The antioxidative properties of S-allyl cysteine not only influence somatic cells but also improve early embryo cleavage in pigs.
In vitro cultivation systems for oocytes and embryos are characterised by increased levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can be balanced by the addition of suitable antioxidants. S-allyl cysteine (SAC) is a sulfur compound naturally occurring in garlic (Allium sativum), which is responsible for its high antioxidant properties. In this study, we demonstrated the capacity of SAC (0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 mM) to reduce levels of ROS in maturing oocytes significantly after 24 (reduced by 90.33, 82.87 and 91.62%, respectively) and 48 h (reduced by 86.35, 94.42 and 99.05%, respectively) cultivation, without leading to a disturbance of the standard course of meiotic maturation. Oocytes matured in the presence of SAC furthermore maintained reduced levels of ROS even 22 h after parthenogenic activation (reduced by 66.33, 61.64 and 57.80%, respectively). In these oocytes we also demonstrated a growth of early embryo cleavage rate (increased by 33.34, 35.00 and 35.00%, respectively). SAC may be a valuable supplement to cultivation media.
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences , Prague , Czech Republic.
Markéta
M
Dvořáková
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences , Prague , Czech Republic.
Ivona
I
Heroutová
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences , Prague , Czech Republic.
David
D
Němeček
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences , Prague , Czech Republic.
Kateřina
K
Adámková
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences , Prague , Czech Republic.
Tereza
T
Krejčová
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic; Biomedical center, Faculty of Medicine in Pilsen, Charles University in Prague, Plzen, Czech Republic.
Jan
J
Nevoral
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences , Prague , Czech Republic.
Veronika
V
Kučerová Chrpová
Institute of Animal Science , Prague , Czech Republic.
Jaroslav
J
Petr
Department of Veterinary Sciences, Czech University of Life Sciences , Prague , Czech Republic.
Markéta
M
Sedmíková
Antioxidant; Garlic; Oocyte; Pigs; S-allyl cysteine