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In vitro Development of Zona Pellucida-free Porcine Zygotes Cultured Individually after Vitrification
N T Nguyen, M Hirata1, F Tanihara2
1Faculty of Bioscience and Bioindustry, Tokushima University, Tokushima, Japan. mhirata@tokushima-u.ac.jp.
Background:
Cryopreservation of zona pellucida (ZP)-free embryos provides more options for somatic cell nuclear transfer, particularly during handmade cloning.
Objective:
This study investigated whether the removal of the ZP affects the development of porcine zygotes after vitrification and warming.
Materials And Methods:
We determined the appropriate volume of the corresponding medium for the individual culture of ZP-intact and -free embryos and evaluated the protection effect of ZP during cryopreservation on the resulting development of the vitrified-warmed zygotes.
Results:
The volume of culture medium influenced the development of ZP-intact zygotes, and a volume of 15 µL was most suitable for their development. However, the volume of culture medium did not modify the development of ZP-free zygotes. The removal of the ZP before vitrification did not adversely affect embryonic development or quality of the resulting blastocysts.
Conclusion:
Our results suggest that the removal of the ZP does not cause detrimental effects to the development of vitrified-warmed zygotes.
