Impact of equine assisted reproductive technologies (standard embryo transfer or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) with in vitro culture and embryo transfer) on placenta and foal morphometry and placental gene expression

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 371 ◽  
Author(s):  
Orlando A. Valenzuela ◽  
Anne Couturier-Tarrade ◽  
Young-Ho Choi ◽  
Marie-Christine Aubrière ◽  
Justin Ritthaler ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
In Vitro Culture ◽  
Embryo Transfer ◽  
Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Placental Development ◽  
Quarter Horse ◽  
Equine Assisted

Assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) such as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), in vitro embryo culture and embryo transfer (ET) may be associated with alterations in fetal and placental development. In horses, ET has been used for decades. More recently, in vitro embryo production by ICSI and in vitro culture, followed by embryo transfer (ICSI-C) has become an accepted method for clinical foal production. However, no information is available on the effects of ICSI-C or even of standard ET itself on placental and neonatal parameters in horses. We therefore evaluated placental and neonatal morphology and placental gene expression in reining- and cutting-type American Quarter Horse foals produced using different technologies. Thirty foals and placentas (naturally conceived (NC), ET and ICSI-C; 10 in each group) were examined morphometrically. The only parameter that differed significantly between groups was the length of the foal upper hindlimb, which was longer in ET and ICSI-C than in NC foals. Evaluation of placental mRNA expression for 17 genes related to growth and vascularisation showed no difference in gene expression between groups. These data indicate that within this population, use of ARTs was not associated with meaningful changes in foal or placental morphometry or in expression of the placental genes evaluated.

97 PRELIMINARY DESCRIPTIVE STUDY OF EQUINE PLACENTA GENERATED AFTER TRANSFER OF IN VIVO- AND IN VITRO-PRODUCED EMBRYOS

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 156 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Lanci ◽  
J. Mariella ◽  
B. Merlo ◽  
C. Castagnetti ◽  
E. Iacono
Keyword(s):  
Embryo Transfer ◽  
Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Placental Development ◽  
Group 3 ◽  
Group 2 ◽  
Group 1

Placental changes associated with artificial reproductive technologies have been described in several species, but little information is available in horses. Joy et al. (2012) reported that human placentas from intracytoplasmic sperm injection derived embryos were heavier and thicker than those produced after natural conception. Despite the most growing interest and efficiency of artificial reproductive technologies in equine species, only recently, Pozor et al. (2016) described placental abnormalities in pregnancies generated by somatic cell NT, but there are no studies on equine placenta generated by intracytoplasmic sperm injection and traditional embryo transfer. In the present preliminary study, macroscopic differences of placentas generated after transfer of in vitro- or in vivo-produced embryos were registered. Twelve Standardbred recipient mares with pregnancy generated after transfer of in vivo-derived (Group 1) and in vitro-derived (Group 2) embryos were enrolled; 10 Standardbred mares with pregnancy derived by traditional AI were included as control (Group 3). All pregnancies were physiological, and newborn foals were healthy. Mare age, parity, length of pregnancy, gross evaluation and weight of placenta, total length of umbilical cord (UC), length of UC, number of UC coils, foal sex, and weight at birth were registered. Collected data are listed in Table 1 and are expressed as mean ± standard deviation. Differences between groups were evaluated by 1-way ANOVA, and the difference in proportion of overweight placentas was evaluated with the Fisher test. The gross evaluation of placenta revealed 8/12 placentas (2/4 Group 1; 6/8 Group 2) were heavier than 11% (Madigan, 1997) due to oedema of the chorioallantois. No overweight placentas were registered in Group 3. In Group 1, 1/4 placentas had villous hypoplasia, and in Group 2, 1/8 placentas had cystic pouches on the UC. There were no significant differences among groups. However, the proportion of overweight placentas between Group 2 (6/8) and Group 3 (0/10) approached significance (P = 0.06). Although preliminary, the results of the present study suggest that production of equine embryos in vitro may lead to alterations in placental development. Several studies in cattle and sheep have suggested that alterations in the placentas of pregnancies derived from in vitro-produced embryos are related to effects of culture on epigenetic regulation. Less is known in the horse about the effects of in vitro embryo production on placental development; thus, further research in this area is necessary. Table 1. Characteristics of full-term placentas derived from AI or embryo transfer with in vivo- and in vitro-produced embryos

Ex vivo early embryo development and effects on gene expression and imprinting

2005 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 361 ◽  
Author(s):  
David K. Gardner ◽  
Michelle Lane
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Embryo Development ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Ex Vivo ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Developmental Competence ◽  
Laboratory Animals ◽  
Cell Physiology ◽  
Mammalian Embryo

The environment to which the mammalian embryo is exposed during the preimplantation period of development has a profound effect on the physiology and viability of the conceptus. It has been demonstrated that conditions that alter gene expression, and in some instances the imprinting status of specific genes, have all previously been shown to adversely affect cell physiology. Thus, questions are raised regarding the aetiology of abnormal gene expression and altered imprinting patterns, and whether problems can be averted by using more physiological culture conditions. It is also of note that the sensitivity of the embryo to its surroundings decreases as development proceeds. Post compaction, environmental conditions have a lesser effect on gene function. This, therefore, has implications regarding the conditions used for IVF and the culture of the cleavage stage embryo. The developmental competence of the oocyte also impacts gene expression in the embryo, and therefore superovulation has been implicated in abnormal methylation and imprinting in the resultant embryo. Furthermore, the genetics and dietary status of the mother have a profound impact on embryo development and gene expression. The significance of specific animal models for human assisted reproductive technologies (ART) is questioned, given that most cattle data have been obtained from in vitro-matured oocytes and that genes imprinted in domestic and laboratory animals are not necessarily imprinted in the human. Patients treated with ART have fertility problems, which in turn may predispose their gametes or embryos to greater sensitivities to the process of ART. Whether this is from the drugs involved in the ovulation induction or from the IVF, intracytoplasmic sperm injection or culture procedures themselves remains to be determined. Alternatively, it may be that epigenetic alterations are associated with infertility and symptoms are subsequently revealed through ART. Whatever the aetiology, continued long-term monitoring of the children conceived through ART is warranted.

scholarly journals Epigenetic Effects of Assisted Reproductive Technology in Human Offspring

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Chen ◽  
Yong Peng ◽  
Xinyi Ma ◽  
Siming Kong ◽  
Shuangyan Tang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Embryo Transfer ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Fresh Embryo Transfer ◽  
Vitro Fertilization ◽  
Nuclear Families ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Parental Background

AbstractThe births of more than 8 million infants have been enabled globally through assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs), including conventional in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) with either fresh embryo transfer (ET) or frozen embryo transfer (FET). However, the potential for elevated risks of ART-related disorders persists in adult life, and the underlying epigenetic mechanisms are largely uncharacterized. Here, we recruited 100 nuclear families and profiled the DNA methylomes, genome-wide histone modifications and transcriptomes to clarify the inherent extra risks attributable to specific ART procedures. We discovered that IVF-ET seemed to introduce less disturbance into the infant epigenome than IVF-FET or ICSI-ET did. Furthermore, we noted approximately half of the DNA methylomic changes in ART-conceived offspring could be explained by parental background biases. Through removal of the parental effect, we confirmed that ART per se would introduce minor DNA methylation changes locally. More importantly, we found that ART-induced epigenomic alterations were highly enriched in the processes which might contribute to increased incidence of preeclampsia during pregnancy and metabolic syndrome in offspring. Overall, our study provides an epigenetic basis for the potential long-term health risks in ART-conceived offspring that reinforces the need to review all methods of human ART.

scholarly journals Efficient marmoset genome engineering by autologous embryo transfer and CRISPR/Cas9 technology

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yukiko Abe ◽  
Harumi Nakao ◽  
Motoki Goto ◽  
Moe Tamano ◽  
Michinori Koebis ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Embryo Transfer ◽  
Genome Engineering ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Small Body ◽  
Common Marmoset ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Reproductive Capacity ◽  
Primate Species ◽  
Novel Method

AbstractGenetic engineering of non-human primates, which are most closely related to humans, has been expected to generate ideal animal models for human genetic diseases. The common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) is a non-human primate species adequate for the production of genetically modified animals because of their small body size and high reproductive capacity. Autologous embryo transfer (AET) is routinely utilized in assisted reproductive technologies for humans but not for experimental animals. This study has developed a novel method for efficiently producing mutant marmosets using AET and CRISPR/Cas9 systems. The embryos were recovered from oviducts of naturally mated females, injected with Cas9/guide RNA, and transferred into the oviducts of the donors. This AET method can reduce the time for in vitro culture of embryos to less than 30 min. This method uses an embryo donor as the recipient, thus reducing the number of animals and allowing for “Reduction” in the 3R principles of humane experimental technique. Furthermore, this method can utilize nulliparous females as well as parous females. We applied our novel method and generated the 6 marmosets carrying mutations in the fragile X mental retardation 1 (FMR1) gene using only 18 females including 14 nulliparous females.

scholarly journals Infertility and the excruciating pursuit of motherhood

2021 ◽  
pp. 01-02
Author(s):  
Urmila G
Keyword(s):  
Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Intrauterine Insemination ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Infertility Treatment ◽  
In Vitro Fertilisation ◽  
Natural Conception ◽  
Graphic Description

What’s a Lemon Squeezer Doing in My Vagina? is a memoir of Rohini S Rajagopal’s excruciating five-year long fight with infertility and her journey to motherhood. After several failed attempts at natural conception and many negative home pregnancy tests, the author and her husband Ranjith visit a fertility centre in Bangalore. Rajagopal delivers a graphic description of the physical and emotional unpleasantness of her infertility treatment and also gives a vivid account of her experiences with the assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) such as the intrauterine insemination (IUIs), in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Intrauterine Insemination (IUI) is facilitated by directly injecting a man’s sperm into the woman’s uterus around the time the eggs emerge from the ovaries.

EFFECTIVENESS OF ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE TREATMENT PROGRAMS DEPENDING ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF SPERMOGRAM CHANGES

2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 82-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. I. Gamidov ◽  
R. I. Ovchinnikov ◽  
A. Yu. Popova ◽  
V. V. Polozov ◽  
N. P. Naumov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Intracytoplasmic Sperm Injection ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Sperm Concentration ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Motile Sperm ◽  
Study Objective ◽  
Normal Morphology ◽  
Live Births ◽  
Significant Difference

Introduction. There’re some pathological mechanisms of male fertility disorders that still don’t have proper diagnostic tests. This significantly decreases diagnostic value of a spermogram and makes the problem of evaluation of the characteristics of spermogram changes and their effects on the effectiveness of assisted reproductive technologies (ART) a pressing problem.The study objectiveis to identify the correlation between effectiveness of ART programs and the characteristics of spermogram changes, in particular sperm concentration, motility, and morphology Materials and methods. At the V.I. Kulakov Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology in the period from December of 2012 to December of 2016, 10,042 married couples who underwent treatment using ART (2221 – in vitro insemination (IVF), 7821 – IVF with intracytoplasmic sperm injection) were examined.Results. In patients after IVF, the frequency of live births significantly depended on sperm concentration: 28.6 % for concentration above 5 mil/ml and 51.5 % for concentration above 15 mil/ml (p <0.0001). No significant difference was observed for the dependence of the frequency of live births on the number of progressive-motile sperm (grade А): 38.2 % for <5 % and 57.7 % for >15 % (p = 0.11), or on the number of spermatozoa with normal morphology: 50 % for ≥4 % and 45.5 % for <4 % (p = 0,23). In patients after IVF with intracytoplasmic sperm injection, the concentration of spermatozoa, number of progressive-motile sperm (grade А), and number of spermatozoa with normal morphology didn’t affect the frequency of live births in a statistically significant way.Conclusion. Sperm concentration, motility, and morphology can affect the frequency of live births in the IVF program, but statistically significant correlation was observed only for sperm concentration. After IVF with intracytoplasmic sperm injection, only sperm morphology affects the frequency of live births, but not in a statistically significant way. 

Possibility of elimination of pathogen from Babesia infected animals by means of embryo transfer

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 36-42
Author(s):  
P Erdenetogtokh ◽  
S Ganbat ◽  
Hiroshi Suzuki
Keyword(s):  
Embryo Transfer ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Morphological Characteristics ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Development Stage ◽  
Babesia Microti ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Mice Model ◽  
Economic Sectors

Babesia infections occur mainly in animals, and are transmitted by ticks. The severity of the diseases varies considerably depending on the species of Babesia involved as well as the immune response of the infected animal. In Mongolia infection produced by Babesia parasites is widely spread, provoking severe damage to the agricultural and economic sectors. Currently, strategies to control and prevent the infection are inefficient. Indeed, the necessity to look for suitable and accessible strategies to obtain animals free from the infection is needed. Currently, assisted reproductive technologies (ART) are used for the improvement of productivity in livestock. Moreover, embryo transfer seams to be useful approach to obtain clean embryos obtained from infected animals. Therefore, by using a mice model (ICR) infected with Babesia microti, an alternative method to obtain animals free from infection was examined. ICR mice at 8 weeks old were challenged with 0.2 ml of 1x107 IRBC/ml by i.p injection. After infection, superovulation was induced and then embryos were obtained and washed. Then, their development stage along with their morphological characteristics were monitored. In vitro embryos obtained from uninfected mice were used as a control group. The results indicate that the infection does not have any influence on pre-implantation embryonic development and morphological characteristics. Thus, we suggest that embryos obtained from infected animals might be useful for embryo transfer in order to improve productivity of livestock and reduce the risk of congenital infection. In summary, ART such as embryo transfer might be an useful technique in countries where Babesiosis is an endemic disease. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5564/mjas.v11i2.214 Mongolian Journal of Agricultural Sciences Vol.11(2) 2013 pp.36-42

scholarly journals Long-Term Effects Following Fresh/Vitrified Embryo Transfer Are Transmitted by Paternal Germline in a Large Size Rabbit Cohort

Animals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (8) ◽  
pp. 1272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ximo Garcia-Dominguez ◽  
José Salvador Vicente ◽  
María P. Viudes-de-Castro ◽  
Francisco Marco-Jiménez
Keyword(s):  
Embryo Transfer ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Early Embryo ◽  
Embryo Cryopreservation ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Adult Body Weight ◽  
Female Germline

The concept of developmental programming suggests that the early life environment influences offspring phenotype in later life, whose effects may also be manifested in further generations. Valuable pieces of evidence come from the fields applying assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs), which deprive embryos of their optimal maternal environment and were thus associated with subsequent developmental deviations. Recently, we demonstrated that the in vitro manipulations during a vitrified embryo transfer procedure incurs a cumulative and transgenerational decline in the growth performance of the resulting offspring. Here, we provide a longitudinal study to investigate whether previous developmental deviations could be indistinctly paternally or maternally transmitted using crossbred mattings. Our findings revealed that early embryo manipulations through fresh and vitrified embryo transfer incurred paternally transmissible effects over the growth pattern and adult body weight, which seemed not inheritable via the female germline. Similar inheritable effects were observed after fresh and vitrified embryo transfer, suggesting that disturbing optimal embryo development through in vitro manipulations was the principal trigger of transmissible effects, rather than embryo cryopreservation per se.

scholarly journals “Naturalization” of Routine Assisted Reproductive Technologies by In Vitro Culture of Embryos with Microvibration: Sex Ratio, Body Length, and Weight of 2,456 Live-Birth Deliveries after Transfer of 9,624 Embryos In Vitro Cultured in Static System and with Microvibration

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Vladimir Isachenko ◽  
Karl Sterzik ◽  
Evgenia Isachenko ◽  
Robert Maettner ◽  
Plamen Todorov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Ratio ◽  
In Vitro Culture ◽  
Body Length ◽  
Live Birth ◽  
Assisted Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Reproductive Technologies ◽  
Static System ◽  
Mechanical Agitation

Aim was to determine whether there is any difference in the sex ratio, body length, and body weight of 2,456 deliveries after transfer of 9,624 embryos derived using in vitro culture under static and mechanical microvibration conditions. Pronuclear embryos from 4435 patients were cultured in vitro under two different conditions: without (n=4821) and with mechanical agitation (n=4803). Sex ratio, body length, and weight of 2,456 live-birth deliveries after transfer of 9,624 embryos were noted. The proportion of males at birth was significantly associated with mode of in vitro culture of embryos only among women aged 40 years and older. The rate “body length” was significantly associated with mode of in vitro culture of embryos only among women aged 29 and younger. In the same time, among twins, this ratio positively associated with in vitro culture of embryos under microvibration only among women aged 30–34 years as well as ≥40 years and negatively among women aged 35–39 years. It was concluded that birth weight of infants was positively associated with mode of in vitro culture of embryos under microvibration among women of all age groups. This trial registration number is ISRCTN13773904, registered 6 April 2016.

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