BCL2L15 Depletion Inhibits Endometrial Receptivity via the STAT1 Signaling Pathway

LPS Disrupts Endometrial Receptivity by Inhibiting STAT1 Phosphorylation in Sheep

Uterine infections reduce ruminant reproductive efficiency. Reproductive dysfunction caused by infusion of Gram-negative bacteria is characterized by the failure of embryo implantation and reduced conception rates. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a major component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, is highly abortogenic. In this study, the effects of LPS infusion on the endometrial receptivity of sheep were studied during three critical periods of embryo implantation. The results showed that LPS infusion on d12, d16, and d20 of pregnancy in vivo interfered with the expression of prostaglandins (PGs) and affected the expression of adhesion-related factors (ITGB1/3/5, SPP1), key implantation genes (HOXA10, HOXA11 and LIF), and progestational elongation genes (ISG15, RSAD2 and CXCL10) during embryo implantation. In addition, after LPS infusion on d12, d16, and d20, the phosphorylation level of STAT1 significantly decreased and the protein expression level of IRF9 significantly increased on d12, suggesting that LPS infusion in sheep impairs endometrial receptivity through the JAK2/STAT1 pathway. Sheep endometrial epithelial cells were treated with 17 β-estrogen, progesterone, and/or interferon-tau in vitro to mimic the receptivity of the endometrium during early pregnancy for validation. LPS and the p-STAT1 inhibitor fludarabine were both added to the model, which resulted in reduced p-STAT1 protein expression, significant inhibition of PGE2/PGF2α, and significant suppression of the expression of key embryo implantation genes. Collectively, these results indicate that LPS infusion in sheep on d12, d16, and d20 impairs endometrial receptivity through the JAK2/STAT1 pathway, which is responsible for LPS-associated pregnancy failure.

Lenvatinib targets STAT-1 to enhance the M1 polarization of TAMs during hepatocellular carcinoma progression

Lenvatinib, a multitarget kinase inhibitor, has been proven to be effective in the treatment of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma. It has been previously demonstrated that tumour associated macrophages (TAMs) in tumour tissues can promote HCC growth, invasion and metastasis. Furthermore, lenvatinib has certain immunomodulatory effects on the treatment of HCC. However, the role of lenvatinib in macrophage polarization during HCC treatment has not been fully explored. In this study, we used a variety of experimental methods both in vitro and in vivo to investigate the effect of lenvatinib on TAMs during HCC progression. This study is the first to show that lenvatinib can alter macrophage polarization in both humans and mice. Moreover, macrophages treated with lenvatinib in vitro displayed enhanced classically activated macrophages (M1) activity and suppressed liver cancer cell proliferation, invasion, and migration. Furthermore, during the progression of M1 macrophage polarization induced by lenvatinib, STAT-1 was the main target transcription factor, and inhibiting STAT-1 activity reversed the effect of lenvatinib. Overall, the present study provides a theoretical basis for the immunomodulatory function of lenvatinib in the treatment of HCC.

Identification of functional enhancer variants associated with type I diabetes in CD4+ T cells

Type I diabetes is an autoimmune disease mediated by T-cell destruction of β cells in pancreatic islets. Currently, there is no known cure, and treatment consists of daily insulin injections. Genome-wide association studies and twin studies have indicated a strong genetic heritability for type I diabetes and implicated several genes. As most strongly associated variants are noncoding, there is still a lack of identification of functional and, therefore, likely causal variants. Given that many of these genetic variants reside in enhancer elements, we have tested 121 CD4+ T-cell enhancer variants associated with T1D. We found four to be functional through massively parallel reporter assays. Three of the enhancer variants weaken activity, while the fourth strengthens activity. We link these to their cognate genes using 3D genome architecture or eQTL data and validate them using CRISPR editing. Validated target genes include CLEC16A and SOCS1. While these genes have been previously implicated in type 1 diabetes and other autoimmune diseases, we show that enhancers controlling their expression harbor functional variants. These variants, therefore, may act as causal type 1 diabetic variants.

Genetic parameters and genome-wide association studies for mozzarella and milk production traits, lactation length, and lactation persistency in Murrah buffaloes

Genetic and genomic analyses of longitudinal traits related to milk production efficiency are paramount for optimizing water buffaloes breeding schemes. Therefore, this study aimed to (1) compare single-trait random regression models under a single-step genomic BLUP setting based on alternative covariance functions (i.e., Wood, Wilmink, and Ali and Schaeffer) to describe milk (MY), fat (FY), protein (PY), and mozzarella (MZY) yields, fat-to-protein ratio (FPR), somatic cell score (SCS), lactation length (LL), and lactation persistency (LP) in Murrah dairy buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis); (2) combine the best functions for each trait under a multiple-trait framework; (3) estimate time-dependent SNP effects for all the studied longitudinal traits; and (4) identify the most likely candidate genes associated with the traits. A total of 323,140 test-day records from the first lactation of 4,588 Murrah buffaloes were made available for the study. The model included the average curve of the population nested within herd-year-season of calving, systematic effects of number of milkings per day, and age at first calving as linear and quadratic covariates, and additive genetic, permanent environment, and residual as random effects. The Wood model had the best goodness of fit based on the deviance information criterion and posterior model probabilities for all traits. Moderate heritabilities were estimated over time for most traits (0.30 ± 0.02 for MY; 0.26 ± 0.03 for FY; 0.45 ± 0.04 for PY; 0.28 ± 0.05 for MZY; 0.13 ± 0.02 for FPR; and 0.15 ± 0.03 for SCS). The heritability estimates for LP ranged from 0.38 ± 0.02 to 0.65 ± 0.03 depending on the trait definition used. Similarly, heritabilities estimated for LL ranged from 0.10 ± 0.01 to 0.14 ± 0.03. The genetic correlation estimates across days in milk (DIM) for all traits ranged from -0.06 (186-215 DIM for MY-SCS) to 0.78 (66-95 DIM for PY-MZY). The SNP effects calculated for the random regression model coefficients were used to estimate the SNP effects throughout the lactation curve (from 5 to 305 d). Numerous relevant genomic regions and candidate genes were identified for all traits, confirming their polygenic nature. The candidate genes identified contribute to a better understanding of the genetic background of milk-related traits in Murrah buffaloes and reinforce the value of incorporating genomic information in their breeding programs.

LncRNA12097.1 contributes to endometrial cell growth by enhancing YES1 activating β-catenin via sponging miR-145-5p

Despite previous investigations elucidating the regulatory mechanisms of long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) in endometrial function and reproductive disorders, the precise pathways through which lncRNAs impact endometrial functions and fertility remain unclear. In this study, we performed an expression profile analysis of lncRNAs in the endometrial tissue of Hu sheep with different prolificacy, identifying 13,707 lncRNAs. We discovered a bidirectional lncRNA, designated lncRNA12097.1, exhibiting significant up-regulation exclusively in the endometrium of Hu sheep with high fecundity. Functional analyses revealed lncRNA12097.1 significantly enhanced proliferation and cell cycle progression in both endometrial epithelial cell (EEC) and stromal cells (ESC), while inhibiting apoptosis in these cell types. Mechanistically, we demonstrated a directly interaction between lncRNA12097.1 and miR-145-5p, with YES proto-oncogene 1 (YES1) being identified as a validated target of miR-145-5p. Interference with lncRNA12097.1 resulted in suppressed cell growth through down-regulation of YES1 expression, which could be rescued by miR-145-5p. Furthermore, lncRNA12097.1 functions as a competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) for miR-145-5p in ESCs, sequestering miR-145-5p and preventing its binding to the 3'UTR of YES1 mRNA. This interaction led to increased expression of YES1 and subsequent activation of downstream β-catenin signaling, thereby promoting ESC growth in Hu sheep. These findings provide novel molecular insights into the mechanisms underlying prolificacy in sheep.

Growth hormone inhibits the JAK/STAT3 pathway by regulating SOCS1 in endometrial cells in vitro: a clue to enhance endometrial receptivity in recurrent implantation failure

Recurrent implantation failure (RIF) is defined as failure to achieve clinical pregnancy after at least 3 transfers of good-quality embryos by natural or artificial means. RIF is often a complex problem with a wide variety of etiologies and mechanisms as well as treatment options. In this study, using immunohistochemistry and Western blot, we demonstrated that the expression of leukemia inhibitory factor (LIF), Janus kinase 1 (JAK1), and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) was increased, while that of suppressor of cytokine signaling 1 (SOCS1) was decreased in RIF patients. Growth hormone (GH) administration proved to have positive effects on embryo implantation in RIF patients, but the action mechanism of GH has not been elucidated yet. To this aim, we studied the effects of GH on the proliferation in vitro of endometrial adenocarcinoma Ishikawa cells. GH stimulated the expression of LIF and SOCS1, and through SOCS1 inhibits the expression of phosphorylated STAT3, and finally inhibits the occurrence of RIF. Excessive phosphorylation of STAT can lead to decreased endometrial receptivity and abnormal embryo implantation. We also examined the effects of LIF overexpression and an LIF inhibitor (EC330) on the JAK/STAT pathway. LIF promoted cell proliferation, and the up-regulation of LIF increased the expression of SOCS1 and JAK1/STAT3 pathway-related genes in Ishikawa cells. As GH can inhibit the JAK1/STAT3 pathway through LIF, we hypothesize that upregulating SOCS1 may be a potential approach to treat RIF at the molecular level. GH can inhibit the JAK1/STAT3 pathway through LIF, up-regulating SOCS1 to treat RIF at the molecular level.

Differential Expression Pattern of Goat Uterine Fluids Extracellular Vesicles miRNAs during Peri-Implantation

Early pregnancy failure occurs when a mature embryo attaches to an unreceptive endometrium. During the formation of a receptive endometrium, extracellular vesicles (EVs) of the uterine fluids (UFs) deliver regulatory molecules such as small RNAs to mediate intrauterine communication between the embryo and the endometrium. However, profiling of small RNAs in goat UFs’ EVs during pregnancy recognition (day 16) has not been carried out. In this study, EVs were isolated from UFs on day 16 of the estrous cycle or gestation. They were isolated by Optiprep™ Density G radient (ODG) and verified by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA), and Western blotting. Immunostaining demonstrated that CD63 was present both in the endometrial epithelium and glandular epithelium, and stain intensity was greater in the pregnant endometrium compared to the non-pregnant endometrium. Small RNA sequencing revealed that UFs’ EVs contained numerous sRNA families and a total of 106 differentially expressed miRNAs (DEMs). Additionally, 1867 target genes of the DEMs were obtained, and miRNA–mRNA interaction networks were constructed. GO and KEGG analysis showed that miRNAs were significantly associated with the formation of a receptive endometrium and embryo implantation. In addition, the fluorescence in situ hybridization assay (FISH) showed that chi-miR-451-5p was mainly expressed in stromal cells of the endometrium and a higher level was detected in the endometrial luminal epithelium in pregnant states. Moreover, the dual-luciferase reporter assay showed that chi-miR-451-5p directly binds to PSMB8 and may play an important role in the formation of a receptive endometrium and embryo implantation. In conclusion, these results reveal that UFs’ EVs contain various small RNAs that may be vital in the formation of a receptive endometrium and embryo implantation.

Essential Role of CRIM1 on Endometrial Receptivity in Goat

In domestic ruminants, endometrial receptivity is related to successful pregnancy and economic efficiency. Despite several molecules having been reported in the past regarding endometrial receptivity regulation, much regarding the mechanism of endometrial receptivity regulation remains unknown due to the complex nature of the trait. In this work, we demonstrated that the cysteine-rich transmembrane bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) regulator 1 (CRIM1) served as a novel regulator in the regulation of goat endometrial receptivity in vitro. Our results showed that hormones and IFN-τ increased the expression of CRIM1 in goat endometrial epithelial cells (EECs). Knockdown of CRIM1 via specific shRNA hindered cell proliferation, cell adhesion and prostaglandins (PGs) secretion and thus derailed normal endometrial receptivity. We further confirmed that receptivity defect phenotypes due to CRIM1 interference were restored by ATG7 overexpression in EECs while a loss of ATG7 further impaired receptivity phenotypes. Moreover, our results showed that changing the expression of ATG7 affected the reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Moreover, mR-143-5p was shown to be a potential upstream factor of CRIM1-regulated endometrial receptivity in EECs. Overall, these results suggest that CRIM1, as the downstream target of miR-143-5p, has effects on ATG7-dependent autophagy, regulating cell proliferation, cell adhesion and PG secretion, and provides a new target for the diagnosis and treatment of early pregnancy failure and for improving the success rates of artificial reproduction.