title: Mitochondria transfer can enhance the murine embryo development.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the effect of mitochondrial transfer on embryonic development.
  
  
  METHODS
  Mitochondria concentrates were collected from murine hepatocytes and fertilized murine zygotes from young and older mice in the 2PN stage were subjected to mitochondrial transfer and cultured in vitro to evaluate the embryonic development.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After extended in vitro culture, 37.65% and 20.91% embryos from the young mice developed to the blastocyst stage in the injected and control groups respectively, which is statistically significant. There was no difference in terms of hatching rates (1.76% and 1.82% respectively). Zygotes from the older mice (>20 weeks old) that received mitochondrial transfer also had a better developmental outcome than the control group (54.35% and 18.92% developed to morula stage, 43.48% and 8.11% developed to the blastocyst stage respectively), which is statistically significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results for the murine model provide direct scientific evidence that mitochondrial transfer improves embryonic development. However, potential risks such as mitochondrial heteroplasmy, nuclear-mitochondrial interaction and epigenetic aspects all deserve further evaluation before mitochondrial transfer is applied clinically.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, 160, Chung-Kang Road Section 3, Taichung 407, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Yu-Chiao
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Yi
authors.forename: Ming-Jer
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Jason Yen-Ping
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Ho
authors.forename: Hwa-Fen
authors.initials: HF
authors.lastname: Guu
authors.forename: Esther Shih-Chu
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Ho
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001755:Blastocyst; D047108:Embryonic Development; D005260:Female; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D008928:Mitochondria / Q000637:transplantation*; D011247:Pregnancy; D027724:Reproductive Techniques, Assisted; D015053:Zygote / Q000254:growth & development*