Background: Many hormones are involved in the regulation of reproduction. Leptin hormone which is mainly secreted by adipose tissue plays an important role in energy homeostasis and reproduction. It seems that leptin is an important linkage between body metabolism and reproductive system. Moreover, it has been shown that leptin and leptin receptor express in reproductive organs of some species. Hence, laptin has a direct effect on reproduction. Aim of this study was to investigate the expression of leptin receptor mRNA in ovine corpus luteum. Methods: Ovine ovaries were collected from abattoir and immediately were transported to the laboratory on ice. Corpus luteum pieces sliced and kept in -80 C. Total RNA was extracted and cDNA Synthesis was done. First, PCR reaction was done for β- actin, as a housekeeping gene, to evaluate the accuracy of molecular experiments. PCR reaction was done for leptin receptor gene using appropriate primers. Fat tissue was used as positive control. Result: In corpus luteum samples, leptin receptor transcript was amplified with set of primers. Intron-spanning primers of β- actin were located in two exons to rule out the possibility of a DNA contamination. Conclusion: Presence of leptin receptor mRNA in the ovine corpus luteum suggests that leptin is involved in the physiological processes of ovine corpus luteum, which should be clarified.

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