Insecticides are dedicated to impair the insect organisms, but also have an impact on other, non-target organisms, including humans. In this way, they became important risk factor for disturbance of physiological homeostasis and can be involved in the development of diseases or in deterioration of existing conditions. The influence of sublethal doses of various insecticides on vertebrates’ and invertebrates’ organisms has been previously observed. In this paper, we have evaluated the impact of exposure to extremely low dose of neurotoxin, bendiocarb (0.1 nM), a commonly used carbamate insecticide on a model organism in neurobiology—Periplaneta americana. The assessment was performed on all levels of animal organism from molecular (oxidative stress parameters: phosphorylation level of proteins, cAMP level, protein kinase A and C levels, and octopamine) to physiological (heart beat and gas exchange tests) and behavioral (motor skills assay, grooming test). Exposure to such a low level of bendiocarb did not cause direct paralysis of insects, but changed their grooming behavior, decreased heart rate, and increased gas exchange. We also observed the increased parameters of oxidative stress as well as stressogenic response to 0.1 nM bendiocarb exposure. Exposure to a trace amount of bendiocarb also increased sensitivity to effective doses of the same insecticide, thus acts as preconditioning. These results force us to reconsider the possible risk from frequent/continuous exposure to traces of pesticide residues in the environment to human health.
The in vitro culture of ovarian follicles or cumulus-oocyte complexes (COC) is used to study the factors that regulate follicular development and may have potential use in artificial reproductive technology (ART). Before ovulation, the follicle is formed by oocyte and cell populations known as granulosa cells (GCs). These cells build the internal and external mass of the follicular wall. Oocyte growth and proliferation of the surrounding cells depend on the gap junctions between the oocyte and the GCs. Maintenance of the optimal in vitro culture system allowing for preservation of follicle architecture and granulosa-oocyte interaction may be critical for success in vitro maturation of follicles. Recently many studies have focused on a culture of GCs, which have important functions related to steroidogenesis. Granulosa cells maintained in in vitro conditions exhibit stem cell properties making it important to consider in vitro culture (IVC) methods of the GC population.
It is a well-known fact that the reproductive organs in women, especially oocytes, are exposed to numerous regulatory pathways and environmental stimuli. The maternal age is one cornerstone that influences the process of oocyte fertilization. More precisely, the longer a given oocyte is in the waiting-line to be ovulated from menarche to menopause, the longer the duration from oogenesis to fertilization, and therefore, the lower the chances of success to form a viable embryo. The age of menarche in girls ranges from 10 to 16 years, and the age of menopause in women ranges from approximately 45 to 55 years. Researchers are paying attention to the regulatory pathways that are impacting the oocyte at the very beginning during oogenesis in fetal life to discover genes and proteins that could be crucial for the oocyte’s lifespan. Due to the general trend in industrialized countries in the last three decades, women are giving birth to their first child in their thirties. Therefore, maternal age has become an important factor impacting oocytes developmental competence, since the higher a woman’s age, the higher the chances of miscarriage due to several causes, such as aneuploidy. Meiotic failures during oogenesis, such as, for instance, chromosome segregation failures or chromosomal non-disjunction, are influencing the latter-mentioned aging-related phenomenon too. These errors early in life of women can lead to sub- or infertility. It cannot be neglected that oogenesis is a precisely orchestrated process, during which the oogonia and primary oocytes are formed, and RNA synthesis takes place. These RNAs are crucial for oocyte growth and maturation. In this review, we intend to describe the relevance of regulatory pathways during the oogenesis in women. Furthermore, we focus on molecular pathways of oocyte developmental competence with regard to maternal effects during embryogenesis. On the background of transcriptional mechanisms that enable the transition from a silenced oocyte to a transcriptionally active embryo, we will briefly discuss the potential of induced pluripotent stem cells.
A woman’s endocrine system plays a crucial role in orchestrating cellular interactions throughout her life. The growth hormone (GH) and insulin-like growth factor (IGF) system appears to impact crucial reproductive events and cell types of the ovary, such as granulosa cells, theca cells, and oocytes. Further, IGF1 is a cornerstone during embryonic development and influences predominantly developing and pre-antral follicles. In this commentary, we will emphasize the pleiotropic effects of IGF1 on physiological processes inside the egg. Herein, we will provide a brief overview on IGF1 related cell signal transduction pathways during the maturation and aging of oocytes. We aim to elucidate from a molecular and biochemical point of view if IGF1 in women with metabolic imbalances such as obesity or diabetes could be used in clinics as a novel, reliable estimator for the developmental competence of an oocyte.
Exosomes are a distinct type of extracellular vesicles that play a major role in intracellular transport and communication. Depending on the cell of origin, exosomes can contain diverse constituents of a cell, including DNA, RNA, lipids, metabolites, cytosolic and cell-surface proteins, playing important roles in a wide range of physiological and pathological processes. Due to these facts, they are subject of extensive research aiming at translating the knowledge into clinical approaches that are at the interface between nanomedicine and biopharmaceuticals. Their potential clinical use mostly revolves around the fields of diagnostics and drug delivery, especially important in treatment of cancer. The conventional and emerging methods of exosome isolation are either based on their physical properties (such as density and/or size) or their functions. However, the isolation approaches are still characterised by significant downsides, lacking standardisation, and ensuring purity. The review gives a critical overview on exosomes characteristics, isolation approaches and the potential that exosomes hold in developing new clinical approaches of modern medicine, highlighting the need for further research to fully grasp their potential and translate the knowledge into future therapeutic solutions.
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