Santiago Cornélio S, Albernaz Edna S S, Santos Renata T S, Guerra Luiz H A, Santos Fernanda C A, Góes Rejane M, Morielle-Versute Eliana, Taboga Sebastião R, Beguelini Mateus R
Center of Biological and Health Science, UFOB - Universidade Federal do Oeste da Bahia, Barreiras, Bahia, Brazil.
Department of Biology, UNESP - Univ. Estadual Paulista, São José do Rio Preto, São Paulo, Brazil.
J Morphol. 2020 Mar;281(3):302-315. doi: 10.1002/jmor.21098. Epub 2020 Jan 6.
Artibeus lituratus is a frugivorous bat that directly assists in the restoration of degraded habitats through the effective dispersion of seeds and fruits. Given its great importance, this work aimed to evaluate the uterine hormonal control of A. lituratus during its different reproductive phases. The uteri of 30 sexually mature adult females, five specimens for each of the six sample groups (NON, nonreproductive; P1, initial pregnancy; P2, intermediate pregnancy; P3, advanced pregnancy; LAC, lactating; P + LAC, pregnant-lactating), were submitted to analyses of serum estradiol and progesterone concentrations, in addition to immunohistochemical analyses. Both estradiol and progesterone, gradually increased during pregnancy, with a marked significant increase in P3 females. Both returned to low levels in LAC-females; however, estradiol levels decreased further in P + LAC-females, while progesterone increased in the same group. In general, signs indicative of aromatase expression were observed in the endometrium of all analyzed groups and in the placenta of bats in the gestation groups. Similarly, ERα and PR were expressed in the myometrium, endometrium and placenta at varying levels of intensity. The results indicate that the uterine microenvironment of A. lituratus is directly regulated by serum concentrations of estradiol and progesterone, and fluctuations in these concentrations control morphological and physiological changes of this organ during different phases of the reproductive cycle. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Increases in serum concentrations of estradiol and progesterone coordinate the gestational period of A. lituratus. Estradiol activates ERα, stimulating cell proliferation in the uterus, in addition to activating the expression of PR, which trigger the quiescence of the myometrium and stimulation of the secretion and differentiation of the endometrium. Results showed several similarities to humans, indicating the use of A. lituratus as an animal model in reproductive studies.
白喉长舌蝠是一种食果蝙蝠，它通过有效传播种子和果实，直接助力退化栖息地的恢复。鉴于其重要性，本研究旨在评估白喉长舌蝠在不同生殖阶段的子宫激素调控情况。选取30只性成熟成年雌性白喉长舌蝠，分为六个样本组，每组五只（NON，非生殖期；P1，妊娠初期；P2，妊娠中期；P3，妊娠后期；LAC，哺乳期；P + LAC，妊娠兼哺乳期），对其子宫进行血清雌二醇和孕酮浓度分析以及免疫组织化学分析。雌二醇和孕酮在孕期均逐渐升高，在P3组雌性中显著增加。二者在LAC组雌性中均降至低水平；然而，在P + LAC组雌性中，雌二醇水平进一步下降，而孕酮水平升高。总体而言，在所有分析组的子宫内膜以及妊娠组蝙蝠的胎盘中均观察到芳香化酶表达的迹象。同样，ERα和PR在子宫肌层、子宫内膜和胎盘中均有不同强度的表达。结果表明，白喉长舌蝠的子宫微环境直接受血清雌二醇和孕酮浓度的调节，这些浓度的波动控制着该器官在生殖周期不同阶段的形态和生理变化。研究亮点：血清雌二醇和孕酮浓度的升高协调了白喉长舌蝠的妊娠期。雌二醇激活ERα，刺激子宫细胞增殖，此外还激活PR的表达，从而引发子宫肌层的静止以及子宫内膜分泌和分化的刺激。结果显示与人类有若干相似之处，表明白喉长舌蝠可作为生殖研究中的动物模型。
