Functional enucleation of mouse metaphase II oocytes with etoposide

Mouse metaphase II (M II) oocytes were exposed to 50 micrograms/microliters etoposide (ETO) before and after parthenogenetic activation with 7% ethanol and they were washed with 0.75 M sucrose. The ETO treated parthenogenetically activated oocytes were cultured or fused to single blastomeres of late 2-cell stage mouse embryo to test their ability to support development in vitro. In parallel untreated parthenogenetically activated oocytes were cultured to serve as control. None of ETO treated oocytes developed beyond the 2-cell stage, whereas 4% of the reconstituted embryos and 35% of control developed to blastocysts. It is concluded that mouse M II oocytes can be functionally enucleated by ETO treatment and can be used for nuclear transfer experiments.