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Figure 5 | Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology

Figure 5

From: Regulation of ovulation rate in mammals: contribution of sheep genetic models

Figure 5

Relationship between BMP system activity and ovulation rate in sheep: working hypothesis. Increased ovulation rate is associated with loss of function mutations in the BMP system with additive or multiplicative effects of the mutated FecX, FecG or FecB genes. Thus, the relationship is based on the concept that ''the more the BMP system activity is reduced, the more the ovulation rate increases''. However, when the level of BMP activity is too low, folliculogenesis is blocked at early stages, leading to sterility as observed in homozygous FecXmut(mut for alleles I, H, B, G or L) or homozygous FecGHewes. At the opposite, over-activity of the BMP system may lead to anovulation, then sterility, due to intensive inhibition of gonadotropin action. It is also hypothesized that crossbreeding between the 3 known mutated Fec genes might lead either to over-increased ovulation rate or to sterility.

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