The protective role of ginsenoside compound K in porcine oocyte meiotic maturation failed caused by benzo(a)pyrene during in vitro maturation

Cyclophosphamide reduces gene transcriptional activity and embryo in vitro development by inhibiting NF-κB expression through decreasing AcH4K12

Cyclophosphamide (CTX), a widely used chemotherapeutic agent for cancer treatment, has been associated with long-term toxicity and detrimental effects on oocytes and ovaries, resulting in female reproductive dysfunction. This study aimed to investigate the potential impact of CTX on in vitro maturation (IVM) injury of porcine oocytes and subsequent embryonic development, as well as its effects on epigenetic modification and gene activation during early embryonic development. The results demonstrated that CTX treatment caused aberrant spindle structure and mitochondrial dysfunction during oocyte maturation, inducing DNA damage and early apoptosis, which consequently disrupted meiotic maturation. Indeed, CTX significantly reduced the in vitro developmental capacity of porcine embryos, and induced DNA damage and apoptosis in in vitro fertilization (IVF) blastocysts. Importantly, CTX induced abnormal histone modification of AcH4K12 in early porcine embryos. Moreover, addition of LBH589 before zygotic genome activation (ZGA) effectively increased AcH4K12 levels and restored the protein expression of NF-κB, which can effectively enhance the in vitro developmental potential of IVF embryos. The DNA damage and apoptosis induced by CTX compromised the quality of the blastocysts, which were recovered by supplementation with LBH589. This restoration was accompanied by down-regulation of BAX mRNA expression and up-regulation of BCL2, POU5F1, SOX2 and SOD1 mRNA expression. These findings indicated that CTX caused abnormal histone modification of AcH4K12 in early porcine embryos and reduced the protein expression of NF-κB, a key regulator of early embryo development, which may block subsequent ZGA processes.

Presence of Ginsenoside Re during in vitro maturation protects porcine oocytes from heat stress

Heat stress (HS) affects the development of porcine gametes and embryos negatively, induces the decrease of reproductive ability significantly, threatens global pig production. Ginsenoside Re (GRe), is a main bioactive component of ginseng, shows very specific anti-apoptotic, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. To investigate the alleviating effect of GRe on the in vitro maturation of porcine oocyte under the HS, the polar body extrusion rate, intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and glutathione (GSH), ATP content, mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) were assessed. For the current study, porcine cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs) randomly divided into four groups: the control, GRe, HS and HS+GRe group. The results showed that HS inhibited the cumulus cell expansion and polar body extrusion rate, the levels of GSH and MMP, the ATP content, the gene expression of Nrf2 of porcine oocytes and the parthenogenetic activation (PA) embryo development competence, but GRe treatment could partly neutralize these adverse effects. Moreover, HS increased the ROS formation and percentage of apoptosis, the gene expression of HSP90, CASP3 and CytoC of porcine oocytes, but GRe could weaken the effect on Cyto C and BAX expression induced by HS. Taken together, these results showed that the presence of GRe during in vitro maturation protects porcine oocytes from HS. These findings lay a foundation for GRe may be used as a potential protective drug to protect porcine oocytes against HS damage.

Ascorbic acid protects the toxic effects of aflatoxin B1 on yak oocyte maturation

High-quality oocytes are a prerequisite for successful fertilization. Mammals feeding on aflatoxin-contaminated feed can cause reproductive toxicity, including follicular atresia, poor oocyte development and maturation, and aberrant epigenetic modifications of oocytes. In addition, the important role of ascorbic acid (AA) in reproductive biology has been confirmed, and AA is widely used as an antioxidant in cell culture. However, the toxic effects of aflatoxin B₁ (AFB₁ ) on yak oocytes and whether AA has protective effects remain unknown. In this study, we found that exposure to AFB₁ impedes meiotic maturation of oocytes, promotes apoptosis by triggering high levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), and disrupts mitochondrial distribution and actin integrity, resulting in a decrease in the fertilization ability and parthenogenetic development ability of oocytes. In addition, these injuries changed the DNA methylation transferase transcription level of mature oocytes. After adding 50 μg/ml AA, the indices recovered to levels close to those of the control group. The results showed that AA could protect yak oocytes from the toxic effects of AFB₁ and improve the quality of oocytes.

Ginseng alleviates folliculogenesis disorders via induction of cell proliferation and downregulation of apoptotic markers in nicotine-treated mice

Background

Ginseng is a powerful phytoestrogen with high antioxidant properties.

Objective

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of Panax Ginseng (PG) on folliculogenesis, proliferation, and apoptosis in the ovary impaired by nicotine.

Methods

Forty adult mice were divided into five groups. Control, sham, and nicotine groups, and co-treated groups of nicotine and ginseng in doses of 0.5 and 1 g/kg. Folliculogenesis was assessed via histopathology and serum evaluation of estradiol, progesterone, follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and luteinizing hormone (LH) by ELISA. Lipid peroxidation and antioxidant enzyme activities both in homogenate tissue and serum were assayed by colorimetric analysis. Apoptotic markers of cytochrome c (Cyt c), Bax, and Bcl-2 were evaluated by RT-PCR. Proliferative index was studied by the Ki-67 immunostaining procedure.

Results

In comparison to the control or sham groups, nicotine significantly reduced the levels of FSH, LH, and estradiol hormones. An insignificant reduction was observed in the progesterone hormone. Nicotine reduced all healthy follicle numbers, except primordial (P = 0.001). Malondialdehyde (MDA) was increased in tissue and serum in the nicotine group (P = 0.01). Serum catalase (CAT) and enzymatic activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) both were reduced in tissue and the serum, in the nicotine group. Nicotine induced a reduction in the proliferative indexes of granulosa and theca cells in pre-antral and antral follicles (P = 0.001). However, its effect on the proliferative index of stroma cells was not significant. Apoptotic markers were elevated in the nicotine group (P = 0.001). Co-treatment with ginseng elevated all sex hormones, increased healthy follicles, and reduced tissue or serum lipid peroxidation, compared with the nicotine group (p < 0.05). Co-Treatment with ginseng also reduced the expression of apoptotic markers and increased the proliferative indexes in granulosa and theca cells in pre-antral and antral follicles and also in stroma cells, in comparison to the nicotine group (P = 0.001). All above-mentioned alterations following treatment with ginseng were remarkable, especially in the dose of 1 g/kg.

Conclusion

This study showed ginseng protects folliculogenesis via alteration of hypothalamic- pituitary–gonadal (HPG) axis, induction of proliferation in ovarian somatic cells, reduction of lipid peroxidation, and downregulation of apoptotic markers in the mouse ovary, treated with nicotine.

Paeoniflorin improves the in vitro maturation of benzo(a)pyrene treated porcine oocytes via effects on the sonic hedgehog pathway

Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is a toxic substance that people are often exposed to. It has serious harmful effects on the body, and has a destructive effect on oocytes and cumulus cells. Here, we found that paeoniflorin (Pae), a traditional Chinese medicine monomer with antioxidant effects, decreased BaP-induced meiotic failure by increasing the activity of the Sonic hedgehog (SHH) signaling pathway and reducing the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS). We found that the in vitro maturation (IVM) rate was significantly increased (P < 0.05) in the 0.1 μM Pae and BaP (co-treatment) group compared with BaP group due to reduced ROS levels and increased mitochondrial membrane potential (ΔΨ) and ATP content. The mRNA expression levels of oocyte maturation and cumulus cell expansion-related genes were also significantly higher in the co-treatment group. To demonstrate the quality of oocytes, the development capacity of parthenogenetically activated (PA) and in vitro fertilization (IVF) embryos from different treatment groups oocytes were determined.The blastocyst formation rate was significantly higher in PA and IVF embryos derived from oocytes in the co-treatment group than in those derived from oocytes in the BaP group. To further confirm that the SHH signaling pathway was involved in causing these effects of Pae, we treated oocytes with Pae and BaP in the presence or absence of cyclopamine (Cy), an inhibitor of this pathway. Cy abolished the effects of Pae in BaP treated porcine oocytes. In conclusion, Pae improves the IVM capacity of BaP-treated porcine oocytes by activating the SHH signaling pathway, inhibiting ROS production, and increasing ΔΨ.

The Complex Interplay between Autophagy and NLRP3 Inflammasome in Renal Diseases

Autophagy is a highly conserved process of the eukaryotic cell cycle. It plays an important role in the survival and maintenance of cells by degrading organelles, proteins, and macromolecules in the cytoplasm and the circulation of degraded products. The dysfunction of autophagy can lead to the pathology of many human diseases. The nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor family, pyrin domain-containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome belongs to the family of nucleotide-binding and oligomerization domain-like receptors (NLRs) and can induce caspase-1 activation, thus leading to the maturation and secretion of interleukin-1beta (IL-1β) and IL-18. It has been reported that the interplay between autophagy and NLRP3 inflammasome is involved in many diseases, including renal diseases. In this review, the interplay between autophagy and the NLRP3 inflammasome and the mechanisms in renal diseases are explored to provide ideas for relevant basic research in the future.

Mogroside V Alleviates Oocyte Meiotic Defects and Quality Deterioration in Benzo(a)pyrene-Exposed Mice

Accumulating evidence has demonstrated that benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) exposure adversely affects female reproduction, especially oocyte meiotic maturation and subsequent embryo development. Although we previously found that mogroside V (MV), a major bioactive component of S. grosvenorii, can protect oocytes from quality deterioration caused by certain stresses, whether MV can alleviate BaP exposure-mediated oocyte meiotic defects remains unknown. In this study, female mice were exposed to BaP and treated concomitantly with MV by gavage. We found that BaP exposure reduced the oocyte maturation rate and blastocyst formation rate, which was associated with increased abnormalities in spindle formation and chromosome alignment, reduced acetylated tubulin levels, damaged actin polymerization and reduced Juno levels, indicating that BaP exposure results in oocyte nucleic and cytoplasmic damage. Interestingly, MV treatment significantly alleviated all the BaP exposure-mediated defects mentioned above, indicating that MV can protect oocytes from BaP exposure-mediated nucleic and cytoplasmic damage. Additionally, BaP exposure increased intracellular ROS levels, meanwhile induced DNA damage and early apoptosis in oocytes, but MV treatment ameliorated these defective parameters, therefore it is possible that MV restored BaP-mediated oocyte defects by reducing oxidative stress. In summary, our findings demonstrate that MV might alleviate oocyte meiotic defects and quality deterioration in BaP-exposed mice.