Reproduction Abstracts

Globally, malnutrition is the single greatest threat to public health. Maternal malnutrition during pregnancy is detrimental to foetal development and increases the risk of many chronic diseases in later life. Neurological consequences include increased risk of schizophrenia and abnormal anxiety-related behaviour. Previous studies have shown that maternal protein restriction has a negative effect on foetal brain development in vivo and we previously showed an effect o...

Introduction: Several studies support the notion that in vitro pre-maturation treatments aimed to improve the developmental capability of immature oocytes have a different effect depending on the oocyte metabolic status at the time of its removal from the follicle. We demonstrated that changes in large-scale chromatin configuration within the germinal vesicle (GV) of fully-grown bovine oocytes are related to the acquisition of developmental competence. In particular, ...

Although GH receptor (GHR) gene deletion causes a hereditary dwarfism and also shows a longer lifespan, the fact was shown only in mice. Because it was difficult to generate knockout (KO) animals other than mice. Recently, the generation of KO animals became possible without difficulty due to advances in genome editing technologies such as transcription activator-like effector nuclease (TALEN). In the present study, we examined the effect of cRNA concentration microinjected cy...

The inclusion of amino acids in pre-implantation embryo culture media is known to improve the rate of development and embryo viability. Our studies have shown that embryos cultured in L-proline from the zygote to the blastocyst stage develop better than embryos cultured in the absence of amino acids. This study aimed to identify the pre-implantation stage(s) at which L-proline transport is required for development to be improved and then to charac...

Introduction: RNA-binding proteins (RBP) are important catalysts of post-transcriptional gene regulation. The RBP MSI2 directs stem cell function and division through established roles in cell cycle dynamics and cell fate determination. During the complex process of mammalian spermatogenesis, the directed uncoupling of transcription and translation is essential for the correct development of male gametes. We have previously established that dysregulation of MSI2 during germ ce...

Controlled gene regulation during gamete development is vital for maintaining reproductive potential. During the process of gamete development, male germ cells experience extended periods of inactive transcription despite requirements for continued growth and differentiation. Spermatogenesis therefore provides an ideal model to study the effects of post-transcriptional control on gene regulation. During spermatogenesis post-transcriptional regulation is orchestrated by abundan...

The fetus is antigenically distinct from the mother and therefore the maternal immune system must establish immunological tolerance towards the fetus to support pregnancy. Fetal-maternal tolerance is primarily mediated by a specialised subset of CD4+T cells known as regulatory T (Treg) cells. Absence or reduced function of Treg cells at embryo implantation causes infertility in mice and is implicated as a cause of reproductive disorders in women. The importance of a...

Introduction: Previous reports in different species have shown that various endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) can modulate ovarian steroidogenesis with the majority of studies focussing on granulosa cells. To test the hypothesis that exposure to EDCs might also perturb thecal steroidogenesis we conducted in vitro dose–response experiments to evaluate the direct effects of selected EDCs on androstenedione and progesterone production by cultured bovine theca ce...

Introduction: Aflatoxins are poisonous by-products from soil-borne fungus Aspergillus flavus, which involved in the decomposition of plant materials. Various food products, such as maize, sorghum, millet, rice and wheat, are contaminated with aflatoxins. Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is the most toxic aflatoxin and classified as carcinogen and mutagen. The lethality and toxicity extent of AFB1 varies between animals and organs. In the current study we examined the effects on sperm funct...

Introduction: Atrazine (ATZ) is one of the most extensively used herbicides, known as a ubiquitous environmental contaminant and found in water sources. ATZ was detected in human amniotic fluid, serum and urine, however, the risk associated with ATZ exposure on sperm is less known.Methods: Sperm was isolated from fresh ejaculates or testicular-epididymis compartments (head, body, tail) and capacitated in vitro for 4 h with 0, 0.1, 1 or 10 μ...