title: Composition of commercial media used for human embryo culture.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the composition of commercially available culture media and test whether differences in composition are biologically relevant in a murine model.
  
  
  METHODS
  Experimental laboratory study.
  
  
  METHODS
  University-based laboratory.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cryopreserved hybrid mouse one-cell embryos were used in experiments.
  
  
  METHODS
  Amino acid, organic acid, ions, and metal content were determined for two different lots of media from Cook, In Vitro Care, Origio, Sage, Vitrolife, Irvine CSC, and Global. To determine whether differences in the composition of these media are biologically relevant, mouse one-cell embryos were thawed and cultured for 120 hours in each culture media at 5% and 20% oxygen in the presence or absence of protein in an EmbryoScope time-lapse incubator.
  
  
  METHODS
  The compositions of seven culture media were analyzed for concentrations of 39 individual amino acids, organic acids, ions, and elements. Blastocyst rates and cell cycle timings were calculated at 96 hours of culture, and the experiments were repeated in triplicate.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 39 analytes, concentrations of glucose, lactate, pyruvate, amino acids, phosphate, calcium, and magnesium were present in variable concentrations, likely reflecting differences in the interpretation of animal studies. Essential trace elements, such as copper and zinc, were not detected. Mouse embryos failed to develop in one culture medium and were differentially affected by oxygen in two other media.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Culture media composition varies widely, with differences in pyruvate, lactate, and amino acids especially notable. Blastocyst development was culture media dependent and showed an interaction with oxygen concentration and presence of protein.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. Electronic address: Morbeck.Dean@mayo.edu.
authors.forename: Dean E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Morbeck
authors.affiliation: National Foundation for Fertility Research, Lone Tree, Colorado.
authors.forename: Rebecca L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Krisher
authors.affiliation: National Foundation for Fertility Research, Lone Tree, Colorado.
authors.forename: Jason R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Herrick
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Nikola A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Baumann
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Dietrich
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Matern
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Moyer
mesh_terms: D000596:Amino Acids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D003470:Culture Media / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology; D004573:Electrolytes / Q000494:pharmacology; D046149:Embryo Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects; D047108:Embryonic Development / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008670:Metals / Q000494:pharmacology; D051379:Mice
chemical_list: D000596:Amino Acids; D003470:Culture Media; D004573:Electrolytes; D008670:Metals
keywords: Culture media; embryo culture; mouse embryo assay; quality control