Insulin‐like growth factor I enhances the developmental competence of yak embryos by modulating aquaporin 3

Abstract

The objective of our present study was to determine the effects of insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) on the development of yak (Bos grunniens) embryos after cumulus-oocyte complex (COC) vitrification and warming followed by in vitro fertilization (IVF). In Experiment 1, the yak COCs underwent vitrification and then IVF. Embryos were incubated in synthetic oviductal fluid (SOF) supplemented with four concentrations (0, 50, 100 and 200 ng/ml) of IGF-I, while the yak COCs without vitrification or IGF-I supplementation acted as the control group; the BAX, BCL-2, AQP3mRNA and aquaporin 3 (AQP3) protein expression levels in the five groups of blastocysts were evaluated using quantitative real-time PCR and immunofluorescence analyses. In Experiment 2, the groups described above were fertilized and incubated. The cleavage rate, blastocyst rate, total cell count per blastocyst and the rate of growth of the inner cell mass (ICM) and trophectoderm (TE) were evaluated. The results were as follows: (1) the AQP3 gene expression and protein expression in the control and 100 ng/ml IGF-I treatment groups were the highest. (2) The BAX gene expression was the lowest and the BCL-2 gene expression was the highest in the control and 100 ng/ml IGF-I treatment groups. (3) The rates of cleavage and blastocysts in the control and 100 ng/ml IGF-I groups were higher than those in the other three groups. The total cell count per blastocyst in the vitrified and warmed 100 ng/ml IGF-I group (106.7 ± 4.9) and the control group (107.3 ± 4.2) was higher than that in the vitrified and warmed 0 ng/ml IGF-I (91.2 ± 3.1), 50 ng/ml IGF-I (92.3 ± 3.7) and 200 ng/ml IGF-I (92.4 ± 3.7) groups. Therefore, we conclude that IGF-I can improve yak blastocyst developmental ability, cytomembrane permeability and formation of the blastocyst cavity after COC vitrification by improving the BAX, BCL-2 and AQP3 expression levels.

Supplementing Maturation Medium With Insulin Growth Factor I and Vitrification-Warming Solutions With Reduced Glutathione Enhances Survival Rates and Development Ability of in vitro Matured Vitrified-Warmed Pig Oocytes

“…The composition of in vitro maturation media has strong impact on oocyte quality and cryotolerance. In this regard, supplementation of maturation and culture media with insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) stimulates oocyte maturation and promotes blastocyst development in several species (Kocyigit and Cevik, 2015; Pan et al, 2015; Arat et al, 2016; Chen et al, 2017). In pigs, although IGF-I has been reported to promote the synthesis of hyaluronic acid and the expansion of cumulus cells (Nemcova et al, 2007), its role in IVM remains unclear and has yield inconsistent results.…”

Effect of cysteine, insulin-like growth factor-1 and epidermis growth factor during in vitro oocyte maturation and in vitro culture of yak-cattle crossbred embryos

“…Cys is a critical component amino acid of glutathione (GSH), which plays an important role in protecting from the toxic effect of oxidative damage (Meister 1983). EGF and IGF-1 are involved in regulating cell proliferation and apoptosis (Paria and Dey 1990;Wasielak and Bogacki 2007;Chen et al 2017). Positive effects on oocyte maturation and/or embryonic development have been observed if a single or different combination of Cys, EGF and IGF-1 concentrations in IVM, IVF and IVC media is optimal in cattle (Ali et al 2003;Sirisathien et al 2003;Neira et al 2010;Nabenishi et al 2012), pig (Choe et al 2010;Lott et al 2011), sheep (Shabankareh and Zandi 2010), buffalo (Pawshe et al 1998), human (Yu et al 2012), mouse (Toori et al 2014); cat (Thongkittidilok et al 2015), goat (Conceicao et al 2016;Zhou et al 2016), canine (Sato et al 2018) and yak (Pan et al 2015;Chen et al 2017).…”

“…The experiment contained eight groups: Cys, IGF-1, EGF, IGF-1 + EGF, IGF-1 + Cys, EGF + Cys, IGF-1 + EGF + Cys, and control. These concentrations were chosen because they had previously been shown to be the most effective dosage for IVM and IVC in some studies (Shabankareh and Zandi 2010;Lott et al 2011;Chen et al 2017)…”

“…The desirable IVP efficiency of crossbred embryos is prerequisite for F1 producing F1, but it is considerably low at present (Zi et al 2009). Cysteine (Cys), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and epidermis growth factor (EGF) have been shown to promote oocyte maturation and embryo development in many mammalian species (Pawshe et al 1998;Sirisathien et al 2003;Choe et al 2010;Neira et al 2010;Shabankareh and Zandi 2010;Nabenishi et al 2012;Yu et al 2012;Toori et al 2014;Thongkittidilok et al 2015;Zhou et al 2016;Sato et al 2018), but there is little information about the yak (Pan et al 2015;Chen et al 2017). Therefore, the objective of this study was to investigate the effects of Cys, IGF-1 and EGF on yak oocyte maturation and development of yak-cattle crossbred embryos in vitro.…”

Inhibition of miR-152 During in Vitro Maturation Enhances the Developmental Potential of Porcine Embryos

“…This may indicate a potential regulatory mechanism between miR-152 and the IGF system during oocyte development. Several studies reported that IGF-1 is involved in the regulation of follicular, oocyte, and embryonic development and the proliferation of follicular cells [38][39][40]. A signi cant correlation between IGF1 expression and blastocyst formation has been observed in mice [41].…”