Breed differences in expression of inhibin/activin subunits in porcine anterior pituitary glands.

Chinese Meishan (MS) boars have greater plasma FSH concentrations than European White Composite boars, but this difference does not occur in females of these breeds. To understand this disparity, we studied expression of the follistatin gene and of genes for the inhibin/activin alpha-, beta A-, and beta B-subunits in porcine anterior pituitary glands using quantitative reverse transcription-PCR and ribonuclease protection techniques. We found that 1) the inhibin/activin beta A- and beta B-subunits and follistatin were expressed in porcine pituitary, 2) the alpha-subunit was not detected in the porcine pituitary, but was highly expressed in porcine follicles; and 3) the beta B-subunit gene is more abundantly expressed (2-fold greater) in MS boar pituitaries than in pituitaries of White Composite boars. We conclude that this is not due to a breed difference, because the expression levels of this gene were similar in pituitaries of females of these breeds. No breed differences were detected for other genes screened in this study. From these observations, we propose that activin B, a dimer of beta B-subunits and a stimulator of FSH secretion, may be partially responsible for the elevated plasma FSH concentrations in MS boars, and intrapituitary inhibin plays no or a very minimal role.

[1]  D. Lunstra,et al.  Negative relationship between blood concentrations of follicle-stimulating hormone and testicular size in mature boars. , 1997, Journal of animal science.

[2]  J. Ford,et al.  Overexpression of beta-subunit of thyroid-stimulating hormone in Meishan swine identified by differential display. , 1996, Journal of animal science.

[3]  Y. Ibuki,et al.  [Inhibin and activin]. , 1996, Nihon Sanka Fujinka Gakkai zasshi.

[4]  D. Bronson,et al.  Restricted expression of new HERV-K members in human teratocarcinoma cells. , 1995, Virology.

[5]  A. Bradley,et al.  Different phenotypes for mice deficient in either activins or activin receptor type II , 1995, Nature.

[6]  K. Mayo.  Inhibin and activin Molecular aspects of regulation and function , 1994, Trends in Endocrinology & Metabolism.

[7]  L. Mathews.  Activin receptors and cellular signaling by the receptor serine kinase family. , 1994, Endocrine reviews.

[8]  J. Vaughan,et al.  Characterization and the regulation of inhibin/activin subunit proteins of cultured rat anterior pituitary cells. , 1993, Endocrinology.

[9]  D. Lunstra,et al.  Semen characteristics, testicular size, and reproductive hormone concentrations in mature duroc, meishan, fengjing, and minzhu boars. , 1993, Biology of reproduction.

[10]  G. Unabia,et al.  Expression of follistatin mRNA by somatotropes and mammotropes early in the rat estrous cycle. , 1993, The journal of histochemistry and cytochemistry : official journal of the Histochemistry Society.

[11]  A. Mcneilly,et al.  Comparisons of endocrinology and behavioural events during the periovulatory period in Meishan and large-white hybrid gilts. , 1993, Journal of Reproduction and Fertility.

[12]  J. Findlay,et al.  Follistatins: More than follicle-stimulating hormone suppressing proteins , 1993, Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology.

[13]  H. D. Guthrie,et al.  Changes in concentrations of follicular inhibin alpha and beta A subunit messenger ribonucleic acids and inhibin immunoactivity during preovulatory maturation in the pig. , 1992, Biology of reproduction.

[14]  A. Bradley,et al.  α-lnhibin is a tumour-suppressor gene with gonadal specificity in mice , 1992, Nature.

[15]  K. Titani,et al.  Isolation and characterization of native activin B. , 1992, The Journal of biological chemistry.

[16]  A. Hsueh,et al.  Characterization of mouse inhibin α gene and its promoter , 1992 .

[17]  N. Ling,et al.  Follistatin and Activin: A Potential Intrinsic Regulatory System within Diverse Tissues , 1991, Proceedings of the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine. Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine.

[18]  A. Mason,et al.  Evidence for an autocrine role of activin B within rat anterior pituitary cultures. , 1991, Endocrinology.

[19]  D. Melton,et al.  Activin can induce the formation of axial structures and is expressed in the hypoblast of the chick , 1990, Cell.

[20]  J. Vaughan,et al.  Activins are expressed early in Xenopus embryogenesis and can induce axial mesoderm and anterior structures , 1990, Cell.

[21]  Y. Kato,et al.  The gene for the beta subunit of porcine FSH: absence of consensus oestrogen-responsive element and presence of retroposons. , 1990, Journal of molecular endocrinology.

[22]  Yi-Ping Li,et al.  Analysis of the 5′-Flanking Regions of Rat Inhibin α- and β-B-Subunit Genes Suggests Two Different Regulatory Mechanisms , 1989 .

[23]  A. Mason,et al.  Activin B: precursor sequences, genomic structure and in vitro activities. , 1989, Molecular endocrinology.

[24]  F. D. Enfield,et al.  A characterization of Chinese breeds of swine using cluster analysis , 1989 .

[25]  N. Ling,et al.  Porcine follistatin gene structure supports two forms of mature follistatin produced by alternative splicing. , 1988, Biochemical and biophysical research communications.

[26]  N. Ling,et al.  Structural characterization of follistatin: a novel follicle-stimulating hormone release-inhibiting polypeptide from the gonad. , 1987, Molecular endocrinology.

[27]  N. Ling,et al.  A homodimer of the β-subunits of inhibin a stimulates the secretion of pituitary follicle stimulating hormone , 1986 .

[28]  Joan Vaughan,et al.  Purification and characterization of an FSH releasing protein from porcine ovarian follicular fluid , 1986, Nature.

[29]  Naoto Ueno,et al.  Pituitary FSH is released by a heterodimer of the β-subunits from the two forms of inhibin , 1986, Nature.

[30]  N. Ling,et al.  Complementary DNA sequences of ovarian follicular fluid inhibin show precursor structure and homology with transforming growth factor-β , 1985, Nature.

[31]  J. Vaughan,et al.  Purification and partial characterization of inhibin from porcine follicular fluid. , 1985, Biochemical and biophysical research communications.

[32]  R Guillemin,et al.  Isolation and partial characterization of a Mr 32,000 protein with inhibin activity from porcine follicular fluid. , 1985, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

[33]  K. Miyamoto,et al.  Isolation of porcine follicular fluid inhibin of 32K daltons. , 1985, Biochemical and biophysical research communications.

[34]  H. Burger,et al.  Isolation of inhibin from bovine follicular fluid. , 1985, Biochemical and biophysical research communications.

[35]  W. Rutter,et al.  Isolation of biologically active ribonucleic acid from sources enriched in ribonuclease. , 1979, Biochemistry.

[36]  F. Sanger,et al.  DNA sequencing with chain-terminating inhibitors. , 1977, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

[37]  H. Burger,et al.  The relationship between germinal cells and serum FSH levels in males with infertility. , 1974, The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism.

[38]  B. Weintraub,et al.  Monotropic increase of serum FSH correlated with low sperm count in young men with idiopathic oligospermia and aspermia. , 1971, The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism.

[39]  B. Weintraub,et al.  Monotropic Increase of Serum FSH Correlated with Low Sperm Count in Young Men with Idiopathic Oligospermia and Aspermia , 1971 .

[40]  D. Hamernik,et al.  Pituitary relationship of gonadotropins and messenger ribonucleic acid for gonadotropin subunits in white composite and Meishan boars. , 1996, Biology of reproduction.

[41]  D. Lunstra,et al.  Differential pituitary and gonadal function of Chinese Meishan and European white composite boars: effects of gonadotropin-releasing hormone stimulation, castration, and steroidal feedback. , 1996, Biology of reproduction.

[42]  M. Matzuk,et al.  Transgenic models to study the roles of inhibins and activins in reproduction, oncogenesis, and development. , 1996, Recent progress in hormone research.

[43]  A. Klibanski,et al.  Human pituitary adenomas express endogenous inhibin subunit and follistatin messenger ribonucleic acids. , 1995, The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism.

[44]  T. Woodruff,et al.  Inhibin, activin and the female reproductive axis. , 1995, Annual review of physiology.

[45]  C. Haley,et al.  Genetic basis of prolificacy in Meishan pigs. , 1993, Journal of reproduction and fertility. Supplement.

[46]  A. Bradley,et al.  Alpha-inhibin is a tumour-suppressor gene with gonadal specificity in mice. , 1992, Nature.

[47]  J. Vaughan,et al.  Production and regulation of inhibin subunits in pituitary gonadotropes. , 1989, Endocrinology.

[48]  W. Vale,et al.  Gonadal and extragonadal expression of inhibin alpha, beta A, and beta B subunits in various tissues predicts diverse functions. , 1988, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

[49]  N. Ling,et al.  A homodimer of the beta-subunits of inhibin A stimulates the secretion of pituitary follicle stimulating hormone. , 1986, Biochemical and biophysical research communications.

[50]  H. Charles Romesburg,et al.  Cluster analysis for researchers , 1984 .

[51]  W. E. Rempel,et al.  Some performance characteristics of prolific breeds of pigs in China , 1983 .

[52]  W. Vale,et al.  Gonadal and extragonadal expression of inhibin a , 13 A , and BB subunits in various tissues predicts diverse functions , 2022 .