Ovulation is one of the cornerstones of female fertility. Disruption of the ovulatory process results in infertility, which affects approximately 10% of couples. Using a unique model in which the dominant follicle is collected across the periovulatory period in women, we have identified a leukocyte chemoattractant, chemokine ligand 20 (CCL20), in the human ovary. CCL20 mRNA is massively induced after an in vivo human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) stimulus in granulosa (>10 000-fold) and theca (>4000-fold) cells collected during the early ovulatory (12-18 h) and late ovulatory (18-34 h) periods after hCG administration. Because the LH surge sets in motion an inflammatory reaction characterized by an influx of leukocytes and CCL20 is known to recruit leukocytes in other systems, the composition of ovarian leukocytes (CD45+) containing the CCL20 receptor CCR6 was determined immediately prior to ovulation. CD45+/CCR6+ cells were primarily natural killer cells (41%) along with B cells (12%), T cells (11%), neutrophils (10%), and monocytes (9%). Importantly, exogenous CCL20 stimulated ovarian leukocyte migration 59% within 90 minutes. Due to the difficulties in obtaining human follicles, an in vitro model was developed using granulosa-lutein cells to explore CCL20 regulation. CCL20 expression increased 40-fold within 6 hours after hCG, was regulated partially by the epithelial growth factor pathway, and was positively correlated with progesterone production. These results demonstrate that hCG dramatically increases CCL20 expression in the human ovary, that ovarian leukocytes contain the CCL20 receptor, and that CCL20 stimulates leukocyte migration. Our findings raise the prospect that CCL20 may aid in the final ovulatory events and contribute to fertility in women.
Neurotensin (NTS) is a tridecapeptide that was first characterized as a neurotransmitter in neuronal cells. The present study examined ovarian NTS expression across the periovulatory period in the human and the rat. Women were recruited into this study and monitored by transvaginal ultrasound. The dominant follicle was surgically excised prior to the LH surge (preovulatory phase) or women were given 250 μg hCG and dominant follicles collected 12-18 h after hCG (early ovulatory), 18-34 h (late ovulatory) and 44-70 h (postovulatory). NTS mRNA was massively induced during the early and late ovulatory stage in granulosa cells (15,000 fold) and theca cells (700 fold). In the rat, hCG also induced Nts mRNA expression in intact ovaries and isolated granulosa cells. In cultured granulosa-lutein cells (GLC) from IVF patients, NTS expression was induced 6 h after hCG treatment whereas in cultured rat granulosa cells NTS increased 4 h after hCG treatment. Cells treated with hCG signaling pathway inhibitors revealed that NTS expression is partially regulated in the human and rat GC by the epidermal-like growth factor (EGF) pathway. Human GLC and rat granulosa cells also showed that Nts was regulated by the PKA pathway along with input from the PI3K and MAPK pathways. The predominate NTS receptor present in human and rat granulosa cells was SORT1, whereas NTSR1 and NTSR2 expression was very low. Based on NTS actions in other systems, we speculate that NTS may regulate crucial aspects of ovulation such as vascular permeability, inflammation, and cell migration.
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