母源物质对重编程作用研究进展

卵母细胞发生过程中会积累大量的物质,即所谓的母源物质(maternal materials),自然状态下,这些母源物质对受精以及之后的发育具有重要的生物学功能。雌雄配子融合后,精子核与卵母细胞中单倍体染色体组均会发生剧烈的表观遗传修饰变化,这个过程也同样发生在体细胞核移植到卵母细胞质之后,这种变化被称之为重编程。重编程奠定了新个体发生发育全部程序的基础,因此是一个备受重视的生物学过程。重编程包括DNA去甲基化、染色质重塑和组蛋白修饰等。受精后,卵母细胞与精子的基因组均会在一定时间和空间范围内经历相应的重编程过程,清除各自基因组在配子形成中保留的表观遗传学修饰,调控基因表达并形成正常发育的全能性胚胎。受精后,卵母细胞成熟中积累的多种母源物质聚集在雄原核周围,调控其基因组的重编程。体细胞核移植胚胎中供体细胞核注到去核卵母细胞后也将在卵母细胞中蛋白质、mRNA、酶类等母源物质的作用下进行重编程。现总结了母源物质对雄原核及供体细胞核重编程作用的研究进展,并探讨了母源物质作用的可能机制。     

不同卵龄小鼠卵母细胞激活和受精的比较研究

本实验比较了不同卵龄的小鼠卵母细胞受酒精人工刺激后的激活率和体外受精率,以探索卵母细胞激活和受精的机制。向NIH雌鼠腹腔注射孕马血清促性腺激素（PMSG）7．5单位,48小时后注射人绒毛膜促性激素（HCG）7．5单位,于不同时间杀小鼠,取卵母细胞与卵丘细胞的复合体（OCC）。从注射HCG后到取OCC的时间视为卵母细胞的卵龄。将OCC置于含8％酒精的M2中7分钟,再在16中培养5小时后,用0．3mg/mL的透明质酸酶去卵丘细胞。卵母细胞形成原核或速即卵裂为激活的标志,将OCC加入已获能的精子悬液中,5小时后将从卵丘细胞中释放出来的卵母细胞转移到M16中,将日发生卵裂为卵母细胞体外受精和激活的标志。小鼠卵母细胞卵龄为20h,其激活率为81．6％,速即卵裂率为48．0％;而卵龄进一步增加到24h,激活率和卵裂率转为下降（Table1）。而卵母细胞受精子激活和受精则不同,卵龄为15h ,卵母细胞的体外受精率为45．4％;随着卵龄的进一步增加,体外受精率则下降（Table2)。Fig.1显示：新排出的卵母细胞容易被精子激活而受精;卵龄较大的卵母细胞较易被酒精的人工刺激而激活。可能是卵母细胞从成熟到老化过程中,细胞的结构、功能及对外界刺激的敏感状态都在发生一些规律性的变化,而激活和受精的机制不完全,还不能精对卵龄的要求要严格。     

排卵后老化卵母细胞的染色体形态变化

小鼠排卵后的卵母细胞停滞在MⅡ期, 如果此时的卵母细胞未能及时受精, 随着在输卵管中停留时间的延长, 卵母细胞会逐渐发生老化。这种卵母细胞的老化会导致包括人在内的哺乳动物的胚胎发育异常, 所以很有必要研究排卵后卵母细胞的老化机理。本实验主要研究小鼠排卵后的卵母细胞在体内老化过程中的染色体形态变化, 发现随着老化时间的延长, 有更高比例(65%, hCG后34 h)的卵母细胞的染色体呈不对称和松散的状态, 进一步研究表明, 这种染色体的变化可能与H3K14、H4K16的乙酰化升高, 及H3K9的甲基化降低有关。     

哺乳动物卵母细胞成熟和受精中细胞骨架重组和作用

卵母细胞成熟和受精是动物生殖过程的核心环节。细胞骨架是遍布于卵母细胞胞质中的一种复杂的蛋白质纤维网络,研究表明,卵母细胞成熟和受精过程中伴随着广泛的胞质骨架重组。哺乳动物卵母细胞和早期胚胎中细胞骨架具有其独特的分布和功能,使卵母细胞和胚胎呈现出不同的变化特点。微丝、微管的分布变化与卵母细胞成熟和受精中遗传物质的重组密切相关。近年来,对哺乳动物不同物种间卵母细胞和胚胎中细胞骨架成分的研究取得了很大的进展,结合这些研究成果,对哺乳动物卵母细胞成熟和受精过程中细胞骨架的重组、分布和作用进行了介绍。同时,对多种信号转导途径参与卵母细胞成熟和受精中细胞骨架系统的调控也作了探讨。     

不同卵龄小鼠卵母细胞激活和受精的比较研究(英文)

本实验比较了不同卵龄的小鼠卵母细胞受酒精人工刺激后的激活率和体外受精率,以探讨卵母细胞激活和受精的机制。向ＮＩＨ雌鼠腹腔注射孕马血清促性腺激素（ＰＭＳＧ）７．５单位,４８小时后注射人绒毛膜促性激素（ＨＣＧ）７．５单位,于不同时间杀小鼠,取卵母细胞与卵丘细胞的复合体（ＯＣＣ）。从注射ＨＣＧ后到取ＯＣＣ的时间视为卵母细胞的卵龄。将ＯＣＣ置于含８％酒精的Ｍ２中７分钟,再在Ｍ１６中培养５小时后,用０．３ｍｇ／ｍＬ的透明质酸酶去卵丘细胞。卵母细胞形成原核或速即卵裂为激活的标志。将ＯＣＣ加入已获能的精子悬液中,５小时后将从卵丘细胞中释放出来的卵母细胞转移到Ｍ１６中,次日发生卵裂为卵母细胞体外受精和激活的标志。小鼠卵母细胞卵龄为２０ｈ,其激活率为８１．６％,速即卵裂率为４８．０％;而卵龄进一步增加到２４ｈ,激活率和卵裂率转为下降（Ｔａｂｌｅ１）。而卵母细胞受精子激活和受精则不同,卵龄为１５ｈ,卵母细胞的体外受精率为４５．４％;随着卵龄的进一步增加,体外受精率则下降（Ｔａｂｌｅ２）。Ｆｉｇ．１显示：新排出的卵母细胞容易被精子激活而受精;卵龄较大的卵母细胞较易被酒精的人工刺激而激活。可能是卵母细胞从成熟到老化过程中,细胞的结     

哺乳动物胚胎发生发育与表观遗传修饰

哺乳动物受精过程中染色体构象发生剧烈的变化.来自精子高度凝缩的染色质在卵母细胞胞质环境中解凝缩,与雌性染色质融合,发生基因组重编程共同构建合子基因组,激活胚胎基因组转录,获得发育的全能性,并进一步发育成完整的胚胎.表观遗传调节机制在这一过程中起重要作用,其中主要包括DNA甲基化、组蛋白甲基化、组蛋白乙酰化及组蛋白替代,这些修饰形式改变了染色体的空间构象以及与转录调节因子的结合模式,调控染色体的活性,进而调节胚胎的发生发育.     

精子和卵母细胞质量控制对山羊卵胞质内精子注射(ICSI)受精的影响

以体外成熟卵母细胞为材料研究了精子来源及制动处理方法、卵母细胞质量及注射后激活等因素对山羊ICSI效果的影响.结果说明,附睾头、体和尾精子ICSI后的受精率、卵裂率和桑椹胚/囊胚发育率与射出的鲜精精子都没有明显差异(p＞0.05),但带下注射时附睾头和体精子的受精和发育率显著低于附睾尾和射精精子.在以4种不同方法致死的精子中,室温保存24h的死精子ICSI受精、卵裂和桑椹/囊胚率虽然低于对照组,但是明显高于其它方式致死的精子;5℃保存15天的死精子受精和发育效果最差.0.0005%Triton X-100处理精子的受精率、卵裂率和桑椹/囊胚率显著(p＜0.05)高于制动对照组、不制动对照组和其它浓度组.经高渗处理法检测质量好的卵母细胞ICSI受精和胚胎发育效果显著好于质量差的卵母细胞.与对照组相比,A23187和Ionomycin/6-DMAP激活处理均显著(p＜0.05)提高ICSI的受精率、卵裂率和桑椹/囊胚发育率.因此,精子在附睾内的成熟过程主要与其获得与卵质膜融合能力有关;精液保存方法对精子受精能力的损伤程度有很大差异;适当浓度的Triton X-100处理可模仿精子制动;卵母细胞质量是影响ICSI效果的重要因素;注射精子后激活卵母细胞能保证山羊ICSI的受精效果.     

组蛋白乙酰化与卵母细胞及胚胎的体外发育

组蛋白乙酰化及去乙酰化是表观遗传修饰一个重要部分,其对哺乳动物卵母细胞成熟和胚胎发育具有重要的调节作用。因此深入研究组蛋白乙酰化的发生机制,对于改善卵母细胞和早期胚胎的发育具有重要意义。对哺乳动物卵母细胞及胚胎发育过程中的组蛋白乙酰化动态修饰进行综述。     

兔卵母细胞体外成熟和体外受精的研究

用贴壁和悬浮生长二种培养系统,分析发情兔血清、滤泡液和激素对体外培养的兔卵母细胞的成熟、原核形成和发育能力的影响,并分析了不同浓度的激素对兔卵母细胞的作用。在贴壁生长的培养系统,滤泡液和激素对卵母细胞有明显的促成熟作用。但用这种卵母细胞体外受精,其原核形成率和发育率都较低。但在体外培养8小时后转移到体内受精,其原核形成和发育率大大提高,三者差别不大。在悬浮培养系统,卵母细胞成熟率、及体外受精后原核形成和发育率都远比贴壁生长的高,尤以原核形成率更甚。兔卵母细胞对激素的耐受力很小,以含FSH(2μg)、LH(1μg)、E_2-17B(1μg)和PRL组合的培波和含低hCG(7IU)的较适宜,高中浓度的FSH、LH和hCG都有促使卵母细胞变性和老化的作用。文中还讨论了二种培养系统不同的机制。     

影响山羊体外受精的因素

以屠宰山羊卵母细胞为材料研究了公羊个体、附睾不同部位精子、成熟培养和受精时卵丘存在与否、卵丘扩展程度及卵龄对山羊体外受精的影响。结果表明 :1)不同公羊精液在受精、卵裂和桑椹 /囊胚率上都有显著差异 ;2 )附睾尾精子和鲜精的受精、卵裂和桑椹 /囊胚率无显著差异 ,但显著高于附睾体和附睾头精子 ;3)成熟培养 2 4和 2 7h卵母细胞的的桑椹胚 /囊胚率显著高于培养 2 1和 30h卵母细胞 ;4 )卵丘扩展 3和 4级卵母细胞受精和桑椹胚 /囊胚率显著高于扩展 0和 1级卵母细胞 ;5 )成熟培养前机械去卵丘严重影响卵母细胞体外受精和桑椹胚 /囊胚率 ;6 )受精前完全去掉卵丘显著影响桑椹胚 /囊胚率     

Caenorhabditis elegans reproductive aging: Regulation and underlying mechanisms

Female reproductive decline is one of the first aging phenotypes in humans, manifested in increasing rates of infertility, miscarriage, and birth defects in children of mothers over 35. Recently, Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) has been developed as a model to study reproductive aging, and several studies have advanced our knowledge of reproductive aging regulation in this organism. In this review, we describe our current understanding of reproductive cessation in C. elegans, including the relationship between oocyte quality, ovulation rate, progeny number, and reproductive span. We then discuss possible mechanisms of oocyte quality control, and provide an overview of the signaling pathways currently identified to be involved in reproductive span regulation in C. elegans. Finally, we extend the relevance of C. elegans reproductive aging studies to the issue of human female reproductive decline, and we discuss ideas concerning the relationship between reproductive aging and somatic longevity.     

Prolonging the female reproductive lifespan and improving egg quality with dietary omega‐3 fatty acids

Women approaching advanced maternal age have extremely poor outcomes with both natural and assisted fertility. Moreover, the incidence of chromosomal abnormalities and birth defects increases with age. As of yet, there is no effective and practical strategy for delaying ovarian aging or improving oocyte quality. We demonstrate that the lifelong consumption of a diet rich in omega‐3 fatty acids prolongs murine reproductive function into advanced maternal age, while a diet rich in omega‐6 fatty acids is associated with very poor reproductive success at advanced maternal age. Furthermore, even short‐term dietary treatment with a diet rich in omega‐3 fatty acids initiated at the time of the normal age‐related rapid decline in murine reproductive function is associated with improved oocyte quality, while short‐term dietary treatment with omega‐6 fatty acids results in very poor oocyte quality. Thus, omega‐3 fatty acids may provide an effective and practical avenue for delaying ovarian aging and improving oocyte quality at advanced maternal age.     

Apoptosis Maintains Oocyte Quality in Aging Caenorhabditis elegans Females

In women, oocytes arrest development at the end of prophase of meiosis I and remain quiescent for years. Over time, the quality and quantity of these oocytes decreases, resulting in fewer pregnancies and an increased occurrence of birth defects. We used the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to study how oocyte quality is regulated during aging. To assay quality, we determine the fraction of oocytes that produce viable eggs after fertilization. Our results show that oocyte quality declines in aging nematodes, as in humans. This decline affects oocytes arrested in late prophase, waiting for a signal to mature, and also oocytes that develop later in life. Furthermore, mutations that block all cell deaths result in a severe, early decline in oocyte quality, and this effect increases with age. However, mutations that block only somatic cell deaths or DNA-damage–induced deaths do not lower oocyte quality. Two lines of evidence imply that most developmentally programmed germ cell deaths promote the proper allocation of resources among oocytes, rather than eliminate oocytes with damaged chromosomes. First, oocyte quality is lowered by mutations that do not prevent germ cell deaths but do block the engulfment and recycling of cell corpses. Second, the decrease in quality caused by apoptosis mutants is mirrored by a decrease in the size of many mature oocytes. We conclude that competition for resources is a serious problem in aging germ lines, and that apoptosis helps alleviate this problem.     

Dynamic changes of DNA epigenetic marks in mouse oocytes during natural and accelerated aging

Aging is a complex time-dependent biological process that takes place in every cell and organ, eventually leading to degenerative changes that affect normal biological functions. In the past decades, the number of older parents has increased significantly. While it is widely recognized that oocyte aging poses higher birth and reproductive risk, the exact molecular mechanisms remain largely elusive. DNA methylation of 5-cytosine (5mC) and histone modifications are among the key epigenetic mechanisms involved in critical developmental processes and have been linked to aging. However, the impact of oocyte aging on DNA demethylation pathways has not been examined. The recent discovery of Ten-Eleven-Translocation (TET) family proteins, thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG) and the demethylation intermediates 5hmC, 5fC and 5caC has provided novel clues to delineate the molecular mechanisms in DNA demethylation. In this study, we examined the cellular level of modified cytosines (5mC, 5hmC, 5fC and 5caC) and Tet/Tdg expression in oocytes obtained from natural and accelerated oocyte aging conditions. Here we show all the DNA demethylation marks are dynamically regulated in both aging conditions, which are associated with Tet3 over-expression and Tdg repression. Such an aberrant expression pattern was more profound in accelerated aging condition. The results suggest that DNA demethylation may be actively involved in oocyte aging and have implications for development of potential drug targets to rejuvenate aging oocytes.This article is part of a Directed Issue entitled: Epigenetics dynamics in development and disease.     

Epigenetic changes associated with oocyte aging

It is well established that the decline in female reproductive outcomes is related to postovulatory aging of oocytes and advanced maternal age. Poor oocyte quality is correlated with compromised genetic integrity and epigenetic changes during the oocyte aging process. Here, we review the epigenetic alterations, mainly focused on DNA methylation, histone acetylation and methylation associated with postovulatory oocyte aging as well as advanced maternal age. Furthermore, we address the underlying epigenetic mechanisms that contribute to the decline in oocyte quality during oocyte aging.     

Protein profile changes during porcine oocyte aging and effects of caffeine on protein expression patterns

It has been shown that oocyte aging critically affects reproduction and development. By using proteomic tools, in the present study, changes in protein profiles during porcine oocyte aging and effects of caffeine on oocyte aging were investigated. By comparing control MII oocytes with aging MII oocytes, we identified 23 proteins that were up-regulated and 3 proteins that were down-regulated during the aging process. In caffeine-treated oocytes, 6 proteins were identified as up-regulated and 12 proteins were identified as down-regulated. A total of 38 differentially expressed proteins grouped into 5 regulation patterns were determined to relate to the aging and anti-aging process. By using the Gene Ontology system, we found that numerous functional gene products involved in metabolism, stress response, reactive oxygen species and cell cycle regulation were differentially expressed during the oocyte aging process, and most of these proteins are for the first time reported in our study, including 2 novel proteins. In addition, several proteins were found to be modified during oocyte aging. These data contribute new information that may be useful for future research on cellular aging and for improvement of oocyte quality.     

Maternal gene Ooep may participate in homologous recombination-mediated DNA double-strand break repair in mouse oocytes

DNA damage in oocytes can cause infertility and birth defects. DNA double-strand breaks(DSBs) are highly deleterious and can substantially impair genome integrity. Homologous recombination(HR)-mediated DNA DSB repair plays dominant roles in safeguarding oocyte quantity and quality. However, little is known regarding the key players of the HR repair pathway in oocytes. Here, we identified oocyte-specific gene Ooep as a novel key component of the HR repair pathway in mouse oocytes. OOEP was required for efficient ataxia telangiectasia mutated(ATM) kinase activation and Rad51 recombinase(RAD51) focal accumulation at DNA DSBs. Ooep null oocytes were defective in DNA DSB repair and prone to apoptosis upon exogenous DNA damage insults. Moreover, Ooep null oocytes exhibited delayed meiotic maturation.Therefore, OOEP played roles in preserving oocyte quantity and quality by maintaining genome stability.Ooep expression decreased with the advance of maternal age, suggesting its involvement in maternal aging.     

Glucose metabolism in mouse cumulus cells prevents oocyte aging by maintaining both energy supply and the intracellular redox potential

Inhibiting oocyte postovulatory aging is important both for healthy reproduction and for assisted reproduction techniques. Some studies suggest that glucose promotes oocyte meiotic resumption through glycolysis, but others indicate that it does so by means of the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP). Furthermore, although pyruvate was found to prevent oocyte aging, the mechanism is unclear. The present study addressed these issues by using the postovulatory aging oocyte model. The results showed that whereas the oocyte itself could utilize pyruvate or lactate to prevent aging, it could not use glucose unless in the presence of cumulus cells. Glucose metabolism in cumulus cells prevented oocyte aging by producing pyruvate and NADPH through glycolysis and PPP. Whereas PPP was still functioning after inhibition of glycolysis, the glycolysis was completely inactivated after inhibition of PPP. Addition of fructose-6-phosphate, an intermediate product from PPP, alleviated oocyte aging significantly when the PPP was totally inhibited. Lactate prevented oocyte aging through its lactate dehydrogenase-catalyzed oxidation to pyruvate, but pyruvate inhibited oocyte aging by its intramitochondrial metabolism. However, both lactate and pyruvate required mitochondrial electron transport to prevent oocyte aging. The inhibition of oocyte aging by both PPP and pyruvate involved regulation of the intracellular redox status. Together, the results suggest that glucose metabolism in cumulus cells prevented oocyte postovulatory aging by maintaining both energy supply and the intracellular redox potential and that) glycolysis in cumulus cells might be defective, with pyruvate production depending upon the PPP for intermediate products.     

Cumulus cells accelerate aging of mouse oocytes by secreting a soluble factor(s)

Control of oocyte aging in vitro is important for both human-assisted reproduction and animal embryo technologies because fertilization or artificial activation of aged oocytes results in abnormal development. Interactions between somatic and germ cells are also an important issue in current biological research. The role of cumulus cells (CCs) in maturation, ovulation, and fertilization of oocytes has been extensively studied, yet little is known about their role in oocyte aging. Although our previous study has shown that CCs accelerate the aging progression of mouse oocytes, the mechanism by which CCs accelerate oocyte aging is unknown. In this study, cumulus-denuded mouse oocytes (DOs) were co-cultured with cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) or CC monolayer or cultured in medium conditioned with these cells and changes in the susceptibility to activating stimuli and in MPF activity of oocytes were evaluated after different aging treatments. The results showed that culture with or in medium conditioned with COCs or CC monolayer promoted activation of DOs, indicating that a soluble factor is responsible for the aging-promoting effect. The in vivo and in vitro-matured DOs did not differ in responsiveness to the aging-promoting factor (APF). Heat shock did not accelerate oocyte aging unless in the presence of CCs. The production of APF was not affected by the age or maturation system of COCs, but increased with their density and duration of culture. The results strongly suggest that CCs accelerated oocyte aging by secreting a soluble APF into the medium. Further analysis showed that the APF was heat labile but stable to freezing, it had a threshold effective concentration and can be depleted by DOs.     

Cumulus expansion is impaired with advanced reproductive age due to loss of matrix integrity and reduced hyaluronan

Reproductive aging is associated with ovulatory defects. Age-related ovarian fibrosis partially contributes to this phenotype as short-term treatment with anti-fibrotic compounds improves ovulation in reproductively old mice. However, age-dependent changes that are intrinsic to the follicle may also be relevant. In this study, we used a mouse model to demonstrate that reproductive aging is associated with impaired cumulus expansion which is accompanied by altered morphokinetic behavior of cumulus cells as assessed by time-lapse microscopy. The extracellular matrix integrity of expanded cumulus–oocyte complexes is compromised with advanced age as evidenced by increased penetration of fluorescent nanoparticles in a particle exclusion assay and larger open spaces on scanning electron microscopy. Reduced hyaluronan (HA) levels, decreased expression of genes encoding HA-associated proteins (e.g., Ptx3 and Tnfaip6), and increased expression of inflammatory genes and matrix metalloproteinases underlie this loss of matrix integrity. Importantly, HA levels are decreased with age in follicular fluid of women, indicative of conserved reproductive aging mechanisms. These findings provide novel mechanistic insights into how defects in cumulus expansion contribute to age-related infertility and may serve as a target to extend reproductive longevity.