Alteration of Glutathione Reductase Expression in the Female Reproductive Organs During the Estrous Cycle1

Abstract

The enzyme glutathione reductase (GR) recycles oxidized glutathione (GSSG) by converting it to the reduced form (GSH) in an NADPH-dependent manner. A specific antibody raised against recombinant rat GR was used to localize the protein in the female reproductive organs during the estrous cycle in the rat. In the ovary, the strongest reactivity to the antibody was observed in oocytes, followed by granulosa cells, corpus luteum, and interstitial cells. A strongly positive reaction was also observed mainly in the oviduct epithelia, uterine epithelia, and endometrial gland in the reproductive tract. Oviducts contained the highest GR activity. The GR activity of uterus during metestrus was about twice as high as that for other stages of the cycle. The levels of GR proteins in the tissues roughly matched the activities. The expression of the GR mRNA was highest during metestrus. Because GSH is known to increase gamete viability and the efficiency of fertility, GR, which is expressed in these tissues, is predicted to play a pivotal role in the reproduction process as a source of GSH.

Effect of dietary isoleucine on the immunity, antioxidant status, tight junctions and microflora in the intestine of juvenile Jian carp (Cyprinus carpio var. Jian)

“…This observation is in agreement with the results on human intestinal epithelial cells [17]. GR catalyze the reduction of the oxidized of glutathione (GSSG) to GSH [70]. Thus, the elevation of GSH content may probably attribute to the promotion of GR activity in this study.…”

“…The negative response on GR gene expression in this study may be related to the synthesis of GSH. In animal tissues, intracellular GSH can be formed from the oxidized of glutathione (GSSG) by GR and from glutamate, cysteine, and glycine [70]. In terrestrial animals, Ile may provide nitrogen for the synthesis of glutamate [29], which may decrease the requirement of GR for the conversion of GSSG to GSH, ultimately this could lead to the down-regulation of GR gene expression in the intestine.…”

Expression of glutaredoxin (thioltransferase) in the rat ovary during the oestrous cycle and postnatal development

“…As a whole, the finding of a high level of Grx in the oocyte fits well with the high contents of GSH (Gardiner & Reed 1994) and GSH reductase (Kaneko et al 2001) found by others in the same cells, thus confirming the prominent role of the GSH-Grx system in the maintenance of oocyte redox homeostasis, where the metabolic pathways leading to NADPH production are also enhanced during sperm entrance (Urner & Sakkas 1999) (Fig. 6).…”

A Comparison of Growth, Immunity and Oxidative Status of Broilers that Differ in Hatching Weight at Early Age

“…The oxidized component of glutathione redox system, GSSG, indicates oxidative stress in the same way as the GSH. In addition to changes of the level of GSSG and GSH, the GSH/GSSG ratio is a more accurate and sensitive indicator of oxidative stress (Avanzo et al, 2001;Kaneko et al, 2001). MDA is the main end product of lipid peroxidation by ROS and increased MDA level is an important indication of lipid peroxidation (Sumida et al, 1989).…”