FABP4 Mediates Inflammation to Regulate Endometrial Epithelial Cell Function During Early Gestation in Sheep

The objective of this experiment was to understand the impact of fatty acid binding protein 4 (FABP4)-mediated inflammation on sheep endometrial epithelial cells (sEECs). To model the hormonal environment of sheep during pregnancy, estradiol (E₂), progesterone (P₄) and interferon-tau (IFN-τ) were used. The sEECs were then stimulated with different concentrations of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to determine suitable concentrations for inducing inflammation, while FABP4 expression was inhibited using a FABP4-specific inhibitor. The expression of genes related to inflammation, cell apoptosis, cell proliferation, endometrial tolerance, and embryo development were detected by real-time quantitative PCR and Western blot. The cell proliferation ability was detected by CCK-8, and the cell migration ability was tested by scratch assay. The results showed that LPS-induced inflammation inhibited the expression levels of proliferation genes, migration ability genes and endometrial tolerance-related genes and enhanced the expression levels of apoptosis genes and gestational elongation-related genes and proteins in the sEECs. The use of FABP4 inhibitors reduced LPS-induced inflammation and alleviated the inhibitive effect of LPS on cellular function. The experiments showed that inhibiting the expression of the FABP4 gene reduced LPS-induced inflammation and alleviated the impact of LPS on the viability of sEECs.