scholarly journals Effect of direct ovarian injection of vascular endothelial growth factor gene fragments on follicular development in immature female rats

Reproduction ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 134 (5) ◽  
pp. 677-682 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takashi Shimizu ◽  
Koji Iijima ◽  
Kanako Miyabayashi ◽  
Yoshinori Ogawa ◽  
Hitoshi Miyazaki ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Growth Factor ◽  
Follicular Development ◽  
Female Rats ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Vegf Gene ◽  
Immature Female ◽  
Rat Ovary ◽  
Ovulatory Follicles ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression in granulosa cells is associated with the thecal vasculature growth during ovarian follicular development. We hypothesized that injection of VEGF gene fragments directly into the rat ovary would induce production of a large number of ovulatory follicles and that these follicles would ovulate. To test this hypothesis, we treated immature female rats with combinations of hormones and VEGF gene fragments. The animals were divided into two groups: one group received solution containing transfection reagents as a control (n= 5), while the other group received direct ovarian injection of VEGF gene fragments at 19 (n= 5), 21 (n= 5), 23 (n= 5), or 25 (n= 5) days after birth followed by i.p. administration of 20 IU equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) at the age of 26 days. Forty-eight hours after eCG injection, animals were given 20 IU human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) i.p. and then the oocytes in both groups were counted. The maximum number of ovulated oocytes was obtained when the VEGF gene fragments were injected into the rat ovary at 21 days after birth. Histological examination revealed that the injection of VEGF gene fragments markedly increased the vascular density around the preovulatory follicles and also the number of these follicles. Our data provide the first reported evidence that most ovulatory follicles generated by injection of VEGF gene fragments are able to ovulate upon hCG treatment. These results demonstrate that injection of VEGF gene fragments directly into the ovary stimulates the development of antral follicles by inducing the formation of thecal vasculature in immature female rats.

scholarly journals Endocrine gland-derived vascular endothelial growth factor in rat pancreas: genetic expression and testosterone regulation

2008 ◽  
Vol 197 (2) ◽  
pp. 309-314 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angélica Morales ◽  
Sumiko Morimoto ◽  
Lorenza Díaz ◽  
Guillermo Robles ◽  
Vicente Díaz-Sánchez
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Growth Factor ◽  
Pancreatic Tissue ◽  
Endocrine Gland ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Rinm5f Cells ◽  
Vegf Gene ◽  
Rat Pancreas ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor

Endocrine gland-derived vascular endothelial growth factor (EG-VEGF) is an endothelial cell mitogen, expressed essentially in steroidogenic cells. Recently, the expression of EG-VEGF in normal human pancreas and pancreatic adenocarcinoma has been demonstrated. Epidemiologically, pancreatic carcinogenesis is more frequent in males than females, and given that androgen receptors and testosterone biotransformation have been described in pancreas, we hypothesized that testosterone could participate in the regulation of EG-VEGF expression. In this study, we investigated the regulation of EG-VEGF gene expression by testosterone in normal rat pancreatic tissue and rat insulinoma cells (RINm5F). Total RNA was extracted from rat pancreas and cultured cells. Gene expression was studied by real-time PCR and protein detection by immunohistochemistry. Serum testosterone was quantified by RIA. Results showed that EG-VEGF is expressed predominantly in pancreatic islets and vascular endothelium, as well as in RINm5F cells. EG-VEGF gene expression was lower in the pancreas of rats with higher testosterone serum levels. A similar effect that was reverted by flutamide was observed in testosterone-treated RINm5F cells. In summary, testosterone down-regulated EG-VEGF gene expression in rat pancreatic tissue and RINm5F cells. This effect could be mediated by the androgen receptor. To our knowledge, this is the first time that a direct effect of testosterone on EG-VEGF gene expression in rat pancreas and RINm5F cells is demonstrated.

scholarly journals Polymorphism in the regulatory regions –С2578A and +C936T of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF-A) gene in Russian women with rheumatoid arthritis

2017 ◽  
Vol 89 (5) ◽  
pp. 60-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
A V Shevchenko ◽  
V F Prokofyev ◽  
M A Korolev ◽  
N E Banshchikova ◽  
V I Konenkov
Keyword(s):  
Rheumatoid Arthritis ◽  
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Growth Factor ◽  
Polymorphism Analysis ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Vegf Gene ◽  
Regulatory Regions ◽  
Female Patients ◽  
Healthy Women ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor

Aim. To analyze polymorphism in the regulatory regions of the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) gene in female patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Subjects and methods. The investigation enrolled 257 female patients with RA. A control group consisted of 297 women without chronic diseases. The investigators examined the single-nucleotide polymorphism of VEGF-А2578С in the promoter region (rs699947) and that of VEGF+С936Т 3 in the retranslated region (rs3025039) of the gene. Genotyping was performed by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. Results. There was an increase in the frequency of VEGF+936 CT and a reduction in that of the VEGF+936СС genotypes in the seronegative patients as compared to the healthy women. The VEGF+936СС genotype frequency was higher in the patients with seropositive RA than in the subgroup of seronegative patients. The frequency of the VEGF-2578СС genotype was increased in the patients with RA and rheumatoid nodules, as compared to the healthy women. Conclusion. The data presented suggest that the presence of certain VEGF gene variants located in the regulatory regions may reflect the nature of immunopathological mechanisms in RA.

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