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Research progress of cyclic adenosine monophosphate in mammalian follicular development

ZHENG Wen-Ying¹, WANG Chao^1,2,*

¹State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100094, China；²Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Conservation and Utilization of Special Biological Resources in the Western China, College of Life Science, Ningxia University, Yinchuan 750021, China

Abstract

Cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) is one of the significant and conserved second messengers in mammals, and it participates in regulating the developmental and physiological functions of various organs and tissues through transducting extracellular signals. Studies have shown that the process of meiosis in female mammalian oocytes is closely related to the level of cAMP and strictly regulated. In oocytes, cAMP is mainly synthesized by adenylate cyclase 3 (AC3) and degraded by phosphodiesterase 3A (PDE3A), both of which jointly regulate the level of cAMP in oocytes and play important roles in the follicular development and oogenesis of female ovaries. It has been well illuminated that high level of cAMP in the cytoplasm of oocytes in growing follicles could maintain the arrest of the first meiotic of oocytes for a long time. The oocytes will resume meiosis and mature either when the synthesis of cAMP is down-regulated, or when cAMP is degraded by PDE3A. In recent years, the novo physiological functions of cAMP in oogenesis have been reported. To better understand the regulatory role and mechanism of cAMP in mammalian gametogenesis, this paper reviews the relevant research regarding the relationship between cAMP and germ cell development.

Key words: cAMP; folliculogenesis and follicular development; oocyte; granulosa cell

Received: 2020-08-08　　Accepted: 2021-02-08

Corresponding author: 王超　　E-mail: wangcam@cau.edu.cn

DOI: 10.13294/j.aps.2021.0038

Citing This Article：

ZHENG Wen-Ying, WANG Chao. Research progress of cyclic adenosine monophosphate in mammalian follicular development. Acta Physiol Sin 2021; 73 (3): 518-526 (in Chinese with English abstract).