Long-term intermittent cold exposure affects peri-ovarian adipose tissue and ovarian microenvironment in rats
Li Zhang, Gaihong An, Shuai Wu, Jing Wang, Danfeng Yang, Yongqiang Zhang, Xi Li
Abstract
Cold is a significant environmental stress factor. Studies have shown that exposure to cold environments can cause local or whole-body temperatures to decrease, posing a severe threat to overall health [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. Cold exposure has adverse effects on the female reproductive system [ 4 , 5 , 6 ], affecting ovarian [ 7 ] and uterine [ 4 ] functions and hormone secretion [ 8 ]. Possible reasons include: imbalance of ET-1 and its receptor expression leads to local tissue microvascular circulatory disturbances [ 9 ]; affects follicular development by activating sympathetic nerve activity in the ovary [ 10 , 11 ]; Cold stress can also cause reproductive hormone disorders, causing uterine arteries to contract, resulting in reduced blood flow [ 12 ]. However, the exact mechanisms through which these changes occur have not been well-elucidated.