A NOVEL BIOLOGICAL ASPECT OF OVARIAN OXYTOCIN - OXYTOCIN GENE-EXPRESSION IN CUMULUS LUTEAL CELLS AND THE EFFECT OF OXYTOCIN ON EMBRYOGENESIS IN FERTILIZED OOCYTES/

Recently, several reports have demonstrated the presence of oxytocin ( OT) in the corpus luteum of mammalian species. However, the biological role of ovarian OT remains obscure. This study was performed to exami ne OT gene expression in cumulus cells of mice and humans, and in huma n corpus luteum, and the role of OT in early embryogenesis. OT gene an d OT mRNA were analyzed by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reac tion, with single-strand-conformation polymorphism and heteroduplex pr ocedures. OT-treated in-vitro-fertilized mouse oocytes were cultured a nd the rate of blastocyst development estimated. An immunohistochemica l study was also carried out to detect OT on the surface of the mouse oocytes.