Transforming growth factor-beta family members are regulated during induced luteolysis in cattle

The transforming growth factors beta (TGFβ) are local factors produced by ovarian cells which, after binding to their receptors, regulate follicular deviation and ovulation. However, their regulation and function during corpus luteum (CL) regression has been poorly investigated. The present study evaluated the mRNA regulation of some TGFβ family ligands and their receptors in the bovine CL during induced luteolysis in vivo. On day 10 of the estrous cycle, cows received an injection of prostaglandin F2α (PGF) and luteal samples were obtained from separate groups of cows (n= 4-5 cows per time-point) at 0, 2, 12, 24 or 48 h after treatment. Since TGF beta family comprises more than 30 ligands, we focused in some candidates genes such as activin receptors (ACVR-1A, -1B, -2A, -2B) AMH, AMHR2, BMPs (BMP-1, -2, -3, -4, -6 and -7), BMP receptors (BMPR 1A, -1B and -2), inhibin subunits (INH-A, -BA, -BB) and betaglycan (TGFBR3). The mRNA levels of BMP4, BMP6 and INHBA were higher at 2 h after PGF administration (P<0.05) in comparison to 0 h. The relative mRNA abundance of BMP1, BMP2, BMP3, BMP4, BMP6, ACVR1B, INHBA and INHBB was upregulated up to 12 h post PGF (P<0.05). On the other hand, TGFBR3 mRNA that codes for a reservoir of ligands that bind to TGF-beta receptors, was lower at 48 h. In conclusion, findings from this study demonstrated that genes encoding several TGFβ family members are expressed in a time-specific manner after PGF administration

The transcriptional landscape of Rhizoctonia solani AG1-IA during infection of soybean as defined by RNA-seq

Rhizoctonia solani Kühn infects most plant families and can cause significant agriculturalyield losses worldwide; however, plant resistance to this disease is rare and short-lived,and therefore poorly understood, resulting in the use of chemical pesticides for its control.Understanding the functional responses of this pathogen during host infection can help elucidatethe molecular mechanisms that are necessary for successful host invasion. Using thepathosystem model soybean-R. solani anastomosis group AG1-IA, we examined the globaltranscriptional responses of R. solani during early and late infection stages of soybean byapplying an RNA-seq approach. Approximately, 148 million clean paired-end reads, representing93% of R. solani AG1-IA genes, were obtained from the sequenced libraries. Analysisof R. solani AG1-IA transcripts during soybean invasion revealed that most genes weresimilarly expressed during early and late infection stages, and only 11% and 15% of theexpressed genes were differentially expressed during early and late infection stages,respectively. [...

<b>Effect of body condition loss on</b><b> </b><b>hepatic and ovarian function of lactating dairy cows</b><i>Supplementary Table 1: Differential expressed genes (DEGs) of SEV vs MOD body condition</i><i>loss cows at week seven of calving. P ≤ 0.05 and |fold change| ≥ 1.5.</i>

Supplementary Table 1: Differential expressed genes (DEGs) of SEV vs MOD body condition loss cows at week seven of calving. P ≤ 0.05 and |fold change| ≥ 1.5.Cows were monitored for body condition score (BCS, 5-point scale) during the transition period (3 weeks before to 7 weeks after calving) and were classified as Moderate (MOD, < 0.75 units) or Severe (SEV, ≥ 0.75 units) loss groups. Liver biopsies were collected at Week 7 for trascriptome analysis (N=3 per group).</p

Expression pattern of <i>PRLR</i> mRNA in chicken developing follicles.

<p>(A) Abundance of <i>PRLR</i> mRNA in the stroma and walls of prehierarchical (< 2, 2–4, 4–6 and 6–8 mm) and preovulatory (9–12 mm, F5 and F4) follicles. (B) Relative <i>PRLR</i> mRNA levels in theca and granulosa cell layers isolated from the three largest preovulatory follicles (namely F3-F1; F3 < F2 < F1). Relative expression level was normalized to <i>18S rRNA</i>. Data are expressed as fold differences ± SEM compared to either the stroma or F3 granulosa cells (n = 4 hens). Different lowercase letters indicate a significant effect of follicular developmental stage, whilst different uppercase letters indicate a significant effect of cell type (granulosa versus theca cell layer). <i>P</i> < 0.05 was accepted as statistically significant.</p

Abundance of ERK2 protein in chicken developing follicles and its role in FSH-induced <i>PRLR</i> and <i>StAR</i> expression in cultured granulosa cells of 6–8 mm follicles.

<p>(A) Top panel: Representative western blot analysis of phosphorylated and total ERK2 in the stroma and walls of prehierarchical (< 2, 2–4 and 4–6 mm) follicles as well as in theca and granulosa cell layers separated from the 6–8 mm and F3-F1 follicles. β-actin was used as loading control. Bottom panel: Quantitative analysis of relative protein abundance of phosphorylated ERK2 by densitometry using Image Lab software (Version 4.1, Bio-Rad laboratories). Relative protein abundance was normalized to total ERK2. Data are expressed as fold differences ± SEM compared to an appropriate tissue (n = 4 hens). Bars with different letters are significantly different at <i>P</i> < 0.05. (B and C) Changes in relative mRNAs levels of <i>PRLR</i> (B) and <i>StAR</i> (C) in granulosa cells treated without or with 10 ng/ml FSH, or together with the MEK inhibitor (1 μM PD0325901) after a 4-h culture. Relative mRNA expression level was normalized to <i>18S rRNA</i>. Data are expressed as fold differences ± SEM of three independent experiments using tissues from different hens and are compared to control cells. ^*, <i>P</i> < 0.05 compared to control cells; ^#, <i>P</i> < 0.05 compared to cells only stimulated by 10 ng/ml FSH.</p

Role of PI3K-Akt-mTOR and AMPK signaling pathways in FSH-induced <i>PRLR</i> and <i>StAR</i> mRNAs expression in cultured granulosa cells of prehierarchical (6–8 mm) follicles.

<p>(A and C) Changes in relative mRNA levels of <i>PRLR</i> (A) and <i>StAR</i> (C) after culture of granulosa cells for 4 h in the absence or presence of 10 ng/ml FSH together with PI3K inhibitor (20 μM LY294002) or mTOR inhibitor (10 μM Rapamycin). (B and D) Relative <i>PRLR</i> (B) and <i>StAR</i> (D) mRNAs levels in granulosa cells cultured for 4 h in the absence or presence of 10 ng/ml FSH, or together with AMPK activator (1 mM AICAR). Relative expression level was normalized to <i>18S rRNA</i>. Data are expressed as fold differences ± SEM of three independent experiments using tissues from different hens and are compared to control cells. ^*, <i>P</i> < 0.05 compared to control cells; ^#, <i>P</i> < 0.05 compared to cells only stimulated by 10 ng/ml FSH.</p

Primer pairs for real-time quantitative PCR.

<p>Primer pairs for real-time quantitative PCR.</p

Flowchart of steps taken for <i>R</i>. <i>solani</i> AG1-IA RNA-seq sample preparation and data analysis.

<p>Hyphae of <i>R</i>. <i>solani</i>, grown on ¼ strength PDA (control) or on soybean unifoliate leaves were harvested and processed for RNA sequencing using the Illumina HiSeq 2000 platform. Data were analyzed using standard analytical pipelines for gene annotation and differential expression analysis. Data were further compared using heatmap analysis and gene ontology terms, and affected pathways examined using Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG).</p