Expression of glucose transporters in the endometrium and early conceptus membranes of the horse.
Abstract: Glucose is the primary energy substrate for early conceptus development and, for the first 40 days of gestation, the equine conceptus depends solely on glucose available in the histotroph; thereafter, histotrophic glucose provision continues to support transport across the definitive placenta. To investigate glucose provision routes during early equine pregnancy we examined expression of glucose transporters in conceptus membranes and endometrium recovered on days 7, 14, 21 and 28 after ovulation. To further differentiate the contributions of maternal progesterone priming and conceptus-endometrium crosstalk in regulating glucose transporter expression, day 8 embryos were transferred to recipient mares on day 8 (synchronous) or day 3 (asynchronous) after ovulation; conceptuses and endometrium were recovered 6 or 11 days later. The glucose transporters SLC2A1, 2A3, 2A4, 2A8, 2A10 and 5A1 were expressed in equine endometrium. In conceptus membranes, expression of SLC2A1-3, 2A5, 2A8, 2A10, 5A1 and 5A11 increased from day 14, and SLC2A1 protein was highly abundant on the apical trophectodermal membrane and in the endoderm. Asynchronous embryo transfer (ET) resulted in reduced SLC2A1 expression in both the endometrium and conceptus membranes. A wide range of glucose transporters are expressed in the pre-implantation equine conceptus and endometrium, presumably to ensure adequate glucose provision to the developing embryo. Endometrial expression of SLC2A1 appears to be regulated by a combination of progesterone-priming and conceptus signalling, and its delayed upregulation after asynchronous ET may contribute to the observed delay in conceptus development.
Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Publication Date: 2018-06-25 PubMed ID: 30055666DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2018.06.308Google Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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The article researches how glucose, the primary energy for early conceptus development in horses, is expressed in both the endometrium and early conceptus membranes. The study focuses on the role and expression of glucose transporters during early equine pregnancy and how it can affect conceptus development.
Objective and Methodology
- The study investigates the routes of glucose provision during early equine pregnancy by observing the expression of glucose transporters in conceptus membranes and the endometrium.
- The researchers examined this expression at different stages of early pregnancy: days 7, 14, 21, and 28 after ovulation.
- They also differentiated the effects of maternal progesterone priming and conceptus-endometrium crosstalk on regulating glucose transporter expression by transferring day-8 embryos to recipient mares either synchronously (day 8) or asynchronously (day 3) after ovulation.
- The conceptuses and endometrium were later recovered for analysis after 6 or 11 days.
Findings
- The study discovered that glucose transporters SLC2A1, 2A3, 2A4, 2A8, 2A10 and 5A1 were expressed in the equine endometrium.
- In conceptus membranes, the expression of SLC2A1-3, 2A5, 2A8, 2A10, 5A1 and 5A11 increased from day 14, suggesting that these transporters are significant during early equine pregnancy.
- Furthermore, SLC2A1 protein was found in large quantities on the apical trophectodermal membrane and in the endoderm. However, its expression in both the endometrium and conceptus membranes were reduced in asynchronous embryo transfers.
Implications
- The research shows that a wide range of glucose transporters are expressed in the pre-implantation equine conceptus and endometrium, which are crucial for providing enough glucose to the developing embryo.
- SLC2A1 expression in the endometrium seems to be controlled by both progesterone priming and conceptus signals. Its delayed upregulation following asynchronous embryo transfer might be a factor in the observed delays in conceptus development.
- This study could help deepen our understanding of early equine pregnancy and could pave the way for strategies to enhance the growth of embryos in horses.
Cite This Article
APA
Gibson C, de Ruijter-Villani M, Rietveld J, Stout TAE.
(2018).
Expression of glucose transporters in the endometrium and early conceptus membranes of the horse.
Placenta, 68, 23-32.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.placenta.2018.06.308 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Equine Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 114, 3584 CM Utrecht, The Netherlands. Electronic address: c.m.e.gibson@uu.nl.
- Department of Equine Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 114, 3584 CM Utrecht, The Netherlands. Electronic address: m.villani@uu.nl.
- Department of Equine Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 114, 3584 CM Utrecht, The Netherlands. Electronic address: rietveld.jolanda@gmail.com.
- Department of Equine Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 114, 3584 CM Utrecht, The Netherlands. Electronic address: t.a.e.stout@uu.nl.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Embryonic Development / physiology
- Endometrium / metabolism
- Extraembryonic Membranes / metabolism
- Female
- Glucose / metabolism
- Glucose Transport Proteins, Facilitative / metabolism
- Horses
- Pregnancy
Citations
This article has been cited 7 times.- Lawson EF, Pickford R, Aitken RJ, Gibb Z, Grupen CG, Swegen A. Mapping the lipidomic secretome of the early equine embryo. Front Vet Sci 2024;11:1439550.
- de Castro T, van Heule M, Domingues RR, Jacob JCF, Daels PF, Meyers SA, Conley AJ, Dini P. Embryo-endometrial interaction associated with the location of the embryo during the mobility phase in mares. Sci Rep 2024 Feb 7;14(1):3151.
- Vegas AR, Podico G, Canisso IF, Bollwein H, Fröhlich T, Bauersachs S, Almiñana C. Dynamic regulation of the transcriptome and proteome of the equine embryo during maternal recognition of pregnancy. FASEB Bioadv 2022 Dec;4(12):775-797.
- Diel de Amorim M, Klein C, Foster R, Dong L, Lopez-Rodriguez MF, Card C. Expression of Oxytocin/Neurophysin I and Oxytocinase in the Equine Conceptus from Day 8 to Day 21 Post-Ovulation. Animals (Basel) 2022 Mar 22;12(7).
- Lawson EF, Grupen CG, Baker MA, Aitken RJ, Swegen A, Pollard CL, Gibb Z. Conception and early pregnancy in the mare: lipidomics the unexplored frontier. Reprod Fertil 2022 Jan 1;3(1):R1-R18.
- D' Fonseca NMM, Gibson CME, van Doorn DA, Roelfsema E, de Ruijter-Villani M, Stout TAE. Effect of Overfeeding Shetland Pony Mares on Embryonic Glucose and Lipid Accumulation, and Expression of Imprinted Genes. Animals (Basel) 2021 Aug 26;11(9).
- Gibson C, de Ruijter-Villani M, Bauersachs S, Stout TAE. Asynchronous Embryo Transfer Followed by Comparative Transcriptomic Analysis of Conceptus Membranes and Endometrium Identifies Processes Important to the Establishment of Equine Pregnancy. Int J Mol Sci 2020 Apr 7;21(7).
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