title: Expression of amphiregulin during the pre- and post-implantation period in the mouse reproductive tract.
abstract: In mammals, embryo implantation is an essential step in reproduction. Implantation is a phenomenon that involves crosstalk between the blastocyst and the maternal endometrium. However, the molecular basis of the connections between the blastocyst and endometrium is not yet fully understood. Amphiregulin is a member of the epidermal growth factor family and is known to be expressed in the luminal epithelium of the mouse uterus on 3.5 days post coitum (dpc). Thus, to clarify the mechanism of amphiregulin at fetomaternal interface, we analyzed the expression pattern of amphiregulin mRNA in the oviducts and uteri of pregnant and psuedopregnant mice by means of real-time PCR. Amphiregulin expression in the pregnant uterus dramatically increased on 2.5 dpc, peaked on 3.5 dpc, and declined by 5.5 dpc. Furthermore, to analyze the effect of the presence of an embryo on amphiregulin expression, we determined the expression pattern of amphiregulin mRNA in the uterus after embryo transfer on 0.5 and 1.5 dpc. A previous study showed that the expression of amphiregulin mRNA depends on the concentration of progesterone. However, our present results indicate that amphiregulin mRNA is upregulated by the presence of fertilized eggs in the lumen of the oviduct on 0.5 dpc.
authors.affiliation: Research Unit for Functional Genomics, National Research Center for Protozoan Diseases, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido, Japan.
authors.forename: Dong-Soo
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Yoshiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yanagimoto Ueta
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D066258:Amphiregulin; D000818:Animals; D066255:EGF Family of Proteins; D010064:Embryo Implantation / Q000502:physiology*; D004624:Embryo Transfer; D005187:Fallopian Tubes / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D011247:Pregnancy; D011555:Pseudopregnancy; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013047:Specific Pathogen-Free Organisms; D014599:Uterus / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D066258:Amphiregulin; C587849:Areg protein, mouse; D066255:EGF Family of Proteins; D006023:Glycoproteins; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger