scholarly journals 166MOUSE EMBRYONIC DEVELOPMENT FROM ONE-CELL STAGE TO BLASTOCYST, UTILIZING KSOM SUPPLEMENTED WITH AMINO ACIDS IN A MICROCHANNEL DEVICE

2004 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 205
Author(s):  
P.H.C. Lopes ◽  
S.A. Malusky ◽  
A.S. Lima ◽  
D.J. Beebe ◽  
M.B. Wheeler

Great efforts have been made to improve in vitro culture for enhancement of embryonic development. However, in vitro development of mammalian embryos still remains a challenge for the scientific community. Recently, the use of microfluidic culture devices, as an alternative technique compared to the standard drop, has allowed mammalian embryos to develop to the hatched blastocyst stage. With the use of a different medium, mouse strain, and microchannel device than previously reported (Raty S et al., 2001 Theriogenology 55, 241 abst), this study was undertaken to determine if a microchannel device fabricated from borosilicate and poly-dimethylsiloxane would support development of mouse embryos from one-cell to blastocyst, as an alternative to standard microdrop culture. Mice (F1 inbred C57BL/6CRL X SJL) from 3 to 8 weeks old were superovulated with 5IU of PMSG and 5IU of hCG. The female SJL strain of the mice has demonstrated low reproductive performance. One-cell embryos were collected in M2 medium (Sigma, St. Louis, MO, USA.). For each treatment, 240 embryos in 24 replicates were cultured. Groups of 10 embryos were cultured in the microchannel device using 500μL of KSOM with amino acids (MR-106-D, Speciality Media, Phillipsburg, NJ, USA.); no additional supplements were added. Groups of 10 embryos were cultured in standard microdrops (control) using 30μL of the same medium covered with mineral oil. Embryos were cultured in a 100% humidified, 5% CO2 in air atmosphere at 37°C for 96h. Embryos were allocated to the control treatment or the microchannel device treatment using a randomized block design. The percentage of embryos at each stage of development was evaluated at 24-h intervals. The stage of embryo development at each observation was analyzed by ANOVA using the general linear model in SAS (PROC GLM, type I sum of squares). Blastocyst development in the microchannel device was not different when compared to results obtained in the standard drop. The percentage of blastocysts developing, when analyzed from one-cell stage, was 29±5% for the control and 26±6% for the microchannel. The percentage of blastocysts, when analyzed from cleavage, was 35±5% for the standard drop and 31±7% for the microchannel device. The results obtained are encouraging, when considering the non-optimized medium and mouse strain utilized in this experiment. In conclusion, the results show the microchannel device may be considered an alternative technique for use in embryo culture as it supports development of mouse embryos from one-cell stage to blastocyst.

Author(s):  
Sepideh Khalili-Savadkouhi ◽  
Abbasali Karimpour Malekshah ◽  
Mehri Mirhoseini ◽  
Mahmood Moosazadeh ◽  
Maryam Shahidi

Background: In vitro culture of mammalian embryos can slow or stop growth completely. This may be due to the medium used, pH, temperature, or light. There is considerable concern about the harmful effect of light in the laboratory environment. Cell number and apoptosis are useful parameters that indicate embryonic development and health. In this study, we assessed these two factors in the blastocyst. Materials and methods: A total of 128 embryos were extracted from NMRI mice at the 2-cell stage and were divided into 4 groups. The embryos were exposed to light for 0, 5, 15, and 30 min, and then cultured for 96 h. The degree of embryonic development were recorded every 24 h. Furthermore, several morphologically normal blastocysts were evaluated using the TUNEL assay. Results: There was no significant difference in developmental stages between the experimental and control groups. An evaluation of the percentage of blastomeres and apoptotic cells revealed significant differences among the four groups. The maximum number of apoptotic blastomeres was observed in the group exposed to light for 30 minutes. Conclusion: Up to thirty minutes of white fluorescent light can induce apoptosis in blastomeres, but it does not prevent embryo development.


Zygote ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 117-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masayuki Kobayashi ◽  
Koichi Saito ◽  
Shigeru Tamogami ◽  
Junko Takashima ◽  
Kano Kasuga ◽  
...  

SummaryRat hepatoma Reuber H-35 cells produce a unique compound designated as Fr.B-25, a 2-cell stage-specific inhibitor of the cleavage of preimplantation mouse embryos cultured in vitro. Here, we identified Fr.B-25 as a purine nucleoside, 5′-deoxy-5′-methylthioadenosine (MTA), by mass spectroscopic analysis. All of the biological activities examined of authentic MTA on the development of mouse zygotes were indistinguishable from those of Fr.B-25. The mechanism of MTA action in the development of preimplantation mouse embryos was probably different from those of hypoxanthine and adenosine, which are well-characterized purine nucleosides that act as inhibitors of the cleavage of mouse 2-cell embryos. From the shared molecular and biological properties of Fr.B-25 and MTA, we concluded that Fr.B-25 is MTA. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first delineation of the effect of MTA on the development of preimplantation mammalian embryos cultured in vitro.


Development ◽  
1977 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 305-308
Author(s):  
V. Ishiyama ◽  
L. Izquierdo

The onset of acid and alkaline phosphatase activity is determined by means of Burstone's azo dye coupling methods in oocytes and embryos of the mouse, rat and hamster, and in mouse embryos cultured in vitro. Acid phosphatase activity is detected in all cases while alkaline phosphatase activity begins during the 4-cell stage and is always present thereafter. The method is sensitive regarding detection of activity but does not permit the quantification nor a precise localization of the enzymes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marino Maemura ◽  
Hiroaki Taketsuru ◽  
Yuki Nakajima ◽  
Ruiqi Shao ◽  
Ayaka Kakihara ◽  
...  

AbstractIn multicellular organisms, oocytes and sperm undergo fusion during fertilization and the resulting zygote gives rise to a new individual. The ability of zygotes to produce a fully formed individual from a single cell when placed in a supportive environment is known as totipotency. Given that totipotent cells are the source of all multicellular organisms, a better understanding of totipotency may have a wide-ranging impact on biology. The precise delineation of totipotent cells in mammals has remained elusive, however, although zygotes and single blastomeres of embryos at the two-cell stage have been thought to be the only totipotent cells in mice. We now show that a single blastomere of two- or four-cell mouse embryos can give rise to a fertile adult when placed in a uterus, even though blastomere isolation disturbs the transcriptome of derived embryos. Single blastomeres isolated from embryos at the eight-cell or morula stages and cultured in vitro manifested pronounced defects in the formation of epiblast and primitive endoderm by the inner cell mass and in the development of blastocysts, respectively. Our results thus indicate that totipotency of mouse zygotes extends to single blastomeres of embryos at the four-cell stage.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Karina Cañón-Beltrán ◽  
Yulia N. Cajas ◽  
Serafín Peréz-Cerezales ◽  
Claudia L. V. Leal ◽  
Ekaitz Agirregoitia ◽  
...  

AbstractIn vitro culture can alter the development and quality of bovine embryos. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate whether nobiletin supplementation during EGA improves embryonic development and blastocyst quality and if it affects PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. In vitro zygotes were cultured in SOF + 5% FCS (Control) or supplemented with 5, 10 or 25 µM nobiletin (Nob5, Nob10, Nob25) or with 0.03% dimethyl-sulfoxide (CDMSO) during minor (2 to 8-cell stage; MNEGA) or major (8 to 16-cell stage; MJEGA) EGA phase. Blastocyst yield on Day 8 was higher in Nob5 (42.7 ± 1.0%) and Nob10 (44.4 ± 1.3%) for MNEGA phase and in Nob10 (61.0 ± 0.8%) for MJEGA phase compared to other groups. Mitochondrial activity was higher and lipid content was reduced in blastocysts produced with nobiletin, irrespective of EGA phase. The mRNA abundance of CDK2, H3-3B, H3-3A, GPX1, NFE2L2 and PPARα transcripts was increased in 8-cells, 16-cells and blastocysts from nobiletin groups. Immunofluorescence analysis revealed immunoreactive proteins for p-AKT forms (Thr308 and Ser473) in bovine blastocysts produced with nobiletin. In conclusion, nobiletin supplementation during EGA has a positive effect on preimplantation bovine embryonic development in vitro and corroborates on the quality improvement of the produced blastocysts which could be modulated by the activation of AKT signaling pathway.


Development ◽  
1973 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 601-615
Author(s):  
M. H. L. Snow

Mouse embryos were grown in vitro from the 2-cell stage to blastocysts in the presence of [3H]thymidine. Methyl-T-thymidine and thymidine-6-T(n) were used and both forms found to be lethal at concentrations above 0·1 μCi/ml. Both forms of [3H]Tdr at concentrations between 0·01 and 0·1 μCi/ml caused a highly significant (P < 0·001) reduction in blastocyst cell number. The reduction in cell number, which was positively correlated with specific activity and tritium concentration, was associated with cell damage typical of radiation damage caused by tritium disintegration. Thymidine-6-T(n) also significantly reduced the number of 2-cell embryos forming blastocysts whereas methyl-T-Tdr did not. This difference in effect is assumed to be caused by contamination of one form of [3H]Tdr with a by-product of the tritiation process. A study of the cleavage stages showed that almost all the reduction in cell numbers could be accounted for by selective cell death occurring at the 16-cell stage. Cells which survive that stage cleave at a normal rate. The cells that are most susceptible to [3H]Tdr damage were found to normally contribute to the inner cell mass. The [3H]Tdr-resistant cells form the trophoblast. It is possible to grow blastocysts in [3H]Tdr such that they contain no inner cell mass but are composed entirely of trophoblast. Comparatively short (12 h) incubation with [3H]Tdr at any stage prior to the 16-cell stage will cause this damage. Possible reasons for this differential effect are discussed, and also compared with damage caused by X-irradiation.


2005 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 216
Author(s):  
P. Booth ◽  
T. Watson ◽  
H. Leese

Pre-implantation embryos can produce and consume amino acids in a manner dependent upon stage of embryonic development (Partridge and Leese 1996 Reprod. Fert. Dev. 8, 945) that may also be predictive of subsequent viability (Houghton et al. 2002 Hum. Reprod. 17, 999). To examine these relationships in the pig, the appearance or depletion of 18 amino acids from a presumptive near-physiological mixture was determined by HPLC in porcine in vitro-produced embryos from the zygote to the blastocyst stage. Cumulus oocyte complexes derived from slaughterhouse prepubertal pig ovaries were matured for 40 h in modified TCM-199 before being fertilized (Day 0) with frozen thawed semen in tris-based medium. After 6 h, presumptive zygotes were denuded and cultured in groups of 20 in NCSU medium modified to contain a physiological mixture of 18 amino acids including 0.1 mM glutamine (NCSUaa). Groups of 2–10 embryos (dependent on stage) were removed on Day 0 (1 cell), Day 1 (2- and 4-cell), Day 4 (compact morula), and Day 6 (blastocyst) and placed in 4 μL NCSUaa for 24 h. After incubation, the embryos were removed and the medium analyzed by HPLC. Each stage was replicated 3–9 times. Since amino acid profiles of 2- and 4-cell embryos were not different, data were combined. Overall, arginine (1.19 ± 0.33), glutamine (0.78 ± 0.34) and threonine (0.05 ± 0.04) were significantly (P < 0.01) depleted from the medium whereas alanine (0.21 ± 0.1), glycine (0.20 ± 0.06), asparagine (0.13 ± 0.5), lysine (0.1 ± 0.03), isoleucine (0.08 ± 0.01), valine (0.05 ± 0.01), leucine (0.04 ± 0.02), phenylalanine (0.03 ± 0.01), and histidine (0.02 ± 0.04) significantly (P < 0.05) accumulated (mean of the 4 sampling timepoints; all values pmol/embryo/h ± SEM). The difference between amino acid accumulation and depletion (balance) was approximately equivalent between Day 0 and the morula stage although turnover (sum of depletion and accumulation) steadily decreased during this period from 3.1 on Day 0 to 1.35 pmol/embryo/h at the morula stage. However, at the blastocyst stage, turnover and balance increased to 6.32 and 2.42 pmol/embryo/h, respectively, i.e. net appearance occurred. Notable changes in amino acid profile during development included decreases in accumulation of asparagine, glutamate, and glycine in the medium and the depletion of glutamine over Days 0, 1, and 4, followed by reversal of these trends by Day 6. These data suggest that pig embryos can alter the accumulation and depletion rates of amino acids in a manner that is dependent on the specific amino acid and the stage of embryonic development. This work was supported by BBSRC.


2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (9) ◽  
pp. 538-549 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qing Guo ◽  
Mei-Fu Xuan ◽  
Zhao-Bo Luo ◽  
Jun-Xia Wang ◽  
Sheng-Zhong Han ◽  
...  

Abstract Baicalin, a traditional Chinese medicinal monomer whose chemical structure is known, can be used to treat female infertility. However, the effect of baicalin on embryonic development is unknown. This study investigated the effects of baicalin on in vitro development of parthenogenetically activated (PA) and in vitro fertilized (IVF) pig embryos and the underlying mechanisms involved. Treatment with 0.1 μg/ml baicalin significantly improved (P < 0.05) the in vitro developmental capacity of PA pig embryos by reducing the reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and apoptosis and increasing the mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨm) and ATP level. mRNA and protein expression of sonic hedgehog (SHH) and GLI1, which are related to the SHH signaling pathway, in PA pig embryos at the 2-cell stage, were significantly higher in the baicalin-treated group than in the control group. To confirm that the SHH signaling pathway is involved in the mechanism by which baicalin improves embryonic development, we treated embryos with baicalin in the absence or presence of cyclopamine (Cy), an inhibitor of this pathway. Cy abolished the effects of baicalin on in vitro embryonic development. In conclusion, baicalin improves the in vitro developmental capacity of PA and IVF pig embryos by inhibiting ROS production and apoptosis, regulating mitochondrial activity and activating SHH signaling.


Reproduction ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 130 (5) ◽  
pp. 655-668 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul J Booth ◽  
Peter G Humpherson ◽  
Terry J Watson ◽  
Henry J Leese

Preimplantation embryos can consume and produce amino acids in a manner dependent upon the stage of development that may be predictive of subsequent viability. In order to examine these relationships in the pig, patterns of net depletion and appearance of amino acids byin vitroproduced porcine preimplantation embryos were examined. Cumulus oocyte complexes derived from slaughterhouse pre-pubertal pig ovaries were matured for 40 h in defined TCM-199 medium (containing PVA) before being fertilised (Day 0) with frozen-thawed semen in Tris–based medium. After 6 h, presumptive zygotes were denuded and cultured in groups of 20, in NCSU-23 medium modified to contain 0.1 mM glutamine plus a mixture of 19 amino acids (aa) at low concentrations (0.02–0.11 mM) (NCSU-23aa). Groups of 2–20 embryos were removed (dependent on stage) on Day 0 (1 cell), Day 1 (two- and four-cells), Day 4 (compact morulae) and Day 6 (blastocysts) and placed in 4 μl NCSU-23aafor 24 h. After incubation, the embryos were removed and the spent media was analysed by HPLC. The net rate of amino acid depletion or appearance varied according to amino acid (P< 0.001) and, apart from serine and histidine, stage of development (P< 0.014). Glycine, isoleucine, valine, phenylalanine, tryptophan, methionine, asparagine, lysine, glutamate and aspartate consistently appeared, whereas threonine, glutamine and arginine were consistently depleted. Five types of stage-dependent trends could be observed: Type I: amino acids having high rates of net appearance on Day 0 that reached a nadir on Day 1 or 4 but subsequently increased by Day 6 (glycine, glutamate); Type II: those that exhibited lower rates of net appearance on Days 0 and 6 compared with the intermediate Days 1 and 4 (isoleucine, valine, phenylalanine, methionine, arginine); Type III: amino acids which showed a continuous fall in net appearance (asparagine, aspartate); Type IV: those that exhibited a steady fall in net depletion from Day 0 to Day 6 (glutamine, threonine); Type V: those following no discernable trend. Analysis of further embryo types indicated that presumptive polyspermic embryos on Day 0 had increased (P< 0.05) net rates of leucine, isoleucine, valine and glutamate appearance, and reduced (P< 0.05) net rates of threonine and glutamine depletion compared with normally inseminated oocytes. These data suggest that the net rates of depletion and uptake of amino acids by pig embryos vary between a) amino acids, b) the day of embryo development and, c) the type of embryos present at a given stage of development. The results also suggested that the net depletion and appearance rates of amino acids by early pig embryos might be more similar to those of the human than those of the mouse and cow.


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