Reproductive BioMedicine Online
Volume 20, Issue 3 , Pages 328-334 , March 2010

Addition of sphingosine-1-phosphate to human oocyte culture medium decreases embryo fragmentation

Received 7 May 2009 ,Revised 16 June 2009 ,Accepted 19 November 2009.

References 

  1. Alikani M, Cohen J. Patterns of cell fragmentation in human embryo. J. Assist. Reprod. Genet. 1995;12(Suppl.):28s
  2. Alikani M, Cohen J, Tomkin G, Garrisi J, Mack C, Scott R. Human embryo fragmentation in vitro and implications for pregnancy and implantation. Fertil. Steril. 1999;71:836–842
  3. Antczak M, Van Blerkom J. Temporal and spatial aspects of fragmentation in early human embryos: possible effects on developmental competence and association with the differential elimination of regulatory proteins from polarized domains. Hum. Reprod. 1999;14:429–447
  4. Bosco L, Ruvolo G, Morici G, Manno M, Cittadini E, Roccheri MC. Apoptosis in human unfertilized oocytes after intracytoplasmic sperm injection. Fertil. Steril. 2005;84(5):1417–1423
  5. Choi CH, Jeong JS, Yoo BI, Jin YX, Moon DC, Yoo HS, et al. Sphingosine-1-phosphate and sphingosine kinase activity during chicken embryonic development. Arch. Pharmacol. Res. 2007;30(4):502–506
  6. Cryns VL, Yuan J. The cutting edge: caspases in apoptosis and disease. In:  Lockshin RA,  Zakeri Z,  Tilly JL editor. When Cells Die. A Comprehensive Evaluation of Apoptosis and Programmed Cell Death. New York, USA: Wiley-Liss; 1998;p. 177–210
  7. Edwards RG, Beard HK. Oocyte polarity and cell determination in early mammalian embryos. Mol. Hum. Reprod. 1997;3:863–905
  8. Eliyahu E, Park JH, Shtraizent N, He X, Schuchman EH. Acid ceramidase is a novel factor required for early embryo survival. J. Fed. Am. Soc. Exp. Biol. 2007;21(7):1403–1409
  9. El-Shershaby AM, Hinchliffe JR. Epithelial autolysis during implantation of the mouse blastocyst: an ultrastructural study. J. Embryol. Exp. Morphol. 1975;33:1067–1080
  10. Enari M, Sakahira H, Yokoyama H, Okawa K, Iwamatsu A, Nagata S. A caspase-activated DNase that degrades DNA during apoptosis, and its inhibitor ICAD. Nature. 1998;391(6662):43–50
  11. Giorgetti C, Terriou P, Auquier P, Hans E, Spach JL, Salzmann J, et al. Embryo score to predict implantation after in-vitro fertilization: based on 957 single embryo transfers. Hum. Reprod. 1995;10(9):2427–2431
  12. Gross VS, Hess M, Coope GM. Mouse embryonic stem cells and pre-implantation embryos require signaling through the phosphatidy 1-inositol 3-kinase pathway to suppress apoptosis. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 2005;70(3):324–332
  13. Hardy K, Handyside AH, Winston RM. The human blastocyst: cell number, death and allocation during late preimplantation development in vitro. Development. 1989;107(3):597–604
  14. Johnstone ED, Chan G, Sibley CP, Davidge ST, Lowen B, Guilbert LJ. Sphingosine-1-phosphate inhibition of placental trophoblast differentiation through a G(i)-coupled receptor response. J. Lipid Res. 2005;46:1833–1839
  15. Jurisicova A, Acton BM. Deadly decisions: the role of genes regulating programmed cell death in human preimplantation embryo development. Reproduction. 2004;128:281–291
  16. Jurisicova A, Antenos M, Varmusa S, Tilly JL, Casper RF. Expression of apoptosis-related genes during human pre-implantation embryo development: potential roles for the Harakiri gene product and Caspase-3 in blastomer fragmentation. Mol. Hum. Reprod. 2003;9(3):133–141
  17. Jurisicova A, Lee HJ, D’Estaing SG, Tilly J, Perez GI. Molecular requirements for doxorubicin-mediated death in murine oocytes. Cell Death Differ. 2006;13(9):1466–1474
  18. Jurisicova A, Rogers I, Fasciani A, Casper RF, Varmuza S. Effect of maternal age and conditions of fertilization on programmed cell death during murine preimplantation embryo development. Hum. Reprod. 1998;4(2):139–145
  19. Jurisicova A, Varmuza S, Casper RF. Programmed cell death and human embryo fragmentation. Mol. Hum. Reprod. 1996;2(2):93–98
  20. Jurisicova A, Varmuza S, Casper RF. Developmental consequences of programmed cell death during mammalian embryo development. In:  Tilly JL,  Strauss JF,  Tenniswood MP editor. Cell Death in Reproductive Physiology. New York: Springer-Verlag; 1997;p. 32–47
  21. Kerr JFR, Wyllie AH, Currie AR. Apoptosis: a basic biological phenomenon with wide ranging implications in tissue kinetics. Br. J. Cancer. 1972;26:239–257
  22. Lee DM, Yeoman RR, Yu T, Zelinski-Wooten MB, Stouffer RL, Wold DP. Sphingosine-1-phosphate inhibits apoptosis in Rhesus monkey ovarian tissue in vitro and may improve reproductive function in xenografts. Fertil. Steril. 2005;84(Suppl. S2):0–4
  23. Levy R, Benchaib M, Cordonier H, Guerin J. Apoptosis in the preimplantation embryo. Contracept. Fertil. Sex. J. 1998;26:536–541
  24. Liu HC, He ZY, Mele CA, Veeck L, Davis O, Rosenvacks Z. Expression of apoptosis-related genes in human oocytes and embryos. J. Assist. Reprod. Genet. 2000;17:521–533
  25. Long CR, Dobrinsky JR, Garrett WM, Johnson LA. Dual labeling of the cytoskeleton and DNA strand breaks in porcine embryos produced in vivo and in vitro. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 1998;51(1):59–65
  26. Lopata A, Nayudu P, Jones G, Abramczuk J. The quality of human embryos obtained by in-vitro fertilization. In:  Testart J,  Frydman R editor. Human In Vitro Fertilization. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Elsevier; 1985;p. 171–185
  27. Maceyka M, Payne SG, Milstien S, Spiegel S. Sphingosine kinase, sphingosine-1-phosphate, and apoptosis. Biochim. Biophys. Acta. 2002;1585(2–3):193–201
  28. Matwee C, Betts DH, King WA. Apoptosis in the early bovine embryo. Zygote. 2000;8(1):57–68
  29. Morita Y, Perez GI, Paris F, Miranda SR, Ehleiter D, Haimovitz-Friedman A, et al Oocyte apoptosis is suppressed by disruption of the acid sphingomyelinase gene or by sphingosine-1-phosphate therapy. Nat. Med. 2000;6(10):1109–1114
  30. Nakahara K, Saito H, Saito T, Ito M, Ohta N, Takahashi T, et al. The incidence of apoptotic bodies in membrana granulosa can predict prognosi of ova from patients participating in in-vitro fertilization programs. Fertil. Steril. 1997;68(2):312–317
  31. Otala M, Suomalainen L, Pentikainen M, Kovanen P, Tenhunen M, Erkkila K, et al. Protection from radiation-induced male germ cell loss by sphigosine-1-phosphate. Biol. Reprod. 2004;70:759–767
  32. Paris F, Perez G, Fuks Z, Haimovitz-Friedman A, Nguyen H, Bose M, et al Sphingosine-1-phosphate preserves fertility in irradiated mice without propagating genomic damage in offsprings. Nat. Med. 2002;8:901–902
  33. Pebay A, Wong RC, Pitson SM, Wolvetang EJ, Peh GS, Filipczyk A, et al. Essential roles of sphingosine-1-phosphate and platelet-derived growth factor in the maintenance of human embryonic stem cells. Stem Cells. 2005;23(10):1541–1548
  34. Pierce GB, Gramzinski RA, Parchment RE. Mechanism of programmed cell death in the blastocyst. Ann. NY Acad. Sci. 1989;567:182–186
  35. Roth Z, Hansen PJ. Sphingosine-1-phosphate protects bovine oocytes from heat shock during maturation. Biol. Reprod. 2004;71(6):2072–2078
  36. Sathananthan AH, Bongso A, Ng SC, Ho J, Mok H, Ratnam S. Ultrastructure of preimplantation human embryos co-cultured with human ampullary cells. Hum. Reprod. 1990;1(5):309–318
  37. Spiegel S. Sphingosine-1-phosphate: a prototype of a new class of second messengers. J. Leukoc. Biol. 1999;65:341–344
  38. Suomalainen L, Hakala J, Pentikainen V, Otala M, Erkkila K, Pentikainen M, et al. Sphingosine-1-phosphate in inhibition of male germ cell apoptosis in human testis. J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab. 2003;88(11):5572–5579
  39. Suomalainen L, Pentikainen V, Dunkel L. Sphingosine-1-phosphate inhibits nuclear factor KappaB activation and germ cell apoptosis in the human testis independently of its receptors. Am. J. Pathol. 2005;166(3):773–781
  40. Van Blerkom J, Davis P, Alexander S. A microscopic and biochemical study of fragmentation phenotypes in stage-appropriate human embryos. Hum. Reprod. 2001;16:719–729
  41. Yang MY, Rajamahendran R. Expression of Bcl-2 and Bax proteins in relation to quality of bovine oocytes and embryos produced in vitro. Anim. Reprod. Sci. 2002;70(3–4):159–169

 Professor Antoine Hannoun is an associate professor in the American University of Beirut-Medical Center where he teaches medical students and residents in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in addition to practicing medicine. His sub-specialty is in reproductive endocrinology and infertility and he set up the hospital’s successful IVF program in 1993.

PII: S1472-6483(09)00271-5

doi: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2009.11.020

Reproductive BioMedicine Online
Volume 20, Issue 3 , Pages 328-334 , March 2010

Article Tools