Transcriptome profiling of ovaries in aged mice administered with Samul-tang

Samul-tang (SM), a traditional herbal medicine is used to treat menstrual irregularities and infertility. The mechanism underlying the role of SM in ovary function needs elucidation. In this study, the influence of SM administration on the ovarian reserve of aged mice was investigated. Female BALB/c mice (8 and 40 weeks-old) were administered with distilled water (young or old group) or SM for 4 weeks. SM administration prevented age-related ovarian follicle loss in mice. Quality of oocytes and blastocysts were enhanced in SM-administrated mice compared to those of non-treated old mice. Further, SM administration increased the pregnancy rate and number of litters. SM triggered changes in aging-related genes that are linked to the RAS-mediated pathway. Thus, we demonstrate that SM can be used to increase the oocyte yield in aged women, potentially improving age-related cognitive decline in the ovarian reserve. To obtain RNA-seq data of ovaries treated with Samul-tang (Hanpoong, Iksan, Korea), mice were randomly divided into groups of n=6 each. Aged mice(40-week-old) were orally administered either distilled water (OC group) or SM at a dose of 2.5g/kg (OC+SM group), five times a week for four weeks. Young mice (8-week-old) received distilled water (YC group)