Antioxidants rescue stressed embryos at a rate comparable with co-culturing of embryos with human umbilical cord mesenchymal cells

Abstract

Purpose During laboratory manipulations, oocytes and embryos are inevitably exposed to suboptimal conditions that interfere with the normal development of embryos. Materials and methods In this study, we examined the effects of antioxidants, feeder cells and a conditioned medium on embryo development and cleavage rate following exposure of the embryos to suboptimal conditions. We exposed mouse two-cell embryos to visible light and divided them into four groups: control (E-ctr), co-culture (Co-c), conditioned medium (Cndm) and antioxidant-plus medium (Aopm). We used human umbilical cord matrixderived mesenchymal cells for co-culture. A group of embryos was not exposed to visible light and served as the non-exposed control (NE-ctr) group. ResultsThe developmental rate was higher in NE-ctr embryos than in the E-ctr group. Exposed embryos in the various groups showed a comparable developmental rate at different stages. Blastomere number significantly increased (P<0.05) in the Co-c and Aopm groups compared with the E-ctr and Cndm groups. No significant difference was observed between the Co-c and Aopm groups. Conclusions Our data indicate that in suboptimal conditions, antioxidants could improve the embryo cleavage rate in the same way as feeder cells. Antioxidants probably improve embryo quality through their ability to scavenge reactive oxygen species.

Increasing of blastocyst rate and gene expression in co-culture of bovine embryos with adult adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells

“…Indeed, our findings corroborate previous reports showing a beneficial effect of stem cells in combination with embryo culture [25,26]. Moshkdanian et al [11] pioneered this area of study reporting that co-culture of mouse embryos with human umbilical cord mesenchymal cells (h-UCMS) improved the development of embryos previously exposed to light stress. Our study differs in that the stem cells used were from the same species as the embryos cultured.…”

“…Interestingly, Moshkdanian et al [11] used a stem cell concentration ten times higher (10 5 h-UCMS) than the highest concentration used in this study. Our choice was based on the fact that bovine embryo culture to the blastocyst stage takes 7 days (versus 4 days in mice), in an attempt to avoid excessive cell growth during embryo culture and hence competition with nutrients in the medium among embryos and feeder cells.…”

“…Only one study has addressed the use of stem cells as feeders for embryo culture. In this study, co-culture of in vivo produced two-cell mouse embryos with human umbilical cord-derived stem cells was superior to stem cell-conditioned medium in attenuating the ill effects of light exposure and, consequently, yielded higher blastocyst development rates [11].…”

“…Recently, few reports have presented a new approach based upon the use of stem cells of adult or embryonic origin and their derived biomaterials in a co-culture system with oocytes and/or embryos from mice, pigs, and bovines [11][12][13]. These studies have been primarily motivated by the fact that stem cells have the ability to secrete a variety of substances such as cytokines, growth factors, and even microRNAs, which are collectively capable of modulating the surrounding microenvironment [14][15][16][17].…”

Effect of co‐culture human endothelial progenitor cells with porcine oocytes during maturation and subsequent embryo development of parthenotes in vitro

“…Presumably, these co-culture systems are advantageous by secreting growth factors, stimulators and cytokines and removing detrimental components and lowering oxidative stress derived from co-culture media (Joo et al, 2001;Kim, Ahn, Chang, Chung, & Koh, 2002;Rooke et al, 2004). Recently, some studies have presented an approach based upon the use of stem cells in a co-culture system with oocytes and embryos derived from mice, pigs, and cattle Moshkdanian, Nematollahi-Mahani, Pouya, & Nematollahi-Mahani, 2011;Park et al, 2013). Stem cells are defined by their abilities to differentiate into multiple cell lineages, and are presently largely used in regenerative therapies and tissue engineering applications.…”