title: Null mutation of the prolactin receptor gene produces multiple reproductive defects in the mouse.
abstract: Mice carrying a germ-line null mutation of the prolactin receptor gene have been produced by gene targeting in embryonic stem cells. Heterozygous females showed almost complete failure of lactation attributable to greatly reduced mammary gland development after their first, but not subsequent, pregnancies. Homozygous females were sterile owing to a complete failure of embryonic implantation. Moreover, they presented multiple reproductive abnormalities, including irregular cycles, reduced fertilization rates, defective preimplantation embryonic development, and lack of pseudopregnancy. Half of the homozygous males were infertile or showed reduced fertility. This work establishes the prolactin receptor as a key regulator of mammalian reproduction, and provides the first total ablation model to further study the role of the prolactin receptor and its ligands.
authors.affiliation: Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM) Unité 344, Endocrinologie Moléculaire Faculté de Médecine Necker, Paris, France.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Ormandy
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Camus
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Barra
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Damotte
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lucas
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Buteau
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Edery
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Brousse
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Babinet
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Binart
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Kelly
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D010064:Embryo Implantation; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development; D005260:Female; D005306:Fertilization; D015870:Gene Expression; D018390:Gene Targeting; D018095:Germ-Line Mutation; D006579:Heterozygote; D006720:Homozygote; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000235:genetics; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000235:genetics; D007774:Lactation; D008297:Male; D008321:Mammary Glands, Animal / Q000254:growth & development; D008425:Maternal Behavior; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008808:Mice, Inbred CBA; D010060:Ovulation; D011247:Pregnancy; D011555:Pseudopregnancy; D011981:Receptors, Prolactin / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D012098:Reproduction
chemical_list: D011981:Receptors, Prolactin