Vitamin E supplementation may negatively affect preimplantation development and mitochondrial ultrastructure of vitrified murine embryos

[摘要] Objective:  To observe the effects of vitamin E on post-vitrification preimplantation development, gross morphology as well as mitochondrial distribution and ultrastructure. Methods:  Twenty-four female C57BL/6NTac mice, aged 12-16 weeks, were randomly divided into four groups. Group A did not receive any treatment and served as the control group. Group B was treated with corn oil stripped of tocopherols and served as the vehicle group. Group C was treated with 60 mg/kg body weight of tocotrienol-rich-fraction with corn oil stripped of tocopherols. Group D was treated with 60 mg/kg body weight of alpha-tocopherol with corn oil stripped of tocopherols. All treatments were administered orally for 7 consecutive days. After superovulation and mating with fertile males, 2-cell stage embryos were harvested for vitrification. Post vitrification development in vitro, gross morphology and ultrastructure were compared between groups. Results:  The number of 2 and 8-cell embryo, and blastocysts in the treatment and control groups were not significantly different (P0.05). Following vitrification, all 2-cell embryos had equal-sized blastomeres and intact zona pellucida. Mitochondrial aggregation toward the perinuclear region was seen in all of the treatment groups. Both groups C and D had vacuolated mitochondria, which was reflected in the trend of preimplantation development reduction. Conclusions:  Vitamin E supplementation of 60 mg/kg body weight does not improve the viability of healthy embryos according to this study. As a result, the most effective dose of vitamin E supplementation may be determined by the initial quality of the embryos.

[学科分类] 兽医学

[关键词] Mitochondria;Preimplantation;Embryo;Vitrification;Vitamin E;Alpha-tocopherol;Tocotrienol-rich-fraction;Transmission electron microscopy