Abstract
Thioredoxin (TRX) is an ubiquitous protein disulfide reductase, which is known to be involved in the implantation development of mouse embryos. In the present study, recombinant human TRX was used to evaluate its effect on the promotion of preimplantation development of bovine embryos derived from in vitro maturation and fertilization. Supplementation of the medium 24 h post insemination with TRX significantly ( P<0.05) enhanced the frequency of development to the blastocyst stage in 5% O 2 concentration. The optimal concentration was 0.5 μg/ml ( P<0.05, compared with 0, 0.1 and 1.0 μg/ml). This effect of TRX was evident only when added around the time of the first cleavage stage (24 h post insemination); no promotion was found with treatment at 6 h (one-cell) or 44 h (six- to eight-cell) after insemination. Moreover, it is of interest that even with the best combination of the dose and timing of TRX treatment (0.5 μg/ml, at 24 h post insemination), no promotion of development was observed when embryos were cultured under 20% O 2. However, a preincubation of TRX in the culture medium under 20% oxygen for 24 h did not diminish the promoting effect in the subsequent TRX treatment under optimal conditions, thus suggesting that the possible oxidation of TRX alone may not be the reason for the disappearance of the effect under a high oxygen concentration. These results indicate that TRX does improve the development of bovine embryos in vitro, though unlike the general reducing reagents such as β-mercaptoethanol or cysteamine, TRX may have to exert its effect at specific times and in more physiologic oxygen environments.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: 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.