Follistatin is critical for mouse uterine receptivity and decidualization. 2017

Paul T Fullerton, and Diana Monsivais, and Ramakrishna Kommagani, and Martin M Matzuk
Department of Pathology and Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030.

Embryo implantation remains a significant challenge for assisted reproductive technology, with implantation failure occurring in ∼50% of in vitro fertilization attempts. Understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying uterine receptivity will enable the development of new interventions and biomarkers. TGFβ family signaling in the uterus is critical for establishing and maintaining pregnancy. Follistatin (FST) regulates TGFβ family signaling by selectively binding TGFβ family ligands and sequestering them. In humans, FST is up-regulated in the decidua during early pregnancy, and women with recurrent miscarriage have lower endometrial expression of FST during the luteal phase. Because global knockout of Fst is perinatal lethal in mice, we generated a conditional knockout (cKO) of Fst in the uterus using progesterone receptor-cre to study the roles of uterine Fst during pregnancy. Uterine Fst-cKO mice demonstrate severe fertility defects and deliver only 2% of the number of pups delivered by control females. In Fst-cKO mice, the uterine luminal epithelium does not respond properly to estrogen and progesterone signals and remains unreceptive to embryo attachment by continuing to proliferate and failing to differentiate. The uterine stroma of Fst-cKO mice also responds poorly to artificial decidualization, with lower levels of proliferation and differentiation. In the absence of uterine FST, activin B expression and signaling are up-regulated, and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signals are impaired. Our findings support a model in which repression of activin signaling by FST enables uterine receptivity by preserving critical BMP signaling.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007247 Infertility, Female Diminished or absent ability of a female to achieve conception. Sterility, Female,Sterility, Postpartum,Sub-Fertility, Female,Subfertility, Female,Female Infertility,Female Sterility,Female Sub-Fertility,Female Subfertility,Postpartum Sterility,Sub Fertility, Female
D008297 Male Males
D008810 Mice, Inbred C57BL One of the first INBRED MOUSE STRAINS to be sequenced. This strain is commonly used as genetic background for transgenic mouse models. Refractory to many tumors, this strain is also preferred model for studying role of genetic variations in development of diseases. Mice, C57BL,Mouse, C57BL,Mouse, Inbred C57BL,C57BL Mice,C57BL Mice, Inbred,C57BL Mouse,C57BL Mouse, Inbred,Inbred C57BL Mice,Inbred C57BL Mouse
D010064 Embryo Implantation Endometrial implantation of EMBRYO, MAMMALIAN at the BLASTOCYST stage. Blastocyst Implantation,Decidual Cell Reaction,Implantation, Blastocyst,Nidation,Ovum Implantation,Blastocyst Implantations,Decidual Cell Reactions,Embryo Implantations,Implantation, Embryo,Implantation, Ovum,Implantations, Blastocyst,Implantations, Embryo,Implantations, Ovum,Nidations,Ovum Implantations
D011247 Pregnancy The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH. Gestation,Pregnancies
D003656 Decidua The hormone-responsive glandular layer of ENDOMETRIUM that sloughs off at each menstrual flow (decidua menstrualis) or at the termination of pregnancy. During pregnancy, the thickest part of the decidua forms the maternal portion of the PLACENTA, thus named decidua placentalis. The thin portion of the decidua covering the rest of the embryo is the decidua capsularis. Deciduum,Deciduas
D004195 Disease Models, Animal Naturally-occurring or experimentally-induced animal diseases with pathological processes analogous to human diseases. Animal Disease Model,Animal Disease Models,Disease Model, Animal
D005260 Female Females
D005307 Fertilization in Vitro An assisted reproductive technique that includes the direct handling and manipulation of oocytes and sperm to achieve fertilization in vitro. Test-Tube Fertilization,Fertilizations in Vitro,In Vitro Fertilization,Test-Tube Babies,Babies, Test-Tube,Baby, Test-Tube,Fertilization, Test-Tube,Fertilizations, Test-Tube,In Vitro Fertilizations,Test Tube Babies,Test Tube Fertilization,Test-Tube Baby,Test-Tube Fertilizations
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man

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