Skip to main content

Developmental Consequences of Programmed Cell Death in Human Preimplantation Embryos

  • Chapter
Cell Death in Reproductive Physiology

Abstract

For many couples the failure to achieve and maintain pregnancy remains a major problem. An alternative solution for these couples is in-vitro fertilization (IVF). When the first IVF baby was born, no one expected that this unconventional method of conception would become such a widely used treatment for infertility. From the report of clinical results of assisted reproductive technology procedures in the USA and Canada for 1991, it is clear that of the 21,083 oocyte retrievals, 87.1% led to a successful fertilization and preembryo transfer. However, only 4,017 clinical pregnancies (19.1%) were achieved (1). The overall birth rate per IVF retrieval does not exceed 15.25%.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  1. Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology, The American Fertility Society. Assisted reproductive technology in the United States and Canada; 1991 results from the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology generated from The American Fertility Society Registry. Fertil Steril 1993; 59: 956–62.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Winston RML, Handyside AH. New challenges in human in vitro fertilization. Science 1993; 260: 932–6.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Leese HJ, Conaghan J, Martin KL, Hardy K. Early human embryo metabolism. Bioassays 1993; 15: 259–64.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Hardy K, Handyside AH, Winston RM. The human blastocyst: cell number, death and allocation during late preimplantation development in vitro. Development 1989; 107: 597–604.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Schultz GA, Heyner S. Gene expression in preimplantation mammalian embryos. Mutation Res 1992; 296; 17–31.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. Braude P, Bolton V, Moore S. Human gene expression first occurs between the four and eight cell stages of preimplantation development. Nature 1988; 332: 459–61.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Tesarik J, Kopecny V, Plachot M, Mandelbaum J. Early morphological signs of embryonic genome expression in human preimplantation development as revealed by quantitative electron microscopy. Develop Biol 1988; 128: 15–20.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Flach G, Johnson MH, Braude PR, Taylor RAS, Bolton VN. The transition from maternal to embryonic control in the 2-cell mouse embryo. EMBO J 1982; 1: 681–6.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Bolton V, Braude PR. Development of spare human preimplantation embryos in vitro. Curr Topics Dev Biol 1987; 23: 93–113.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Plachot M, Mandelbaum J. Oocyte maturation, fertilization and embryonic growth in vitro. Br Med Bull 1980; 46: 675–94.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Erenus M, Zoues C, Rajamahendran P, Leung S, Fluker M, Gomel V. The effect of embryo quality on subsequent pregnancy rates after in vitro fertilization. Fertil Steril 1991; 56: 707-l0.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Summers MC, Bhatnagar PR, Lawitts JA, Biggers JD. Fertilization in vitro of mouse ova from inbred and outbred strains: complete preimplantation embryo development in glucose-supplemented KSOM. Biol Reprod 1995; 53: 431–7.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Formigli I, Roccio C, Belotti G, Stangalini A, Coglitore MT, Formogli G. Nonsurgical flushing of the uterus for the pre-embryo recovery: possible clinical applications. Hum Reprod 1990; 5: 329–35.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Hardy K, Winston RML, Handyside AH. Binucleate blastomeres in preimplanta-tion human embryos in vitro: failure of cytokinesis during early development. J Reprod Fertil 1993; 98: 549–58.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Jurisicova A, Varmuza S, Casper RF. Involvement of programmed cell death in preimplantation embryo demise. Hum Reprod Update 1995; 1: 558–66.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Jurisicova A, Varmuza S, Casper RF. Programmed cell death and human embryo fragmentation. Mol Hum Reprod 1996; 2: 101–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Rotello RJ, Fernandez PA, Yuan J. Anti-apogens and anti-engulfens: monoclonal antibodies reveal specific antigens on apoptotic and engulfment cells during chicken embryonic development. Development 1994; 120: 1421–31.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Drake BL, Rodger JC. Phagocytic properties of cultured murine trophoblast. Placenta 1987; 8: 129–39.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. Winston NJ, Braude PR, Pickering SJ, George MA, Cant A, Currie J, Johnson MH. Incidence of abnormal morphology and nucleocytoplasmic ratios in 2-, 3-and 5-day human preembryos. Hum Reprod 1991; 6: 17–24.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. El-Shershaby AM, Hinchliffe JR. Cell redundancy in the zona-intact preimplantation mouse blastocyst: a light and electron microscope study of dead cells and their fate. J Embryo! Exp Morphol 1974; 31: 643–54.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Mohr LR, Trounson AO. Comparative ultrastructure of hatched human mouse and bovine blastocysts. J Reprod Fertil 1982; 66: 499–504.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Parchment RE. The implications of a unified theory of PCD, polyamines, oxyradicals and histogenesis in the embryo. Int J Dev Biol 1993; 37: 75–83.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Pierce GB, Lewellyn AL, Parchment RE. Mechanism of PCD in the blastocyst. Proc Nat! Acad Sci USA 1989; 86: 3654–8.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Pierce GB, Parchment RE, Lewellyn AL. Hydrogen peroxide as a mediator of PCD in the blastocyst. Differentiation 1991; 46: 181–6.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Erbach GT, Lawitts JA, Papaioannou VE, Biggers JD. Differential growth of the mouse preimplantation embryo in chemically defined media. Biol Reprod 1994; 50: 1027–33.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Ratan PR, Murphy TH, Baraban JM. Oxidative stress induces apoptosis in embryonic cortical neurons. J Neurochem 1994; 62: 376–9.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Nasr-Esfahani MH, Aitken JR, Johnson MH. Hydrogen peroxide levels in mouse oocytes and early cleavage stage embryos developed in vitro or in vivo. Development 1990; 109: 501–7.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Gardiner CS, Reed DJ. Status of glutathione during oxidant-induced oxidative stress in the preimplantation mouse embryo. Biol Reprod 1994; 51: 1307–14.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Beaver JP, Waring P. A decrease in intracellular glutathione concentration proceeds the onset of apoptosis in munne thymocytes. Eur J Cell Biol 1995; 68: 47–54.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Ferrari G, Yan CY, Greene LA. N-acetyl cysteine prevents apoptotic death of neuronal cells. J Neurosci 1995; 15: 2857–66.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Tilly JL, Tilly KI. Inhibitors of oxidative stress mimic the ability of follicle-stimulating hormone to suppress apoptosis in cultured rat ovarian follicles. Endocrinology 1995; 136: 242–52.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Bavister B. Culture of preimplantation embryos: facts and artifacts. Hum Reprod Update 1995; 1: 91–148.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Trocino RA, Shoichi A, Ishibashi M, Matsumoto K, Matsuo H, Yamamoto H, Goto S, Urata Y, Kondo T, Nagataki S. Significance of glutathione depletion and oxidative stress in early embryogenesis in glucose-induced rat embryo culture. Diabetes 1995; 44: 992–7.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Barnet D, Bavister B. What is the relationship between the metabolism of preimplantation embryos and their developmental competence. Mol Repr Dev 1996; 43: 105–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Dvorak M, Tesarik J. Differentiation of mitochondria in the human preimplanta-tion embryo grown in vitro. Scr Med 1985; 3: 161–9.

    Google Scholar 

  36. Matos DG, Furnus C, Moses D, Saldassarre H. Effect of cysteamine on glutathione level and developmental capacity of bovine oocyte matured in vitro. Mo1 Reprod Dev 1995; 42: 432–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  37. Wiemer K, Cohen J, Wiker S, Malter H, Wright G, Godke R. Coculture of human zygotes on fetal bovine uterine fibroblasts: embryonic morphology and implantation. Fertil Steril 1989; 52: 503–8.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  38. Bongso A, Ng S, Fong C, Ratnam S. Coculture: a new lead in embryo quality improvement for assisted reproduction. Fertil Steril 1991; 56: 179–91.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  39. Stewart C, Kaspar P, Brunet L, Bhatt H, Gadi I, Konthegn F, Abbondanzo S. Błastocyst implantation depends on maternal expression of leukaemia inhibitory factor. Nature 1992; 359: 76–9.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. Pesce M, Farrace M, Piacentini M, Dolci S, De Felici M. Stem cell factor and leukaemia inhibitory factor promote germ cell survival suppressing programmed cell death (apoptosis). Development 1993; 118: 1089–94.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  41. Jurisicova A, Ben-Chetrit A, Varmuza S, Casper RF. Recombinant human leukaemia inhibitory factor (rLIF) does not enhance in-vitro human blastocyst formation. Fertil Steril 1995; 64: 999–1002.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  42. Kaufmann M.H. Early mammalian development. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge 1983; 28–32.

    Google Scholar 

  43. De Silva M, Stracher K, Sauer S, Horvath P, Butler W. Effect of removal of cumulus cells from 1-cell mouse embryos on in vitro development. J IVF ET 1990; 7: 129–33.

    Google Scholar 

  44. Guo J, Jurisicova A, Casper RF. Detection of deoxyribonucleic fragmentation in human sperm: correlation with fertilization in vitro. Biol Reprod 1997; 56: 602–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  45. Balakier H, Squire J, Casper RF. Characterisation of human abnormal one pro-nuclear oocytes by morphology, cytogenetics and in situ hybridization. Hum Reprod 1993; 8: 740–3.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  46. Van Blerkom J, Davis PW, Merriam J. A retrospective analysis of unfertilized and presumed parthenogenetically activated human oocytes demonstrates a high frequency of sperm penetration. Hum Reprod 1994; 9: 2381–8.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  47. Raff MC, Barres BA, Fiume JF, Coles HSR, Ishizaki Y, Jacobson MD. Programmed cell death and the control of the cell survival Phil Trans R Soc Lond 1994; 345: 263–8.

    Google Scholar 

  48. Papadopoulos G, Templeton AA, Fisk N, Randall J. The frequency of chromosomal anomalies in human preimplantation embryo after in vitro fertilization. Hum Reprod 1989; 4: 91–8.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  49. Zenzes MT, Casper, RF. Cytogenetics of human oocytes, zygotes, and embryos after in vitro fertilization. Hum Genet 1992; 88: 367–75.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  50. Michaeli G, Fejgin M, Ghetler Y, Ben Nun I, Beyth Y, Amiel A. Chromosomal analysis of unfertilized oocytes and morphologically abnormal preimplantation embryos from an in vitro fertilization program. J IVF ET 1990; 7: 341–6.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  51. Pellestor F, Dufour MC, Arnal F, Humeau C. Direct assessment of the rate of chromosomal abnormalities in grade IV human embryos produced by in vitro fertilization procedure. Hum Reprod 1994; 9: 293–302.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. Zenzes MT, Wang P, Casper RF. Chromosome normality of untransferred (spare) embryos correlates with likelihood of pregnancy in the in vitro fertilization procedure. Lancet 1992; 340: 391–4.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  53. Munne S, Cohen J. Monospermic polyploidy and atypical embryo morphology. Hum Reprod 1994; 9: 506–10.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  54. Gaulden M. Maternal age effect: the enigma of Down syndrome and other trisomic conditions. Mutatation Res 1992; 296: 69–88.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  55. Fischer B, Kunzel W, Kleinstein J, Gips H. Oxygen tension in follicular fluid falls with follicle maturation. Eur J Obstet Gynecol 1992; 43: 39–43.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  56. Gotlieb RA, Giesing H, Zhu J, Engler R, Babior B. Cell acidification in apoptosis: granulocyte colony-stimulating factor delays programmed cell death in neutrophils by up-regulating the vascular H-ATPase. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 1995; 92: 5965–8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  57. Van Blerkom J. The influence of intrinsic and extrinsic factors on the developmental potential and chromosomal normality of the human oocyte. J Soc Gynecol Invest 1996; 3: 3–11.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  58. Piquette GN, Tilly JL, Prichard L, Simon C, Polan ML. Detection of apoptosis in human and rat ovarian follicles. J Soc Gynecol Invest 1994; 1: 297–301.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  59. Van Blerkom J, Davis PW, Lee J. ATP content of human oocytes and developmental potential and outcome after in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer. Hum Reprod 1995; 10: 415–24.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  60. Tilly JL. Apoptosis and the ovary: a fashionable trend or food for thought? Fertil Steril 1997; 67: 226–8.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  61. Cohen J, Alikani M, Liu H-C, Rosenwaks Z. Rescue of human embryos by micromanipulation. Bailliere’s Clin Obstet Gynecol 1994; 8: 95–116.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 1997 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Jurisicova, A., Varmuza, S.L., Casper, R.F. (1997). Developmental Consequences of Programmed Cell Death in Human Preimplantation Embryos. In: Tilly, J.L., Strauss, J.F., Tenniswood, M. (eds) Cell Death in Reproductive Physiology. Proceedings in the Serono Symposia USA Series. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-1944-6_4

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-1944-6_4

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4612-7351-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4612-1944-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics