The role of combining medroxyprogesterone 17-acetate with human menopausal gonadotropin in mouse ovarian follicular development

Sci Rep. 2018 Mar 13;8(1):4439. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-22797-6.

Abstract

Medroxyprogesterone 17-acetate (MPA) combined with human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) has been effectively used for ovarian stimulation in clinical practice. However, the molecular mechanism of MPA + hMG treatment in follicular development is poorly described. Here we performed a study to investigate the impact of MPA + hMG on ovarian stimulation utilizing a mouse model in vivo. Forty female BALB/C mice were randomly divided into four groups of 10 each and treated during ciestrus stage and continued for 5 days: control group, MPA group, hMG group, and MPA + hMG group. Morphological and molecular biology methods were used for detecting serum hormones and ovarian function. MPA + hMG group exhibited increasing follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), antral follicle, FSH receptor (FSHR) and phosphorylated mammal target of rapamycin (p-mTOR), and decreasing luteinizing hormone (LH), estradiol (E2), progesterone (P), corpus luteum, phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), Akt and mTOR compared with control group. In contrast, MPA + hMG group showed reduced FSH, LH, E2, P, corpus luteum, LH receptor (LHR), and activated PI3K,/Akt/mTOR pathway compared with hMG group (P < 0.05). Collectively, these data definitively established that MPA plus hMG may modulate the hormone, hormone receptor and PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway to influence follicular development in the mouse ovary. Our study provides overwhelming support for MPA + hMG as an effective treatment for infertility in women.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Female
  • Hormones / blood*
  • Humans
  • Medroxyprogesterone Acetate / administration & dosage*
  • Medroxyprogesterone Acetate / pharmacology
  • Menopause
  • Menotropins / administration & dosage*
  • Menotropins / pharmacology
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred BALB C
  • Ovarian Follicle / drug effects
  • Ovarian Follicle / growth & development*
  • Ovulation Induction
  • Random Allocation
  • Signal Transduction / drug effects
  • Treatment Outcome

Substances

  • Hormones
  • Menotropins
  • Medroxyprogesterone Acetate