Fetal bovine serum promotes the development of in vitro porcine blastocysts by activating the Rho-associated kinase signalling pathway

Fetal bovine serum (FBS) supplementation has beneficial effects on invitro porcine embryonic development, but the underlying mechanisms are unclear. In the present study we found that the addition of FBS to PZM-3 increased the number of cells in porcine blastocysts and hatching rate invitro primarily by promoting proliferation of the inner cell mass and further differentiation. Moreover, based on the following results, we surmise that FBS benefits blastocyst development by activating Rho-associated kinase (ROCK) signalling: (1) the ROCK signalling inhibitor Y-27632 decreased the blastocyst rate and the number of cells in blastocysts, whereas FBS rescued the developmental failure induced by Y-27632; (2) the mRNA levels of two ROCK isoforms, ROCK1 and ROCK2, were significantly increased in blastocysts derived from medium containing FBS; and (3) FBS increased RhoA/Rho-kinase expression in the nucleus of embryonic cells. These results indicate that FBS promotes the invitro development of porcine embryos by activating ROCK signalling in a chemically defined medium.