Publication:
Effects of dehydroepiandrosterone on in vivo ovine follicular development

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Issued Date

2014

Resource Type

Article

File Type

application/pdf

ISSN

2681161

DOI

10.1093/humrep/det408

Other identifier(s)

2-s2.0-84890698507

Rights Holder(s)

Scopus

Bibliographic Citation

Human Reproduction. Vol 29, No.1 (2014), p.146-154

Suggested Citation

Narkwichean A., Jayaprakasan K., Maalouf W.E., Hernandez-Medrano J.H., Pincott-Allen C., Campbell B.K. Effects of dehydroepiandrosterone on in vivo ovine follicular development. Human Reproduction. Vol 29, No.1 (2014), p.146-154. doi:10.1093/humrep/det408 Retrieved from: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14740/6286

Title

Effects of dehydroepiandrosterone on in vivo ovine follicular development

Author(s)

Narkwichean A.
 Jayaprakasan K.
 Maalouf W.E.
 Hernandez-Medrano J.H.
 Pincott-Allen C.
 Campbell B.K.

Abstract

STUDY QUESTION: What are the effects of exposure of ovarian tissue to dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) supplementation in vivo? SUMMARY ANSWER: DHEA exposure stimulates initiation of primordial follicles and development of gonadotrophin-responsive preantral/early antral follicles possibly mediated through promoting granulosa cell proliferation and enhancing anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) expression. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY: ?Ovarian ageing is a cause of subfertility and is associated with poor outcomes of IVF treatment and premature menopause. A few clinical studies have shown that DHEA can improve ovarian response and increase the chances of pregnancy after IVF treatment in women with a diminished ovarian reserve (DOR) suggesting DHEA may help to overcome the effect of ovarian ageing. However, there are no data about how DHEA acts on ovarian folliculogenesis. STUDY DESIGN, SIZE AND DURATION: A cortical autograft experimental model was conducted in six female sheep aged at least 24 months. The period of DHEA treatment in the animals lasted for 10 weeks. PARTICIPANTS/ MATERIALS, SETTING, METHODS: All the animals were subjected to unilateral oophorectomy. Half of the ovary was fixed for histological analysis as a time-zero control. The remaining tissue was used to isolate patches of ovarian cortex which were autografted back onto the ovarian pedicle. The grafting procedure eradicated all growing follicles and synchronized early follicular development. After a 10-week treatment period with DHEA implants, the ewes were sacrificed and the graft and remaining ovary were harvested. Histological and immunohistochemistry (IHC) findings, accompanied with serum hormonal profiles were compared to determine the effect on the follicle population. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE: Higher proportions of the follicle population in the remaining ovary were observed to be in the antral stage after DHEA treatment. The observation coincided with an increase in the rate of primordial follicle initiation and preantral follicle development in cortical grafts and the remaining ovarian tissue, respectively. The IHC results indicated that DHEA increased the expression of both the proliferation marker (KI-67) in granulosa cells and the follicular AMH expression at the preantral and early antral follicle stages. LIMITATIONS, REASONS FOR CAUTION: The experimental design compared follicle populations before and after DHEA treatment within individual animals to allow changes over time to be detected against a background of high inter-animal variation. However, since no controls without DHEA were included, we cannot say what would have happened over time in its absence, and it is possible that other factors may have resulted in the changes in follicle development observed during the experiment.WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGOur data supports the idea that DHEA might be a useful therapy to delay the effects of ovarian ageing. Therefore, it may have a role as an adjunct during IVF to improve ovarian response in women with DOR and as a treatment for premature ovarian insufficiency. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S): The research received finance support from the University of Nottingham. The authors declare no conflict of interest in this study. © The Author 2013.

Subject(s)

Gonadotropin
 Muellerian inhibiting factor
 Prasterone
 Aging
 Animal experiment
 Animal tissue
 Article
 Cell proliferation
 Controlled study
 Embryo
 Female
 Fertilization in vitro
 Granulosa cell
 Histology
 Hormonal regulation
 Immunohistochemistry
 In vivo study
 Nonhuman
 Ovarian reserve
 Ovary
 Ovary follicle
 Ovary follicle cell
 Ovary follicle development
 Ovine model
 Pregnancy
 Protein expression
 Sheep
 Animalia
 Ovis
 Ovis aries
 Dehydroepiandrosterone
 Diminished ovarian reserve
 In vitro fertilization
 Ovarian follicular development (folliculogenesis)
 Animals
 Anti-Mullerian Hormone
 Autografts
 Dehydroepiandrosterone
 Drug Implants
 Female
 Ovarian Follicle
 Ovary
 Pregnancy
 Sheep, Domestic

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URI

https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14740/6286

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Scopus: Year 1983-2021

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