τ-Interferon: Pregnancy recognition signal in ruminants

The ovine uterus provides an excellent in vivo model system for the study of the cellular and molecular mechanisms of Type I IFN and steroid hormone regulation of hormone receptor gene expression in an epitheliomesenchymal organ. Future experiments will be directed toward determining the signal transduction pathway activated by IFN-τ and mechanisms involved in regulation of gene expression. These experiments include (i) cloning the Type I IFN receptor found on the endometrial luminal and superficial glandular epithelium; (ii) eluciding the signal transduction pathway activated by IFN-τ binding to the Type I IFN receptor; (iii) cloning and structural analysis of the ovine ER and OTR genes; (iv) determining mechanisms regulating transcription of the ovine ER and OTR genes, particularly those involving both IFN-τ and progesterone; (v) determining the role(s) of IFN-τ-induced proteins (e.g., Mx protein) in establishment of pregnancy; and (vi) investigating conceptus-endometrial and epithelial-stromal interactions that integrate and coordinate endometrial physiology during the estrous cycle and pregnancy.