The influence of donor nucleus source on the outcome of zebrafish somatic cell nuclear transfer

The success of nuclear reprogramming following somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is thought to depend on factors present in the egg. Little is known about the role - if any - played by the somatic cell type on the outcome of the procedure. We tested whether cells of different lineages might have different capacities for reprogramming following SCNT, comparing cells isolated from five different tissues of transgenic zebrafish for their developmental potential when used as SCNT donor cells. We used transgenic zebrafish lines expressing green fluorescence protein under an endogenous tissue-specific promoter: HGn62A-skin, HGn28A-skin, HGn8E-heart, HG21C-fin and notochord and HGn30A-hatch gland. We analyzed the efficiency of cloning, as measured by reconstructed embryos that developed up to the hatched-fry stage. Specifically, donor cells of fin and notochord origin yielded the best rate of cloned fish production. All of the other cell types used were capable of producing cloned fish, albeit with significantly lower efficiency. These results indicate that the type of zebrafish cells used for SCNT can influence the outcome of the procedure. Future epigenetic analysis of these cells will help determine specific chromatin profiles in somatic cells that have an impact on nuclear reprogramming procedures.     

Analysis of nuclear reprogramming in cloned miniature pig embryos by expression of Oct-4 and Oct-4 related genes

Xenotransplantation is a rapidly expanding field of research and cloned miniature pigs have been considered as a model animal for it. However, the efficiency of somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is extremely low, with most clones resulting in early lethality and several kinds of aberrant development. A possible explanation for the developmental failure of SCNT embryos is insufficient reprogramming of the somatic cell nucleus by the oocyte. In order to test this, we analyzed the reprogramming capacity of differentiated fibroblast cell nuclei and embryonic germ cell nuclei with Oct-4 and Oct-4 related genes (Ndp5211, Dppa2, Dppa3, and Dppa5), which are important for embryonic development, Hand1 and GATA-4, which are important for placental development, as molecular markers using RT-PCR. The Oct-4 expression level was significantly lower (P<0.05) in cloned hatched blastocysts derived from fibroblasts and many of fibroblast-derived clones failed to reactivate at least one of the tested genes, while most of the germ cell clones and control embryos correctly expressed these genes. In conclusion, our results suggest that the reprogramming of fibroblast-derived cloned embryos is highly aberrant and this improper reprogramming could be one reason of the early lethality and post-implantation anomalies of somatic cell-derived clones.     

Global gene expression analysis of bovine blastocysts produced by multiple methods

Reproductive efficiency using somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) technology remains suboptimal. Of the various efforts to improve the efficiency, chromatin transfer (CT) and clone-clone aggregation (NTagg) have been reported to produce live cloned animals. To better understand the molecular mechanisms of somatic cell reprogramming during SCNT and assess the various SCNT methods on the molecular level, we performed gene expression analysis on bovine blastocysts produced via standard nuclear transfer (NT), CT, NTagg, in vitro fertilization (IVF), and artificial insemination (AI), as well as on somatic donor cells, using bovine genome arrays. The expression profiles of SCNT (NT, CT, NTagg) embryos were compared with IVF and AI embryos as well as donor cells. NT and CT embryos have indistinguishable gene expression patterns. In comparison to IVF or AI embryos, the number of differentially expressed genes in NTagg embryos is significantly higher than in NT and CT embryos. Genes that were differentially expressed between all the SCNT embryos and IVF or AI embryos are identified. Compared to AI embryos, more than half of the genes found deregulated between SCNT and AI embryos appear to be the result of in vitro culture alone. The results indicate that although SCNT methods have altered differentiated somatic nuclei gene expression to more closely resemble that of embryonic nuclei, combination of insufficient reprogramming and in vitro culture condition compromise the developmental potential of SCNT embryos. This is the first set of comprehensive data for analyzing the molecular impact of various nuclear transfer methods on bovine pre-implantation embryos.     

Role of the donor nuclei in cloning efficiency: can the ooplasm reprogram any nucleus?

Cloning efficiency has not been dramatically improved after the first success of somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) in sheep in 1997. The reasons for the low efficiency of SCNT embryos must be attributed to the insufficient reprogramming of the donor nucleus in ooplasm. It has been clarified that the methylation and acetylation status are disordered in SCNT embryos and the gene expression pattern is different and widely varied in SCNT embryos, compared with fertilized embryos. In this paper, we focused on the role of the donor nuclei in cloning efficiency, and discuss whether ooplasm can reprogram any nucleus.     

继代核移植能成倍提高来自奶山羊卵胞质体的异种间核移植重构胚的发育率

为了提高异种间核移植重构胚的发育率,本研究以体内排放的奶山羊成熟卵为供胞质的受体细胞,以人、兔、波尔山羊等的异种或亚种体细胞的原代核移植（Primary Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer,PSCNT）重构早胚（8-16细胞期）的卵裂球作供核体,观察经亚种或异种卵胞质体短期“修饰”的核再移植产生的继代（Secondary SCNT,SSCNT）重构胚的着床前发育潜能。结果：人、兔、波尔山羊的继代桑椹／囊胚发育率均显著地高于其PSCNT胚胎（人,14．81％VS．7．79％;兔,23．53％VS．12．50％;波尔羊,55．35％VS．24．53％）;这些早胚的各阶段发育时程仍遵循供核体动物正常受精卵的发育时程。结果启示：奶山羊成熟卵胞质对异种体细胞核亦具一定的去分化能力,能支持重构胚发育到囊胚;异种重构胚的发育特征是由供体核所决定的;继代核移植几乎能够成倍提高异种间重构胚的着床前发育率,提示核的去分化完全是在母型信息主导的调控之下完成的,而进一步发育的时序似乎是由核决定的：成倍延长在含母型信息主导调控环境中的时间能成倍提高SCNT重构胚的着床前发育率。     

Epigenetic reprogramming,gene expression and in vitro development of porcine SCNT embryos are significantly improved by a histone deacetylase inhibitor—m-carboxycinnamic acid bishydroxamide (CBHA)

Insufficient epigenetic reprogramming of donor nuclei is believed to be one of the most important causes of low development efficiency of mammalian somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). Previous studies have shown that both the in vitro and in vivo development of mouse SCNT embryos could be increased significantly by treatment with various histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi), including Trichostatin A, Scriptaid, and m-carboxycinnamic acid bishydroxamide (CBHA), in which only the effect of CBHA has not yet been tested in other species. In this paperweexamine the effect ofCBHAtreatment on the development of porcine SCNT embryos. We have discovered the optimum dosage and time for CBHA treatment: incubating SCNT embryos with 2 μmol/L CBHA for 24 h after activation could increase the blastocyst rate from 12.7% to 26.5%. Immunofluorescence results showed that the level of acetylation at histone 3 lysine 9 (AcH3K9), acetylation at histone 3 lysine 18 (AcH3K18), and acetylation at histone 4 lysine 16 (AcH4K16) was raised after CBHAtreatment. Meanwhile,CBHAtreatment improved the expression of development relating genes such as pou5f1, cdx2, and the imprinted genes like igf2. Despite these promising in vitro results and histone reprogramming, the full term development was not significantly increased after treatment. In conclusion, CBHA improves the in vitro development of pig SCNT embryos, increases the global histone acetylation and corrects the expression of some developmentally important genes at early stages. As in mouse SCNT, we have shown that nuclear epigenetic reprogramming in pig early SCNTembryos can be modified by CBHA treatment.     

Donor-host mitochondrial compatibility improves efficiency of bovine somatic cell nuclear transfer

Background  

The interaction between the karyoplast and cytoplast plays an important role in the efficiency of somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), but the underlying mechanism remains unclear. It is generally accepted that in nuclear transfer embryos, the reprogramming of gene expression is induced by epigenetic mechanisms and does not involve modifications of DNA sequences. In cattle, oocytes with various mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotypes usually have different ATP content and can further affect the efficiency of in vitro production of embryos. As mtDNA comes from the recipient oocyte during SCNT and is regulated by genes in the donor nucleus, it is a perfect model to investigate the interaction between donor nuclei and host oocytes in SCNT.     

Treatment of donor cells with trichostatin A improves in vitro development and reprogramming of buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) nucleus transfer embryos

It has been reported that buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) embryos reconstructed by somatic cell nucleus transfer (SCNT) can develop to the full term of gestation and result in newborn calves. However, the developmental competence of reconstructed embryos is still low. Recently, it has been reported that treating donor cells or embryos with trichostatin A (TSA) can increase the cloning efficiency in some species. Thus, the present study was undertaken to improve the development of buffalo SCNT embryos by treatment of donor cells (buffalo fetal fibroblasts) with TSA and explore the relation between histone acetylation status of donor cells and developmental competence of SCNT embryos. Treatment of donor cells with either 0.15 or 0.3 μM TSA for 48 hours resulted in a significant increase in the cleavage rate and blastocyst yield of SCNT embryos (P < 0.05). Meanwhile, the expression level of HDAC1 in donor cells was also decreased (0.4–0.6 fold, P < 0.05) by TSA treatment, although the expression level of HAT1 was not affected. Further measurement of the epigenetic maker AcH4K8 in buffalo IVF and SCNT embryos at the eight-cell stage revealed that the spatial distribution of acH4K8 staining in SCNT embryos was different from the IVF embryos. Treatment of donor cells with TSA resulted in an increase in the AcH4K8 level of SCNT embryos and similar to fertilized counterparts. These results suggest that treatment of donor cells with TSA can facilitate their nucleus reprogramming by affecting the acetylated status of H4K8 and improving the in vitro development of buffalo SCNT embryos. The AcH4K8 status at the eight-cell stage can be used as an epigenetic marker for predicting the SCNT efficiency in buffalos.     

Association between mitochondrial DNA haplotype compatibility and increased efficiency of bovine intersubspecies cloning

Reconstructed embryos derived from intersubspecies somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) have poorer developmental potential than those from intrasubspecies SCNT. Based on our previous study that Holstein dairy bovine (HD) mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotype compatibility between donor karyoplast and recipient cytoplast is crucial for SCNT embryo development, we performed intersubspecies SCNT using HD as donor karyoplast and Luxi yellow heifer (LY) as recipient cytoplast according to mtDNA haplotypes determined by polymerase chain reactionrestriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) analysis. The results demonstrated that intersubspecies mtDNA homotype SCNT embryos had higher pre- and post-implantation developmental competence than intrasubspecies mtDNA heterotype embryos as well as improved blastocyst reprogramming status, including normal H3K9 dimethylation pattern and promoter hypomethylation of pluripotent genes such as Oct4 and Sox2, suggesting that intersubspecies SCNT using LY oocytes maintains HD cloning efficiency and may reprogram HD nuclei to develop into a normal cloned animal ultimately. Our results indicated that karyoplast-cytoplast interactions and mtDNA haplotype compatibility may affect bovine intersubspecies SCNT efficiency. This study on bovine intersubspecies SCNT is valuable for understanding the mechanisms of mtDNA haplotype compatibility between karyoplast and cytoplast impacting the bovine SCNT efficiency, and provides an alternative and economic resource for HD cloning.     

Non-equivalence of embryonic and somatic cell nuclei affecting spindle composition in clones

Cloning by nuclear transfer remains inefficient but is more efficient when nuclei from embryonic cells or embryonic stem cells (ECNT) are employed as compared with somatic cells (SCNT). The factors determining efficiency have not been elucidated. We find that somatic and embryonic nuclei differ in their ability to organize meiotic and mitotic spindles of normal molecular composition. Calmodulin, a component of meiotic and mitotic spindle chromosome complexes (SCCs), displays sharply reduced association with the SCC forming after SCNT but not ECNT. This defect persists in mitotic spindles at least through the second mitosis, despite abundant calmodulin expression in the cell, and correlates with slow chromosome congression. We propose that somatic cell nuclei lack factors needed to direct normal SCC formation in oocytes and early embryos. These results reveal a striking control of SCC formation by the transplanted nucleus and provide the first identified molecular correlate of donor stage-dependent restriction in nuclear potency.     

Cloning of non-human primates: the road "less traveled by"

Early studies on cloning of non-human primates by nuclear transfer utilized embryonic blastomeres from preimplantation embryos which resulted in the reproducible birth of live offspring. Soon after, the focus shifted to employing somatic cells as a source of donor nuclei (somatic cell nuclear transfer, SCNT). However, initial efforts were plagued with inefficient nuclear reprogramming and poor embryonic development when standard SCNT methods were utilized. Implementation of several key SCNT modifications was critical to overcome these problems. In particular, a non-invasive method of visualizing the metaphase chromosomes during enucleation was developed to preserve the reprogramming capacity of monkey oocytes. These modifications dramatically improved the efficiency of SCNT, yielding high blastocyst development in vitro. To date, SCNT has been successfully used to derive pluripotent embryonic stem cells (ESCs) from adult monkey skin fibroblasts. These remarkable advances have the potential for development of human autologous ESCs and cures for many human diseases. Reproductive cloning of nonhuman primates by SCNT has not been achieved yet. We have been able to establish several pregnancies with SCNT embryos which, so far, did not progress to term. In this review, we summarize the approaches, obstacles and accomplishments of SCNT in a non-human primate model.     

DNA甲基化修饰与体细胞核移植的关系

成功的体细胞核移植（somatic cell nuclear transfer,SCNT）有赖于供体细胞的基因组通过重编程恢复到支持胚胎发育的全能性状态。但是,相比起自然受精后发生的重编程来说,要诱导一个已经分化的供体细胞重编程为全能性状态,往往在时间上和程度上都是迟滞的和不完全的。同时,DNA甲基化状况又是影响克隆胚胎发育和基因表达的关键因素之一。因此,深入研究主导DNA甲基化修饰的分子机理,探讨DNA去甲基化在供体细胞重编程过程中扮演的角色,从而进一步提高供体细胞重编程效率,提高克隆胚的发育潜能,这对于体细胞核移植效率的提高具有重要的意义。     

High in vitro development after somatic cell nuclear transfer and trichostatin A treatment of reconstructed porcine embryos

Abnormal epigenetic modification is supposed to be one of factors accounting for inefficient reprogramming of the donor cell nuclei in ooplasm after somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). Trichostatin A (TSA) is an inhibitor of histone deacetylase, potentially enhancing cloning efficiency. The aim of our present study was to establish the optimal TSA treatment in order to improve the development of handmade cloned (HMC) porcine embryos and examine the effect of TSA on their development. The blastocyst percentage of HMC embryos treated with 37.5nM TSA for 22-24h after activation increased up to 80% (control group-54%; P<0.05). TSA mediated increase in histone acetylation was proved by immunofluorescence analysis of acH3K9 and acH4K16. 2-cell stage embryos derived from TSA treatment displayed significant increase in histone acetylation compared to control embryos, whereas no significant differences were observed at blastocyst stage. During time-lapse monitoring, no difference was observed in the kinetics of 2-cell stage embryos. Compact morula (CM) stage was reached 15h later in TSA treated embryos compared to the control. Blastocysts (Day 5 and 6) from HMC embryos treated with TSA were transferred to 2 recipients resulting in one pregnancy and birth of one live and five dead piglets. Our data demonstrate that TSA treatment after HMC in pigs may affect reprogramming of the somatic genome resulting in higher in vitro embryo development, and enable full-term in vivo development.