Role of NF-κB pathway in the transition of mouse secondary follicles to antral follicles

NF-kappaB (NF-κB) signaling is involved in regulating a great number of normal and abnormal cellular events. However, little is known about its role in ovarian follicular development. In this study, we found NF-κB signaling is activated during the transition from secondary to antral follicles. We generated active NF-κB mice and found that antral follicular numbers were higher than wild-types ovaries. Activation of NF-κB signaling could enhance granulosa cell proliferation and regress granulosa cell apoptosis of mouse ovarian follicles. Higher FSHR and LHCGR expressions were observed in active NF-κB ovaries compared to wild-type. Furthermore, we confirmed that NF-κB signaling was indeed involved in the granulosa cell viability and proliferation through FSHR using COV434 cell line. This is the first experimental evidence that NF-κB signaling is implicated in the control of follicular development through FSHR and its corresponding target molecules, which might be achieved by targeting proliferation and apoptosis in follicular granulosa cells.