Role of steroid hormones in the maintenance of focal adhesions in bovine oviductal epithelial cells.

The oviduct, the organ of the female reproductive system where fertilization and early embryonic development occur, provides an optimal environment for the final maturation of oocytes, storage, and sperm capacitation and transport of gametes and embryos. During the estrous cycle, the oviduct is affected by ovarian sex hormones, resulting in changes aimed at maintaining an appropriate microenvironment. Normal cell migration is tightly regulated, its role being essential for the development and maintenance of organ and tissue functions as well as for regeneration following injury.

A long-term in vitro culture of bovine epithelial cells on collagen rafts.

In the present work, we established and characterized a 3D functional polarized primary bovine oviduct epithelial cells (BOECs) culture on free-floating type I collagen hydrogels (rafts) at an air-liquid interface (ALI). Intercellular junctions, ultrastructural cellular morphology and the expression of the OVGP1 closely recapitulated those of the in vivo epithelium lining. These morphological and physiological epithelial cell features were maintained under standard DMEM/F12 with 10% foetal bovine serum culture medium for at least 28 days of ALI culture.

Expression of bone morphogenetic protein receptors in bovine oviductal epithelial cells: Evidence of autocrine BMP signaling.

Members of the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β) family, including bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), are expressed in the epithelial cells of the mammalian oviduct. These signaling molecules play important roles in development and tissue homeostasis; however, little is known about their function in the mammalian oviduct. In the present study, RT-qPCR was used to analyze the mRNA abundance of BMP type I (BMPR1A, BMPR1B, ACVR1) and type II receptors (BMPR2, ACVR2A, ACVR2B) in the bovine oviduct epithelial cells (BOEC) isolated from ampulla and isthmus at both the follicular (FP) and the luteal (LP) phase of the estrous cycle.