Abstract
ABSTRACTPurpose No comprehensive information is available about uterus fatty acid (FA) change during implantation period and possible effects of the seminal vesicle secretion on it.Materials and Methods In this study, we evaluated FA composition of uterus phospholipids during the implantation period in intact and seminal vesicle-excised (SVX) mated female mice. Forty NMRI female mice were divided into control (mated with intact male) and seminal vesicle excised (SVX)-mated (mated with SVX-male) groups. The phospholipid fatty acids composition was monitored during the first five days of pregnancy using gas chromatography and also implantation rate was evaluated on fifth day of pregnancy.Results We found that levels of linoleic acid (LNA) and arachidonic acid (ARA) showed a decreasing trend from the first to the third day of pregnancy and then started to increase on the fourth day and peaked on the fifth day. In contrast, the level of saturated FA (SFA) increased on the second and third day of pregnancy compared to the first (p<0.05) and then decreased on the fourth and fifth. We also found that the seminal vesicle secretion could affect the levels of LNA, ARA, SFA, and PUFA in uterine phospholipids especially on second and third day. Moreover, there was a positive correlation between ARA level and implantation rate in control but not SVX-mated groups.Conclusions It can be concluded that several uterus FA that have important roles in early pregnancy could be affected by seminal vesicle secretion.
Highlights
In addition to maintaining cell integrity, modulating cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions and signal transduction, cellular membrane is a crucial source of various lipid mediators
We found that levels of linoleic acid (18:2, LNA) and arachidonic acid (20:4, ARA) and PUFA showed a significant decrease from day one to day three of pregnancy
We found that the levels of LNA and ARA on the second and third day in the control group were lower than the seminal vesicle-excised (SVX)-mated group; which implies the pivotal role of seminal vesicle secretion in mating-induced inflammation and uterus phospholipid fatty acids (FA) composition
Summary
In addition to maintaining cell integrity, modulating cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions and signal transduction, cellular membrane is a crucial source of various lipid mediators. The phospholipid fatty acids (FA) affect the membrane lipid matrix and the mobility, conformation, and function of the membrane proteins (1). Successful implantation of the embryo takes place during a specific period known as the window of implantation in which fusion of the blastocyst and uterus cells membranes is an important event. Essential roles of lipid molecules in mice embryo invasion have been emphasized previously (2). It has been suggested that biophysical properties of the uterus and blastocyst membranes, such as bulk lipid fluidity or phospholipid bilayer polarity change in favor of membrane fusion and the embryo implantation (5)
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