Changes in the expression of OCT4 in mouse ovary during estrous cycle

The transcriptional factor OCT4 regulates pluripotency of stem cells and has an important role during oocyte growth. Whereas, its role has remained ambiguous in ovarian tissue during reproductive cycle. Therefore, this study was aimed to investigate the expression patterns of OCT4 in mouse ovaries during the normal estrous cycle. Adult National Medical Research Institute mice were classified as proestrous, estrous, metestrous and diestrous on the basis of vaginal smear cytology. Their ovaries were removed and the protein and gene expression levels of OCT4 were assessed using immunohistochemical staining and real-time quantitative reverse-transcription PCR, respectively. Immunohistochemical staining revealed the expression of OCT4 in the cytoplasm of corpus luteum cells. In the follicles, OCT4 was expressed in the cytoplasm of granulosa cells. Furthermore, the gene expression levels of OCT4 was significantly higher in the proestrous phase than in the other phases of the estrous cycle (p < 0.05). The results indicated that OCT4 gene expression levels are affected by the cyclic pattern of the estrous cycle.