Seasonal expressions of luteinising hormone receptor, follicle-stimulating hormone receptor and prolactin receptor in the epididymis of the male wild ground squirrel (Spermophilus dauricus)
Junjie Wang A , Qian Liu A , Ziyi Wang A , Xia Sheng B , Haolin Zhang A , Yingying Han
A , Zhengrong Yuan A C and Qiang Weng A C
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Laboratory of Animal Physiology, College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, PR China.
B School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, PR China.
C Corresponding authors. Emails: zryuan@bjfu.edu.cn; qiangweng@bjfu.edu.cn
Reproduction, Fertility and Development 31(4) 735-742 https://doi.org/10.1071/RD18262
Submitted: 15 December 2017 Accepted: 24 October 2018 Published: 4 December 2018
Abstract
Luteinising hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) and prolactin (PRL) are pituitary-derived hormones and mediate their functions through LH receptor (LHR), FSH receptor (FSHR) and PRL receptor (PRLR) respectively. This study aimed to investigate the seasonal expression patterns of LHR, FSHR and PRLR in the epididymis of the male wild ground squirrel during the breeding and non-breeding seasons. Histologically, principal cells, basal cells, cilia and mature spermatozoa were found in the lumen of caput, corpus and cauda epididymidis in the breeding season, whereas in the non-breeding season, cilia and basal cells were rarely found and the epididymidal duct was devoid of spermatozoa. Immunohistochemical results showed that LHR, FSHR and PRLR were mainly present in the filamentous cytoplasm layer of epithelial cells of the caput, corpus and cauda epididymidis and FSHR and PRLR displayed stronger staining in the breeding season than in the non-breeding season. Furthermore, the mRNA and protein levels of FSHR and PRLR in all regions of epididymis as well as the levels of LHR in the caput and cauda epididymidis were higher during the breeding season. The protein levels of FSHR, LHR and PRLR were positively correlated with epididymal weight. Together, these results suggest that LHR, FSHR and PRLR may regulate epididymal functional changes in the male wild ground squirrel during its seasonal breeding cycle.
Additional keywords: adaption to environment, breeding cycle, pituitary-derived hormones, reproductive function.
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