Biological and clinical significance of anti-Müllerian hormone determination in blood serum of the mare.
Abstract: Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH), a member of the transforming growth factor β superfamily of growth and differentiation factors, is expressed in granulosa cells of preantral and small antral ovarian follicles. In humans, AMH appeared to regulate recruitment and growth of small ovarian follicles. Furthermore, circulating AMH concentrations were elevated in women with granulosa-cell tumors (GCT). In the horse, GCTs are the most common tumor of the ovary, and a variety of endocrine assays have been used to diagnose presumptive GCTs. The objectives of the present study were to validate a heterologous enzyme immunoassay for determination of serum AMH in the horse, and to determine concentrations of AMH in the blood of mares during the estrous cycle, pregnancy, and in mares with granulosa-cell tumors. Mares with normal estrous cycles (n = 6) and pregnant mares (n = 6) had blood samples collected throughout one interovulatory period and monthly throughout gestation, respectively. Mares diagnosed with GCT had blood samples taken before (n = 11) and after ovariectomy (n = 5). Tumors were sectioned and fixed for immunohistochemistry and snap frozen for immunoblot analyses and RT-qPCR. In normal cyclic mares and in pregnant mares, there was no effect of cycle stage or month of gestation on serum AMH concentrations. In GCT mares, serum concentrations of AMH (1901.4 ± 1144.6 ng/mL) were higher than those in cyclic (0.96 ± 0.08 ng/mL) or pregnant (0.72 ± 0.05 ng/mL) mares and decreased after tumor removal. Both AMH and AMH receptor (AMHR2) immunolabeling and expression were detected by immunohistochemistry in the tumor and cyst fluid obtained from mares with GCTs. Therefore, we concluded that AMH was a useful biomarker for detection of granulosa-cell tumors in mares.
Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Publication Date: 2011-07-28 PubMed ID: 21798581DOI: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2011.06.008Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
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Summary
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The research paper probes into the roles and implications of Anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) in horses, with an emphasis on its relevance in diagnosing granulosa-cell tumors, the common ovarian tumor in mares. Through testing and analyses, the researchers found that abnormally high levels of AMH in serum can act as a useful biomarker for the detection of these tumors.
Understanding Anti-Müllerian Hormone (AMH)
- AMH is a hormone belonging to the transforming growth factor β superfamily of growth and differentiation factors.
- It is predominantly expressed in the granulosa cells of small ovarian follicles, playing a regulating role in the recruitment and growth of these follicles.
- In humans, elevated concentrations of circulating AMH have been linked to granulosa-cell tumors (GCT).
Granulosa-cell Tumor (GCT) in Horses
- GCT is the most common type of ovarian tumor in horses.
- Multiple endocrine assays are usually utilized for the presumptive diagnosis of GCTs.
Objective and Approach of the Study
- The research aimed at validating a heterologous enzyme immunoassay for the determination of serum AMH in horses.
- It also measured the AMH concentrations in the blood of mares during different times: the estrous cycle, during pregnancy, and when diagnosed with GCTs.
- Blood samples were collected from mares during one interovulatory period and monthly throughout gestation from both, normal cyclic and pregnant mares.
- In mares diagnosed with GCT, blood samples were collected before and after ovariectomy.
Study Findings
- The findings of this study revealed that neither the cycle stage nor the gestation month influenced the serum AMH concentrations in normal and pregnant mares.
- Mares diagnosed with GCT displayed higher serum concentrations of AMH before ovariectomy, which decreased substantially after tumor removal.
- Both AMH and its receptor (AMHR2) were detected in the tumor and cyst fluid obtained from mares with GCTs.
Conclusions
- The study suggests that an elevated concentration of AMH in serum can be effectively used as a biomarker for the detection of granulosa-cell tumors in mares.
This pioneering study is noteworthy for its potential applications in equine veterinary medicine, particularly for ovarian tumor detection and management.
Cite This Article
APA
Almeida J, Ball BA, Conley AJ, Place NJ, Liu IK, Scholtz EL, Mathewson L, Stanley SD, Moeller BC.
(2011).
Biological and clinical significance of anti-Müllerian hormone determination in blood serum of the mare.
Theriogenology, 76(8), 1393-1403.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.theriogenology.2011.06.008 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Population Health and Reproduction, California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis, California, USA.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Anti-Mullerian Hormone / blood
- Anti-Mullerian Hormone / chemistry
- Biomarkers, Tumor / blood
- Cyst Fluid / chemistry
- Estrous Cycle / blood
- Female
- Gene Expression Regulation
- Granulosa Cell Tumor / blood
- Granulosa Cell Tumor / metabolism
- Granulosa Cell Tumor / veterinary
- Horse Diseases / blood
- Horses
- Immunoblotting / veterinary
- Immunoenzyme Techniques / methods
- Immunoenzyme Techniques / veterinary
- Immunohistochemistry
- Ovariectomy / veterinary
- Ovulation / physiology
- Pregnancy
- Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction / veterinary
- Receptors, Peptide / genetics
- Receptors, Peptide / metabolism
- Receptors, Transforming Growth Factor beta / genetics
- Receptors, Transforming Growth Factor beta / metabolism
- Reproducibility of Results
Citations
This article has been cited 15 times.- Straticò P, Hattab J, Guerri G, Carluccio A, Bandera L, Celani G, Marruchella G, Varasano V, Petrizzi L. Behavioral Disorders in Mares with Ovarian Disorders, Outcome after Laparoscopic Ovariectomy: A Case Series. Vet Sci 2023 Jul 25;10(8).
- Nelissen S, Miller AD. Comparison of anti-Müllerian hormone and inhibin immunolabeling in canine and equine granulosa cell tumors. J Vet Diagn Invest 2022 Nov;34(6):1027-1031.
- Howard JA, Hart KN, Thompson TB. Molecular Mechanisms of AMH Signaling. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2022;13:927824.
- Goto A, Tagami M, Kato F, Suzuki T, Yamaga T, Murase H, Sato F, Tsogtgerel M, Niikura T, Moriyama T, Chiba A, Watanabe KI, Tsuzuki N, Nambo Y. Equine nonneoplastic abnormal ovary in a draft mare with high serum anti-Müllerian hormone: a case study. J Equine Sci 2021 Dec;32(4):147-151.
- Papas M, Govaere J, Peere S, Gerits I, Van de Velde M, Angel-Velez D, De Coster T, Van Soom A, Smits K. Anti-Müllerian Hormone and OPU-ICSI Outcome in the Mare. Animals (Basel) 2021 Jul 5;11(7).
- Tsogtgerel M, Tagami M, Watanabe K, Murase H, Hirosawa Y, Kobayashi Y, Nambo Y. Case report: The case of a 17 kg ovarian granulosa cell tumor in a Breton draft mare. J Equine Sci 2021 Jun;32(2):67-72.
- Devick IF, Hendrickson DA. Effects of Leaving Amputated Ovaries Intra-Abdominally during Elective Bilateral Standing Laparoscopic Ovariectomy in Equids. Animals (Basel) 2021 Jan 18;11(1).
- Devick IF, Leise BS, McCue PM, Rao S, Hendrickson DA. Ovarian histopathology, pre- and post-operative endocrinological analysis and behavior alterations in 27 mares undergoing bilateral standing laparoscopic ovariectomy. Can Vet J 2020 Feb;61(2):181-186.
- Umer S, Zhao SJ, Sammad A, Weldegebriall Sahlu B, Yunwei P, Zhu H. AMH: Could It Be Used as A Biomarker for Fertility and Superovulation in Domestic Animals?. Genes (Basel) 2019 Dec 4;10(12).
- Heaps LA, Scudder CJ, Lipscomb VJ, Steinbach SM, Priestnall SL, Martineau H, Szladovits B, Fowkes RC, Garden OA. Serum anti-Müllerian hormone concentrations before and after treatment of an ovarian granulosa cell tumour in a cat. JFMS Open Rep 2017 Jul-Dec;3(2):2055116917722701.
- Gharagozlou F, Akbarinejad V, Youssefi R, Masoudifard M, Hasani N. Reduced anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) in mares with hemorrhagic anovulatory follicles. Iran J Vet Res 2014 Fall;15(4):336-40.
- Turna Yilmaz Ö, Toydemir TS, Kirsan I, Gunay Ucmak Z, Caliskan Karacam E. Anti-Müllerian hormone as a diagnostic tool for ovarian remnant syndrome in bitches. Vet Res Commun 2015 Sep;39(3):159-62.
- Derar D, Ali A, Al-Sobayil F, Refaai W. Granulosa cell tumor in Arabian mares: prevalence, risk factors, clinical and histopathological findings and outcome of surgical removal. Front Vet Sci 2025;12:1689782.
- Aboelmaaty AM, Elgharieb AEA, El-Debaky HA, Alkhadrawy JMH, Abou-Ahmed MM, Ghallab AM. Fluctuations of antimüllerian hormone, ovarian follicular reserve, and antioxidant status throughout the estrous cycle in aged mares. Open Vet J 2024 Nov;14(11):3132-3143.
- Wolf N, Hahn JA, Walter I, Zablotski Y, Zerbe H, Witte TS. Pathohistological Findings after Bilateral Ovariectomy in Mares with Behavioral Problems. Animals (Basel) 2024 Oct 8;14(19).
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