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Reproduction Abstracts (2014) 1 P098 | DOI: 10.1530/repabs.1.P098

WCRB2014 POSTER PRESENTATIONS (1) (335 abstracts)

The role of vitamin C in in vitro early embryonic development: verification using aldehyde reductase gene knockout mice

Yuki Hoshino 1 , Ren Watanabe 1 , Motoko Takahashi 2 , Satoshi Miyata 3 , Yasukazu Yoshida 4 , Junichi Fujii 5 & Naoko Kimura 1


1Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Yamagata University, Tsuruoka, Japan; 2Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan; 3Osaka Koseinenkin Hospital, Osaka, Japan; 4National institute of advanced industrial science and technology (AIST), Ikeda, Japan; 5Graduate School of Medical Science, Yamagata University, Yamagata, Japan.


Introduction: Supplementation of appropriate amount of vitamin C (VC) improves oocyte fertilization and subsequent embryo development while high concentrations of VC rather reduce the developmental potency. To clarify the role of VC, oocytes were collected from aldehyde reductase (AKR1A) knockout mice that are unable to synthesize VC and subjected to analyses from view point of developmental potency and gene expression involved in VC metabolism.

Materials and methods: Three to 4 -week-old WT and AKR1A knockout (AKR1A-KO) female ICR mice were injected i.p. with each adequate hormones, and then super-ovulated oocytes and immature oocytes were collected. Oocytes at the MII stage were obtained after in vivo maturation or in vitro maturation (IVM). Expressions of mRNA for genes involved in VC biosynthesis and VC transport were quantified. VC contents of the oocytes were determined.

Results and discussion: IVM oocytes showed lower VC contents than in vivo-matured oocytes (0.05 pmol/oocyte) regardless of their genotypes. Concerning the in vivo-matured oocytes, VC contents in the AKR1AKO oocytes were significantly lower compared with those in the WT oocytes (0.1 and 1.3 pmol/oocyte, respectively). However after IVF, no difference was observed in the developmental potency in in vivo-matured oocytes. IVM oocytes from AKR1A-KO mice developed with significantly higher rate than those from WT mice. Expression levels of VC biosynthesis-related genes were not different between in vivo-matured and IVM oocytes. mRNA of VC transporter SVCT1 was expressed significantly higher in the IVM WT oocytes than other groups. These results suggest that VC within the oocytes may not directly support the early embryonic development, but instead VC plays beneficial roles in the culture medium most likely by its antioxidative function.

Volume 1

World Congress of Reproductive Biology 2014

Edinburgh, UK
02 Sep 2014 - 04 Sep 2014

World Congress of Reproductive Biology 

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