Insulin Reduces Reaction of Follicular Granulosa Cells to FSH Stimulation in Women With Obesity-Related Infertility During IVF.

Women with obesity usually need larger doses of FSH for ovarian stimulation, resulting in poor outcomes; however, the mechanism is still unclear. To investigate the molecular regulation of FSH receptor (FSHR) expression associated with obesity. Case-control study to improve in vitro fertilization (IVF) outcomes. Women with obesity (82) and women who were overweight (457) undergoing IVF and 1790 age-matched controls with normal weight from our reproductive medicine center. FSHR expression was decreased in parallel with body mass index (BMI), whereas the estradiol (E2) level on the human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) trigger day was significantly lower. FSHR expression in human granulosa cells (hGCs), both mRNA (P = 0.02) and protein (P = 0.001) levels, was decreased in women who were overweight or obese. Both insulin (P < 0.001) and glucose (P = 0.0017) levels were positively correlated with BMI in fasting blood and follicle fluids (FFs) but not with FFs leptin level. We treated human granulosa-like tumor cells (KGN) cells with insulin; E2 production was compromised; the level of phosphorylated (p)-protein kinase B (p-Akt2) decreased, whereas p-glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) increased; and there were similar changes in hGCs from women with obesity. Stimulated hGCs from women with obesity with compound 21 (CP21), an inhibitor of GSK3β, resulted in upregulated β-catenin activation and increased FSHR expression. CP21 also increased the expression of insulin receptor substrate 1 and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), as well as p-Akt2. Women with obesity in IVF were associated with reduced FSHR expression and E2 production caused by a dysfunctional insulin pathway. Decreased FSHR expression in hGCs from women with obesity and insulin-treated KGN cells could be rescued by an inhibitor of GSK3β, which might be a potential target for the improvement of the impaired FSH-stimulation response in women with obesity.

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