Biological role of conceptus derived factors during early pregnancy in ruminants

xi SECTION I: 1 LITERATURE REVIEW 1 Early Pregnancy 1 Uterine Histoarchitecture 1 Conceptus Development 4 Phases of implantation in sheep 8 Progesterone 13 Actions of Progesterone on the Endometrium 13 Interferon Tau 16 Actions of IFNT on the Endometrium 16 Interferon Tau (IFNT) 18 Pregnancy Recognition in Ruminants 18 IFNT stimulated genes in the endometrium 19 Effects of IFNT on the LE/sGE 20 Prostaglandins 22 Prostaglandin synthesis 22 Prostaglandin Receptors 25 PPAR mechanisms of action 25 Peroxisome Proliferator Activator Gamma 29 Peroxisome Proliferator Activator Delta 29 Glucocorticoids33 Glucocorticoid Synthesis 33 GC interconversion by hydroxysteroid (11-beta) dehydrogenases 34 Structure and function of GR 37 GCs during pregnancy 40 Gene Knockdown Approaches 41 Morpholino antisense oligonucleotides (MAO) 41 iv Short interfering RNA (siRNA) 45 Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPRs) 50 SECTION II: 57 Biological roles of interferon tau (IFNT) and Type I IFN receptors in elongation of the ovine conceptus 57 ABSTRACT 58 INTRODUCTION 59 MATERIALS AND METHODS 61 RESULTS 72 DISCUSSION 81 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 89 58 INTRODUCTION 59 MATERIALS AND METHODS 61 RESULTS 72 DISCUSSION 81 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 89 SECTION III: 90 Peroxisome proliferator activator receptor gamma (PPARG) regulates conceptus elongation in sheep 90 ABSTRACT 9