Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has been revealed to be a signal molecule with second messenger action in the somatic cells of many tissues, including the reproductive tract. The aim of this study was to address how exogenous H2S acts on the meiotic maturation of porcine oocytes, including key maturation factors such as MPF and MAPK, and cumulus expansion intensity of cumulus-oocyte complexes. We observ...

We have developed an assay that can detect relative changes in the amount of a non-cAMP inhibitor of maturation present in cumulus cells (Eppig et al., 1983, Dev. Biol., 100:39-49). Using this assay in which accelerated maturation of a group of treated cumulus cell-oocyte complexes relative to untreated complexes indicates a decrease in the amount of inhibitor, results of the experiments descri...

The role of gossypol in the cumulus expansion of oocyte-cumulus complexes (OCC) isolated from large antral porcine follicles was investigated. Marked suppression of cumulus expansion stimulated with follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and epidermal growth factor (EGF) was observed in the presence of different concentrations of gossypol. Comparable inhibitory effects were obtained in the presence...

CONTEXT FSH is routinely administered to in vitro fertilization patients to induce follicle maturation. During this process, granulosa cells differentiate and acquire specific functional characteristics that are required to coordinate ovulation and oocyte maturation. OBJECTIVE The objective of the study was to gain insight into the molecular mechanisms regulating human granulosa cell differen...

The musk shrew, Suncus murinus, is an induced ovulator, the cumulus oophorus of which is unusual in several respects: it has no matrix, it always induces the acrosome reaction and it appears to be essential for fertilization. The present study documents distinctive features of the cumulus oophorus before and after ovulation, and of copulation-induced maturation of the ovulatory follicle, which ...

PURPOSE Cumulus cells have a critical role in normal oocyte development and fertilization. Prunus cerasus is an anthocyanin rich berry and performs strong antioxidant activity. The present study set to determine if Prunus cerasus can affect expression of HAS2 (hyaluronan synthase 2) and progesterone receptor in Cumulus cells and its consequences outcome of the in vitro fertilization. METHODS ...

OBJECTIVE The long interspersed elements (LINE-1, L1s) are a group of genetic elements found in large numbers in the human genome that can translate into phenotype by controlling genes. Growing evidence supports the role of epigenetic in polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). The purpose of this study is to evaluate the DNA methylation levels in LINE-1 in a tissue-specific manner using cumulus cells...

Eight calves were derived from differentiated cells of a single adult cow, five from cumulus cells and three from oviductal cells out of 10 embryos transferred to surrogate cows (80 percent success). All calves were visibly normal, but four died at or soon after birth from environmental causes, and postmortem analysis revealed no abnormality. These results show that bovine cumulus and oviductal...

Retinoids, a class of compounds that include retinol and its metabolite, retinoic acid, are absolutely essential for ovarian steroid production, oocyte maturation, and early embryogenesis. Previous studies have detected high concentrations of retinol in bovine large follicles. Further, administration of retinol in vivo and supplementation of retinoic acid during in vitro maturation results in e...

BACKGROUND Deficiencies remain in the ability of in vitro-matured human oocytes to acquire full developmental competence and give rise to a healthy pregnancy. A clear deficiency of current systems utilizing human oocytes has been the absence of cumulus cells. In the present study, a three-dimensional (3D) co-culture system exploiting an extracellular matrix was developed and compared to convent...