Meeting Abstract
P3.31 Monday, Jan. 6 15:30 The influence of environmental quality on ovarian anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) gene expression in juvenile American alligators. CLOY-MCCOY, J.A.*; KOHNO, S.; GUILLETTE JR. , L.J. ; Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston jessicacloy@gmail.com
Studies of wildlife indicate that animals residing in contaminated habitats display an overall decrease in reproductive health. These findings have direct implications for the conservation of wildlife populations, but they also shed light on the possible etiology of human reproductive disorders. Recently, anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH) has gained clinical interest as a quantitative marker for ovarian health. In patients with premature ovarian failure AMH is greatly reduced. In contrast, the AMH levels in patients with ovulatory dysfunction are increased relative to controls. Information regarding the causes and consequences of disrupted AMH signaling in these pathologies is limited. There is evidence that estradiol treatment stimulates AMH expression and inhibits the primordial to primary follicle transition to neonatal rodent ovaries. This finding combined with the fact that environmental estrogens are widespread in our environment, prompted the overall hypothesis that exposures to estrogenic compounds causes a disruption of proper ovarian follicle development by disturbing the AMH signaling pathway. To test this hypothesis we analyzed the expression levels genes involved in the AMH pathway in juvenile laboratory raised alligators derived from a heavily contaminated environment. Our results show that compared to our reference animals the alligators derived from a contaminated site show no difference in the levels of AMH, SOX9, aromatase, estrogen receptor 1/2 (ESR1/2), or androgen receptor (AR) mRNA levels. Next, we intend to expand this study by assessing the levels of AMH and SOX9 in wild juvenile females from the same study sites. The findings of this study serve to clarify the relationship between exposure to environmental contaminants and regulation of ovarian folliculogenesis.
