title: Mouse Sox17 haploinsufficiency leads to female subfertility due to impaired implantation.
abstract: Embryonic implantation comprises a dynamic and complicated series of events, which takes place only when the maternal uterine endometrium is in a receptive state. Blastocysts reaching the uterus communicate with the uterine endometrium to implant within a narrow time window. Interplay among various signalling molecules and transcription factors under the control of ovarian hormones is necessary for successful establishment of pregnancy. However, the molecular mechanisms that allow embryonic implantation in the receptive endometrium are still largely unknown. Here, we show that Sry-related HMG box gene-17 (Sox17) heterozygous mutant female mice exhibit subfertility due to implantation failure. Sox17 was expressed in the oviduct, uterine luminal epithelium, and blood vessels. Sox17 heterozygosity caused no appreciable defects in ovulation, fertilisation, blastocyst formation, and gross morphology of the oviduct and uterus. Another group F Sox transcription factor, Sox7, was also expressed in the uterine luminal and glandular epithelium relatively weakly. Despite uterine Sox7 expression, a significant reduction in the number of implantation sites was observed in Sox17 heterozygous mutant females due to haploinsufficiency. Our findings revealed a novel role of Sox17 in uterine receptivity to embryo implantation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Animal Model for Human Disease, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU), Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.|Center for Experimental Animals, TMDU, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshikazu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hirate
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Animal Model for Human Disease, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU), Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Hitomi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Animal Model for Human Disease, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU), Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.|Center for Experimental Animals, TMDU, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Miyuri
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kawasumi
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Animal Model for Human Disease, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU), Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Hinako M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Takase
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Anatomy, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8657, Japan.
authors.forename: Hitomi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Igarashi
authors.affiliation: Centre d'Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy, Aix Marseille Université UM2, Inserm, U1104, CNRS UMR7280, 13288 Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Naquet
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Anatomy, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8657, Japan.
authors.forename: Yoshiakira
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kanai
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Animal Model for Human Disease, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU), Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.|Center for Experimental Animals, TMDU, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8510, Japan.
authors.forename: Masami
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kanai-Azuma
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001755:Blastocyst / Q000378:metabolism; D015153:Blotting, Western; D010064:Embryo Implantation / Q000235:genetics*; D047108:Embryonic Development / Q000235:genetics; D004848:Epithelium / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D024002:HMGB Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D057895:Haploinsufficiency; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal; D010057:Oviducts / Q000378:metabolism; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D055760:SOXF Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D014599:Uterus / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D024002:HMGB Proteins; D055760:SOXF Transcription Factors; C511606:Sox17 protein, mouse; C490653:Sox18 protein, mouse; C102515:Sox7 protein, mouse; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins