Granulosa cells (GCs) have many functions in the endocrine system. Most notably, they produce progesterone following ovulation. However, it has recently been proven that GCs can change their properties when subjected to long‑term culture. In the present study, GCs were collected from hyper‑stimulated ovarian follicles during in vitro fertilization procedures. They were grown in vitro, in a long‑term manner. RNA was collected following 1, 7, 15 and 30 days of culture. Expression microarrays were used for analysis, which allowed to identify groups of genes characteristic for particular cellular processes. In addition, reverse transcription‑quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT‑qPCR) was performed to validate the obtained results. Two ontological groups characteristic for processes associated with the development and morphogenesis of the heart were identified during the analyses: 'Heart development' and 'heart morphogenesis'. The results of the microarrays revealed that the highest change in expression was demonstrated by the lysyl Oxidase, oxytocin receptor, nexilin F‑actin binding protein, and cysteine‑rich protein 3 genes. The lowest change was exhibited by odd‑skipped related transcription factor 1, plakophilin 2, transcription growth factor‑β receptor 1, and kinesin family member 3A. The direction of changes was confirmed by RT‑qPCR results. In the present study, it was suggested that GCs may have the potential to differentiate towards other cell types under long‑term in vitro culture conditions. Thus, genes belonging to the presented ontological groups can be considered as novel markers of proliferation and differentiation of GCs towards the heart muscle cells.

Department of Anatomy Poznan University of Medical Sciences 60‑781 Poznań Poland

Department of Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology Medical University of Gdańsk 80‑211 Gdańsk Poland

Department of Histology and Embryology Poznan University of Medical Sciences 60‑781 Poznań Poland

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology University Hospital and Masaryk University 62500 Brno Czech Republic

Department of Pathophysiology Poznań University of Medical Sciences 60‑806 Poznań Poland

Division of Histology and Embryology Department of Human Morphology and Embryology Wroclaw Medical University 50‑368 Wroclaw Poland

Division of Infertility and Reproductive Endocrinology Department of Gynecology Obstetrics and Gynecological Oncology Poznan University of Medical Sciences 60‑535 Poznań Poland

Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn 10‑719 Olsztyn Poland

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