Apelin in Reproductive Physiology and Pathology of Different Species: A Critical Review

Table 1

Apelin/APJ expression in the ovary of many species and direct effects of apelin on ovarian function.

Species	Apelin/APJ expression				References	Effect of apelin on ovarian function			Apelin doses	References
	Granulosa	Theca	Oocyte	CL		Steroidogenesis	Proliferation	Apoptosis
Human	+/+	+/+	+/+	ns	[58]	↑P4, ↑E2	ns	↓	10^−9 M	[58]
Pig	+/+	+/+	+/+	+/+	[61]	↑P4, ↑E2	ns	ns	0.02, 0.2, 2, and 20 ng/ml	[61]
Bovine	−/+	+/+	+/+	+/+	[13, 57, 59, 62]	↑P4	↑	ns	10^−9 M, 10^−8 M, and 10^−6 M	[59]
Rat	ns	ns	ns	ns	—	ns	↑	↓	10^–8 mol/l	[64]
Rhesus monkey	+/+	+/+	ns	+/+	[60]	ns	ns	ns	ns	—

+: present; − does not exist; ns: no study; ↑: increase; ↓: decrease; P4: progesterone; E2: estradiol.