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Contrasting effects of the Toll-like receptor 4 in determining ovarian follicle endowment and fertility in female adult mice

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 August 2021

Júlio Panzera Gonçalves ,
Breno Augusto Magalhães Open the ORCID record for Breno Augusto Magalhães [Opens in a new window]  and
Paulo Henrique Almeida Campos-Junior Open the ORCID record for Paulo Henrique Almeida Campos-Junior [Opens in a new window]
Júlio Panzera Gonçalves
Affiliation:
Departamento de Ciências Naturais, Universidade Federal de São João del Rei. Praça Dom Helvécio, 74 – Dom Bosco, São João del Rei, MG, 36301-160, Brazil
Breno Augusto Magalhães
Affiliation:
Departamento de Ciências Naturais, Universidade Federal de São João del Rei. Praça Dom Helvécio, 74 – Dom Bosco, São João del Rei, MG, 36301-160, Brazil
Paulo Henrique Almeida Campos-Junior*
Affiliation:
Departamento de Ciências Naturais, Universidade Federal de São João del Rei. Praça Dom Helvécio, 74 – Dom Bosco, São João del Rei, MG, 36301-160, Brazil
*
Author for correspondence: Paulo Henrique Almeida Campos-Junior, Departamento de Ciências Naturais, Universidade Federal de São João del Rei. Praça Dom Helvécio, 74 – Dom Bosco, São João del Rei, MG, 36301-160, Brazil. E-mail: paulohenrique@ufsj.edu.br
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Abstract

Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) is best known for its role in bacteria-produced lipopolysaccharide recognition. Regarding female reproduction, TLR4 is expressed by murine cumulus cells and participates in ovulation and in cumulus–oocyte complex (COC) expansion, maternal–fetal interaction and preterm labour. Despite these facts, the role of TLR4 in ovarian physiology is not fully understood. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of TLR4 genetic ablation on mice folliculogenesis and female fertility, through analysis of reproductive crosses, ovarian responsiveness and follicular quantification in TLR4−/− (n = 94) and C57BL/6 mice [wild type (WT), n = 102]. TLR4-deficient pairs showed a reduced number of pups per litter (P = 0.037) compared with WT. TLR4−/− mice presented more primordial, primary, secondary and antral follicles (P < 0.001), however there was no difference in estrous cyclicity (P > 0.05). A lower (P = 0.006) number of COC was recovered from TLR4−/− mice oviducts after superovulation, and in heterozygous pairs, TLR4−/− females also showed a reduction in the pregnancy rate and in the number of fetuses per uterus (P = 0.007) when compared with WT. Altogether, these data suggest that TLR4 plays a role in the regulation of murine folliculogenesis and in determining ovarian endowment. TLR4 deficiency may affect ovulation and pregnancy rates, potentially decreasing fertility, therefore the potential side effects of its blockade have to be carefully investigated.

Keywords

FertilityFollicleOvaryTLR4
Type
Research Article
Information
Zygote , Volume 30 , Issue 2 , April 2022 , pp. 227 - 233
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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