Involvement of the nuclear progestin receptor in LH-induced expression of membrane type 2-matrix metalloproteinase required for follicle rupture during ovulation in the medaka, Oryzias latipes

•Hormonal regulation of the expression of Mmp15, a critical proteolytic enzyme for ovulation in the medaka, was explored.•Transcription factors, Pgr and Cebpb, are involved in the expression of Mmp15.•Pgr and Cebpb are induced by LH.•Pgr and Cebpb bind to the mmp15 promoter region.

Hormonal regulation of the expression of Mmp15, a proteolytic enzyme indispensable for ovulation in the teleost medaka, was investigated. In an in vitro culture system using preovulatory follicles, Mmp15 expression and ovulation were induced in the presence of recombinant luteinizing hormone (rLh). Both rLh-induced Mmp15 expression and ovulation were 17α, 20β-dihydroxy-4-pregnen-3-one-dependent, suggesting the involvement of a nuclear progestin receptor (Pgr). In vitro follicle ovulation and Mmp15 expression were reduced by treatment with the Pgr antagonist RU-486. Like Pgr, the transcription factor CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein β (Cebpb) was induced by rLh. ChIP analyses indicated that Pgr and Cebpb bound to the mmp15 promoter region. These results indicate that the rLh-induced expression of Mmp15 is mediated by Pgr and Cebpb. A differential timing of expression of Pgr and Cebpb in the preovulatory follicles appears to explain the considerably long time-lag from the pgr gene activation to mmp15 gene expression.