Methimazole-Induced Hypothyroidism Increases the Content of Glycogen and Changes the Expression of LDH, GLUT4, and Aromatase in the Pregnant Uterus of Rabbits

Espindola-Lozano, Marlen; Méndez-Tepepa, Maribel; Castillo-Romano, Marlenne; Rojas-Juárez, Rubicela; Nicolás-Toledo, Leticia; Rodríguez-Antolín, Jorge; Castelán, Francisco; Cuevas-Romero, Estela

doi:10.3390/metabo15020082

Open AccessArticle

Methimazole-Induced Hypothyroidism Increases the Content of Glycogen and Changes the Expression of LDH, GLUT4, and Aromatase in the Pregnant Uterus of Rabbits

by

Marlen Espindola-Lozano

^1,†,

Maribel Méndez-Tepepa

^1,‡,

Marlenne Castillo-Romano

^2,§,

Rubicela Rojas-Juárez

^1,†

,

Leticia Nicolás-Toledo

³

,

Jorge Rodríguez-Antolín

³,

Francisco Castelán

^3,4

and

Estela Cuevas-Romero

^3,*

¹

Ph.D. Program in Biological Sciences, Autonomous University of Tlaxcala, 90070 Tlaxcala, Mexico

²

Master Program in Biological Sciences, Autonomous University of Tlaxcala, 90070 Tlaxcala, Mexico

³

Center Tlaxcala of Behavior Biology, Autonomous University of Tlaxcala, 90070 Tlaxcala, Mexico

⁴

Department of Cellular and Physiology, Institute of Biomedical Research, Autonomous Nacional University of Mexico, CP 04510 Mexico City, Mexico

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

Current address: Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala, 90750 Tlaxcala, Mexico.

^‡

Current address: Centro de Investigación en Genética y Ambiente, Posgrado en Ciencias en Sistemas del Ambiente, Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala, 90120 Tlaxcala, Mexico.

^§

Current address: Hospital General Regional Emilio Sánchez Piedras, Secretaría de Salud, 90490 Tlaxcala, Mexico.

Metabolites 2025, 15(2), 82; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo15020082

Submission received: 26 October 2024 / Revised: 29 December 2024 / Accepted: 22 January 2025 / Published: 30 January 2025

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Glucose Metabolism in Pregnancy)

Download

Browse Figures

Versions Notes

Abstract

Objective: To determine the impact of hypothyroidism on uterine glycogen accumulation during pregnancy. Methods: Non-pregnant and pregnant (days 5, 10, and 20) rabbits were grouped into control and methimazole (MMI) groups. In rabbits, serum concentrations of thyroxine (T4), triiodothyronine, glucose, insulin, progesterone, and estradiol were quantified. In uterine inter- and implantation sites, the glycogen content and expression of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), GLUT4, and aromatase were quantified via Western blot. Fetuses’ characteristics at 20 days of pregnancy were analyzed. Two-way ANOVA was used to compare variables between groups. Results: Pregnancy reduced T4 concentrations but not T3. In virgin groups, MMI treatment significantly reduced the concentrations of T4 and T3 and increased the expression of GLUT4 and aromatase in the uterus compared to the control group. In pregnant groups, T4, T3, glucose, insulin, progesterone, and estradiol levels were similar between control and MMI-treated rabbits. Compared to controls, MMI treatment in pregnant rabbits (a) reduced GLUT4 expression on inter-implantation sites on day 5; (b) increased glycogen content on implantation sites but reduced GLUT4 expression on inter-and implantation sites on day 10; (c) increased glycogen content and LDH and aromatase expression but reduced GLUT4 on inter-implantation sites; and (d) increased glycogen content and the expression of LDH, GLUT4, and aromatase on day 20 on implantation sites. Moreover, the fetus characteristics were similar between groups. Conclusions: MMI-induced hypothyroidism is associated with changes in the uterine content of glycogen and the expression of LDH, GLUT4, and aromatase during pregnancy.

Keywords: fetus development; estradiol; pregnancy; progesterone; thyroid hormones

Share and Cite

MDPI and ACS Style

Espindola-Lozano, M.; Méndez-Tepepa, M.; Castillo-Romano, M.; Rojas-Juárez, R.; Nicolás-Toledo, L.; Rodríguez-Antolín, J.; Castelán, F.; Cuevas-Romero, E. Methimazole-Induced Hypothyroidism Increases the Content of Glycogen and Changes the Expression of LDH, GLUT4, and Aromatase in the Pregnant Uterus of Rabbits. Metabolites 2025, 15, 82. https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo15020082

AMA Style

Espindola-Lozano M, Méndez-Tepepa M, Castillo-Romano M, Rojas-Juárez R, Nicolás-Toledo L, Rodríguez-Antolín J, Castelán F, Cuevas-Romero E. Methimazole-Induced Hypothyroidism Increases the Content of Glycogen and Changes the Expression of LDH, GLUT4, and Aromatase in the Pregnant Uterus of Rabbits. Metabolites. 2025; 15(2):82. https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo15020082

Chicago/Turabian Style

Espindola-Lozano, Marlen, Maribel Méndez-Tepepa, Marlenne Castillo-Romano, Rubicela Rojas-Juárez, Leticia Nicolás-Toledo, Jorge Rodríguez-Antolín, Francisco Castelán, and Estela Cuevas-Romero. 2025. "Methimazole-Induced Hypothyroidism Increases the Content of Glycogen and Changes the Expression of LDH, GLUT4, and Aromatase in the Pregnant Uterus of Rabbits" Metabolites 15, no. 2: 82. https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo15020082

APA Style

Espindola-Lozano, M., Méndez-Tepepa, M., Castillo-Romano, M., Rojas-Juárez, R., Nicolás-Toledo, L., Rodríguez-Antolín, J., Castelán, F., & Cuevas-Romero, E. (2025). Methimazole-Induced Hypothyroidism Increases the Content of Glycogen and Changes the Expression of LDH, GLUT4, and Aromatase in the Pregnant Uterus of Rabbits. Metabolites, 15(2), 82. https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo15020082

Note that from the first issue of 2016, this journal uses article numbers instead of page numbers. See further details here.

Article Menu

Methimazole-Induced Hypothyroidism Increases the Content of Glycogen and Changes the Expression of LDH, GLUT4, and Aromatase in the Pregnant Uterus of Rabbits

Abstract

Share and Cite

Article Metrics

Article Access Statistics

Further Information

Guidelines

MDPI Initiatives

Follow MDPI