An optofluidic system for the concentration gradient screening of oocyte protection drugs
Dongyong Yang1, Qinghao Hu2, Shukun Zhao2
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430060, China.
Abstract:
Oocytes protective drug screening is essential for the treatment of reproductive diseases. However, few studies construct the oocyte in vitro drug screening microfluidic systems because of their enormous size, scarcity, and sensitivity to the culture environment. Here, we present an optofluidic system for oocyte drug screening and state analysis. The system consists of two parts: an open-top drug screening microfluidic chip and an optical Fourier filter analysis part. The open-top microfluidic chip anchors single oocyte with hydrogel and allows nutrient and gas environment updating which is essential for oocyte culturing. The optical filter analysis part is used to accurately analyse the status of oocytes. Based on this system, we found that fluorene-9-bisphenol (BHPF) damaged the oocyte spindle in a dose-dependent manner, a high dose of melatonin (10-3 M) effectively reduces the percentage of abnormally arranged chromosomes of oocytes exposed to 40 μM BHPF. This optofluidic system shows great promise for the culture of oocytes and demonstrates the robust ability for convenient multi-concentration oocytes drug screening. This technology may benefit further biomedicine and reproductive toxicology applications in the lab on a chip community.
Insights
A novel optofluidic system enables efficient in vitro oocyte drug screening. Melatonin protects oocytes from fluorene-9-bisphenol (BHPF) damage, offering potential for reproductive health research.
Area of Science:
- Reproductive Biology
- Biomedical Engineering
- Toxicology
Background:
- Oocyte drug screening is crucial for reproductive disease treatment.
- Existing microfluidic systems face challenges due to oocyte size, scarcity, and environmental sensitivity.
- Developing advanced in vitro screening platforms is essential.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an optofluidic system for oocyte drug screening and state analysis.
- To assess the protective effects of melatonin against fluorene-9-bisphenol (BHPF) induced oocyte damage.
- To demonstrate the system's utility for multi-concentration drug screening.
Main Methods:
- Construction of an open-top microfluidic chip for single oocyte culture with hydrogel anchoring.
- Integration of an optical Fourier filter analysis component for oocyte status assessment.
- In vitro drug screening assay using fluorene-9-bisphenol (BHPF) and melatonin.
Main Results:
- The optofluidic system successfully cultured and analyzed single oocytes.
- Fluorene-9-bisphenol (BHPF) was found to damage the oocyte spindle in a dose-dependent manner.
- A high dose of melatonin (10⁻³ M) significantly reduced abnormal chromosome arrangements in BHPF-exposed oocytes.
Conclusions:
- The developed optofluidic system is promising for oocyte culture and drug screening.
- This technology facilitates convenient, multi-concentration screening of oocyte protective drugs.
- The system holds potential for future applications in biomedicine and reproductive toxicology.
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