EXPRESSION OF ANDROGEN RECEPTORS AT mRNA LEVEL IN BOVINE PLACENTOMES DURING 50-150 DAYS OF PREGNANCY

Bovine placenta is a classical target and source of many steroid hormones which are involved in the growth, differentiation and development of placenta. placental trophoblasts are an important source of endocrine, paracrine and autocrine acting hormones. androgens are considered male sex hormones; however, they are also secreted and have regulatory functions in females and play a predominant role in the development and physiological functions in both sexes. the androgen receptor plays a key role in androgen action. to study the expression of androgen receptor in bovine placentome at mrna level the placentomes were collected at a local slaughterhouse of giessen germany from healthy cows between 50 to 150 days of gestation. rna was prepared in laboratory with trizol method and reversed transcribed. conventional pcr agarose gel mrna and the taqman method of detection was used for expression of androgen receptors. gapdh was used as housekeeping reference gene. ar-specific mrna expression was detected in all rna preparations from placentomes of early pregnancy. significant ar expression suggests that besides progesterone and estrogens also androgens may be active products of placental steroidogenesis in cattle.