UNASSIGNED: Cumulus cells sustain the development and fertilization of the @entity1 oocyte. These cells are retained around the oocyte by an hyaluronan (HA) rich extracellular matrix synthesized before ovulation, a process called cumulus cell-oocyte complex (COC) expansion. Hyaluronan release and dispersion of the cumulus cells progressively occur after ovulation, paralleling the decline of oocyte fertilization. We show here that, in @entity19 , postovulatory changes of matrix are temporally correlated to cumulus cell death. Cumulus cell apoptosis and matrix disassembly also occurred in ovulated COCs cultured in vitro. COCs expanded in vitro with FSH or EGF underwent to the same changes, while those expanded with @entity7410 maintained the integrity for longer time. Noteworthy, @entity7410 treatment was also effective on ovulated COCs cultured in vitro prolonging the vitality of the cumulus cells and the stability of the matrix from few hours to more than two days. Stimulation of endogenous adenylate cyclase with @entity1928 or inhibition of phosphodiesterase with rolipram produced similar effects. The treatment with selective @entity268 analogues suggest that the effects of @entity268 elevation are exerted through an @entity42846 independent, PKA type II dependent signaling pathway, likely acting at the post-transcriptional level. Finally, overnight culture of ovulated COCs with @entity7410 significantly counteracted the decrease of fertilization rate, doubling the number of fertilized oocytes compared to control conditions. In conclusion, these studies suggest that @entity268 elevating agents prevent cumulus cell senescence and allow them to continue to exert beneficial effects on oocyte and sperm, thereby extending in vitro the time frame of oocyte fertilizability.

Cyclic AMP elevating agents promote cumulus cell survival and hyaluronan-matrix stability thereby prolonging the time of XXXX oocyte fertilizability.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['mammalian'] @entity268 :: ('CHEBI:17489', 'Chemical') :: ['cAMP'] @entity19 :: ('10090', 'Species') :: ['mice'] @entity42846 :: ('223864(Tax:10090)', 'Gene') :: ['EPAC'] @entity1928 :: ('MESH:D005576', 'Chemical') :: ['forskolin'] @entity7410 :: ('CHEBI:64211', 'Chemical') :: ['8Br-cAMP']
@entity19 :: (10090,Species) :: ['mouse']
