Oocytes of women who are obese or overweight have lower levels of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids compared with oocytes of women with normal weight

Abstract

Objective: To ascertain whether the oocytes of women who are obese or overweight have a different fatty acid (FA) profile than women with normal weight. Design: Prospective case-control study. Setting: Two IVF centers. Patient(s): A total of 205 women undergoing IVF and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) were included in the study, totaling 922 oocytes. Intervention(s): The unfertilized and the immature oocytes from the women who underwent IVF/ICSI were subjected to FA analysis with capillary gas chromatography. Women were classified according their body mass index (BMI) as normal, overweight, or obese. Germinal vesicle oocytes, metaphase I oocytes, and unfertilized metaphase II oocytes were analyzed separately. Main Outcome Measure(s): Fatty acid profile. Result(s): A very different oocyte FA pattern was observed for each BMI. Women with normal weight had higher levels of saturated FAs, and lower levels of monosaturated FAs. Women who were obese had lower levels of n-3 polyunsaturated FA, and the lowest n-6:n-3 ratios. Regarding specific FAs, docosahexaenoic acid levels were lower in women with normal weight than in those who are overweight, and in women who are overweight than in those who are obese. The opposite occurred with eicosapentaenoic acid, with the highest levels in women who have normal weight followed by those who are overweight and lower levels in those women who were obese. When FA analysis was restricted to a subset of oocytes, many of these differences persisted. Conclusion(s):Our study shows that oocytes from women who are obese or overweight have a different FA composition. This difference in levels could be related to the IVF poor outcome in these women. Therefore, this different composition could suggest that offspring of women who are obese or overweight have an unfavorable milieu even before conception. (Fertil Steril Ò 2020;113: 53-61. Ó2019 by American Society for Reproductive Medicine.

Listening to mother: Long‐term maternal effects in mammalian development

“…The scope and impacts of these less immediate and less direct maternal effects continue to be discovered. Such maternal effects are also taking on new and expanding importance as researchers endeavor to understand the oocyte's role in developmental origins of health and disease (DOHaD), particularly in the context of maternal health and nutrition effects on oocyte quality (Andreas, Reid, Zhang, & Moley, 2019; Matorras et al, 2020) and, for example, adult cardiovascular disease (Ferey et al, 2019; Velazquez, Fleming, & Watkins, 2019). Not only might the environment impact the oocyte, and thereby lead to short‐ and long‐term effects on embryogenesis, but genetic variation in the inherent features of oocytes may also determine the responses of oocytes and embryos to different environmental factors and stressors.…”

The lipidome of endometrial fluid differs between implantative and non-implantative IVF cycles

“…In our study, the non-implantative endometrium group had higher levels of docosapentaenoic acid (22:5n-6), which can be synthetized from LA [49]. We have recently shown how omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acid composition of human oocytes changes during oocyte maturation [50] and how fatty acid pattern is different in normal weight and in obese women [50].…”

The fatty acid composition in follicles is related to the developmental potential of oocytes up to the blastocyst stage: a single-centre cohort study

“…Although FF provides the micro-environment from which the oocytes retrieve FA and other nutrients, only very few studies reported oocyte FA for obvious ethical and technical reasons. Indeed, for ethical reasons, only unfertilized and discarded human oocytes [ 28 , 29 ] would be available for such studies. From a technical point of view, Matorras et al [ 29 ] indicated the need to analyse pooled oocytes, as individual oocyte lipid mass was well below the sensitivity of the analytical method.…”

“…Indeed, for ethical reasons, only unfertilized and discarded human oocytes [ 28 , 29 ] would be available for such studies. From a technical point of view, Matorras et al [ 29 ] indicated the need to analyse pooled oocytes, as individual oocyte lipid mass was well below the sensitivity of the analytical method. Given the particular importance of PUFA, including n-3 PUFA, in membrane fluidity and integrity [ 30 ], it could be speculated that a certain proportion of n-3 PUFA is required in membrane phospholipids to guarantee optimal biological functionality.…”