title: Development of sheep primordial follicles encapsulated in alginate or in ovarian tissue in fresh and vitrified samples.
abstract: In vitro follicle growth is a promising strategy for female fertility preservation. This study was conducted to compare the development of ovine follicles either isolated or in the context of ovarian cortical pieces after short term (8 days) three-dimensional culture in fresh and vitrified samples. Four different experiments were conducted; I) culture of ovarian cortical pieces encapsulated in 0.5% and 1% alginate and without alginate encapsulation (CP-0.5%, CP-1% and CP, respectively), II) culture of isolated primordial and primary follicles encapsulated in 1% and 2% alginate (IF-1% and IF-2%, respectively), III) culture of fresh and vitrified-warmed cortical pieces (F-CP and Vit-CP, respectively), and IV) culture of fresh and vitrified-warmed encapsulated isolated follicles (F-IF and Vit-IF, respectively). The number of secondary follicles after culture was negatively influenced by encapsulation of ovarian cortical pieces (6.3 ± 3.3 and 10.6 ± 0.9 vs 21.5 ± 2.3 in CP-0.5% and CP-1% vs CP, respectively). The diameter of follicles in IF-2% was higher than IF-1% (54.06 ± 2 vs 41.9 ± 1.5) and no significant difference in follicular viability was observed between the two groups. The proportions of different follicular types and their viability after culture in vitrified-warmed cortical pieces were comparable with fresh ones. The viability of vitrified-warmed isolated follicles was lower than fresh counterparts. The growth rate of fresh follicles was higher than vitrified-warmed follicles after culture (47.9 ± 1 vs 44.6 ± 1). In conclusion, while encapsulation of ovarian cortical pieces decreased the follicles' development, it could better support the growth of isolated follicles. Moreover, the viability and growth rate of isolated-encapsulated follicles was decreased by vitrification.
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran; Department of Physiology, Developmental Biology Laboratory, School of Biology, University College of Science, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Samaneh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sadeghnia
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran. Electronic address: m_akhondi@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Mohammad Mehdi
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Akhondi
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Developmental Biology Laboratory, School of Biology, University College of Science, Tehran University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ghamartaj
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hossein
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Sahba
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mobini
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Laleh
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hosseini
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Mehdi
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Naderi
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Sara Borjian
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Boroujeni
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sarvari
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Bahareh
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Behzadi
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Biotechnology Research Center, Avicenna Research Institute, ACECR, Tehran, Iran; Research Institute of Animal Embryo Technology, Shahrekord University, Shahrekord, Iran. Electronic address: shiraziabbas@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Abolfazl
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shirazi
mesh_terms: D000464:Alginates / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D002470:Cell Survival; D005260:Female; D059247:Fertility Preservation / Q000379:methods*; D020723:Glucuronic Acid / Q000494:pharmacology; D006603:Hexuronic Acids / Q000494:pharmacology; D009924:Organ Culture Techniques; D006080:Ovarian Follicle / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development*; D034561:Sheep, Domestic / Q000254:growth & development*; D058989:Vitrification
chemical_list: D000464:Alginates; D006603:Hexuronic Acids; D020723:Glucuronic Acid
keywords: Encapsulation; Ovarian follicle; Primary; Primordial; Sheep; Vitrification