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Ovarian follicles are resistant to monocyte perturbations—implications for ovarian health with immune disruption

journal contribution
posted on 2021-07-01, 00:00 authored by Luba SominskyLuba Sominsky, S Younesi, S N de Luca, S M Loone, K M Quinn, S J Spencer
Abstract
Monocytes and macrophages are the most abundant immune cell populations in the adult ovary, with well-known roles in ovulation and corpus luteum formation and regression. They are activated and proliferate in response to immune challenge and are suppressed by anti-inflammatory treatments. It is also likely they have a functional role in the healthy ovary in supporting the maturing follicle from the primordial through to the later stages; however, this role has been unexplored until now. Here, we utilized a Cx3cr1-Dtr transgenic Wistar rat model that allows a conditional depletion of circulating monocytes, to investigate their role in ovarian follicle health. Our findings show that circulating monocyte depletion leads to a significant depletion of ovarian monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages. Depletion of monocytes was associated with a transient reduction in circulating anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) at 5 days postdepletion. However, the 50–60% ovarian monocyte/macrophage depletion had no effect on ovarian follicle numbers, follicle atresia, or apoptosis, within 5–21 days postdepletion. These data reveal that the healthy adult ovary is remarkably resistant to perturbations of circulating and ovarian monocytes despite acute changes in AMH. These data suggest that short-term anti-inflammatory therapies that transiently impact on circulating monocytes are unlikely to disrupt ovarian follicle health, findings that have significant implications for fertility planning relative to the experience of an immune challenge or immunosuppression.

History

Journal

Biology of Reproduction

Volume

105

Issue

1

Pagination

100 - 112

Publisher

OXFORD UNIV PRESS INC

Location

United States

ISSN

0006-3363

eISSN

1529-7268

Language

English

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal