
2011-02-01 | E-GEOD-20466 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:We investigate the role of Snf2l in ovaries by characterizing a mouse bearing an inactivating deletion on the ATPase domain of Snf2l (Ex6DEL). Snf2l mutant mice produce significantly fewer eggs than control mice when superovulated. Thus, gonadotropin stimulation leads to a significant deficit in secondary follicles and an increase in abnormal antral follicles. We profiled the expression of granulosa cells from Snf2l WT and Ex6DEL mice treated with pregnant mares' serum gonadotropin followed by human chorionic gonadotropin Granulosa cells from either Snf2l WT or Ex6DEL mice treated with PMSG followed by hCG were collected at 0h and 4h post-hCG. Each array includes granulosa cells pooled from 5 mice.
2013-05-01 | E-GEOD-42997 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Vitrification is a method for long-term biological sample cryopreservation that transforms cells into a glass-like state by cooling without causing intra- and extra-cellular ice formation, which is a major driver of cell cryoinjury. Using an alginate hydrogel encapsulated in vitro follicle growth (eIVFG) system, we have recently demonstrated that compared to freshly-harvested follicles, vitrified follicles have normal follicle and oocyte reproductive outcomes as well as comparable expression levels of several genes that are essential for gonadotropin-dependent folliculogenesis and oogenesis. However, it is unknown whether vitrification preserves the molecular signatures of folliculogenesis at the whole transcriptomic level, which is the primary research focus in this study. Multilayered secondary follicles with a diameter of 130 -160 µm were mechanically isolated from 16-day-old CD-1 female mice and vitrified using the closed vitrification method. After a 2-week storage in liquid nitrogen, vitrified follicles were warmed, and together with freshly-harvested follicles, cultured for 8 days using the eIVFG method. Next, mature antral follicles from day 8 were collected for single-follicle RNA sequencing using the SMART-seq RNA-seq method. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Pearson’s correlation analysis revealed that vitrified follicles have similar transcriptomic profiles to fresh follicles. Using the criterion of fold change >2 or <0.5 and a false discovery rate (FDR) adjusted p-value < 0.05, there were 35 differentially expressed genes out of a total of 11,806 detected genes between vitrified and fresh follicles, among which 17 were up-regulated and 18 were down-regulated in vitrified follicles. To the best of our knowledge, none of those differentially expressed genes identified between vitrified and fresh follicles have been shown to be critical to folliculogenesis and oogenesis. Meanwhile, gene ontology (GO) and KEGG pathway analysis over these 35 genes using the functional annotation tool DAVID revealed that no GO terms or signaling pathways were significantly enriched. Furthermore, the expression of several genes essential for the gonadotropin-dependent folliculogenesis and oogenesis were comparable between vitrified and fresh follicles, including granulosa cell-specific genes (Cyp19a1, Amh, Inha, Inhba, Inhbb, and Fshr), theca cell-specific genes (Cyp17a1, Col1a2, and Col3a1), and oocyte-specific genes (Gdf9, Bmp15, Zp1, Zp2, and Zp3). Equally important, Lhcgr, the gene that is primarily expressed in theca cells of preantral follicles and then greatly induced in mural granulosa cells in antral follicles to prepare for the luteinizing hormone (LH) surge and ovulation, also had comparable mRNA expression levels between vitrified and fresh follicles. Taken together, these results demonstrate that vitrification preserves the follicular cell transcriptome and molecular signatures of gonadotropin-dependent folliculogenesis in the eIVFG system. In conclusion, our study re-evaluates individual follicle cryopreservation by using the closed vitrification method in a more in-depth perspective and proves that vitrification preserves the follicular cell transcriptome in the eIVFG system, thus providing a robust model for fertility preservation, conservation of endangered species, and also establishing a high-content ovarian follicle biobank for studying ovarian biology and female reproductive toxicology.
2021-12-29 | GSE184691 | GEO
Project description:Follicles of polycystic ovaries (PCO) often become arrested in early antral stages at around 3 to 11 mm in diameter. The condition disturbs dominant follicle selection and may result in altered ovulation and anovulation. During the growth and development of human follicles, the follicular fluid (FF) constitutes the avascular microenvironment in which the oocyte develops and acts as a vehicle for hormone signaling between cues from circulation and follicular cells. Previous proteomics studies performed on FF from women with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) have revealed information on the protein changes associated with the pathophysiology of this disorder. However, these studies have been conducted on FF samples obtained in connection with oocyte pick-up during ovarian stimulation right at the time of ovulation and are limited to follicular conditions during the follicular phase of the menstrual cycle. This study aimed to detect proteomic alterations in FF from human small antral follicles (hSAF) obtained from women with PCO as compared to normal women.
2022-04-07 | PXD031485 | Pride
Project description:Inhibin α knockout (Inha-/-) female mice develop sex cord-stromal ovarian cancer with complete penetrance and previous studies demonstrate that the pituitary gonadotropins [follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH)] are influential modifiers of granulosa cell tumor development and progression in inhibin-deficient females. Recent studies have demonstrated that Inha-/- ovarian follicles develop precociously to the early antral stage in prepubertal mice without any increase in serum FSH and these studies suggested that in the absence of inhibins, granulosa cells differentiate abnormally, and thus at sexual maturity may undergo an abnormal response to gonadotropin signaling. To test this hypothesis, we stimulated immature WT and Inha-/- female mice prior to gross tumor formation with gonadotropin analogs, and subsequently examined post-gonadotropin induced ovarian follicle development, as well as preovulatory and hCG-induced gene expression changes in granulosa cells. We find that at three weeks of age, inhibin-deficient ovaries do not show further antral development nor undergo cumulus expansion. Widespread alterations in the transcriptome of gonadotropin-treated Inha-/- granulosa cells suggest that gonadotropins initiate an improper program of cell differentiation in Inha-/- cells. Overall, our experiments reveal that inhibins are essential for the normal gonadotropin-dependent response of granulosa cells.
2011-02-01 | GSE20466 | GEO