Melatonin alleviates the deterioration of oocytes from mice subjected to repeated superovulation

Induction of repeated superovulation with exogenous hormones is widely used in assisted reproductive technology (ART). Though it is generally safe, emerging evidence has indicated that repeated superovulation may compromise oocyte quality. However, few studies have explored how to ameliorate such impairment. Because melatonin has beneficial influences on oocytes in various detrimental environments, we aimed to explore whether melatonin could protect mouse oocytes after repeated superovulation. We found that repeated superovulation markedly reduced meiotic maturation and disrupted spindle organization and chromosome alignment. Furthermore, we observed reduced mitochondrial content and enhanced early apoptosis in oocytes from mice subjected to repeated superovulation. In addition, 5-methylcytosine (5mc) fluorescence intensity was lower in oocytes from experimental mice than in those from control mice, indicating that repeated superovulation disrupts genomic DNA methylation, and elevations in reactive oxygen species levels indicated that repeated superovulation also induces oxidative stress. Conversely, melatonin administration improved oocyte maturation and attenuated the observed defects. Interestingly, supplementation with melatonin during in vitro maturation had the same protective effects on oocytes as in vivo melatonin administration. In summary, our results show that melatonin can improve oocyte quality after repeated superovulation and thus provide a potential strategy to improve ART efficiency.