BACKGROUND Activin A increases production of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) by inducing transcription of its beta subunit (FSHB). This induction has been studied here in LbetaT2 gonadotropes using transient expression of ovine FSHBLuc (-4741 bp of ovine FSHB promoter plus exon/intron 1 linked to Luc). Several sequences between -169/-58 bp of the ovine FSHB proximal promoter are necessary fo...

Background: Fibroblast growth factors are a great family of growth factors that exert variety of functions in vertebrates including cell growth, survival, differentiation and migration. FGFRs are transmembrane tyrosine kinase receptors transmitting FGF signals. Four types of FGFRs (1/2/3/4) exist in vertebrates. FGF2 is one of the FGFs detected in bovine and ovine uterus flushes, supposing that...

The objective of the present study was to test the hypothesis that fatty acids are the circulating mediators acting in a pro-inflammatory manner towards activated circulating ovine monocyte/macrophages and neutrophils. Furthermore, whether soya protein hydrolysates (SPH) inhibit the fatty acid-induced increase in the production of pro-inflammatory responses by ovine phagocytes was tested in vit...

The majority of ovarian cancers (>90%) are believed to derive from the ovarian surface epithelium (OSE); a single layer covering the entire surface of the ovary. At ovulation, the OSE cell layer undergoes an inflammatory response, involving cell death and growth, in order to overcome ovarian surface rupture. Abnormalities during these processes are believed to contribute to the development of t...

BACKGROUND The impact of prion proteins in the rules that dictate biological reproduction is still poorly understood. Likewise, the role of prnt gene, encoding the prion-like protein testis specific (Prt), in ram reproductive physiology remains largely unknown. In this study, we assessed the effect of Prt in ovine fertilization by using an anti-Prt antibody (APPA) in fertilization medium incuba...

Abstract The objective of this study was to use matrix-assisted laser desorption ionisation–time flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) for the identification ovine-associated staphylococci. Presumptive Staphylococcus isolates were recovered from ovine udder surface (US), individual raw milk, bulk tank and cheese samples characterised by conventional phenotypic methods. A total 69 bacterial fu...

The beta subunit of follicle stimulating hormone (FSHB) is expressed specifically in pituitary gonadotropes in vertebrates. Transgenic mouse studies have shown that enhancers in the proximal promoter between -172/-1 bp of the ovine FSHB gene are required for gonadotrope expression of ovine FSHB. These enhancers are associated with regulation by activins and gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH)...

A clone of the extracellular domain of the rat liver prolactin receptor was generated by the RNA-based polymerase chain reaction, and the NH2-terminal 210 amino acids were expressed in HeLa cells using a vaccinia virus/T7 hybrid expression system. The protein was isolated from serum-free culture medium directly by chromatography on an ovine prolactin affinity column and yielded approximately 1....

The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) on survival, activation and growth of ovine primordial follicles using histological studies. Pieces of ovine ovarian cortex were obtained and cultured for 6 days in Minimum Essential Medium supplemented with or without FSH (50 ng/mL). These fragments were then process to be used for histology compar...

Pasteurella multocida isa gram-negative bacterial pathogen that is causative agent of a wide range of diseases in many animal species and humans. Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) are an important virulence factor, minor changes to structure of which can exert dramatic effects on pathogenicity of P. multocida in its host. LPS can be used for the identification and classification of strains with somatic...