Culture ovarian granulosa cells

Seifer, D. B., Gardiner, A. C., Lambert-Messerlian, G., and Schneyer, A. L., Differential secretion of dimeric inhibin in cultured luteinized granulosa cells as a function of ovarian reserve. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 81, 736-739 (1996). 

Fig. 2. Effect of oxytocin (0,1,10 or 100. 1.000 or 10.000 ng/mL medium) on prostaglandin (PG)F release by cultured porcine ovarian granulosa cells. Values are means SEM. Sig-nificant differences (P< 0.05) between cells cultured with and without exogenous oxytocin. Methods of isolation and culture of ovarian granulosa cells, as well as the PGF radioimmunoassay are described in (10).

Inhibin, an ovarian protein hormone, has been shown to selectively decrease FSH but not LH secretion by the anterior pituitary cell. The gonadal source of inhibin has been localized to the testis Sertoli cells [76] and ovarian granulosa [77]. In cultured granulosa cells, FSH increases inhibin production via stimulation of the protein kinase A pathway. In vivo treatment with injections of gonadotropin also increases the circulating levels of inhibin [78], whereas treatment with inhibin... 

Studies in rodents have focused on the induction of ovarian NO synthesis primarily by cytokines. Rat ovarian NO production increases in response to hCG and IL-ip in the perfused ovary (Bonello et al., 1996) and in vivo (Nakamura et al., 1996). Cultured immature rat ovarian cells (Ben-Shlomo et al., 1994 Ellman et al., 1993) and isolated rat granulosa cells (Tabraue et al., 1997) synthesize NO in a dose-dependent manner in response to IL-ip. Furthermore, TNFa stimulates the NO pathway in isolated bovine thecal cells, causing increased cGMP levels, the significance of which is currently not clear (Tabraue et al., 1997). Taken together, these data demonstrate that the NO pathway is operative and sensitive to cytokine stimulation during the periovulatory period and suggests that NO is a downstream mediator of LH/hCG and IL-1 p in the ovulatory process. 

Oxytocin, Oxytocin is a known stimulator of PGF secretion by the uterus. Moreover, OT-induced labor is due in part to a dramatic increase in the production of PGF, which stimulates uterine contractions (1). Oxytocin was shown to be an activator of PGF release by cultured porcine ovarian follicles (8), and porcine (Fig. 2) and bovine (10 Fig. 1) granulosa cells. Oxytocin also stimulated PGE secretion by porcine ovarian follicles (8 Fig. 3), hamster ovarian cells (9), and bovine granulosa cells (11 Fig. 1). The immunoneutralization of OT produced by porcine granulosa cells inhibited PGE release (10). Thus, OT has been shown to be a stimulator of ovarian PGF and PGE secretion. 

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