Project description:Conditional ablation of Indian hedgehog (Ihh) in the murine uterus results in mice that are sterile due to defects in embryo implantation. We performed microarray analysis on these mice at the time point at which the Ihh target genes are induced by the administration of exogenous hormone to mimic day 3.5 of pregnancy. This analysis identified 863 genes altered by the conditional ablation of Ihh. Of these, genes that regulated the cell cycle were overrepresented. In addition, genes involved in epidermal growth factor (EGF) and estrogen (E2) signaling were found to be deregulated upon Ihh ablation. Furthermore, upon conditional ablation of Ihh, 15 month old mice exhibited hallmarks of estrogenized uteri such as cystically dilated glands and hyalinized stroma. Thus, Ihh regulates embryo implantation by impacting the cell cycle, EGF signaling, and E2 signaling. Keywords: two group comparison We conditionally ablated Indian hedgehog in the mouse uterus using the PRcre mouse model (PRcre/+Ihhf/f; Ihhd/d). High density DNA microarray analysis was performed on Day -1 of the artificial decidual response on Ihhf/f and Ihhd/d uteri.
Project description:Conditional ablation of Indian hedgehog (Ihh) in the murine uterus results in mice that are sterile due to defects in embryo implantation. We performed microarray analysis on these mice at the time point at which the Ihh target genes are induced by the administration of exogenous hormone to mimic day 3.5 of pregnancy. This analysis identified 863 genes altered by the conditional ablation of Ihh. Of these, genes that regulated the cell cycle were overrepresented. In addition, genes involved in epidermal growth factor (EGF) and estrogen (E2) signaling were found to be deregulated upon Ihh ablation. Furthermore, upon conditional ablation of Ihh, 15 month old mice exhibited hallmarks of estrogenized uteri such as cystically dilated glands and hyalinized stroma. Thus, Ihh regulates embryo implantation by impacting the cell cycle, EGF signaling, and E2 signaling. Keywords: two group comparison
Project description:Our preliminary study revealed that the homeobox transcription factors, Msx1 and Msx2, are expressed in the mouse uterus during early pregnancy. Further, conditional deletion of Msx1 and Msx2 in mouse uterus leads to implantation failure due to impaired uterine epithelial receptivity. To identify the downstream targets of Msx1Msx2 in the uterus, we performed gene expression profling of uterine epithelial cells isolated from Msx1Msx2-null mice and the corresponding controls on day4 of pregnancy (the time of implantation). The microarray results revealed elevated expression of mRNAs corresponding to several Wnts in uterine epithelium of Msx1Msx2-ablated mice. We performed conditional ablation of Msx1Msx2 in the mouse uterus using the PRcre mouse model. we isolated uterine epithelial cells from day4 pregnant mice (n=5 for each genotype). Total RNA was purified from these cells to hybridize to high density affymetrix microarrays.
Project description:Our preliminary study revealed that the homeobox transcription factors, Msx1 and Msx2, are expressed in the mouse uterus during early pregnancy. Further, conditional deletion of Msx1 and Msx2 in mouse uterus leads to implantation failure due to impaired uterine epithelial receptivity. To identify the downstream targets of Msx1Msx2 in the uterus, we performed gene expression profling of uterine stromal cells isolated from Msx1Msx2-null mice and the corresponding controls on day4 of pregnancy (the time of implantation). The microarray results revealed elevated expression of mRNAs corresponding to several members of the fibroblast growth factor family and Wnts in uterine stroma of Msx1Msx2-ablated mice. We performed conditional ablation of Msx1Msx2 in the mouse uterus using the PRcre mouse model. we isolated uterine stromal cells from day4 pregnant mice (n=5 for each genotype), purified total RNA from these cells, pooled these samples and then hybridized to high density affymetrix microarrays.
Project description:Introgressed variants from other species can be an important source of genetic variation because they may arise rapidly, can include multiple mutations on a single haplotype, and have often been pretested by selection in the species of origin. Although introgressed alleles are generally deleterious, several studies have reported introgression as the source of adaptive alleles-including the rodenticide-resistant variant of Vkorc1 that introgressed from Mus spretus into European populations of Mus musculus domesticus. Here, we conducted bidirectional genome scans to characterize introgressed regions into one wild population of M. spretus from Spain and three wild populations of M. m. domesticus from France, Germany, and Iran. Despite the fact that these species show considerable intrinsic postzygotic reproductive isolation, introgression was observed in all individuals, including in the M. musculus reference genome (GRCm38). Mus spretus individuals had a greater proportion of introgression compared with M. m. domesticus, and within M. m. domesticus, the proportion of introgression decreased with geographic distance from the area of sympatry. Introgression was observed on all autosomes for both species, but not on the X-chromosome in M. m. domesticus, consistent with known X-linked hybrid sterility and inviability genes that have been mapped to the M. spretus X-chromosome. Tract lengths were generally short with a few outliers of up to 2.7 Mb. Interestingly, the longest introgressed tracts were in olfactory receptor regions, and introgressed tracts were significantly enriched for olfactory receptor genes in both species, suggesting that introgression may be a source of functional novelty even between species with high barriers to gene flow.
Project description:To characterize the genetic basis of hybrid male sterility in detail, we used a systems genetics approach, integrating mapping of gene expression traits with sterility phenotypes and QTL. We measured genome-wide testis expression in 305 male F2s from a cross between wild-derived inbred strains of M. musculus musculus and M. m. domesticus. We identified several thousand cis- and trans-acting QTL contributing to expression variation (eQTL). Many trans eQTL cluster into eleven ‘hotspots,’ seven of which co-localize with QTL for sterility phenotypes identified in the cross. The number and clustering of trans eQTL - but not cis eQTL - were substantially lower when mapping was restricted to a ‘fertile’ subset of mice, providing evidence that trans eQTL hotspots are related to sterility. Functional annotation of transcripts with eQTL provides insights into the biological processes disrupted by sterility loci and guides prioritization of candidate genes. Using a conditional mapping approach, we identified eQTL dependent on interactions between loci, revealing a complex system of epistasis. Our results illuminate established patterns, including the role of the X chromosome in hybrid sterility.
Project description:The role of Gata2 in regulating uterine function including fertility, implantation, decidualization and P4 signaling in the mouse was investigated by the conditional ablation of Gata2 in the uterus using the (PR-cre) mouse and ChIP-seq for in vivo GATA2 binding sites in the murine uterus upon acute P4 administration.