Abstract
Time-dependent expression of functional proteins in fetal ovaries is important to understand the developmental process of the ovary. This study was carried out to enhance our understanding of the developmental process of porcine fetal ovaries and to better address the differences in fetal ovary development of local and foreign pigs. The objective of the present study is to test the expression of key proteins that regulate the growth and development of fetal ovaries in Meishan and Yorkshire porcine breeds by using proteomics technology. Six Meishan and 6 Yorkshire pregnant gilts were used in this experiment. Fetal ovaries were obtained from Yorkshire and Meishan gilts on days 55 and 90 of the gestation period. Using 2D-DIGE (two dimensional-difference in gel electrophoresis) analysis, the results showed that there are about 1551 and 1400 proteins in gilt fetal ovaries on days 55 and 90, respectively of the gestation. Using MALDI TOF-TOF MS analysis, 27 differentially expressed proteins were identified in the fetal ovaries of the 2 breeds on day 55 of gestation, and a total of 18 proteins were identified on day 90 of gestation. These differentially expressed proteins were involved in the regulation of biological processes (cell death, stress response, cytoskeletal proteins) and molecular functions (enzyme regulator activity). We also found that alpha-1-antitrypsin, actin, vimentin, and PP2A proteins promote the formation of primordial follicles in the ovaries of Yorkshire pigs on day 55 of gestation while low expression heat shock proteins and high expression alpha-fetoproteins (AFP) may promote Meishan fetal ovarian follicular development on day 90 of gestation. These findings provide a deeper understanding of how reduced expression of heat shock proteins and increased expression of AFP can significantly reduce the risk of reproductive disease in obese Meishan sows. Our study also shows how these proteins can increase the ovulation rate and may be responsible for the low reproductive efficiency reported in other obese breeds. The ovarian developmental potential was found to be greater in Meishan pigs than in Yorkshire pigs.
Highlights
Reproductive productivity in the female pig is determined by follicle assembly, development, oocyte numbers, and quality
The proteomic analysis shows that Yorkshire fetal ovaries had 14 upregulated proteins and 13 downregulated proteins compared with Meishan fetal ovaries at day 55 of gestation (Table 1)
The present study was undertaken with a view to collect information on differentially-regulated phase-specific proteins and their molecular functions that influence fetal ovarian development in Yorkshire pigs and Meishan pigs
Summary
Reproductive productivity in the female pig is determined by follicle assembly, development, oocyte numbers, and quality. The activation amount of primordial follicles to growing follicles and the incidence of atresia in oocytes are important to determine the lifespan of ovaries [1]. The pig ovary contains a finite number of oocytes [2]. It is well established that the primordial follicle pool can be a major determinant of female mammalian reproductive life, some studies have implied that germ line stem cells exist in the adult ovary [4]. Any abnormalities in the development of ovary cells can further reduce follicle numbers, even leading to infertility [6]. The underlying mechanism for embryo ovary development still needs to be investigated
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