Effect of cooling rate and cryoprotectant on the cryosurvival of equine spermatozoa

Cryosurvival of cells is reduced if the cooling rate used is suboptimal. If cells cool too rapidly, intracellular water will freeze, causing intracellular ice crystals. However, if spermatozoa are cooled too slowly, excessive cellular dehydration occurs, causing irreversible damage to cellular compartments. In addition, cryoprotectants are added to the freezing diluent to protect cells from damage during cryopreservation. This study was conducted to determine the optimal cooling rate for stallion spermatozoa frozen in the presence of three different cryoprotectants. Spermatozoa were frozen in a skim milk, egg yolk diluent containing 4% glycerol, and ethylene glycol or dimethyl formamide at 10 different cooling rates ranging from 5°C/min to 50°C/min. The percentage of viable spermatozoa was higher for spermatozoa cooled at 10°C/min than at 50°C/min (P < .05). Spermatozoa frozen using glycerol as the cryoprotectant had higher percentages of motile and progressively motile spermatozoa compared with spermatozoa frozen using the other two cryoprotectants (P < .05). In conclusion, the cryosurvival of stallion spermatozoa is similar when cooling rates of 5°C/min to 45°C/min are used, and when 4% cryoprotectant is used, glycerol is a more effective cryoprotectant than ethylene glycol or dimethyl formamide.     

OPS法与细管法冷冻小鼠胚胎的研究

用0.25 mL细管和OPS(open pu lled straw)管,对小鼠囊胚进行玻璃化冷冻,以比较2种方法的冷冻效果。结果表明,冷冻-解冻胚胎体外培养24 h后,2组的发育率分别为63.3%(31/49)和71.4%(55/77);OPS法在冻胚发育率上稍优于细管法,但无统计学差异(P>0.05);2组冷冻胚胎的培养发育率均显著低于鲜胚培养组94.3%的发育率(P<0.05)。采用OPS法冷冻小鼠8-细胞胚,其冻后培养发育率为55.6%,似乎要低于囊胚冷冻后的培养发育率,但差异不显著(P>0.05)。     

猪胚胎的OPS玻璃化冷冻

以广西巴马小型猪为供体,采用超数排卵技术,采集5~6日龄具有完整透明带的胚胎(囊胚/桑葚胚),采用二步法OPS(Open pulled straw)玻璃化冷冻技术进行保存,即胚胎首先在冷冻液1(TCM199 20?S 10%EG 10%DMSO)中平衡3 min,然后立即转入冷冻液2(TCM199 20?S 20%EG 20%DMSO 0.4 mol/LSUC)中并在1 min内装管(每管含2~6枚胚胎),直接投入液氮保存;3个月后解冻移植给8头受体母猪(每头移入25~26枚胚胎),其中1头怀孕产仔(8头活仔),获得猪胚胎超低温(-196℃)冷冻后代。     

The effects of cooling and vitrification of embryos from mares treated with equine follicle-stimulating hormone on pregnancy rates after nonsurgical transfer

Equine embryos can remain viable for 12 to 24 hours when cooled and stored at 5°C.¹ Cryopreservation of embryos would allow for long-term preservation of genetic material and more efficient management of embryo recipients. This study compared pregnancy rates after transfer of equine embryos vitrified within 1 hour of collection or cooled for 12 to 19 hours before vitrification. Mares (N = 40) were superovulated using equine follicle-stimulating hormone (eFSH). Embryos were recovered 6.5 days after ovulation or 8 days after human chorionic gonadotropin. Forty morulae or early blastocysts with a grade of 1 to 2 and <300 mm in diameter were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatments: Group 1 (n = 20), washed 4 times in a commercial holding medium and then vitrified; Group 2 (n = 20), washed 3 times and then stored in the same holding medium at 5°C to 8°C in a passive cooling device for 12 to 19 hours before being vitrified. To thaw, embryos were warmed by holding the straw in air at room temperature for 10 seconds and then submerged in a water bath (20°C to 22°C) for an additional 10 seconds. The contents of the straw were transferred directly into a recipient that had ovulated 4 to 6 days previously. There were no differences (P > .05) in embryo diameter, grade, or morphology score between treatment groups before vitrification. Pregnancy rates (day 16) were not different (P > .05) between embryos vitrified immediately after collection (15 of 20; 75%) and embryos cooled for 12 to 19 hours before vitrification (13 of 20; 65%). Based on these results, small equine embryos (<300 mm) can be stored at 5°C to 8°C for 12 to 19 hours before vitrification without a significant loss of viability.     

Survival and developmental competence of bovine embryos at different developmental stages and separated blastomeres after vitrification in different solutions

Generating techniques to enhance the success of blastomere separation is important for bovine economy, because it increases the number of transferable embryos. This study aimed to identify the optimum cryoprotectants for the vitrification of bovine embryos and the separation of blastomeres at different stages. In experiment 1, expanded blastocysts were vitrified in two different vitrification solutions, either (1) ethylene glycol (EG) + propylene glycol (PG) or (2) EG. The survival rate of blastocysts in the EG + PG was higher than that of the EG. In experiment 2, intact two‐cell and eight‐cell stage embryos were vitrified in the same solutions used in experiment 1. The EG + PG produced more dead embryos than the EG (P < 0.05). In the EG, the rate of blastocyst formation was similar for the vitrified two‐ and eight‐cell embryos and the non‐vitrified ywo‐cell embryos. In experiment 3, separated blastomeres of two‐ and eight‐cell embryos were vitrified in EG. There was no difference in the rate of blastocyst formation and total number of cells between the two vitrified groups. In summary, at the blastocyst stage, EG + PG was superior, based on both survival rates and cell numbers; however, at the 2–8 cell stage, the use of EG alone was better than the other groups.     

Effect of cryoprotectant composition on in vitro viability of in vitro fertilized and cloned bovine embryos following vitrification and in-straw dilution

In this study the efficacy of the combination of glycerol (GLY) and ethylene glycol (EG) as cryoprotectants in a vitrification method developed for direct embryo transfer was evaluated by in vitro development of in vitro fertilized (IVF) and somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) embryos after vitrification. The IVF and SCNT blastocysts were vitrified in either 40% GLY, 30% GLY + 10% EG, or 20% GLY + 20% EG using French straws. After warming, the straws were held vertically for 1 min without shaking and were then placed horizontally for 5 min to dilute the cryoprotectants. After washing, the vitrified-warmed embryos were cultured in vitro for 72 h. There were no differences among the vitrification solutions with respect to the rates of vitrified-warmed IVF and SCNT embryos surviving and developing to the hatched blastocyst stage. However, the rates of development to the hatched blastocyst stage of the SCNT embryos vitrified with 40% GLY tended to be higher than those vitrified with 30% GLY + 10% EG or 20% GLY + 20% EG (26% vs. 7-8%, respectively). The development rates to the hatched blastocyst stage of the IVF and SCNT embryos vitrified with solution containing EG were significantly lower (P<0.05) than those of non-vitrified embryos. These results suggest that use of the combination of GLY and EG as cryoprotectants had no beneficial effect on the viability of embryos after in-straw dilution. However, this method is so simple that it can be used for practical direct transfer of vitrified embryos in the field.     

Laser-assisted vitrification of large equine embryos

The major difficulty in providing the benefits of embryo cryopreservation for equine agriculture is the mismatch between the optimal embryo age for collection from the mare (7-8 days after ovulation was detected) and the optimal age for freezing under current methods (6.5 days after ovulation). To overcome this limitation, we tested a method to enhance penetration of cryopreservative across the capsule and trophoblast of day 7 and 8 embryos combined with rapid freezing by vitrification. Six small embryos (<300 μm in diameter) were collected on day 6-7 after ovulation and twelve larger embryos were recovered on day 7-8. In the treatment group, replacement of blastocoelic fluid with cryopreservative solution was facilitated by a laser system used to create a small opening in the embryonic capsule and trophectoderm. All embryos were vitrified using a CryoLeaf freezing support. After recovery from freezing and embryo transfer, three of four small untreated embryos (<300 μm in diameter, 75%) and four of nine large blastocysts in the treatment group (>300 μm in diameter, 44%) resulted in a vesicle as detected by ultrasonography approximately one week after transfer. However, only one recipient mare was still pregnant on day 23, and she delivered a live foal. Further investigation is required to determine why most of the embryos in this experiment were lost between day 13 and day 23 of gestation.     

Equilibrium vitrification of mouse embryos at various developmental stages using low concentrations of cryoprotectants

We previously developed a new vitrification method (equilibrium vitrification) by which two-cell mouse embryos can be vitrified in liquid nitrogen in a highly dehydrated/concentrated state using low concentrations of cryoprotectants. In the present study, we examined whether this method is effective for mouse embryos at multiple developmental stages. Four-cell embryos, eight-cell embryos, morulae, and blastocysts were vitrified with EDFS10/10a, 10% (v/v) ethylene glycol and 10% (v/v) DMSO in FSa solution. The FSa solution was PB1 medium containing 30% (w/v) Ficoll PM-70 plus 0.5 M sucrose. The state of dehydration/concentration was assessed by examining the survival of vitrified embryos after storage at –80°C. When four-cell embryos and eight-cell embryos were vitrified with EDFS10/10a in liquid nitrogen and then stored at –80°C, the survival rate was high, even after 28 days, with relatively high developmental ability. On the other hand, the survival of morulae and blastocysts vitrified in liquid nitrogen and stored at –80°C for four days was low. Therefore, morulae and blastocysts cannot be vitrified in a highly dehydrated/concentrated state using the same method as with two-cell embryos. However, when blastocysts were shrunken artificially before vitrification, survival was high after storage at –80°C for four days with high developmental ability. In conclusion, the equilibrium vitrification method using low concentrations of cryoprotectants, which is effective for two-cell mouse embryos, is also useful for embryos at multiple stages. This method enables the convenient transportation of vitrified embryos using dry ice.     

Open-pulled straw (OPS) vitrification of in vitro fertilised mouse embryos at various stages

The present study was designed to investigate the cryotolerance of in vitro fertilised (IVF) mouse embryos at various preimplantation developmental stages. IVF mouse embryos were vitrified by the open-pulled straw (OPS) method. After warming, embryos were morphologically evaluated and assessed by their development to blastocysts, hatched blastocysts or term. The results showed that a high proportion (93.3-100.0%) of vitrified embryos at all developmental stages were morphologically normal after recovery. The developmental rate of vitrified 1-cell embryos to blastocyst (40.0%) or hatched blastocyst (32.7%) or term (9.3%) was significantly lower than that from other stages (P < 0.05). Vitrified embryos from 2-cell to early blastocyst stage showed similar blastocyst (71.8-89.5%) and hatched blastocyst rates (61.1-69.6%) and could develop to term without a significant loss of survival compared with those of fresh embryos (P > 0.05). Vitrified 2-cell embryos showed the highest survival rate in vivo (50.6%, 88/174), compared with that from other stages (9.3-30.5%, P < 0.05). The data demonstrate that the OPS method is suitable for the cryopreservation of IVF mouse embryos from 2-cell stage to early blastocyst stage without a significant loss of survival. Embryos at the 2-cell stage had the best tolerance for cryopreservation in the present study.     

玻璃化冷冻对小鼠卵母细胞超微结构的影响

以小鼠卵母细胞作为试验材料,通过透射电镜方法观察玻璃化冷冻对卵母细胞超微结构的影响,初步探讨玻璃化冷冻损伤机理。结果发现:暴露组卵母细胞除有少量线粒体受到损伤,变得粗糙模糊外,其它无明显变化;冷冻组卵母细胞冻融后有不同程度的结构损伤,主要表现为胞质中的中间纤维解体,微绒毛变短甚至缺失,线粒体粗糙模糊,胞质外围皮质颗粒数量减少,透明带变得模糊不清、有的地方甚至已经破裂,细胞基质出现大量空泡,并形成有线粒体-空泡复合体。结果提示,玻璃化冷冻会对卵母细胞超微结构产生一定的损伤,这主要是由于玻璃化冷冻过程中机械损伤造成的。     

玻璃化冷冻对小鼠卵母细胞透明带的影响

本文旨在通过研究玻璃化冷冻小鼠卵母细胞透明带超微结构、透明带厚度(ZPT)、厚度变量(ZPTV)及双折射分值(ZPB)的影响,分析三者间的相关性,探求玻璃化冷冻液的最佳配方。选用4组应用最广泛的冷冻液配方对小鼠卵母细胞进行处理,与未处理的卵母细胞比较存活率、受精率、卵裂率和囊胚率,选出最适冷冻液配方。以新鲜卵母细胞为对照组,进行冷冻程序但并没有进行实际冷冻的卵母细胞为处理组,进行玻璃化冷冻复苏的卵母细胞为冷冻组,扫描电镜观察各组的透明带超微结构变化;检测3组细胞的ZPT和ZPB,并对ZPT和ZPB、ZPTV和ZPB之间相关性进行分析。结果发现HM+7.5%(DMSO+EG),HM+15%(DMSO+EG)+0.5 mol/L Su冷冻液组对卵母细胞发育潜力影响较小。玻璃化冷冻对ZPT(6.05±0.10μm vs 5.77±0.60μm)和ZPB(0.30±0.38 vs 1.22±0.21)有显著影响(P<0.05),且ZPT与ZPB呈负相关(r=-0.299)(P<0.05)。扫描电镜发现玻璃化冷冻造成卵母细胞透明带呈熔融状,表面凹凸不平,窗孔基本不可见,甚至出现透明带部分脱落的情况;冷冻组透明带超微结构的正常率较对照组和处理组下降,其中粗ZP(44.9%对92.9%和84.8%)(P<0.01)和光滑ZP(31.0%对7.4%和9.1%)(P<0.01)。结果表明,玻璃化冷冻影响卵母细胞的发育潜能,低温对透明带的超微结构有较大的负面影响。     

Relation between the quality of cattle embryos after thawing and the pregnancy rate after their transfer

One hundred and forty-two deep-frozen seven days old bovine embryos were, after thawing and stepwise dilution of cryoprotectant, morphologically evaluated under the stereomicroscope. According to the morphology the embryos were divided into four categories as follows: I--fully expanded blastocysts, II--slightly contracted embryos with a minute part of degenerated cells, III--contracted embryos with some degenerated cells, IV--degenerated embryos and those with heavy-damaged zona pellucida, or its complete loss. After surgical transfer of 37 embryos of class I, 16 (43.2%) recipients were pregnant. Transfer of 53 embryos of class II established 20 (37.7%) pregnancies. After transfer of 28 embryos of class III, 10 (35.7%) recipients were pregnant. Twenty four (17%) embryos included in class IV were excluded from transfer. These results indicate that simple morphological evaluation of embryo after freezing and thawing secures relatively objective selection in field conditions. At least this method enables to reveal morphological changes which are not compatible with further development.     

冷冻保存能降低绵羊卵母细胞受精能力

本实验研究了体外成熟绵羊卵母细胞在舍抗冻保护荆DMS()和EG的冷冻液中暴露和OPS法玻璃化冷冻保存后对体外受精卵裂率、精子入卵率、皮质颗粒分布、酶溶解透明带时间及雌原核形成的影响.将体外成熟24 h的绵羊卵母细胞分为3组:(1)对照组,卵母细胞不进行处理;(2)毒性组,卵母细胞在冷冻液中进行暴露但不投入液氮中冷冻;(3)冷冻组,卵母细胞利用OPS法进行玻璃化冷冻.处理组卵母细胞在浓度递减的蔗糖溶液中脱除抗冻保护剂.结果,卵母细胞体外受精的卵裂率和单精子入卵率,毒性组(62.3%和29.3%)和冷冻组(67.6%和28.2%)显著低于对照组(78.4%和45.0%)(P＜0.05),毒性组和冷冻组间无显著差异(P＞0.05).为了研究冷冻保存导致卵母细胞受精能力降低的机制,处理组及对照组一部份卵母细胞分别于处理后0 h(IVM24 h)、2 h(IVM26 h)和体外受精后12 h(IVFl2 h)测定皮质颗粒分布和用0.1%链霉蛋白酶溶解透明带时间,另一部份卵母细胞则在不含有精子的受精液中孵育12 h后测定雌原核形成率.结果,在IVM24 h和IVM26 h,皮质颗粒呈完全释放的比例,毒性组(41.2%和40.8%)和冷冻组(41.7%和51.8%)显著性高于对照组(7.1%和18.4%)(P＜0.05);IVM26 h酶溶解透明带时间,毒性组(435.6±16.6)s和冷冻组(422.3±14.6)s显著长于对照组(381.6±15.3) s(P＜0.05);雌原核形成率,毒性组(58.7%)和冷冻组(63.9%)组显著高于对照组(8.2%)(P＜0.05).上述结果表明,舍DMS()和EG的冷冻液对体外成熟绵羊卵母细胞具有孤雌激活作用,引起皮质颗粒的提前释放,导致透明带变硬,降低卵母细胞的受精能力.     

Amount of Cas9 protein introduced into mouse embryos via electroporation affects the genome-editing rate

Genetically engineered animals can be produced quickly using genome editing technology. A new electroporation technique, technique for animal knockout system by electroporation (TAKE), aids in the production of genome-edited animals by introducing nucleases into intact embryos using electroporation instead of microinjection. It is difficult to confirm nuclease delivery into embryos after electroporation using the conventional TAKE method. We previously reported the successful visualization of fluorescently-labeled tracrRNA in embryos after electroporation Cas9 paired with the crRNA:tracrRNA-ATTO550 duplex. However, the amount of fluorescence signal from labeled tracrRNA in embryos did not correlate with the genome editing rate of the offspring. This study examined the visualization of Cas9 protein in embryos after electroporation and its correlation with the genome editing rate of the offspring using a fluorescent Cas9 fusion protein. The fluorescent Cas9 protein was observed in all embryos that survived following electroporation. We found that the efficiency of Cas9 protein delivery into embryos via electroporation depended on the pulse length. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the amount of fluorescent Cas9 protein detected in the embryos correlated with the genome editing efficiency of the embryos. These data indicate that the TAKE method using fluorescently-labeled nucleases can be used to optimize the delivery conditions and verify nuclease delivery into individual embryos prior to embryo transfer for the efficient production of genome-edited animals.     

Survival of mouse blastocysts after low-temperature preservation under high pressure

Cryoinjuries are almost inevitable during the freezing of embryos. The present study examines the possibility of using high hydrostatic pressure to reduce substantially the freezing point of the embryo-holding solution, in order to preserve embryos at subzero temperatures, thus avoiding all the disadvantages of freezing. The pressure of 210 MPa lowers the phase transition temperature of water to -21 degrees C. According to the results of this study, embryos can survive in high hydrostatic pressure environment at room temperature; the time embryos spend under pressure without significant loss in their survival could be lengthened by gradual decompression. Pressurisation at 0 degrees C significantly reduced the survival capacity of the embryos; gradual decompression had no beneficial effect on survival at that stage. Based on the findings, the use of the phenomena is not applicable in this form, since pressure and low temperature together proved to be lethal to the embryos in these experiments. The application of hydrostatic pressure in embryo cryopreservation requires more detailed research, although the experience gained in this study can be applied usefully in different circumstances.     

Effect of the polyvinylpyrrolidone concentration of cryoprotectant on mouse embryo development and production of pups: 7.5% of PVP is beneficial for in vitro and in vivo development of frozen-thawed mouse embryos

In this study, we investigated the effect of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) concentration on in vitro and in vivo development of 2 cell stage, vitrified ICR mouse embryos using a cryoprotectant consisting of ethylene glycol (EG) and sucrose. M2 was selected as the basic medium for vitrification and thawing. After equilibration with 4% (v/v) EG at 37 C for 15 min, the embryos were vitrified with 35% EG, 5, 6 or 7.5% (w/v) PVP and 0.4 M sucrose at 37 C for 30 sec. One week later, the cryotubes of cryopreserved embryos in liquid nitrogen were directly immersed into a 37 C water bath for 1 min and transferred serially into 300 mul of 0.5 or 0.3 M sucrose at room temperature for 5 min and M2 medium at 37 C for 10 min. The surviving embryos were cultured in KSOM (potassium simplex optimized medium) for 96-120 h in an atmosphere of 5% CO(2) in humidified air. Survival was evaluated by morphological appearance, including membrane integrity and presence of apoptotic blastomeres after thawing. For in vivo evaluation, blastocysts were transferred to the uteri of pseudopregnant mice. The survival rates of the 5 and 7.5% PVP concentration groups showed a significantly higher difference compared with that of the 6% PVP group (85.5 and 86.5 vs. 71.2%), respectively. Each pup in the of 5 and 6% groups was cannibalized immediately after parturition. A litter of live pups was obtained from only the 7.5% PVP groups. Our study indicated that supplementation of EG and sucrose cryoprotectant solution with 7.5% PVP is optimal for successful vitrification of 2-cell stage ICR mouse embryos.