Mechanism of Resveratrol in Alleviating Ochratoxin A-Induced Damage to Porcine Ovarian Granulosa Cells

Resveratrol (RES) is a natural polyphenolic compound that protects the organism against oxidative stress and various metabolic injuries. Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a widely occurring mycotoxin with established reproductive toxicity in monogastric animals, including pigs. Nevertheless, its molecular mechanisms remain elusive. This study aimed to investigate OTA-induced cellular injury and the protective role of RES using porcine granulosa cells as an in vitro model. OTA treatment significantly reduced cell viability, increased lactate dehydrogenase release, induced oxidative damage, and promoted apoptosis. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that OTA markedly activated the NF-κB inflammatory pathway while suppressing the expression of HIF-1 signaling-related genes. Consistently, RT-qPCR showed that OTA upregulated the mRNA levels of TNF-α, p50, p65, IL-6, and CXCL-14. Furthermore, ELISA demonstrated that OTA increased the protein secretion of IL-1β, IL-8, TNF-α, MCP-1, and IL-6. Western blot analysis indicated that OTA decreased IκBα protein levels but did not alter p65 expression. Notably, RES co-treatment effectively reversed all the above-mentioned alterations and restored the aberrant expression of NF-κB and HIF-1 pathway genes to levels close to those of the control group. In conclusion, RES alleviates OTA-induced damage in porcine ovarian granulosa cells via modulating oxidative stress, inflammation response and apoptosis.