Expression of genes for oestrogen and progesterone receptors in the cervix of anoestrous ewes treated with gonadotrophin releasing hormone with or without progesterone priming

Priming anoestrous Corriedale ewes with progesterone and gonadotrophin-releasing hormone causes cervical tissue remodelling due to metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) activity

The aim was to obtain experimental evidence of cervical collagen degradation in anoestrous Corriedale adult ewes induced to ovulate with progesterone (P) and gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH), at the expected time of induced ovulation and early luteal phase. In Experiment 1, anoestrous ewes were treated with P for 10 days (P, n = 4), with nine micro-doses of GnRH followed by a GnRH bolus injection (GnRH, n = 4) or with P plus GnRH treatments (P+GnRH, n = 3), and cervices were obtained either without treatment (A, n = 4), when P was removed, or 24 h after the GnRH bolus injection. In Experiment 2, cervices were obtained 1 (group P+GnRH, n = 5) or 5 (P+GnRH 5, n = 6) days after the GnRH bolus injection with P pretreatment. MMP-2 activity was detected in all samples; however, MMP-9 activity was only detected in 15% of the samples. The activity of the latent (L) form of MMP-2 in the cranial zone of group A was higher than in the cranial zone of groups P, GnRH and P+GnRH, and was also higher than that in the caudal zone of the same group (P < 0.05). The collagen concentration was lower in group P+GnRH 1 than in group P+GnRH 5 (P < 0.04). The activity of the activated (A) form of MMP-2 and the A/L MMP-2 ratio were higher in group P+GnRH 1 than in group P+GnRH 5 (P < 0.05). Data suggest that the L form of MMP-2 was expressed mainly in a constitutive form in the cervix of anoestrous ewes and that an oestrogen-dependent activation mechanisms due to the GnRH treatment may be responsible for the lowest collagen content at the moment of the induced ovulation. This work provides evidence about cervical collagen remodelling in anoestrous ewes treated with P + GnRH.