title: The role of mating in oviduct biology.
abstract: The oviduct connects the ovary to the uterus, and is subject to changes that influence gamete transport, fertilization, and early embryo development. The ovarian steroids estradiol and progesterone are largely responsible for regulating oviduct function, although mating signals also affect the female reproductive tract, both indirectly, through sensory stimulation, and directly, through contact with seminal plasma or spermatozoa. The resulting alterations in gene and protein expression help establish a microenvironment that is appropriate for sperm storage and selection, embryo development, and gamete transport. Mating may also induce the switch from a non-genomic to a genomic pathway of estradiol-accelerated oviduct egg transport, reflecting a novel example of the functional plasticity in well-differentiated cells. This review highlights the physiological relevance of various aspects of mating to oviduct biology and reproductive success. Expanding our knowledge of the mating-associated molecular and cellular events in oviduct cells would undoubtedly facilitate new therapeutic strategies to treat infertility attributable to oviduct pathologies. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 83: 875-883, 2016 © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigaciones Materno-Infantil, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: Alexis
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Parada-Bustamante
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Inmunología de la Reproducción, Facultad de Química y Biología, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile.|Centro Para el Desarrollo en Nanociencia y Nanotecnología-CEDENNA, Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: María L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Oróstica
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Inmunología de la Reproducción, Facultad de Química y Biología, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile.|Centro Para el Desarrollo en Nanociencia y Nanotecnología-CEDENNA, Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Reuquen
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Biología de la Reproducción, Instituto Antofagasta, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile.
authors.forename: Lidia M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Zuñiga
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Inmunología de la Reproducción, Facultad de Química y Biología, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile.|Centro Para el Desarrollo en Nanociencia y Nanotecnología-CEDENNA, Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: Hugo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cardenas
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Inmunología de la Reproducción, Facultad de Química y Biología, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile. pedro.orihuela@usach.cl.|Centro Para el Desarrollo en Nanociencia y Nanotecnología-CEDENNA, Santiago, Chile. pedro.orihuela@usach.cl.
authors.forename: Pedro A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Orihuela
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003075:Coitus / Q000502:physiology*; D003307:Copulation / Q000502:physiology*; D047108:Embryonic Development / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005306:Fertilization / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010053:Ovary / Q000502:physiology*; D010057:Oviducts / Q000502:physiology*; D012661:Semen / Q000378:metabolism