Screening of aquaporin genes expression during estrous cycle in mouse uterus

초록

Mouse estrous cycle divided into four phase that is the diestrus, proestrus, estrus and metestrus. These cycle is marked by edematous changes in response to hormonal stimuli in the uterus. To receive sperm, uterus must be absorption and secretion of uterine luminal fluids and it also facilitate the movement of the free-floating zygote to the eventual site of implantation. We already know that in the mouse, increased uterine vascular permeability occurs in response to estrogen and certain vasoactive mediators, but the mechanisms that regulate fluid transport during estrous cycle are not fully understood. Aquaporins(AQPs) are a family of membrane channel proteins that facilitate bulk water transport, which are known in a variety of tissues. In animal tissue, AQP 0-9 was found. Here, our hypothesis is that the edematous change in uterus is mediated by aquaporin, so we first screening of aquaporin gene expression in the uterus during estrous cycle by quantitative RT-PCR. Results show that AQP1 expressed throughout the stage, AQP4 is highly expressed at estrus stage, AQP5 expression is peaked at proestrus and down to diestrus, AQP8 is shown more expression during proestrus and estrus stage than other stages and AQP9 expression is increased through diestrus to metestrus. And we select some genes for Real-time RT-PCR. Therefore We confirmed that aqp4, 5, 8, 9 is highly expressed during follicular phase. All together, aquaporin gene is important to uterus luminal fluid transport, and these genes are regulated by estrogen so gene expression is increased at follicular phase. But each aquaporin expression pattern during estrous cycle is various, so we must have to localization and further, injection RNAi to bloking function, then examine the real function of each aquaporin.