Gene expression analysis of granulosa cells from animals that are wildtype or knockout for total PGR, PGR-A or PGR-B

Progesterone receptor (PGR) is essential for various functions in the female reproductive tract, especially ovulation in the ovary. PGR consists of two main isoforms, PGR-A and PGR-B, that possess different expression patterns and are responsible for various unique roles in different tissue contexts. While both are present in the reproductive tract, PGR-A is the only one known to be essential for ovulation while PGR-B plays a lesser role in the reproductive tract. However, the specific roles of PGR isoforms on gene expression in peri-ovulatory granulosa cells have not been previously investigated in detail. In this study, we identified the unique role of PGR-A and PGR-B in peri-ovulatory granulosa cells through RNA-seq of knockout mouse models for total PGR (PGR KO) or specific isoforms (PGR-A KO and PGR-B KO) RNA-seq was performed on 3 replicates of granulosa cells obtained from wildtype and knockout animals from the PGR KO, PGR-A KO and PGR-B KO strains for comparative analysis孕酮受体（Progesterone receptor, PGR）在雌性生殖道的多种生理功能中不可或缺，尤其对卵巢排卵过程至关重要。该受体包含两种主要亚型：PGR-A与PGR-B，二者表达模式各异，并在不同组织环境中承担各具特色的生理功能。尽管两种亚型均在生殖道中表达，但目前已知仅PGR-A是排卵所必需的，而PGR-B在生殖道中的作用相对有限。然而，此前尚未有研究对PGR亚型在排卵前颗粒细胞的基因表达调控中所发挥的具体作用进行深入探究。本研究通过对孕酮受体全基因敲除（PGR KO）、特异性亚型敲除（PGR-A KO与PGR-B KO）的小鼠模型开展RNA测序（RNA-seq），明确了PGR-A与PGR-B在排卵前颗粒细胞中的独特功能。本研究针对野生型及PGR KO、PGR-A KO、PGR-B KO三种敲除小鼠品系的颗粒细胞，各设置3次生物学重复进行RNA测序，以开展对比分析。