Sheep milk is in increasing demand worldwide for its unique nutrients. Mammary physiological processes and lactation performance are regulated by hormones, and studies have shown that estrogen has the ability to regulate autophagy during mammary development, but the specific mechanism is not clear. Therefore, this study investigated the role of estrogen on autophagy in mammary epithelial cells and analyzed the regulatory mechanism of estrogen on mammary epithelial cells by screening the CXCL12 small-molecule substitute NUCC-390 and the CXCR4 specific blocker AMD3100 by virtual molecular docking technology, and the results indicated that estrogen promotes autophagy of mammary epithelial cells in sheep through the CXCL12/CXCR4 signaling axis. This study provides novel insights into the mechanism of autophagy in mammary gland development and health, and offer a molecular basis for improving lactation performance in dairy animals.

Read the full article in the Journal of Animal Science.