Fig. 3

Effects of succinate on mouse ovary cultured in vitro. A-C Succinate elevated the global Ksuc level of mouse ovary cultured in vitro. Bar = 100 µm. D The hematoxylin–eosin (HE) staining was performed to evaluate the effects of high level of Ksuc on the ovarian histomorphology of mouse. Bar = 200 µm (left), 20 µm (right). E–I Summary of follicle represented as the mean of three ovarian sections per mouse from the ovaries of two groups. J Transferase-mediated dUTP-biotin nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay showed an increased staining in ovarian cells in the succinate group as compared with the control group (Bar = 100 µm). Asterisks indicate TUNEL-positive cells. K-M Both quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and western blot verified that B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) significantly decreased and Cleaved-caspase 3 significantly increased in succinate-treated ovaries, whereas BCL2-associated X (Bax) and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) did not change significantly in both protein and mRNA levels. * P < 0.05, ** P < 0.01