2. Academic Validation
  3. Leonurine improves bovine oocyte maturation and subsequent embryonic development by reducing oxidative stress and improving mitochondrial function

Leonurine improves bovine oocyte maturation and subsequent embryonic development by reducing oxidative stress and improving mitochondrial function

  • Theriogenology. 2023 Mar 15:199:11-18. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2023.01.010.
Lv Zheng 1,  Yuwen Luo 1,  Dan Zhou 1,  Hongyu Liu 1,  Guizhen Zhou 1,  Lin Meng 2,  Yunpeng Hou 2,  Changbin Liu 3,  Jun Li 4,  Xiangwei Fu 5
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, Beijing Key Laboratory for Animal Genetic Improvement, College of Animal Science, Beijing, 100193, China.
  • 2 State Key Laboratories of Agrobiotechnology, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China.
  • 3 State Key Laboratory of Sheep Genetic Improvement and Healthy Breeding, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences, Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural and Reclamation Sciences, Shihezi, 832000, China.
  • 4 Department of Reproductive Medicine, Reproductive Medical Center, The First Hospital of Hebei Medical University, Shijiazhuang, Hebei, 050031, China. Electronic address: [email protected].
  • 5 Key Laboratory of Animal Genetics, Breeding and Reproduction of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, National Engineering Laboratory for Animal Breeding, Beijing Key Laboratory for Animal Genetic Improvement, College of Animal Science, Beijing, 100193, China; State Key Laboratory of Sheep Genetic Improvement and Healthy Breeding, Institute of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Sciences, Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural and Reclamation Sciences, Shihezi, 832000, China. Electronic address: [email protected].
PMID: 36680865 DOI: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2023.01.010
Abstract

It is acknowledged that excessive Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) level attributes greatly to the compromised developmental potential of oocytes matured in vitro. Although agents were applied to alleviate ROS levels, results were varied because of the distinct antioxidative activity and cell toxicity. Leonurine (LEO), extracted from the natural Chinese herb motherwort, is considered to be a potent free radical scavenger. Yet, it is undetermined whether LEO is benefit for oocyte development during in vitro maturation (IVM). In the present study, the effect of LEO on the quality of bovine oocyte as well as the underlying mechanism was investigated. We found that maturation rate (P < 0.01), subsequent blastocyst formation rate (P < 0.05), and the total blastocyst cell number (P < 0.05) after parthenogenetic activation were significantly increased in the group treated with 20 μM LEO. Moreover, a dramatic decline in ROS (P < 0.01), decreased lipid content (P < 0.01), elevated MMP level (P < 0.05), increased ATP content (P < 0.05), and reduced mitochondrial temperature (P < 0.01) were observed in oocytes treated with LEO. Furthermore, the expression level of anti-apoptotic protein BCL2 was significantly higher in LEO treated oocytes (P < 0.01), and the ratio of Bax/BCL2 was obvious decreased (P < 0.01). Finally, we found that LC3B intensity was significantly reduced (P < 0.05) while the rate of EdU positive nuclei was markedly increased (P < 0.05) in embryos derived from LEO-treated oocytes. Our results demonstrate that LEO exhibits a potent protective role in the acquisition of oocyte development capacity against oxidative stress during IVM, and provides a new solution for optimizing the in vitro culture system of bovine embryos.

Keywords

Antioxidant; Bovine; IVP; Leonurine (LEO); Mitochondria.

Figures
Products