To beta or not to beta: estrogen receptors and ovarian function.
Endocrinology. 2005 Aug;146(8):3244-6
Authors: Woodruff TK, Mayo KE
PMID: 16009972 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Smad3 mediates activin-induced transcription of follicle-stimulating hormone beta-subunit gene.
Mol Endocrinol. 2005 Jul;19(7):1849-58
Authors: Suszko MI, Balkin DM, Chen Y, Woodruff TK
Synthesis of FSH by the anterior pituitary is regulated by activin, a member of the FSH(beta) superfamily of ligands. Activin signals through a pathway that involves the activation of the transcriptional coregulators Smad2 and Smad3. Previous…
Induction of cyclin D2 in rat granulosa cells requires FSH-dependent relief from FOXO1 repression coupled with positive signals from Smad.
J Biol Chem. 2005 Mar 11;280(10):9135-48
Authors: Park Y, Maizels ET, Feiger ZJ, Alam H, Peters CA, Woodruff TK, Unterman TG, Lee EJ, Jameson JL, Hunzicker-Dunn M
Ovarian follicles undergo exponential growth in response to follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH),…
Beta A versus beta B: is it merely a matter of expression?
Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2004 Oct 15;225(1-2):9-17
Authors: Thompson TB, Cook RW, Chapman SC, Jardetzky TS, Woodruff TK
Activins are members of the transforming growth factor (TGF) beta (beta) superfamily of proteins that function in a wide array of physiological processes. Like other TGFbeta ligands, activins are…
Cloning of a novel inhibin alpha cDNA from rhesus monkey testis.
Reprod Biol Endocrinol. 2004 Oct 7;2:71
Authors: Bernard DJ, Woodruff TK, Plant TM
BACKGROUND: Inhibins are dimeric gonadal protein hormones that negatively regulate pituitary FSH synthesis and secretion. Inhibin B is produced by testicular Sertoli cells and is the primary circulating form of inhibin in most adult…
Ovarian follicle development requires Smad3.
Mol Endocrinol. 2004 Sep;18(9):2224-40
Authors: Tomic D, Miller KP, Kenny HA, Woodruff TK, Hoyer P, Flaws JA
Smad3 is an important mediator of the TGF beta signaling pathway. Interestingly, Smad3-deficient (Smad3-/-) mice have reduced fertility compared with wild-type (WT) mice. To better understand the molecular mechanisms underlying the reduced fertility in Smad3-/- animals,…
Molecular biology of inhibin action.
Semin Reprod Med. 2004 Aug;22(3):269-76
Authors: Cook RW, Thompson TB, Jardetzky TS, Woodruff TK
Inhibins are dimeric glycoproteins that have primarily been studied for their role in antagonism of activin-mediated release of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) from gonadotropes of the anterior pituitary. As a member of the transforming growth factor beta (TGFbeta) superfamily of…
Follicle-restricted compartmentalization of transforming growth factor beta superfamily ligands in the feline ovary.
Biol Reprod. 2004 Mar;70(3):846-59
Authors: Bristol SK, Woodruff TK
Ovarian follicular development, follicle selection, and the process of ovulation remain poorly understood in most species. Throughout reproductive life, follicle fate is balanced between growth and apoptosis. These opposing forces are controlled by numerous endocrine, paracrine,…
Inhibin: actions and signalling.
Growth Factors. 2004 Mar;22(1):13-8
Authors: Phillips DJ, Woodruff TK
Inhibin is best known as a reproductive hormone that inhibits release of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) from the pituitary gland. Over the last decade or so a number of other biological roles have emerged, putting inhibin more in the class of a growth factor. Despite this,…
Betaglycan localization in the female rat pituitary: implications for the regulation of follicle-stimulating hormone by inhibin.
Endocrinology. 2003 Dec;144(12):5640-9
Authors: Chapman SC, Woodruff TK
Activin-stimulated FSH synthesis and secretion from the pituitary gonadotrope is negatively modulated by ovarian inhibin; however, the cellular mechanism of inhibin antagonism is unknown. Inhibin and activin share a common beta-subunit through which inhibin…
Novel approach for the three-dimensional culture of granulosa cell-oocyte complexes.
Tissue Eng. 2003 Oct;9(5):1013-21
Authors: Pangas SA, Saudye H, Shea LD, Woodruff TK
The in vitro culture of immature ovarian follicles is used to examine the factors that regulate follicle development and may ultimately provide options for reproductive infertility. The objective of this study was to develop a…
Murine granulosa cell morphology and function are regulated by a synthetic Arg-Gly-Asp matrix.
Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2003 Jul 31;205(1-2):1-10
Authors: Kreeger PK, Woodruff TK, Shea LD
Extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins are established regulators of granulosa cell survival, morphology, and differentiation. In this study, the roles of ECM adhesion peptide density on murine granulosa cell adhesion, morphology, and steroid…
Normal reproductive function in InhBP/p120-deficient mice.
Mol Cell Biol. 2003 Jul;23(14):4882-91
Authors: Bernard DJ, Burns KH, Haupt B, Matzuk MM, Woodruff TK
The inhibins are gonadal transforming growth factor beta superfamily protein hormones that suppress pituitary follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) synthesis. Recently, betaglycan and inhibin binding protein (InhBP/p120, also known as the product of immunoglobulin superfamily gene 1 [IGSF1])…
Activin signal transduction in the fetal rat adrenal gland and in human H295R cells.
J Endocrinol. 2003 Jul;178(1):137-48
Authors: Wang EY, Ma EY, Woodruff TK
The presence of activin A and its effects have previously been documented in the adrenal gland, particularly in the human fetal adrenal gland and the rat adrenal gland. The primary signaling pathway of…
Down-regulation of activin, activin receptors, and Smads in high-grade breast cancer.
Cancer Res. 2003 Jul 1;63(13):3783-90
Authors: Jeruss JS, Sturgis CD, Rademaker AW, Woodruff TK
Activin and transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta, members of the TGF-beta superfamily of growth factors, have been implicated in both mammary gland development and breast carcinogenesis. TGF-beta is thought to be involved in the…
Localization of activin and inhibin subunits, receptors and SMADs in the mouse mammary gland.
Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2003 May 30;203(1-2):185-96
Authors: Jeruss JS, Santiago JY, Woodruff TK
Activin and inhibin, two closely related protein hormones, are members of the transforming growth factor beta (TGF beta) superfamily of growth factors. Activin and TGF beta have been associated with mouse…
Age-related analysis of inhibin A and B relative to the intercycle monotropic FSH rise in normal ovulatory women.
Ann Endocrinol (Paris). 2003 Apr;64(2):86
Authors: Houmard BS, Hansen KA, Woodruff TK, Sluss PM, Bremner WJ, Soules MR, Klein NA
PMID: 12773938 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Structures of an ActRIIB:activin A complex reveal a novel binding mode for TGF-beta ligand:receptor interactions.
EMBO J. 2003 Apr 1;22(7):1555-66
Authors: Thompson TB, Woodruff TK, Jardetzky TS
The TGF-beta superfamily of ligands and receptors stimulate cellular events in diverse processes ranging from cell fate specification in development to immune suppression. Activins define a major subgroup of TGF-beta ligands…
Regulation of the rat follicle-stimulating hormone beta-subunit promoter by activin.
Mol Endocrinol. 2003 Mar;17(3):318-32
Authors: Suszko MI, Lo DJ, Suh H, Camper SA, Woodruff TK
FSH is controlled by a variety of positive and negative stimuli, and the unique FSHbeta-subunit is a major target for this regulation. Activin is a key modulator of FSHbeta transcription and hormone secretion.…
Smad4 overexpression causes germ cell ablation and leydig cell hyperplasia in transgenic mice.
Am J Pathol. 2002 Nov;161(5):1723-34
Authors: Narula A, Kilen S, Ma E, Kroeger J, Goldberg E, Woodruff TK
Members of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) superfamily play a variety of important roles in testicular development and function. The tumor suppressor gene, Smad4, is a common…
Properties of inhibin binding to betaglycan, InhBP/p120 and the activin type II receptors.
Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2002 Oct 31;196(1-2):79-93
Authors: Chapman SC, Bernard DJ, Jelen J, Woodruff TK
Activin-stimulated FSH synthesis and release by the pituitary gonadotrope is antagonized by gonadally derived inhibins. The two isoforms of inhibin, inhibin A and B, bind to the activin type II…
Photoperiod-dependent regulation of inhibin in Siberian hamsters: II. Regulation of inhibin production and secretion by pregnant mare serum gonadotropin.
J Endocrinol. 2002 Jul;174(1):85-94
Authors: Kenny HA, Bernard DJ, Horton TH, Woodruff TK
Inhibin production differs in ovaries of Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) exposed to long days (LD) or short days (SD). We believe that seasonal differences in serum…
Photoperiod-dependent regulation of inhibin in Siberian hamsters: I. Ovarian inhibin production and secretion.
J Endocrinol. 2002 Jul;174(1):71-83
Authors: Kenny HA, Bernard DJ, Horton TH, Woodruff TK
Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) stimulates ovarian follicle development and the production of protein hormones including inhibin A and inhibin B. The inhibins are dimeric proteins (alpha-beta(A) or alpha-beta(B)) secreted by growing follicles that…
Localization of the activin signal transduction components in normal human ovarian follicles: implications for autocrine and paracrine signaling in the ovary.
J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2002 Jun;87(6):2644-57
Authors: Pangas SA, Rademaker AW, Fishman DA, Woodruff TK
The intraovarian function of gonadally produced activin is unclear, and many in vitro studies have suggested a role for activin in follicle…