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Updated: Jun 27, 2025
Instrumentation of Near-term Fetal Sheep for Multivariate Chronic Non-anesthetized Recordings
Published on: October 25, 2015
Pregnancy influences expression of interferon-stimulated genes, progesterone receptor and progesterone-induced
Jianhua Cao1, Shuxin Zhao1, Yaqi Zhang1
1School of Life Sciences and Food Engineering, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan 056038, China.
Objective:
Embryonic interferon-tau (IFNT) and progesterone affect expression of interferonstimulated genes (ISGs), progesterone receptor (PGR) and progesterone-induced blocking factor (PIBF) in the ovine thyroid.
Methods:
Thyroids of ewes were sampled at day 16 of nonpregnancy, days 13, 16, and 25 of pregnancy, and real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction assay, western blot and immunohistochemistry were used to detect expression of ISGs, PGR, and PIBF.
Results:
Free ISG15 protein was undetected, but ISG15 conjugated proteins upregulated at day 16 of pregnancy, and expression levels of ISG15 conjugated proteins, PGR isoform (70 kDa), PIBF, interferon-gamma-inducible protein 10 and myxovirusresistance protein 1 peaked, but expression level of signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 was the lowest at day 16 of pregnancy. In addition, the expression levels of PGR isoform (70 kDa) and signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT1) decreased, but levels of PGR isoform (43 kDa), 2',5'-oligoadenylate synthetase, IP-10 and MX1 increased at day 25 of pregnancy comparing with day 16 of the estrous cycle.
Conclusion:
Early pregnancy affects expression of ISGs, PGR, and PIBF in maternal thyroid through IFNT and progesterone, which may regulate thyroid autoimmunity and thyroid hormone secretion in ewes.
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