A Gs-linked receptor maintains meiotic arrest in mouse oocytes, but luteinizing hormone does not cause meiotic resumption by terminating receptor-Gs signaling

Abstract

The maintenance of meiotic prophase arrest in fully grown vertebrate oocytes depends on the activity of a Gs G-protein that activates adenylyl cyclase and elevates cAMP, and in the mouse oocyte, Gs is activated by a constitutively active orphan receptor, GPR3. To determine whether the action of luteinizing hormone (LH) on the mouse ovarian follicle causes meiotic resumption by inhibiting GPR3-Gs signaling, we examined the effect of LH on the localization of Gαs. Gs activation in response to stimulation of an exogenously expressed β2-adrenergic receptor causes Gαs to move from the oocyte plasma membrane into the cytoplasm, whereas Gs inactivation in response to inhibition of the β2-adrenergic receptor causes Gαs to move back to the plasma membrane. However, LH does not cause a change in Gαs localization, indicating that LH does not act by terminating receptor-Gs signaling.