Abstract
One of the major morphological anomalies observed in many human pre-embryos is extensive cellular fragmentation. Previously we confirmed that embryo fragmentation seemed to be associated with the activation of programmed cell death (PCD). The purpose of our experiments was to establish a rate for murine embryo fragmentation in vivo after hormonal stimulation in young versus older females and to compare it with the rate of embryo fragmentation during in-vitro fertilization (IVF). While murine maternal age beyond 40 weeks increased the rate of embryo fragmentation following in-vivo fertilization (P = 0.001), oocytes from females of all ages had a uniformly high rate of fragmentation when fertilized in vitro (33%). None of the fragmented murine embryos proceeded further in development. In the mouse, fragmentation occurs exclusively during the first cell cycle. Furthermore, IVF significantly reduced the rate of blastocyst formation (P = 0.0001) and decreased the mean cell number at the blastocyst stage in comparison with embryos produced in vivo (P < 0.0001). The cell death index was significantly affected by both maternal age (P = 0.005) and IVF (P = 0.0001). Identification of specific factors which trigger PCD, especially those associated with IVF, may enable us to lower the rates of fragmentation in preimplantation embryos and thereby increase pregnancy rates after human IVF.
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
