Versican expression level in cumulus cells is associated with human oocyte developmental competence

Area of Science:

• Reproductive biology and genetics.
• Biomarker discovery for assisted reproductive technologies.

Background:

• Cumulus cells (CCs) play a crucial role in oocyte maturation and development.
• Understanding gene expression in CCs can provide insights into oocyte quality.
• Patient factors like age and BMI may influence CC gene expression.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between 10 selected genes in cumulus cells and oocyte developmental competence.
• To determine the effect of patient age and body mass index (BMI) on cumulus cell gene expression.
• To explore the potential of specific gene expression markers for evaluating oocyte quality.

Main Methods:

• Collected 354 cumulus cell masses from individual oocytes of 48 women.
• Quantified gene expression (glucose metabolism and expansion genes) using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).
• Analyzed gene expression in relation to oocyte maturity, fertilization, embryo morphology, implantation, patient age, and BMI.

Main Results:

• Higher PFKP expression in cumulus cells from mature oocytes compared to immature ones.
• Increased VCAN expression associated with oocytes developing into high-quality embryos.
• Lower TNFAIP6 expression observed in cumulus cells from fertilized oocytes.
• Significant changes in VCAN, TNFAIP6, PTX3, and SDC4 expression related to patient age and BMI.

Conclusions:

• VCAN expression in cumulus cells is positively correlated with early embryo morphology.
• VCAN expression may serve as a potential biomarker for assessing oocyte developmental competence.
• This finding could complement existing methods for evaluating embryo quality.