Mating induces the expression of immune- and pH-regulatory genes in the utero-vaginal junction containing mucosal sperm-storage tubuli of hens.

The female chicken, as with other species with internal fertilization, can tolerate the presence of spermatozoa within specialized sperm-storage tubuli (SST) located in the mucosa of the utero-vaginal junction (UVJ) for days or weeks, without eliciting an immune response. To determine if the oviduct alters its gene expression in response to sperm entry, segments from the oviduct (UVJ, uterus, isthmus, magnum and infundibulum) of mated and unmated (control) hens, derived from an advanced inter-cross line between Red Junglefowl and White Leghorn, were explored 24  h after mating using cDNA microarray analysis. Mating shifted the expression of fifteen genes in the UVJ (53.