LAUSR

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether Gemin 5, Cpeb, Xrn1, and Stau1 expression in rodent ovaries and uterine tissues is dependent on gonadotropins, steroid hormones, and leptin in the superovulation and ovariectomized mouse models of menopause. Treatment of pregnant mare serum gonadotropin-primed rats with human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) significantly induced Stau1 and Gemin 5 messenger RNA expression in rat ovaries. Gemin 5 expression in ovaries was sustained at relatively high levels at 12 h and 24 h post hCG treatment compared to Stau1, suggesting its role in follicle development, ovulation, and luteogenesis in rat ovaries. Induced expression of Stau1 and Gemin 5 in the uterine tissue post hCG treatment at 12 h and 24 h—the duration between ovulation and post-ovulation—suggests their regulation by hCG and/or ovarian steroids, which are required for pregnancy establishment and maintenance. Cpeb expression was significantly higher (p < 0.05) in the uterine tissues after combined treatment of estradiol and leptin at 4 h. Further, the significant upregulation of uterine Gemin 5 and Xrn1 by the synergistic activities of leptin and estradiol at 40 h in ovariectomized mice establishes them as targets of cross-talk. Although these are preliminary data, the combination of Gemin 5, Cpeb, Xrn1, and Stau1 transcript alterations in rodent ovaries and uterine tissue displayed in two different experimental models underscore their importance as therapeutic targets for anovulation or in overcoming endometrial homeostasis disturbances during pregnancy due to obesity.