Sex steroids influence the plasma membrane transformation in the uterus of the fat-tailed dunnart (Sminthopsis crassicaudata, Marsupialia)

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 633 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica S. Dudley ◽  
Christopher R. Murphy ◽  
Michael B. Thompson ◽  
Laura A. Lindsay ◽  
Bronwyn M. McAllan
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Sex Steroids ◽  
Adherens Junction ◽  
Uterine Epithelium ◽  
Ultrastructural Changes ◽  
Apical Surface ◽  
Uterine Receptivity ◽  
Endocrine Control ◽  
Sminthopsis Crassicaudata ◽  
Membrane Transformation

The uterine epithelium undergoes remodelling to become receptive to blastocyst implantation during pregnancy in a process known as the plasma membrane transformation. There are commonalities in ultrastructural changes to the epithelium, which, in eutherian, pregnancies are controlled by maternal hormones, progesterone and oestrogens. The aim of this study was to determine the effects that sex steroids have on the uterine epithelium in the fat-tailed dunnart Sminthopsis crassicaudata, the first such study in a marsupial. Females were exposed to exogenous hormones while they were reproductively quiescent, thus not producing physiological concentrations of ovarian hormones. We found that changes to the protein E-cadherin, which forms part of the adherens junction, are controlled by progesterone and that changes to the desmoglein-2 protein, which forms part of desmosomes, are controlled by 17β-oestradiol. Exposure to a combination of progesterone and 17β-oestradiol causes changes to the microvilli on the apical surface and to the ultrastructure of the uterine epithelium. There is a decrease in lateral adhesion when the uterus is exposed to progesterone and 17β-oestradiol that mimics the hormone environment of uterine receptivity. We conclude that uterine receptivity and the plasma membrane transformation in marsupial and eutherian pregnancies are under the same endocrine control and may be an ancestral feature of therian mammals.

THE PLASMA MEMBRANE TRANSFORMATION: A KEY CONCEPT IN UTERINE RECEPTIVITY

2001 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 197-208 ◽  
Author(s):  
CR Murphy
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Epithelial Cells ◽  
Early Pregnancy ◽  
Fetal Tissue ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Human Uterus ◽  
Uterine Receptivity ◽  
Uterine Epithelial Cells ◽  
Considerable Body ◽  
Membrane Transformation

The first site of contact between maternal and fetal tissue at the beginning of blastocyst attachment and implantation is the plasma membrane of uterine epithelial cells. Indeed, as has been noted often, regardless of the mode of placentation which ultimately occurs, contact between this plasma membrane and that of the trophoblast is a common beginning to implantation in most species studied so far, which now range from viviparous lizards to human beings. The similarities in these early events of uterine receptivity and placentation go further than mere contact between opposing surfaces however. A considerable body of evidence indicates that the behaviour of the plasma membrane of uterine epithelial cells during early pregnancy has many common aspects across species including humans. This review pays special attention to events in the human uterus and the epithelial cells in particular, but examines them within the wider context of uterine receptivity for implantation across species.

scholarly journals Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycan Sulfation Regulates Uterine Differentiation and Signaling During Embryo Implantation

Endocrinology ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 159 (6) ◽  
pp. 2459-2472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Yin ◽  
Adam Wang ◽  
Li Feng ◽  
Yu Wang ◽  
Hong Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Signal Transduction ◽  
Heparan Sulfate ◽  
Signaling Pathways ◽  
Reproductive Tract ◽  
Ovarian Function ◽  
Embryo Implantation ◽  
Uterine Epithelium ◽  
Female Reproductive Tract ◽  
Uterine Receptivity ◽  
Mouse Uterus

Abstract To prepare for embryo implantation, the uterus must undergo a series of reciprocal interactions between the uterine epithelium and the underlying stroma, which are orchestrated by ovarian hormones. During this process, multiple signaling pathways are activated to direct cell proliferation and differentiation, which render the uterus receptive to the implanting blastocysts. One important modulator of these signaling pathways is the cell surface and extracellular matrix macromolecules, heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs). HSPGs play crucial roles in signal transduction by regulating morphogen transport and ligand binding. In this study, we examine the role of HSPG sulfation in regulating uterine receptivity by conditionally deleting the N-deacetylase/N-sulfotransferase (NDST) 1 gene (Ndst1) in the mouse uterus using the Pgr-Cre driver, on an Ndst2- and Ndst3-null genetic background. Although development of the female reproductive tract and subsequent ovarian function appear normal in Ndst triple-knockout females, they are infertile due to implantation defects. Embryo attachment appears to occur but the uterine epithelium at the site of implantation persists rather than disintegrates in the mutant. Uterine epithelial cells continued to proliferate past day 4 of pregnancy, accompanied by elevated Fgf2 and Fgf9 expression, whereas uterine stroma failed to undergo decidualization, as evidenced by lack of Bmp2 induction. Despite normal Indian hedgehog expression, transcripts of Ptch1 and Gli1, both components as well as targets of the hedgehog (Hh) pathway, were detected only in the subepithelial stroma, indicating altered Hh signaling in the mutant uterus. Taken together, these data implicate an essential role for HSPGs in modulating signal transduction during mouse implantation.

Changes in H+-translocating vacuolar-type ATPase in the anterior silk gland cell of Bombyx mori during metamorphosis.

1998 ◽  
Vol 201 (4) ◽  
pp. 479-486
Author(s):  
M Azuma ◽  
Y Ohta
Keyword(s):  
Bombyx Mori ◽  
Gland Cell ◽  
Specific Inhibitor ◽  
Instar Larva ◽  
Silk Gland ◽  
Ultrastructural Changes ◽  
Immunocytochemical Staining ◽  
Apical Plasma Membrane ◽  
Apical Surface ◽  
Silkworm Larvae

A proton-translocating vacuolar-type ATPase (V-ATPase) was identified and characterized in the anterior silk gland of Bombyx mori. By incubating the intact tissue with the fluorescent dye Acridine Orange, the acidified compartment was detected at the apical pole of the epithelial cells. This was observed throughout the feeding period of the fifth-instar larva until the onset of spinning. Acidification was prevented completely and reversibly by 0.8 micromol l-1 bafilomycin A1, a specific inhibitor of V-ATPase. The presence of V-ATPase in a microsomal fraction was verified by immunoblots using an antiserum to the V-ATPase holoenzyme from Manduca sexta midgut. The antiserum localized the V-ATPase to the apical plasma membrane of the anterior silk gland cells, suggesting that the enzyme is functionally active in pumping protons out of the cell towards the glandular lumen of feeding silkworm larvae. In spinning larvae, the acidification produced by the V-ATPase appears to cease, because acidic compartments were seen rarely and only in the periphery of basal cytoplasm, and because immunocytochemical staining for the V-ATPase was greatly reduced at the apical surface. The metamorphic changes in relation to the occurrence of V-ATPase corresponded well with the ultrastructural changes in the anterior silk gland cell of Bombyx mori larvae.

The transcytotic pathway of an apical plasma membrane protein (B10) in hepatocytes is similar to that of IgA and occurs via a tubular pericentriolar compartment

1996 ◽  
Vol 109 (6) ◽  
pp. 1215-1227 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Hemery ◽  
A.M. Durand-Schneider ◽  
G. Feldmann ◽  
J.P. Vaerman ◽  
M. Maurice
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Membrane Proteins ◽  
Membrane Protein ◽  
Apical Membrane ◽  
Rat Hepatocytes ◽  
Apical Plasma Membrane ◽  
Apical Surface ◽  
Plasma Membrane Protein ◽  
Microtubule Disruption

In hepatocytes, newly synthesized apical plasma membrane proteins are first delivered to the basolateral surface and are supposed to reach the apical surface by transcytosis. The transcytotic pathway of apical membrane proteins and its relationship with other endosomal pathways has not been demonstrated morphologically. We compared the intracellular route of an apical plasma membrane protein, B10, with that of polymeric IgA (pIgA), which is transcytosed, transferrin (Tf) which is recycled, and asialoorosomucoid (ASOR) which is delivered to lysosomes. Ligands and anti-B10 monoclonal IgG were linked to fluorochromes or with peroxidase. The fate of each ligand was followed by confocal and electron microscopy in polarized primary monolayers of rat hepatocytes. When fluorescent anti-B10 IgG and fluorescent pIgA were simultaneously endocytosed for 15–30 minutes, they both uniformly labelled a juxtanuclear compartment. By 30–60 minutes, they reached the bile canaliculi. Tf and ASOR were also routed to the juxtanuclear area, but their fluorescence patterns were more punctate. Microtubule disruption prevented all ligands from reaching the juxtanuclear area. This area corresponded, at least partially, to the localization of the mannose 6-phosphate receptor, an endosomal marker. By electron microscopy, the juxtanuclear compartment was made up of anastomosing tubules connected to vacuoles, and was organized around the centrioles. B10 and pIgA were mainly found in the tubules, whereas ASOR was segregated inside the vacuolar elements and Tf within thinner, recycling tubules. In conclusion, transcytosis of the apical membrane protein B10 occurs inside tubules similar to those carrying pIgA, and involves passage via the pericentriolar area. In the pericentriolar area, the transcytotic tubules appear to maintain connections with other endosomal elements where sorting between recycled and degraded ligands occurs.

scholarly journals Sorting of sphingolipids in epithelial (Madin-Darby canine kidney) cells.

1987 ◽  
Vol 105 (4) ◽  
pp. 1623-1635 ◽  
Author(s):  
G van Meer ◽  
E H Stelzer ◽  
R W Wijnaendts-van-Resandt ◽  
K Simons
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Membrane ◽  
Golgi Complex ◽  
Mdck Cells ◽  
Laser Fluorescence ◽  
Apical Plasma Membrane ◽  
Apical Surface ◽  
Madin Darby Canine Kidney ◽  
Basolateral Side ◽  
Darby Canine Kidney ◽  
Canine Kidney

To study the intracellular transport of newly synthesized sphingolipids in epithelial cells we have used a fluorescent ceramide analog, N-6[7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazol-4-yl] aminocaproyl sphingosine (C6-NBD-ceramide; Lipsky, N. G., and R. E. Pagano, 1983, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 80:2608-2612) as a probe. This ceramide was readily taken up by filter-grown Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells from liposomes at 0 degrees C. After penetration into the cell, the fluorescent probe accumulated in the Golgi area at temperatures between 0 and 20 degrees C. Chemical analysis showed that C6-NBD-ceramide was being converted into C6-NBD-sphingomyelin and C6-NBD-glucosyl-ceramide. An analysis of the fluorescence pattern after 1 h at 20 degrees C by means of a confocal scanning laser fluorescence microscope revealed that the fluorescent marker most likely concentrated in the Golgi complex itself. Little fluorescence was observed at the plasma membrane. Raising the temperature to 37 degrees C for 1 h resulted in intense plasma membrane staining and a loss of fluorescence from the Golgi complex. Addition of BSA to the apical medium cleared the fluorescence from the apical but not from the basolateral plasma membrane domain. The basolateral fluorescence could be depleted only by adding BSA to the basal side of a monolayer of MDCK cells grown on polycarbonate filters. We conclude that the fluorescent sphingomyelin and glucosylceramide were delivered from the Golgi complex to the plasma membrane where they accumulated in the external leaflet of the membrane bilayer. The results also demonstrated that the fatty acyl labeled lipids were unable to pass the tight junctions in either direction. Quantitation of the amount of NBD-lipids delivered to the apical and the basolateral plasma membranes during incubation for 1 h at 37 degrees C showed that the C6-NBD-glucosylceramide was two- to fourfold enriched on the apical as compared to the basolateral side, while C6-NBD-sphingomyelin was about equally distributed. Since the surface area of the apical plasma membrane is much smaller than that of the basolateral membrane, both lipids achieved a higher concentration on the apical surface. Altogether, our results suggest that the NBD-lipids are sorted in MDCK cells in a way similar to their natural counterparts.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document